Technology and R&D

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 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.

Researchers in Germany have assessed direct coupling and integration between PV and batteries at the scale of a single PV module. They say their solution could be cheaper and provide superior performance than maximum power point tracking (MPPT) in optimizing PV system performance.

Chinese scientists have simulated a new photovoltaic-thermoelectric technology, based on radiative cooling and III-V solar cells, to generate electricity at night.

Indian scientists have developed a panel with an electrical efficiency of 13% and and thermal efficiency of 66.6 %. They built the system with a 100 W PV panel, a rectangular absorber, and a cooling technique based on a phase change material (PCM) that uses biochar derived from water hyacinth.

India’s Emmvee Group has appointed Germany’s Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy as the technology partner for its upcoming 1.5 GW PV cell manufacturing facility.

Ionblox says it will use $32 million of series B funding to support the buildout of a novel silicon anode electric vehicle battery.

IIT Madras Research Park and US-based First Solar will cooperate on a range of research and development (R&D) activities including the localization of thin film and other next-generation PV technology supply chains in India, high-volume manufacturing, PV module testing, and high-value recycling.

The Bern University of Applied Sciences in Switzerland has published the initial results of a survey on the durability and performance of residential PV inverters and power optimizers over a 15-year period. They found that more than 65% of the inverters did not present yield-relevant faults by their 15th year of operation.

US researchers have designed a molten salt that could potentially reach an energy density of up to 100 Wh/kg at a cost of $7.02/ kWh. The battery uses an aluminum cathode that charges quickly and reportedly enables longer-duration discharge.