Blog

Intense pulsed light processing for 23.0%-efficient silicon heterojunction solar cells

Scientists at Germany’s Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems (ISE) have used intense pulsed light (IPL) processing for the development of a busbarless silicon heterojunction solar cell. The device was manufactured with poly-Si-based tunnel oxide passivating contacts, which were applied on both sides of the wafer. Researchers at Germany’s Fraunhofer ISE have developed a silicon…
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Floating PV to offset underperforming hydropower

Brazil now has 12  GW of underperforming hydropower capacity, according to U.S. researchers. Large-scale floating PV is an ideal solution to offset this shortfall, due to its high capacity factor, load correlation, and high potential output during periods of high demand. Large-scale floating PV is an ideal solution to offset underproduction at hydropower dams, due…
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Perovskites in space

Scientists led by the Technical University of Munich have packed a variety of perovskite and organic solar cells onto a rocket, and sent it into orbit 240 kilometers above the planet’s surface. Their results demonstrate strong potential for such technologies to power satellites and even deep space missions. Satellites, high-flying drones and even longer range…
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Morning Brief: Solar, by far, the world’s leading power-generating technology in 2019

Also in the brief: Community solar proposal getting bipartisan support in Pennsylvania legislature, 12 MW of solar power in Virginia’s historic coalfield region, and the DOE supports nuclear fusion technology with $29 million in funding. Photovoltaics were by far the world’s leading power-generating technology installed in 2019; 45% of capacity added was solar with one…
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Can community microgrids fill the gap in California’s plans for 100% renewable energy?

A 10 MW, 40 MWh storage project on the Southern California coastline could provide the first link for a string of community microgrids that, according to the Clean Coalition’s Craig Lewis, could show that high penetrations of distribution-connected solar are entirely doable. The Goleta load pocket is a 70-mile stretch of Southern California coastline that…
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Germany to tender 18.8 GW of PV by 2028

The German government is planning to tender 5.3 GW in the rooftop segment and 13.5 GW for large-scale PV projects. A first draft of what the amendment to Germany’s renewable energy law, the EEG, could look like has leaked from the Federal Ministry of Economics. pv magazine Germany has obtained a copy. The new law, which is…
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Catholic organizations go solar to save money, and to put faith into practice

Catholic organizations own up to 100,000 buildings in the U.S., as well as land, and Catholic Energies is helping them go solar. “The market is enormous,” said the program’s leader. Dan Misleh got the idea for Catholic Energies after Pope Francis called on Catholics to take up a “commitment to the environment” in his 2015…
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Enphase inverters added to Ikea’s turnkey solar offer in Australia

The California-based energy technology company has announced that its microinverters have been selected for Solargain’s turnkey solar offerings in Australia, including the retailer’s offer in collaboration with the Swedish furniture giant. US microinverter maker Enphase Energy has expanded its footprint in Australia on the back of a new partnership with Solargain, one of the country’s…
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Sunrun and GRID fight California blackouts with free batteries for low-income households

“Storage is critical for equity,” says Sunrun CEO Lynn Jurich — and putting more standalone storage on the grid means less electricity going through wires in wildfire-prone areas. The announcement that Sunrun and GRID Alternatives are partnering to provide free energy storage systems to low-income residents in California’s wild-fire prone areas could not have come at a more critical…
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WattBuy launches address-level electricity cost and carbon footprint calculator

The tool is intended to help solar developers show customers their potential electricity cost savings and their carbon footprint reductions, making that customer more likely to consider the switch to solar. WattBuy is launching a free online calculator that lets homeowners, renters, real estate companies and solar developers get month-to-month electricity cost and carbon footprint estimates for…
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