Technology and R&D

Canadian scientists have developed a new way to measure the energy yield of bifacial PV systems. They said they considered the spectral albedo of ground cover like snow and sand to predict energy gains of up to 2%, in comparison with the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) standard.

Scientists in Austria have developed a long-term energy storage system that uses regenerative braking to adjust the descent speed of sand in mine shafts and generate electricity.

Qatari researchers have looked at the degree to which cleaning robots could threaten the physical integrity of solar panels. They found that cleaning machines have a very minimal impact and that modules of similar sizes tend to exhibit roughly the same amount of vibration.

Green Energy Systems has unveiled a new Australia-made prefabricated modular PV solution for large-scale applications that purportedly offers significant cost reductions by eliminating all stainless-steel nuts, bolts and other traditional fitments in favor of a “slide-together” aluminum junction system.

Japan’s Shintora Kosan has developed a novel water jet technology to recover glass from end-of-life PV modules. It says it can pulverize the solar cells and the backsheets without damaging the glass.

US tracker manufacturer GameChange Solar’s latest product launch follows its recently announced decision to increase its annual domestic manufacturing capacity to 24 GW.

The US National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) has achieved remarkable efficiency and stability for a wide-bandgap all-perovskite tandem solar cell. The scientist developed the device with an inverted architecture and used gas quenching instead of an antisolvent in the manufacturing process.

Edinburgh-based energy storage solutions specialist StorTera has developed a long-duration, energy-dense, lithium-sulfur-based single liquid flow battery (SLIQ). The tech is said to last for 30 years with minimal degradation.

California-based Yoshino Technology has developed portable batteries using solid-state Li-NCM cell technology. The four variants come with power outputs of 330 W, 660 W, 2,000 W, and 4,000 W.

Swiss startup Sun-Ways has developed a patented solution under which it directly rolls out solar modules between railway tracks like a carpet. The panels can be removed at any time for maintenance work.