The Hydrogen Stream: Hyundai inches closer to hydrogen engine development
Hyundai Heavy Industries has revealed plans to develop a hybrid engine with more hydrogen by 2023, and a complete hydrogen engine by 2025. Japan, meanwhile, has signed hydrogen-related agreements with Saudi Arabia and Oman.
Fraunhofer ISE to develop propane heat pumps for residential homes
Germany’s Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy and a group of heat pump manufacturers have started a project to replace gas and oil heating systems in multi-family homes with propane heat pumps featuring low-charge propane (R290) as the refrigerant.
German court rules in favor of Q Cells in patent dispute with Trina Solar
A German court has issued a preliminary injunction ordering Trina Solar to stop selling its Honey and Vertex X solar modules in Germany, as they allegedly infringe upon the patented passivation technologies of Hanwha Q Cells.
Airbus taps Australian researchers to develop high-efficiency solar cells for space
Researchers from the University of New South Wales have been chosen to work with Airbus Defence and Space on a strategic research program to fast-track the development of high-efficiency solar cells for space applications.
Danish renewables giant buys Australian megaproject
Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners has sharpened its focus on long-duration storage in Australia with the acquisition of the proposed Bowen Renewable Energy Hub project, which is expected to combine 1.4 GW of pumped hydro storage with huge solar and wind generation.
French rail operator to develop solar systems capable of operating at 9,000 V
SNCF Réseau and the National Institute for Solar Energy (INES) in France have agreed to jointly develop renewables projects. They aim to build PV systems that can supply continuous power at voltages of 3 kV, 6 kV, and 9 kV, while optimizing installation costs – particularly with regard to cables, operations, and maintenance.
Belgium’s Flanders region to slash solar, storage premium in 2023
The Flemish government will halve the solar panels premium from a maximum of €1,500 ($1,594) in 2022 to €750 from Jan. 1, 2023. It will also end the home battery premium earlier than initially announced, from April 2023. The premium for heat pump boilers, on the other hand, will be retroactively doubled.
Germany allocates 104 MW of rooftop solar in unsubscribed auction
Germany’s latest solar auction allocated 104 MW of solar for buildings and noise barriers on motorways. The tender volume was 202 MW which went partly unsubscribed. The volume-weighted average award value fell slightly to €0.0874 ($0.093)/kWh.
New method brings durability of perovskite solar cells closer to silicon
Researchers from the United Kingdom, the United States and Australia have reportedly developed a perovskite solar cell with comparable stability and durability to commercial silicon PV cells. They used a high-temperature processing method with dimethylammonium chloride to control the intermediate phases of perovskite crystallization.
New process increases efficiency of CIGS bifacial thin-film solar cells
Researchers from the Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials Science and Technology (Empa) have developed a new low-temperature production process for bifacial thin-film solar cells based on copper indium gallium diselenide (CIGS). It resulted in record yields of 19.8% for front lighting and 10.9% for rear lighting.
