Solar Technology & PV R&D News

The group of researchers at Purdue University has developed a new sandwich-structured perovskite, which combines inorganic and organic materials. The innovative material is expected to maximize the perovskite solar cells’ thermal stability with no need to include toxic lead in the structure.

China is going to complete a 200-tonne megawatt-scale satellite-based solar power project by 2035.

The government has been seen as slow to act on climate change, while Labor offered an ambitious carbon reduction policy.

A recent study shows that PV costs have declined faster than any other energy technology over the past two decades. The researcher behind the study said this would not have been possible without the “butterfly effect,” which is based on the idea that a small change in one part of a complex system can have a large impact elsewhere. The researcher also attributed the the rapidly declining cost of PV to Chinese manufacturing and strong US investor support.

The group of scientists headed by Professor Julien Bachmann controls the interlayer in solar cells to achieve high efficiency while using cost-efficient technologies and materials.

Swedish state-owned utility Vattenfall is to build its first floating solar farm in the Netherlands, a country increasingly seeing floating solar appear on its doorstep.

Japanese scientists have investigated the nature of defects present in the structure of hybrid organic-inorganic perovskites. The study outcome is likely to help make perovskite solar cells more stable and improve their efficiency.

Hot electrons can appear a key to maximizing energy collection from the sun by photovoltaic panels.

The amount of £5.2m has been raised during the latest fundraising round for Naked Energy’s solar thermal hybrid project. Most of the sum was invested by Earthworm, environmental fund management company, in conjunction with a co-investor – energy holding Taqa.

A group of scientists from Massachusetts Institute of Technology has created a novel transparent perovskite material that can be used in solar cell protective coating – PEDOT. The cells made of this organic polymer are easier to manufacture and install.

A new report from the International Renewable Energy Agency released this week explains how the sun looks set to shine on solar energy systems over the coming decades, with a wealth of advancements and dropping prices that could boost adoption.

The latest peak conversion rate over 23 per cent for a large version of n-type photovoltaic cells achieved by China-based Trina Solar has been recognized by German ISFH calibration and test center.

The scientists from National Renewable Energy Lab have created a model of the potential energy system of the U.S. comprising 55 per cent of solar energy. The research has shown there would be some days in spring when too much electricity would be generated, which proves the importance of energy storage.

New forecasting technology may be the missing puzzle piece in solar's widespread adoption.

An international research group achieved the result on a 9 sq mm, triple-cation based, n-i-p structured perovskite cell using low solar concentration levels. Device instability, however, remains a challenge.