Technology and R&D

Solyx Energy has developed a device to maximize solar self-consumption in residential homes. The sensor measures how much solar power can be fed back into the grid at different times, while a controller redirects that excess energy into an electric water heater.

Oil India Ltd (OIL) indigenously developed this hydrogen fuel cell-based bus under its Startup incubation program SNEH. The bus is powered by a 60 kW PEM fuel cell.

Scientists in Sweden have compared AC and DC topologies in PV-powered buildings using battery storage. They have found that DC distribution systems can achieve energy savings when they are combined with solar-plus-storage systems.

Enphase’s new bidirectional EV charger enables vehicle-to-home and vehicle-to-grid applications, and can be integrated with its home energy systems.

Germany-based Solmax has developed a reflective membrane made of polyethylene resins and coated with a thin white polyethylene layer that reflects ultraviolet (UV) rays. The company claims the membrane can increase the energy yield of a bifacial PV project by between 5% and 20%, depending on the plant configuration.

Reliance Industries Ltd developed the hydrogen internal combustion engine technology solution for heavy-duty trucks together with Ashok Leyland and other technical partners. It plans the technology’s first commercial deployment at scale initially across its captive fleet following extensive test and validation.

Researchers from the Indian Institute of Technology, Kanpur, and the National Institute of Technology, Srinagar, synthesized and studied nickel nanoparticle dispersed, boron-doped reduced graphene oxide (Ni-B-rGO) samples for hydrogen storage. The results achieved are the best so far for hydrogen storage at the given temperatures and pressures for non-palladium-based systems, they said.

LG has developed an air source heat pump with the capacity to heat 200 liters to 270 liters of domestic water. It uses R134a as a refrigerant and the pump has a coefficient of performance (COP) of up to 3.85.

University of Adelaide researchers and their international partners have successfully used seawater with no pre-treatment to produce green hydrogen. They did this by introducing an acid layer over the catalysts in situ.

UK scientists have discovered that second-life batteries could provide a lower levelized cost of electricity (LCOE) than conventional batteries in school buildings equipped with PV in East African schools. They said the cheapest system configuration uses either 7.5 kW or 10 kW of solar with 20 kWh of storage.