Technology

Backsheet manufacturer Tomark-Worthen LLC has developed a new polyamide backsheet under the U.S. Department of Energy’s Sunshot initiative. The product is based on a novel polyamide-ionomer alloy created by U.S. chemicals producer Dow. The alloy, as well as the other materials in the backsheet, are stabilized with a UV/anti-oxidant package that slows down the damaging effects of ultraviolet radiation. The manufacturer claims that the backsheet is 25-30% more affordable than high-efficiency fluoropolymer products.

Researchers in Singapore have created a device that can produce electricity from the contrast in illumination between lit and shadowed areas under weak ambient light. Although not directly related to solar, this new technology opens up new horizons for producing clean energy under indoor lighting conditions.

In a world-first, perovskite solar cells developed by Australian scientists have passed a series of heat and humidity tests using a low-cost solution to overcome some of the challenges that are hindering the technology’s commercialization. The scientists did this by suppressing the decomposition of the perovskite cells using a simple, low-cost polymer-glass blanket.

The municipality of Drammen, Norway, has started testing a seasonal PV storage project that uses boreholes in the ground. The operators of the project are using electricity from PV modules to produce heat via a CO2 heat pump and outdoor air. The heat is produced by the CO2 pump during the spring, summer and fall, in addition to heat produced by solar thermal collectors.

Scientists in the United States have created a quantum dot solar cell which has a photon-to-electron conversion efficiency of 85%. The device is also said to exhibit remarkable defect tolerance and toxic-element-free composition.

Researchers in the United States claim to have significantly increased the efficiency of a perovskite solar cell by applying a range of pressures to the device. According to them, pressure-assisted processes such as lamination, cold welding and rolling/roll-to-roll processing can be used to improve interfacial surface contacts in perovskite cells.

Researchers in Australia have conducted a ‘cradle to grave’ life cycle assessment (LCA) of the four most widely used PV technologies. The academics say that cadmium telluride solar modules have the lowest life cycle impact, followed by amorphous, multi and monocrystalline silicon products.

Researchers from the U.S. Naval Research Laboratory have launched first orbital experiment with space-based solar power. They have sent into space a 12-inch square tile photovoltaic module that is expected to test the viability of space-based solar power systems converting sunlight to microwaves outside the atmosphere.

German panel maker Sonnenstromfabrik has developed a glass-glass monocrystalline PV module in three versions offering different levels of transparency. The company says the transparency feature makes the panels suitable for verandas, pergolas, awnings, carports, swimming pools, halls and facades. Their power output varies from 160 W to 280 W, while their efficiency ranges from 9.5% to 16.7%.

Researchers in Japan have demonstrated a new concept for a ‘heat-recovery’ solar cell, which they claim has the potential to exceed the theoretical limit for cell efficiency. They say, however, that a suitable material for the energy filtering layers is yet to be identified. The cell is equipped with a 100-micron thick silicon absorber, two electrodes and carrier-energy filtering layers placed between the absorber and electrodes.