Research

The US National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) has released a new, interactive version of its research cell efficiency chart for a range of PV technologies.

Chinese solar manufacturing giant Longi has announced the achievement of a world record 26.81% conversion efficiency from a cell utilising heterojunction technology on full-size silicon wafers in mass production. The company said the measurement has been validated by Germany’s Institute for Solar Energy Research.

Pioneering PV researcher Martin Green has received an abundance of accolades over his 50-year career of fundamental solar research with teams at the University of New South Wales (UNSW). That contribution was further recognised on Sept. 26, when he picked up the WCPEC-8 Award in Milan, Italy. Green spoke with pv magazine about the role of technologies such as PERC cells and his efforts to advance non-toxic thin film semiconductors for the tandem cells of the future.

Australia’s first hybrid solar and renewable hydrogen microgrid has officially launched as green hydrogen production began at Horizon Power’s demonstration plant in the coastal community of Denham in Western Australia’s Gascoyne region.

Construction has begun on a 50 MW/50 MWh battery near the outback city of Broken Hill which will be equipped with advanced inverter technology designed to improve system strength in regional New South Wales and support increased levels of renewable energy generation in the area.

Chinese researchers have assessed the impact of residential rooftop PV arrays on energy use and surrounding air temperatures during extreme heatwaves. They found that panels with higher conversion efficiencies achieved the best results.

Researchers led by Germany’s TÜV Rheinland have created a database of technical risks and mitigation measures for PV installations. Their broad overview of quantification methods has shown that further standardization is required.

A new scientific paper takes a closer look at the record-breaking efficiency that Australia’s Sundrive announced for a silver-free heterojunction cell in September 2021, as certified by Germany’s Institute for Solar Energy Research.

A five-year Sandia Labs study on solar module degradation shows that 13 out of 23 tested module types have effective lifetimes exceeding 30 years.

ARENA has awarded global technology company Calix $947,035 (USD 612,509) to help fund an eleven-month study into the feasibility of deploying the company’s proprietary Zero Emissions Steel Technology (ZESTY) at a demonstration plant – something both Calix and ARENA are touting as a pathway to green steel manufacturing using hydrogen in Australia.