Renewables

Heliatek R&D teams reached a record conversion efficiency of 13.2% for an OPV multi-junction cell, setting a new world record for the direct conversion of sunlight into electricity using organic photovoltaic cells. The measurement was independently confirmed by Fraunhofer CSP.

Offering tremendous potential for the manufacture of low cost, high efficiency silicon solar cells, researchers at MANA have developed a new method of silicon casting. Compared with conventional casting, the ‘single-seed cast method’ for producing high quality monocrystalline solar cells enabled dramatic improvements in the crystalline quality of the silicon that are expected to improve the efficiency of silicon solar cells.

For the first time, researchers at the USC Loker Hydrocarbon Research Institute have directly converted carbon dioxide from the air into methanol at relatively low temperatures. Prakash, Professor of Chemistry and Director, USC Loker Hydrocarbon Research Institute, commented: “We need to learn to manage carbon. That is the future."

Wiltshire based renewable electricity supplier and generator, Good Energy, is pleased to announce that it has commissioned a new 5MW solar site near Wareham, Dorset. Oaklands Plantation will generate enough renewable electricity to supply around 1,300 homes and brings the number of solar farms the company has built and operates to seven. Combined with its two owned and operated wind farms, Good Energy's installed capacity now totals 52.5MW.

A recent edge connector for bifacial solar panels has been introduced by Multi-Contact. The slimline PV-JB/BF junction box can be mounted on the edge of double-sided panels without obscuring any solar cells. Where the panels are intended for use in a building integrated photovoltaics system, this enables the connector and cabling to be hidden within the facade frame.

Sandia National Laboratories’ research on the extreme-scale Segmented Ultralight Morphing Rotor (SUMR) is funded by the Department of Energy’s (DOE) Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy programme. The project's challenge is to design a low-cost offshore 50MW, 200m exascale turbine requiring a rotor blade more than 650ft long, two and a half times longer than any existing wind blade.

What happens when a country wants to boost their generation of solar power, but doesn't have enough land for the number of panels needed? Well, the Japanese, among a few others, have been developing a novel solution: float them on large reservoirs. This week saw the country begin construction of the largest floating solar farm in the world, in which panels will eventually cover two million square feet, and with an aim of producing enough electric...

Researchers from EPFL, working with researchers from the University of Tokyo, have discovered that a small device made from everyday materials can generate more than 3V - enough energy to power several diodes. The team used cardboard, Teflon tape and a pencil to make an 8cm2 device that can generate a considerable power: this simple, eco-friendly and inexpensive system can operate a remote micro- sensor or system.

Nanoelectronics research centre imec and global energy company Total, announced that they have extended their collaboration to significantly increase the energy output of PV panels. Imec’s industrial affiliation programme (IIAP) on next-gen crystalline silicon solar cells is a multi-partner R&D programme concentrating on further increasing the conversion efficiency of silicon solar cells and modules, while at the same time reducing indu...

Two best practice guides launched in London by the BRE National Solar Centre will help solar PV installers and consumers select, install and operate battery storage systems so they work at optimum levels with Solar PV systems.