Tag Archives: Solar Cell

Researchers at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) and Northern Illinois University (NIU) have developed a technique to sequester the lead used to make perovskite solar cells, a highly efficient emerging photovoltaic technology. The light-absorbing layer in a perovskite solar cell contains a minute amount of lead. The presence of this toxic material in the developing technology could turn some …

Here is a thought provoking and interesting take on the solar tariffs put forward by the Trump administration. Many solar and environmental groups have been crying foul over the tariffs since they were announced. Here is a look at the industry and how it might be impacted by the 201 Trade case by a solar company CEO. As the CEO …

  For numerous good reasons, home solar power is becoming more popular all the time, but is it right for your home? With the expense of solar panels dropping, and the cost of other energy rising, solar power can be a wise investment for your home.  It can raise the appraised value of your property, as well as hold down …

Perovskite materials can recycle light particles – a finding which could lead to a new generation of affordable, high-performance solar cells. Depiction of photon recycling inside the crystalline structure of perovskite. The study shows that perovskite can reabsorb photons that are regenerated inside the material, a feature which could enable researchers to break through the efficiency limits of existing solar …

Solar photovoltaic manufacturers to invest over $5 billion in 2016 for new production capacity and technology upgrades Capital expenditures to reach five-year high as confidence returns to solar manufacturing segment The solar photovoltaic (PV) manufacturing sector is forecast to increase capital expenditure (capex) on new factories and technologies in 2016 by more than 60 percent, compared to 2012, when manufacturing …

We can save land and water by building floating solar panels   Singapore, a country half the size of Los Angeles, is home to 5.4 million people. This makes the island city-state one of the most densely populated countries in the world, with roughly 7,500 people packed into each square kilometre. When almost your entire population lives in a high-rise, …

Via Modernize   The recent solar boom has led to advancements in solar technology that homeowners are increasingly able to take advantage of. Residential solar allows individuals to save money on their monthly energy bills, greatly reduce their negative impact on the environment, and even look forward to selling their home at a prime price when ready. To top it …

A groundbreaking paper on hybrid perovskites, one of the hottest solar cell and LED materials, just published in MRS Communications, a flagship journal of the Materials Research Society.   First created in 2012, perovskite solar cells have shown great promise in recent years as an affordable alternative to other solar technologies, such as photovoltaic cells typically used in solar panels. …

New Energy Unveils Company?s Largest and Highest-Performance See-Through SolarWindow? Capable of Generating Electricity on Glass New Energy Technologies Inc. (OTCQB: NENE), developer of see-through SolarWindow? coatings, capable of generating electricity on glass and flexible plastics, today made public never-before-seen images of the Company?s largest area, high-performance SolarWindow? arrays.  These SolarWindow? arrays measure over 232 cm2 ? a significant achievement for …

High-Concentration Solar Photovoltaic Systems to Reach Greater Efficiencies, Boosting Appeal Against Conventional Solutions Consistent improvements in technology and gradually lower costs will drive high-concentration photovoltaic (HCPV) systems to superior efficiencies, making HCPV an increasingly viable rival to conventional solar-generating solutions, according to the latest analysis from IHS Technology (NYSE: IHS). The cell efficiency of HCPV systems, currently at 40 to 42 percent, …

The Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems ISE, Soitec, CEA-Leti and the Helmholtz Center Berlin jointly announced today having achieved a new world record for the conversion of sunlight into electricity using a new solar cell structure with four solar subcells. Surpassing competition after only over three years of research, and entering the roadmap at world class level, a new …

Researchers from the University of Pennsylvania have demonstrated a new mechanism for extracting energy from light, a finding that could improve technologies for generating electricity from solar energy and lead to more efficient optoelectronic devices used in communications. Dawn Bonnell, Penn’s vice provost for research and Trustee Professor of Materials Science and Engineering in the School of Engineering and Applied …

Replacing synthetic fertilizers with organic ones could help reduce climate impacts and improve agricultural systems By Deirdre Lockwood In efforts to mitigate climate change, we’re more likely to think about changing how we power our cars than how we grow our food. But as University of Washington geologist David R. Montgomery likes to remind people, farming has a huge impact …

Gerard D’Aboville is an experienced navigator — he’s rowed alone across both the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. He’s accustomed to monitoring the wind and the current. But as the captain of the Turanor PlanetSolar, the world’s largest solar-powered boat, he’s had to factor in something else: the sun. And he marvels at its power. “I can feel it some days,” …

FUTURE LOOKS BRIGHT FOR CARBON NANOTUBE SOLAR CELLS In an approach that could challenge silicon as the predominant photovoltaic cell material, University of Wisconsin-Madison materials engineers have developed an inexpensive solar cell that exploits carbon nanotubes to absorb and convert energy from the sun. The advance could lead to solar panels just as efficient, but much less expensive to manufacture, …

New Energy Discovery Boosts Performance of See-through Solar Cells, Able to Generate Electricity on Glass Windows New Energy Technologies, Inc., developer of see-through solar cells for generating electricity on glass windows, today announced that researchers have successfully achieved faster fabrication time, improved transparency, and a two-fold increase in power conversion efficiency. Researchers achieved today?s advances by way of a novel, …

Efficiency improvement remains the key, Metal Wrap Through (MWT) technology ready to take the market According to EnergyTrend, a research division of TrendForce, solar cell and module manufacturers will be more active in improving product efficiency under the pressure of both installation costs and subsidy cut. As for new technologies, MWT technology has been generally appreciated by related industries; it …

When the idea of the electric car was proposed to minimize greenhouse gases and pollution, the two basic platforms were the hybrid platform and a pure electric platform. When it comes to the latter, the main issue is the low range of operation. While the breakthrough in battery technology is unlikely to happen, students, scientists, hobbyists and of course companies …

Our continuing coverage of the PV America show in San Jose CA this past week as we highlight our conversation with Silevo VP Chris Beitel who gives us a breakdown of the Triex solar cell technology that they are developing. This technology is showing some very strong efficiency rates for converting sunlight to energy. Watch the video below and then …

Solar Cell Makers Benefited from Rush Orders; Polysilicon Contract Price Likely to Surge January 5, 2012—Benefiting from the rush orders from clients in Europe and the United States, Taiwanese solar cell makers’ utilization rates increased evidently, which will affect the future development of contract and spot prices. According to TrendForce, EnergyTrend’s survey, the contract price of polysilicon is still in …