Technology and R&D

Also on the rise: Tenaska could add 300 MW of solar to Indiana, advocates appeal an unfavorable ruling in Alabama, and a novel approach to combining solar and wind at one site.

Using the California Energy Commission grant, Indian Energy will develop, integrate, and commission innovative Hybrid Modular Storage Systems as a long-duration energy storage technology demonstration project.

New research describes an algorithm that can calculate the ideal characteristics for a quantum dot to maximize cell efficiency.

Here’s a list of solar firms that VCs funded during this pandemic year.

The financing round was led by GitLab CEO Sid Sijbrandij and cryptocurrency expert James Fickel. Proceeds will be used to expand R&D, develop prototypes and add staff.

“Determining how many years a solar panel will last can take, well, years.”

In pv magazine’s second roundtable session, Advanced technologies, the U.S. storage market came under the spotlight – in particular, the lessons that can be learned from solar as the market moves towards greater maturity. Also under discussion was the trend among PV manufacturers to producing ever larger cells and modules in the continuous drive to bring down LCOE. But is big necessarily better?

Belgian start-up Sunslice has developed small, portable, high-performance solar panels that can be applied to backpacks and be used as rechargers for smartphones and watches.

A British-German research team claims that organic PV technologies may become mature enough to compete with crystalline silicon and thin-film products not only in BIPV, but also in power generation in the electricity market. In order to get there, however, organic PV products will have to achieve higher efficiencies.

As the world continues shifting towards lithium-ion as an advanced energy solution for all power applications, ongoing education on the technology’s chemistry, uses and limitations are essential.