Germany offers best European policy for agrivoltaics, claim researchers
Scientists in Canada studied romaine lettuce growth under cadmium telluride thin-film solar modules with varying transparency and photosynthetically active radiation, and found Germany’s regulatory framework most effective for maximizing agrivoltaic benefits.
Improving PV cleaning schedules without large datasets
Scientists in Algeria have developed a low-cost solution to optimize cleaning operations for all PV systems. The proposed approach works “effectively” without heavy data requirements, according to its creators.
Photovoltaics for mango drying
Scientists have created a solar cabinet dryer for mango slices, with PV-powered forced convection. Placing mango slices of different thicknesses inside, they have measured the operation of their device against two reference methods and have found that thermal efficiency reached 30%.
Packaging solar cells via glass-glass welding
A Chinese-Japanese research team has developed a new laser technology for the micro-welding of transparent and hard materials for solar cell packaging. The process is based on a silver ion solution that can reportedly achieve high-quality connections.
Uncovering UV degradation risks in solar panels
An interview with Fraunhofer ISE on new discoveries of ultraviolet degradation risks.
Feasibility assessment for deploying PV panels on tram tracks
New research from Poland has suggested installing 891 PV panels along the entire tram platform and inter-track spaces of four major transportation hubs. The analysis showed that the PV system could power all of the city’s tram stops, the passenger information system, and meet 10% of demand from service depots.
Agrivoltaics for sugarcane
Brazilian scientists have investigated the potential of agrivoltaics on sugarcane fields and have found this combination may provide benefits in terms of both agricultural and electricity yield. Their results showed that under certain conditions the sugarcane yield below the panels can be higher than that of plots without PV.
Solar module certification is broken. Here’s how to fix it
Is the solar industry’s focus on cutting costs undermining module reliability, safety and lifecycle economics?
Scientists build 42.01%-efficient indoor PV cell for self-powered devices
An international researc team has included an interlocked self-assembled monolayer in perovskite indoor PV to enhance its stability and durability. Fabricating cells, mini modules, and a prototype device of an electronic price tag, the novel structure was tested. It was found to exhibit a lifetime approaching 6,000 hours.
Advantage of back-contact solar modules in shading scenarios is limited to specific conditions, study finds
Researchers from Trina Solar and China’s Nanchang University claim to have verified that back-contact solar modules outperform TOPCon modules only when fewer than three cells in a substring are shaded. Their findings were published in a peer-reviewed scientific paper.
