Technology toolkit: Solar siting, permitting and land use
pv magazine USA connected with the founders of Transect and Paces AI, both of which provide tools to enable automated permitting, due diligence and siting solutions for the community solar and distributed generation project development market, as well as utility and grid stakeholders.
Sunrise brief: Volatile electricity markets should give solar financial modelers pause
Also on the rise: Silfab Solar raises $125 million for U.S. cell and module manufacturing. Tariff investigation, equipment detainments lead to 16% drop in new solar capacity in 2022. And more.
Sunrise brief: Training the U.S. solar workforce
Also on the rise: Solar tower of power goes vertical. Important code requirements and recent developments for PV systems. And more.
Agrivoltaics can provide food and energy for growing world population
Cornell researchers found that solar modules mounted 13 feet high with soybeans planted underneath positively affect the microclimate of the farm and surface temperature of solar modules.
California evaluates impacts of an RTO and its effects on state energy goals
A report requested by California’s legislature discusses both expected cost savings from expanding the state’s grid operator into a regional transmission organization, and a potential loss of state policy control.
Guide for understanding solar production losses
Aurora Solar offers guidelines to make the most of a solar installation by avoiding losses.
Sunrise brief: Solar produced nearly 5% of U.S. electricity in 2022, generation up 25%
Also on the rise: Silicon Ranch expands First Solar module supply plan to 6.2 GW. Sono Motors scraps development of Sion solar cars. And more.
Thermal battery offers fast, efficient performance at low cost
A scalable thermal energy storage prototype system that combines the best latent and sensible heat transfers is now market-ready after three years of testing. It consists of engineered cementitious materials and thermosiphons in a combination that enables fast, efficient thermal performance at low cost.
Solid-state battery design uses metal blend electrolyte
New battery materials tested by Berkeley Labs and Florida State University could result in a more conductive solid-state electrolyte that is less dependent on a large quantity of individual metals, which proves effective for the huge demand in the EV market.
Inverted perovskite solar cell achieves 23.9% efficiency, high durability
A U.S.-Canadian group of scientists 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.
