Quality

UL Solutions says it will expand heat pump testing at its facilities in Texas and Italy to meet rising demand in the heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) industry.

Battery safety has come a long way since the construction of the 300 MW first phase of Vistra Energy’s Moss Landing Energy Storage Facility in California, which caught fire on January 16. The vast majority of today’s large-scale battery energy storage systems does not have much in common with the affected project deployed in a former turbine hall.

The researchers of the German institute explained that UV-induced degradation may cause larger than expected efficiency and voltage losses in all dominant cell technologies, including TOPCon devices. The scientists expect that silicon nitride layers could be used to enhance TOPCon UV stability compared to PECVD layers typically utilized in PERC and heterojunction cells.

The research group led by Professor Martin Green has published Version 65 of the solar cell efficiency tables. There are 17 new results reported in the new version.

A case study by kWh Analytics demonstrated the value of building a resilient, weather-hardened solar facility.

Energy losses and advances in battery technology can affect utility-scale storage asset performance over time. Jordan Perrone, senior project development engineer at Depcom Power, explains how planning for battery storage augmentation from the start can simplify future upgrades down the line.

The results of this year’s Kiwa PVEL scorecard have shown that TOPCon technology is more vulnerable than PERC, and the failure rate at BOM level has increased to 41%, the highest in history, according to the testing lab.

The results of this year’s Kiwa PVEL scorecard show that TOPCon technology is more vulnerable than PERC, and the failure rate at BOM level has increased to 41%, the highest in history, according to the testing lab.

With hailstorms in the United States and Australia severely damaging solar arrays – including “golf-ball sized” hail at the 350 MW Fighting Jays project in Texas in March 2024 – insurers are raising premiums and reducing or canceling hail coverage. Everoze Partner Simon Mason discusses the challenges the industry faces in minimizing its hail risk exposure.

Kiwa PVEL and Kiwa PI Berlin have published a white paper that uses recent module testing and in-factory data to guide the best use of testing and inspection metrics. The paper aims to ensure that solar modules meet acceptable quality standards.