29.7.2013
Simple solar cell splitting water into hydrogen
Using a simple solar cell and a photo anode made of a metal oxide, HZB and TU Delft scientists have successfully stored nearly five percent of solar energy chemically in the form of hydrogen. This is a major feat as the design of the solar cell is much simpler than that of the high-efficiency triple-junction cells based on amorphous silicon or expensive III-V semiconductors that are traditionally used for this purpose.
http://www.helmholtz-berlin.de/pubbin/news_seite?nid=13764&sprache=en
13.7.06
Plasmonic black metals
The use of plasmonic black metals could someday provide a pathway to more efficient photovoltaics (PV) -- the use of solar panels containing photovoltaic solar cells -- to improve solar energy harvesting, according to researchers at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL).
https://www.llnl.gov/news/newsreleases/2013/Jul/NR-13-07-06.html#.Uf-2-9LqF_Y
Researchers at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) investigated a plasmonic resonant structure tunable from ultra-violet to near infrared wavelengths with maximum absorbance strength over 95% due to a highly efficient coupling with incident light
http://apl.aip.org/resource/1/applab/v102/i25/p251105_s1?isAuthorized=no
20 July 2012
Transparent solar cells
UCLA researchers create highly transparent solar cells for windows that generate electricity
UCLA researchers have developed a new transparent solar cell that is an advance toward giving windows in homes and other buildings the ability to generate electricity while still allowing people to see outside. Their study appears in the journal ACS Nano.
The UCLA team describes a new kind of polymer solar cell (PSC) that produces energy by absorbing mainly infrared light, not visible light, making the cells nearly 70% transparent to the human eye. They made the device from a photoactive plastic that converts infrared light into an electrical current.
"These results open the potential for visibly transparent polymer solar cells as add-on components of portable electronics, smart windows and building-integrated photovoltaics and in other applications," said study leader Yang Yang, a UCLA professor of materials science and engineering, who also is director of the Nano Renewable Energy Center at California NanoSystems Institute (CNSI).
http://newsroom.ucla.edu/portal/ucla/ucla-researchers-create-highly-236698.aspx
10.7.2012
More Efficient solar photovoltaic thermal (PVT) system
Two Queen’s University, Canda researchers have contributed to a significant breakthrough in solar technology. Their research has led to a new solar photovoltaic thermal (PVT) system that generates both electricity and heat.
Solar PVTs are normally made with crystal silicon cells which generate electricity, but little heat. Stephen Harrison and Joshua Pearce (Mechanical and Materials Engineering) designed and tested amorphous silicon cells in a PVT system. Their research shows increased heat generation because of higher operating temperatures and 10 per cent more solar electric output.
The amorphous silicon has several advantages over crystal silicon. It requires less material, costs less to manufacture and offers a higher return on investment.
http://www.queensu.ca/news/articles/researchers-develop-new-possibilities-solar-power
Article covering four break throughs
http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/opinion/comments-analysis/future-of-solar-power-how-about-transparent-solar-cells-that-can-be-put-on-windows/articleshow/21610519.cms
Patents
30 May 2013 Method for controlling a solar-thermal power plant having direct vaporization - WO 2013037909 A3 https://www.google.co.in/patents/WO2013037909A3
25 April 2013 - Solar energy power plant with supercritical water as working fluid and use of the solar energy power plant - WO 2013029943 A3 https://www.google.co.in/patents/WO2013029943A3
28 March 2013 - Method of manufacturing thin film solar cells - US 20130078755 A1 - https://www.google.co.in/patents/US20130078755
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