Technology and R&D

Lithium-ion batteries can not only improve self-consumption in commercial PV systems but are also able to efficiently perform peak shaving and price arbitrage, according to an international research group which has proposed a new strategy to calculate the best system configuration in terms of costs and revenue. The scientists specified, however, that the novel strategy may become effective only if storage system prices will drop under $250/kWh.

Australian mining technology company TNG Limited has had its flagship Mount Peake Project, which includes production plans for vanadium redox flow batteries and green hydrogen, recognised as nationally signifiant.

Not all rooftops can bear the weight of glass PV modules. Some others have curves and shapes ill-suited to uniform, bulky panels. Flexible modules have long been advanced as the solution here, however the keys to unlocking this potential have proven elusive.

Last year the New South Wales Government announced plans to retire several of the iconic Manly ferries and replace them with smaller vessels. However, the recent launch of the world’s largest electric ferry in Norway has one Aussie billionaire asking whether the new Manly ferries should be electric?

With reins tightly held by China, a handful of players are trying to prise the production of a core ingredient of lithium-ion batteries out of Goliath’s hand before the battery boom begins in earnest with the electrification of the transport sector. The head of one of those companies, WA start-up International Graphite, spoke to pv magazine Australia about the hunger of both investors and customers, and the surprisingly collaborative race to feed global demand.

As present affairs of state attest, sweeping things under the rug is the preferred strategy of the Morrison Government, and hence its $50 million investment in carbon capture and storage (CCS). According to a recently published report from IDTechEx, CCS faces a difficult few years and a long way to go. Unfortunately, even if he does reach its forecasted scale by 2040, its capacity to remove emissions from the atmosphere in any hurry is negligible.

EDF and Oceanus plan to build a pumped hydro storage station and a desalination system powered by wind and solar. The system will use saltwater to produce hydropower during periods of high demand, while producing affordable freshwater.

Porous nanostructured microspheres made of copper, iron, and iron oxide were used by an international research team as negative anode material in lithium-ion batteries. The new technique is claimed to provide three times more capacity than batteries based on graphite anodes.

Battery technology company Relectrify has turned its focus to the commercial and industrial (C&I) sector with the launch of a 36 kW / 120 kWh commercial-scale modular battery energy storage system (BESS) which utilises second-life electric vehicle (EV) battery packs.