Technology

The Council of Scientific & Industrial Research’s Hydrogen Technology (H2T) program focuses on improving the lifetime of electrolyzers by developing thermochemically robust membranes and electrolytes, reinforced fluoropolymer membranes, graphite composite bipolar plates, and ceramic interconnects.

Iberdrola is using a springer spaniel in a solar park to smell electrical problems that could lead to power cuts. It is also using a robotic dog to detect and analyze faults in substations.

Berkeley Lab study shows how deep cost reductions in clean technology and India’s renewable and lithium edge can enable a pathway for cost-effective energy independence by 2047.  

Ranjit Gupta-led Ocior Energy has committed a cumulative investment of INR 80,000 crore to build two green ammonia facilities of 1mtpa each in Andhra Pradesh and Gujarat. 

Pune-based Thermax has partnered with Australia’s Fortescue Future Industries to explore opportunities for the joint development of fully integrated green hydrogen projects for commercial and industrial customers in India. They also contemplate collaborating on electrolyzer and subsystem manufacturing facilities to support green energy projects in India.

Scientists from Germany’s Fraunhofer ISE and US panel maker Solaria have applied thermal laser separation and post-metallization passivated edge technology to tunnel oxide passivated contact (TOPCon) cell production. They have developed shingle PV devices that are more efficient than cells built with conventional laser scribing and mechanical cleaving methods.

The US National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) has certified that a South Korean research team has achieved a 25.73% efficiency rating with a perovskite PV cell based on alkylammonium chlorides. The champion device built by the scientists reached an efficiency of 26.08%.

US engineers have built a scalable thermal energy storage prototype system that combines the best latent and sensible heat transfers. The technology, which is now market-ready after three years of testing, consists of engineered cementitious materials and thermosiphons in a combination that enables fast, efficient thermal performance at low cost.

A US-Canadian group of scientists has used Lewis base molecules to improve surface passivation in a perovskite solar cell. The team produced a device with a high open-circuit voltage and remarkable stability levels.

A numerical study by researchers at India’s Chitkara University shows enhanced performance in the top device of a tandem solar cell based on copper indium gallium selenide (CIGS). The design had a higher open-circuit voltage, with the top cell acting as a current-limiting cell.