Chinese PV Industry: Government announces deployment of 30 GW of renewables in northwestern China
Furthermore, TBEA has announced a plan to invest in four solar power plants and Flat Glass has agreed to acquire two quartz mines.
High module prices make Italy an early victim of supply chain disruption
Sergio Matalucci reports for pv magazine from the Key Energy event in Rimini on how the Italian solar market is currently dealing with the module price hike and the supply change disruption. According to the president of Italian association Italia Solare, difficulties to source modules in the market have intensified over the last four months.
A whole new structure for silicon
Scientists in the United States theorized that a new allotrope of silicon – the same element arranged into a different atomic structure – could show greatly improved photovoltaic performance compared to that used in today’s solar cells. The allotrope, Si22, could also have important properties for use in quantum computing, carbon sequestration and other applications – though fabrication and actual physical testing of the material will be needed to back up the theoretical findings presented so far.
New tech to recover pure silicon from end-of-life solar cells
An Indian research group has used three different chemicals instead of commonly used hydrofluoric acid to separate silicon from the cell. The technique is claimed to be able to deliver recycled silicon with a purity of up to 99.9984%.
Should I include a battery with my home solar project? Part 1
A growing share of residential solar projects now attach energy storage batteries. In part one of this new series, we consider the backup power feature of batteries.
Longi improves efficiency of its heterojunction cell from 25.82 to 26.30% in just one week
The result was confirmed, once again, by Germany’s Institute for Solar Energy Research Hamelin (ISFH).
Neoen connects 460 MW solar farm to grid in Australia
French developer Neoen’s massive 460 MWp solar farm in Queensland, Australia, is rapidly advancing toward completion, with state-owned network operator Powerlink confirming connection to the electricity grid is now complete.
Sunman unveils 430 W glass free solar module
The new product has a power conversion efficiency of up to 19.3% and a weight of 11.2 kg. The module is produced with glass fiber reinforced plastic, which the manufacturer says reduces light reflection and opens up new assembly options.
US utility paying solar customers to adopt energy storage
Rocky Mountain Power’s incentive program requires that the batteries be charged by on-site solar power systems in order to fully qualify.
US solar module imports fall 27% in Q3
The largest single-quarter drop in three years comes as the American Solar Manufacturers Against Chinese Circumvention propose greater tariffs against Asian-imported modules.
