Solar is the cheapest power, and a literal light-bulb moment showed us we can cut costs and emissions even further
New research suggests we might be able to rethink the type of silicon needed to make high-efficiency solar cells, say researchers from the CSIRO, UNSW and Oxford University.
New residential lithium-ion battery from China
Chinese manufacturer Bslbatt has unveiled an upgraded version of its residential battery. The device has a storage capacity ranging from 5.12 to 12.8 kWh and is reportedly able to provide steady operation for up to 6,000 charge cycles.
‘Game changing’ electrolysis technology from NSW closes $42m funding round oversubscribed
Australian hydrogen tech company Hysata has raised over $40 million in funding, attracting backing from major institutional players including CEFC, Hostplus and Bluescope. Hysata is seeking to commercialise a breakthrough made at the University of Wollongong which CEO Paul Barrett describes as “brand new category of electrolyser” with 95% system efficiency.
Cooling down solar modules with cotton wicks immersed in water
The novel technique consists of attaching cotton wicks immersed in the water (CWIWs) to the backside photovoltaic module. The water is supplied to cotton wicks from top to bottom by gravity which the scientists said helps the effective absorption of cotton and reduces water consumption.
Solarwatt obtains ‘cradle-to-cradle’ certification for its glass-glass solar modules
The ‘cradle-to-cradle’ certification is considered a globally recognised holistic product quality standard. The assessment is made for five categories: material health, recyclability of materials, energy management and CO2 emissions, water management and social responsibility
Reverse bias – a hidden challenge for perovskite solar cell stability
Research from renowned PV scientist Martin Green and colleagues at UNSW reveals that perovskite solar cells may struggle to deal with reverse-bias caused by uneven shading or other issues likely to appear in the field. Both the reverse-bias itself and resulting build up of heat can cause several of the materials commonly used in perovskite solar cells to degrade, and these issues have received only limited attention in research published to date. Solutions, however, are at hand.
PV industry needs 12 times more polysilicon production capacity by 2050
New research from the University of New South Wales (UNSW) predicts cumulative polysilicon demand of 46-87 Mt will be required to achieve 63.4 TW of PV installed by 2050.
Start-up unveils solar thermal panel for large-scale applications
The panel has an absorption area of 1.96 m2 and a weight of 27 kg per square metre. According to the manufacturer – Swiss start-up TVP Solar – it may be a real booster for thermal output, by combining it with photovoltaics and heat pumps to provide enhanced output per square meter, in particular for low-temperature applications such as district heating.
New kind of black silicon shows improved light-trapping properties
Scientists in Russia have developed a new wide-band optical absorber called ‘black silicide’ which they claim is more adjusted to match AM-1.5 solar spectrum with theoretically higher photogenerated current density. It could be used for tandem operation in photovoltaic devices.
Portable flexible PV systems for off-grid, residential applications
US startup New Use Energy Solutions has launched a new line of portable PV systems built with a module technology relying on Sunpower’s solar cells. The modules are assembled in the system via a custom vinyl tarp.
