PV Magazine has released a report outlining the 50 top ‘array changing technologies’ featured at this year’s Intersolar Europe exhibition and conference. The ‘downstream’ technologies were picked based on their […]
Category: New technologies
Solar Choice blog articles about new developments in solar power and solar photovoltaic technology.
Bifacial solar cells – the two sides of the story
Bifacial solar modules are making a comeback, of sorts, as the PV industry looks to squeeze more out of current solar cell technology. On the heels of Sunpreme revealing their […]
Quiet innovations keeping screen printed solar cells on top
For all the well-deserved hype surrounding advanced solar cell designs, the screen printed (SP) solar cell remains the industry standard. Accounting for approximately 90% of worldwide production in 2014, its […]
Floating solar power: Floatovoltaics, Liquid Solar Arrays and Solar Islands set to change the way we look at solar
Floating solar projects have headlines in in a number of cleantech publications for the past few years, thanks mainly to their novelty, the ingenuity of their approach and their often […]
Stick it where the sun shines: Solar cell stickers extend PV reach
Researchers at Stanford University have developed an innovative way of producing ‘solar cell stickers’, thin-film PV devices which can be adhered onto practically any backing material. The thin film solar […]
Super-fast charging for new lithium ion battery
Researchers at Nanyang Technological University (NTU), Singapore, have developed a fast‑charging long‑life lithium ion battery which has the potential to significantly boost electric vehicle (EV) and portable electronics performance. The […]
Thermal electricity storage inspired by hang-gliders
UK‑firm ‘Isentropic’ has developed a pumped heat electricity storage (PHES) system for cheap and convenient distributed grid storage, with a projected levelised cost of storage (LCOS) below industry‑leading hydroelectric storage. […]
Fluidised bed reactors to enable low cost silicon solar cells
In order to make crystalline silicon solar cells, cell producers need micron-thin wafers of exceptional purity. The majority of base silicon material–referred to as ‘polysilicon’–used for producing high purity silicon […]
Under the sea: ‘Energy Bags’ add to electricity storage options
Canadian firms Thin Red Line Aerospace and Hydrostor are set to trial underwater compressed air energy storage (UW‑CAES) systems off the coast of Toronto. As part of the process, electricity […]
‘Hydrangea’ solar panel beautifies PV energy production
University of Tokyo professor, Hiroshi Segawa, has developed a solar cell designed as a floral artwork. Besides looking great, the hydrangea‑inspired dye‑sensitised solar cell generates and stores enough energy to […]
UNSW’s ‘stacked’ silicon-perovskite technology promises to double solar cell efficiency
An innovative solar project being developed by researchers at the University of New South Wales is aiming to more than double the efficiency of solar cells. The project, headed up […]
Record efficiency for UCLA ‘plastic’ tandem solar cell
Researchers at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) have set a new record for organic polymer solar cells, with a device efficiency of 11.5%. The record-breaking ‘plastic’ solar cell […]
Phinergy extends electric car range with metal-air battery technology
Phinergy, an Israeli battery technology start-up, and aluminium producer, Alcoa, have recently revealed a prototype electric car with a 1,100-mile driving range that is powered by Phinergy aluminium-based metal-air battery […]
Understanding physics of plastic solar cells key for cheap, flexible PV
Recent work published by researchers from the University of Montreal, Imperial College London and the University of Cyprus have shed light on the physics of how ‘plastic’ polymeric semiconductor solar […]
ConnectDER: A new device to open Pandora’s Box for grid connection
Virginia start-up ‘Infinite Invention’ have created a device which potentially allows for the modulation of exported solar PV electricity to suit surrounding grid conditions. The device also provides a quick […]
Perovskites: The next PV revolution?
Perovskites have taken the PV research world by storm in recent years thanks to unprecedented growth in efficiency in the material. Perovskite solar cell efficiencies have gone from a barely […]
‘Two-for-one’ deal on electrons to boost solar cell efficiency
Research conducted by the University of California (UC) – Riverside proposes an innovative method for pushing commercial solar cell efficiencies past 30%. The process, known as ‘singlet fission’, allows for […]
New technique to unlock Li-ion’s replacement: the lithium-sulphur battery
Pushing the boundary of lithium-based battery technologies is a new lithium-sulphur battery technology being jointly developed by researchers in the US and Korea. National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), […]
‘Talesun Smart’ PV modules provide integrated real-time performance monitoring
Zhongli Talesun Solar has released a new range of PV modules with real-time module-level performance monitoring at SNEC 2014, International Photovoltaic Power Generation Conference and Exhibition. This is another welcome […]
Tofu-based solution could solve toxicity, cost issues in solar panel production
Liverpool University says it has found a way to use chemicals found in tofu to make solar panels cheaper and safer, in what it is claiming as a major breakthrough. […]
‘SmartWire’ cell interconnection technology to be manufactured in Poland
Meyer Burger’s innovative ‘SmartWire Connection Technology’ is set for manufacture in Poland, through a partnership with Freevolt and Hanplast, the largest European supplier for IKEA. The technology, acquired through Day4 […]
Shady Deals at MIT a Benefit to Solar PV
A team of students at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) has won US$225,000 for developing an integrated chip that can recover up to twice as much wasted energy from […]
New chemical breakthrough with stabilised lithium could enable safer, cheaper Lithium-ion batteries
While many contend that lithium-ion (Li-ion) batteries may be replaced with other, more promising battery technologies in the long run, incremental improvements continue to keep Li-ion relevant with promises of […]
Ambri’s liquid metal battery edges closer to commercialisation
Promising grid-scale battery technology startup Ambri has recently completed its third round of funding, bringing its unique liquid metal battery closer to full-scale commercialisation. Ambri raised a total of USD […]
Glass sphere concentrator offers creative solution to improving solar PV efficiency
Greater sunlight-to-energy conversion efficiency is something that solar photovoltaic technology manufacturers and researchers alike strive for, and cost-effective efficiency improvements are something of a Holy Grail in the PV industry. […]
Researchers develop new antireflective coating that improves module efficiency by 4%
Researchers at UK’s Loughborough University have developed a new multi-layer anti-reflection (AR) coating for solar panels that simultaneously reduces reflection and improves module efficiency. The AR coating developed at the […]
Solar solution for apartment owners
Australia has one of the highest per capita and rooftop penetration rates of solar power in the world. Our position at the top of the rankings is largely because we […]
Panasonic breaks silicon efficiency record after 15 years with a 25.6% efficient HIT cell
After a run of nearly 15 years, the record efficiency for silicon solar cells was finally broken last week. Panasonic Corporation announced last Thursday (10 April 2014) that it has […]
Australia’s RayGen secures funds to manufacture concentrating PV technology
Australian solar technology start-up RayGen has signed a $60 million equity and manufacturing deal to help accelerate a technology that it believes will generate $1 billion in sales by 2020. […]
Sun MonitOZ: Solar system performance app (Currently seeking beta-testers)
The popularity of rooftop solar power systems has soared globally in recent years, and Australia remains one of the global leaders for home solar uptake. This is due in part […]
Ecoppia offers automated, robotic, water-free cleaning solution for large PV farms
Ecoppia, an Israeli solar startup, has introduced the Ecoppia E4, a new robot-based automatic panel cleaning system that it claims is water-free, making it one of the first such systems […]
