A market in movement
Trackers: Tracking systems are being used more and more often in large solar plants. They assure a higher performance, but are also technically more complex. And the jury is still out on which system will perform best over the long term. The market for tracking systems is changing. While some start-up companies keep trying to bring biaxial tracking systems up to market maturity, Solon is preparing to ditch the technology. Lars Podlowski, Solons chief technical officer, tells pv magazine why.
Aging brings surprises
Thin film: The knowledge that some thin film modules age faster and others more slowly doesnt really mean much in the real world unless laboratory experiments help separate the wheat from the chaff. Visitors to the OTTI thin film symposium found out how this is possible. They also learned about the positive side of module aging.
Alternatives for greenhouse gases
Triple green, part 3: Thin film silicon modules are manufactured with process gases that are not only harmful to the environment, but poisonous and explosive as well. Thus gas suppliers are in search of an ecological replacement.
Bigger and thinner but quicker?
Field installations: Applied Materials is seeking to substantially accelerate the construction of solar power arrays with its 5.7 square meter modules. In particular, the semi-automated installation of the modules is set to bring about greater efficiency. Yet not all project developers consider this the way forward.
Connecting Australia
The story of solar electricity: The ninth part of our series with chapters from John Perlins book From Space to Earth reports how John Oades, an engineer at GTE, brought his solar-powered telecommunications repeater to Australia.
Having confidence in your own strength
Dear readers, Reliance on politics and policies is a two-edged sword. This fact recently became clear once more in the discussions and proposals to cut feed-in tariffs in Germany, the leading photovoltaics market in the world. The ongoing global recession hasnt helped either. Share prices of companies that used to be the stars of the […]
Highly dynamic
Market overview inverters: Our inverter overview covers over 550 models. Over the next pages, you will find 330 models with their technical data. A complete list is available for our subscribers on demand. At first glance, the technical advancements could appear to be quite small. Nonetheless, taken as a whole, they are substantial.
On the lookout
Turkey: Due to great insolation and the countrys proximity to Arab countries, Turkey offers interesting perspectives for the solar sector. Companies are lined up and ready to enter the market. The only thing missing is an attractive price for solar power.
Photovoltaic glitter
Microcells: Scientists at the U.S. Sandia National Laboratories have developed tiny glitter-sized photovoltaic cells that could revolutionize the way solar energy is collected and used. These micron-sized cells hold the potential for a variety of new PV applications. Sandia labs expect that the technology could be ready for commercial production in three to five years.
Power from the people
United Kingdom: The first British feed-in law, to be implemented as of April 2010, is aimed at the small photovoltaic installations of private households.
