Manufacturing

The US National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) has released a new, interactive version of its research cell efficiency chart for a range of PV technologies.

Longi said it has achieved a 26.81% efficiency rating for an unspecified heterojunction solar cell, as confirmed by Germany’s Institute for Solar Energy Research Hamelin (ISFH).

NTPC Renewable Energy Ltd (NTPC REL) has invited bids from manufacturers to supply a cumulative 460.55 MW DC capacity of crystalline PV modules for its Shajapur solar projects in Madhya Pradesh. The modules must be rated a minimum of 530 Wp each. Bidders have until Dec. 19 to lodge their interest.

The expected lifetime of PV inverters is significantly shorter than that of modules. In many projects, inverter replacement is included in financial calculations from the start, despite the high costs. Research is being conducted into the causes of faults to develop more durable inverters and components. But plant design can already improve the lifespan of inverters in use today, reports pv magazine Germany’s Marian Willuhn.

The Solar Energy Corp. of India Ltd (SECI) has started accepting applications from solar manufacturers under the second phase of the Production Linked Incentive (PLI) Scheme with an outlay of INR 19,500 crore ($2.4 billion).

Polycab has unveiled compact-size, light-weight grid-tie string solar inverters with power ranging from 1 to 5 kW, a maximum efficiency of 98.1%, and total harmonic distortion below 1.5%.

An international research group has developed new technology to measure soiling losses in PV installations, by using a simple pocket light. They said the new system offers similar performance to their reference devices.

Japanese scientists have described the steps that need to be taken to improve the average efficiency of CIGS solar modules, from around 18.5% at present to more than 20%. They presented all of the critical technical factors that are currently holding the tech back from broader market adoption.

The electric car powered by Phinergy aluminum-air battery will be on display in Auto Expo India 2023 at the booth of IOC Phinergy (IOP), a joint venture of Phinergy and State-run fossil fuel giant Indian Oil Corp.

Indian scientists have designed a new all-perovskite tandem solar cell configuration that can reportedly achieve higher efficiencies than similar devices built with the same materials. The top perovskite cell has a wide bandgap of 1.75 eV and the bottom perovskite cell has a bandgap of 1.25 eV.