Renewables

An 80A PIM for demanding UPS, industrial variable frequency drives and solar inverter applications has been released by ON Semiconductor at PCIM. The NXH80T120L2Q0PG is configured in 1200V, 80A half-bridge and 600V, 50A neutral point clamp T-type topology, attaining efficiencies in excess of 98%.

Bentek has successfully integrated its Power Economiser into the company's residential Rapid Shutdown System (RSS). The Bentek RSS is a cost-effective, easy-to-install universal standalone solution, that has been tested and approved by residential string inverter manufactures and installers worldwide.

IDTechEx says that there is divided opinion on the future of traction fuel cells in EVs, though few continue to argue that they will power the majority of EVs. Nonetheless some manufacturers are very enthusiastic, and now could be the beginning of the end of the trough of disillusionment - the time to invest, as analysed in the IDTechEx report Fuel Cell Electric Vehicles 2015-2030: Land, Water, Air.

The increasing share of electricity based on solar and wind power results in an increasing load of distribution and transmission grids. At the Helmholtz Institute Ulm (HIU) for electrochemical energy storage, the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology demonstrates how modern high-performance batteries and smart controls make renewable energy compatible with the grid.

A lightweight, 5W, mobile photovoltaic panel, featuring an integrated sun-angle adjuster for maximum solar exposure, has been introduced by IXYS. Offering an efficiency of up to 22%, the SLPN005H10L is suitable for powering portable electrical equipment, PCs, tablets, smart phones and charging batteries via an integrated USB port.

Heliatek's organic solar film, HeliaFilm, will be a part of the Universal Exhibition in Milan, which opens in May 2015 under the motto Feeding the Planet, Energy for Life. AGC Glass Europe, Heliatek's long-term partner in the field of glass products, will showcase the Building Integrated Organic PhotoVoltaic (BIOPV) solution as part of the Belgian pavilion.

Researchers at the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) have unveiled an important step in the conversion of light into storable energy, studying the formation of so-called polarons in zinc oxide. The pseudoparticles travel through the photoactive material until they are converted into electrical or chemical energy at an interface. Their findings, relevant to photovoltaics, are published in the journal Nature Communications.

Goodyear has introduced its latest tyre concept - one that has the capacity to produce its own electricity. In theory, the BH03 tyre will transform generated deformation into electrical energy and could be used to extend the range of electric cars. According to Goodyear, the tyre creates electrical energy that could supply the batteries of the car’s hybrid powertrain, as well as other on-board technologies.

Lithium ion (Li-ion) batteries, which power most portable electronics today, include precious elements such as lithium and cobalt. As a potential alternative to Li-ion batteries, Sodium ion (Na-ion) batteries have attracted much attention because of the abundance and low-cost of uniformly-distributed sodium.

An energy storage technology capable of providing surges of power on satellites and other spacecraft has been chosen by the European Space Agency (ESA) for possible orbit in 2018. Developed by Skeleton Technologies, this ultracapacitor technology is 60 times lighter and 30 times more efficient than the batteries it will replace.