Renewables

Load bearing structures that are also electronic or electrical are called structural electronics. This two-for-one approach can be more reliable, attractive and long-lived and saves space. With a vehicle, saving weight also reaps dividends, such as when devices and circuits are applied experimentally to an electric car or plane that travels much further on a single charge as a consequence.

GMZ Energy has announced the successful demonstration of its 1,000W diesel ThermoElectric Generator (TEG) which directly converts waste heat into usable electricity to increase fuel efficiency. This announcement follows GMZ’s June 2014 demonstration of its 200W diesel TEG and marks the next milestone in a $1.5m vehicle efficiency programme, sponsored by TARDEC and administered by the U.S. Department of Energy.

Optimised for small auxiliary motor drive applications including air conditioning compressors for EV and HEVs, the AUIRGP66524D0 and AUIRGF66524D0 automotive-qualified 600V IGBTs have been introduced by International Rectifier. The 24A devices feature a low VCE(ON) to reduce power dissipation and a maximum junction temperature of 175°C to achieve extremely high power density.

Designed for AC filtering in power converters, UPS systems, solar and wind inverters and motor drives, a series of medium power film capacitors has been introduced by AVX. The FLA series capacitors exhibit high-reliability, single-phase performance and feature self-healing technology and an internal overpressure disconnector device.

Although wireless energy transfer is an old idea (Tesla patented one design in 1901), technological advances and the rise of portable devices have made it relevant again for different applications, such as wireless charging and energy harvesting.

Molex has received a 2014 Chicago Innovation Award for developing the connector system that brings electrical connectivity to the Dow Chemical Company’s POWERHOUSE Solar Shingles. The Molex Interconnect System helped enable Dow to deliver its solar roofing solution to residential consumers across the U.S. and in Canada.

  Consumers are discovering how tapping in to free but overlooked energy sources can be harnessed to provide power for wireless control systems around the home. By Thomas Gauthier, CEO, ID-RF.

Utilising advanced trench-gate field-stop technology to save more energy and increase reliability, the M-series 1200V IGBTs have been introduced by STMicroelectronics. The devices are suited for use in hard-switching circuits operating at up to 20kHz in applications such as solar inverters, welding equipment, UPS and industrial motor drives.

  Integrating an N-channel IEGT (Injection-Enhanced Gate Transistor) and an SiC fast recovery diode, the MG1500FXF1US71 high-efficiency 3300V, 1500A power module has been introduced by Toshiba Electronics Europe.

A pilot plant for the production of high efficiency HeteroJunction Technology (HJT) solar cells has been opened at Meyer Burger Research in Neuchâtel. The Swiss solar industry supplier Meyer Burger is aiming to further optimise an innovative cell coating process to industrial manufacturing standards with this pilot plant. The plant was developed together with CSEM, the Swiss Federal Office of Energy and the Canton of Neuchât...