Technology and R&D

The organisers of the Bridgestone World Solar Challenge have announced a new set of dates for the 2025 edition of their unique 3,000-kilometre solar car race across the Australian continent, along with some regulation changes.

Australian green infrastructure investor and developer Quinbrook Infrastructure Partners has announced plans to leverage its growing portfolio of renewable energy and storage projects and green hydrogen produced by a proposed 3 GW production facility to manufacture “green iron” in central Queensland.

Decarbonising the transport sector has taken to the skies thanks to Australian zero emission aircraft designer and manufacturer AMSL Aero, which is testing its hybrid electric hydrogen powered vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) aircraft in central western NSW.

Perovskites remain a great hope for the future of the solar industry, once the possibilities of tunnel oxide passivated contact (TOPCon) and heterojunction PV have been exhausted. A look at the latest perovskite research shows that industry optimism is built on a strong foundation.

The South Australian and California state governments have signed an historic agreement that will see them work together on advancing the clean energy transition and the integration of renewable energies, including green hydrogen, into their respective grids.

The Chinese manufacturer said the new product has an efficiency of up to 19.46% and a temperature coefficient of -0.30% per C. It is available in bright red, light gray, brown, green, blue-green, orange, and ocean blue.

More than half of Australia’s electricity demand is expected to be met by solar by 2050 but not as we know it with an industry expert tipping solar windows, photovoltaic paint, printed film, and more efficient tandem cells will play a key role.

An Australian start-up spun out of the CSIRO has been awarded a grant to build a 5 kW electrolyser that will be deployed at a United Kingdom power plant operated by French energy utility EDF.

A recent analysis shows that renewable energy could partially replace diesel fuel to power instruments and provide heat at the South Pole. A team of researchers has proposed a solar, wind and battery energy storage hybrid system that could reduce diesel consumption by 95% and save approximately $86 million over 15 years, after an initial investment of about $14.5 million.

Global industrial company Siemens has partnered with Australian energy solutions provider Ampcontrol to develop technology solutions for storage and grid applications for the Australian renewable energy market.