Emiliano Bellini

Freight costs are rising as businesses rush to import goods ahead of higher tariffs promised by US President-elect Donald Trump on Chinese and European products.

Sunways’ new three-phase hybrid inverters have efficiency ratings of up to 98.6% and European efficiency ratings of 98.2%. They are available in five versions, with power outputs ranging from 15 kW to 30 kW.

Researchers in China have fabricated a perovskite-silicon tandem solar cell that utilizes an indium oxide sputtering buffer layer to protect the perovskite absorber and the electron transport layer from potential damages arising from the electrode deposition process. The new layer not only ensured this protection but also showed strong optical and electrical properties.

The Netherlands added 1.76 GW of solar capacity in the first half of 2024, with 148,166 new PV projects. By the end of June, the country’s total installed PV capacity had reached 26.06 GW.

The research group led by Professor Martin Green has published Version 65 of the solar cell efficiency tables. There are 17 new results reported in the new version.

Developed by researchers in South Africa, the proposed technique is based on the water cycle algorithm (WCA), a population-based metaheuristic optimization algorithm that is inspired by the water cycle process in nature and how streams and rivers flow into the sea.

Researchers in China have created a balloon-integrated photovoltaic system that reportedly represents a feasible solution for emergency PV power generation in mid-to-high latitudes. It consists of a customized balloon, 19%-efficient thin-film cadmium telluride solar cells, an exhaust valve, control and storage modules, fixed ropes, and a cord reel, as well as an upper hemisphere and a lower arc surface.

China-based Envision Energy says that its 5.5 MW /14 MWh grid forming energy storage demonstration platform is the first and biggest single-unit grid-forming energy storage system globally to receive certification under rigorous, full-scenario testing standards.

An international research team has developed a perovskite-silicon tandem solar cell with a hole transport layer based on methyl-substituted carbazole and submicron-sized textured silicon bottom heterojunction cells. The proposed cell configuration uses commercially available Czochralski silicon wafers and promises efficiencies over 30%.

German manufacturer Solarwatt says its new battery can be flexibly configured as an AC or DC system. It also features an emergency power function and can only be combined with Solarwatt inverters.