Research

Researchers at the University of Queensland will conduct an international trial to assess if the spare battery capacity in electric vehicles could be used to accelerate the rollout of renewable energy, support the electricity network, and potentially power homes in the future.

According to Chinese researchers, using abandoned coal mine goaves for pumped hydro facilities in combination with large scale solar and wind is not only technically feasible but can also provide an efficiency of 82.8% in yearly operation cases. They applied the model to wind and solar-rich northwestern and southwestern China.

Energy data provider C4NET has now opened its services up to any party with a query, streamlining data access in the interest of accelerating Australia’s transition.“First thing we’re trying to do is be a one stop shop,” James Seymour, CEO of C4NET, told pv magazine Australia.

In a new report, experts from the International Energy Agency Photovoltaic Power System Programme (IEA-PVPS) have assessed the economical and environmental benefits of repairing and reusing or replacing solar modules that are not complying with a 30-year expected lifetime. They found that reusing offers the best environmental impact in all cases, while the profitability of this option is currently guaranteed only by rooftop PV under certain conditions. As for large-scale solar, module replacement remains the most competitive option.

Should heterojunction solar technologies be temporarily shelved? Could copper plating replace screen-printed silver conductive surfaces in cells? Why are tandem cells a likely successor to PERC? Brett Hallam recently sat down with Natalie Filatoff in Sydney to explain the findings of a new study by the University of New South Wales (UNSW) that sought to answer these controversial questions.

Scientists in Brazil have found that photovoltaic modules may be a repository of specialised microbes in tropical regions. According to them, these micro-organisms may be used in sunscreens, pigments for processed foods, chemicals, textiles, pharmaceuticals, and cosmetics.

Buildings in the City of Melbourne could provide 74% of their own electricity needs if solar technology is fully integrated into roofs, walls and windows, new research from the ARC Centre of Excellence in Exciton Science has found.

Following a funding announcement from the Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA), a $3 million feasibility study led by Port of Newcastle and Macquarie’s Green Investment Group is set to determine whether Newcastle, the world’s largest coal exporting port, has the potential for a green hydrogen hub.

Scientists in India developed a mathematical model to predict the output of solar cells and modules in the field. The model was developed and tested using both sun simulator and actual installed modules. The scientists state that their model can be applied to a PV installation anywhere in the world, and that by taking into account module degradation over time their forecasts can be as much as 26% more accurate than existing energy yield models.

Developed by Spanish scientists, the proposed system design is said to be able to achieve water temperatures above 70 degrees Celsius and to cover around 85% of the annual sanitary hot water consumption of a household with six people.