Solar Technology & PV R&D News

French water management agency Société du Canal de Provence (SCP) is planning an innovative floating project to test its combination with a solar tracking system. The 250 kW project was awarded a fixed tariff in a special tender for innovative PV projects held by The French Energy Regulatory Commission (CRE) in February 2018. The plant will be deployed on a water surface managed by SCP in Southern France.

Norwegian firm EnergyNest is to deploy its thermal battery storage technology at a manufacturing plant in Austria.

The electricity generated by the PV panels will be used to power the surrounding lighting system, as well as to heat the lane in winter to prevent road slipperiness caused by snow, ice or water. The project is part of a plan by the Dutch government to test the viability of solar power production on road infrastructure.

Lower prices for polycrystalline silicon have turned interest from poly-Si consumption minimization. However, the latest study shows that, with account to modern technologies, slimming wafers can be crucial for cost reduction and is worth attention again.

An author from American research university has developed a new model to define the best tilt angle for photovoltaic modules at definite locations. According to the developer, the innovation can considerably improve the existing solar installation methods.

A scientific group from UC Berkeley (USA) has developed a blue-emitting LED from halide perovskites, the cheapness and ease of making of which make them very attractive for electronic applications.

A group of scientists from China has created an EVA film claimed to improve efficiency of solar devices by about 0.5 percent. This newly developed pure film converts ultraviolet radiation into visible light.

The scientific group from NTU (England) has proven that a wearable PV device can be integrated into clothes. The innovative fabric has been based on µc-Si cells embedded into fibrous textile by means of super-thin copper wire. The newly created material is claimed to keep its efficiency after 6,000 abrasions, 25 handwashing and 15 machine washing cycles.

A Washington State University team has developed a more efficient, safer, and cost-effective way to produce cadmium telluride (CdTe) material for solar cells or other applications, a discovery that could advance the solar industry and make it more competitive.

Italian scientific team has developed a new method combining the Hovel model with SMM. The novel approach allows describing electromagnetic radiation in a PV cell more accurately, considering interference effects. The device under examination is based on Ge, InGaAs and InGaP. The corresponding anti-reflection coating can make a cell with 3-5 junctions 50-percent efficient.

Saudi researchers claim to have improved the thermal stability and moisture resistance of such devices by replacing 3D hybrid perovskite with two-dimensional compounds. They used organic compound ethanolamine, which is said to provide better results in slowing down the hot-carrier cooling process.

Global technology giant Huawei is tapping into its telecoms-led, AI and 5G technologies to bolster the levelized cost of electricity (LCOE) in utility-scale solar projects.

Researchers in Germany are trialing a host of new processes and materials to develop interdigitated back contact solar cells. A deposition technology named ‘hot-wire’ chemical vapor deposition, is said to provide excellent passivation without the need for treatments such as recrystallization or hydrogenation.

The process of developing better rechargeable batteries may be cloudy, but there's an alumina lining.

American researchers have found new molecules able to make use of the whole visible light range. Rhodium is effective at both absorbing the light and catalyzing the process of converting sunlight into hydrogen. The latter is suitable for usage as climate-safe fuel.