science

Japan’s National Institute of Technology and Evaluation (NITE) says in a new report that snow has damaged 43 PV installations of different sizes over the past four years. It urges PV system owners to conduct regular site inspections, use surveillance cameras, and remove snow at early stages.

Spanish scientists have created a bifacial thermophotovoltaic cell that reportedly provides high power and efficient energy conversion at moderate temperatures. They say the device can achieve twice the power density of “conventional” monofacial thermophotovoltaic devices without higher system costs.

Researchers in China have successfully prepared cobalt oxide-modified graphite felt as an electrode material for an iron-chromium flow battery. The electrode performance significantly improved due to the effects of cobalt, which in turn boosted the energy efficiency and overall performance of the battery.

pv magazine speaks to Gianluca Coletti, program manager of tandem photovoltaic tech at Dutch research institute TNO, about initial attempts to bring tandem perovskite-silicon solar cells to market. He says the first PV products based on the highly efficient technology could make an appearance sooner than expected.

Naked Energy is commercializing a photovoltaic-thermal system to capture excess heat generated by PV modules for use in buildings. The VirtuPVT system, conceived for rooftop applications, includes an absorber plate, monocrystalline PERC solar cells, a borosilicate vacuum tube, an integrated reflector, and an integrated mounting system.

There is currently no widely accepted test methodology to assess the safety of second-life lithium-ion batteries (LiBs). However, a UK government study reveals two opposing views on their safety, raising concerns over whether such devices should be deployed in homes under any circumstances.

The European Commission has presented the final version of its new rules for green hydrogen, with looser requirements to qualify hydrogen as “green.”

European researchers have looked at how zinc phosphide could be used in solar cell development and found that monocrystalline thin films might perform better than polycrystalline films in electrical devices. They also determined that the performance of such films is directly correlated to the zinc/phosphide ratio.

Researchers in Germany have assessed direct coupling and integration between PV and batteries at the scale of a single PV module. They say their solution could be cheaper and provide superior performance than maximum power point tracking (MPPT) in optimizing PV system performance.

Japan’s Panasonic says its new GB-L1CMH1A meter can operate without changing the state of the fuel cell. It says it can also measure a wide range of hydrogen flow rates and concentrations.