The reliability of an offshore wind turbine and the resources required to maintain it can make up ~30% of the overall cost of energy, thus determining and understanding offshore wind turbine failure rates is vital for modelling and reducing O&M costs and in turn minimizing the levelized cost of energy (LCoE). The reliability of an… Read more »
With the steady growth of solar power and the increase of PV plants worldwide, a new series of PV modules, suitable for 1500-Volt systems, is on the rise. The higher demand for the latest, ‘1500 Volt ready’ generation of PV connectors from Stäubli Electrical Connectors, raises the question of the interchangeability of the new MC4-Evo… Read more »
Powerful vacuum technology and reliable tightness control for improved efficiencies of solar receivers When solar energy for electricity generation is discussed, photovoltaic systems most often come to mind. However, concentrated solar power systems are gaining popularity as an interesting alternative. In this type of power plants, collector systems concentrate sunlight and collect it on an… Read more »
The performance degradation of solar modules Renewable energies are among the most important sources of electricity in Germany. Their expansion is a central pillar of the energy transition. Solar energy is one of the most significant renewable energy sources. Photovoltaic systems and solar parks represent an ever-increasing share of global energy production, because photovoltaics offer… Read more »
Ireland’s first competitive auction for renewable energy capacity took place this summer. The results spell sunny times ahead for the nascent solar industry in Ireland and mark an important step towards the country’s target to meet 70% of its electricity supply from renewables by 2030. Auction results According to provisional results issued by electricity market… Read more »
Improved economics, governmental incentives, and increased awareness of solar energy as a viable alternative to grid power are leading more companies to go solar. With the potential to benefit businesses large and small, smart energy solutions are cropping up on unused rooftops of shopping centres, manufacturing plants, airports, schools, and hospitals. Much of the attraction… Read more »
Over the last years, some new sensors have been developed, for monitoring photovoltaic plants. This has been possible due to close co-operation, in research and development, between Ingenieurbüro Mencke & Tegtmeyer GmbH (M&T) and Institut für Solarenergieforschung Hameln/ Emmerthal (ISFH). The new PVIS reference irradiance sensor will be available later this year, once the final… Read more »
Every company that owns solar plants wants to generate the highest return. In order to achieve this, the system’s maintenance teams need to constantly ensure the optimal functioning of all system components, especially the panels and inverters. A solar monitoring system enables you to be informed of your PV system’s performance. The industry standard: solar… Read more »
Yes it is, if we take what we have learned from asset management in other industries and apply it to operational safety in battery energy storage systems. Utility-scale battery energy storage systems (BESS) are becoming a more common feature of the UK electricity network for the purpose of frequency regulation and balancing. There is also… Read more »
Recent discussions, about offshore wind resource estimation, demonstrated the need for more sophisticated wake models to reduce the risk of overestimating power production. In this context, ZephyScience developed a new computation methodology, empowered by its cloud-computing services. This topic emerged over the past few months: wake models used up until now by the wind resource… Read more »
In response to the global market requirement for more efficient and targeted O&M strategies for operational wind farms, there is an increasing need for operators to focus on turbine performance and reliability. Having recognised this as a priority to support operational teams and to advise on strategies to optimise sites, our approach has been to… Read more »
DFIG topology wind turbines have been widely used in the wind energy market during the last years to cover the medium and lower power ranges, between 2 and 4 MW. Nowadays, this fact has changed and the OEMs are developing DFIG wind turbines that could go above power rates of 6 MW. The wind sector… Read more »
Abstract: full-scale mechanical testing of blades is an integral part of the certification of wind turbines. With ever-larger rotor diameters, the importance of testing and validation is growing with the aim of minimizing operational risks. Dual axis testing can lead to a more realistic loading scenario compared to traditional single axis testing. A recent demonstration… Read more »
新系统安装完毕或现有系统维护完毕后，常出现渗漏。造成该情况的原因通常是连接出错或误用了有缺陷的密封件。若想及时发现该渗漏情况并有效管控设备的密封性，正确操作氦气检漏仪至关重要。此外，对检漏背后的物理原理及检测过程中的优化可能性了解得越深入，在实际使用氦气检漏仪时就会越得心应手，测量结果也会随之变得更加可靠。 以下综述就如何正确操作氦气检漏仪以及如何在真空系统顺利实施检漏试验给出了一些实用信息。 将检漏仪连接至涂层系统时需考虑的因素 真空系统在调试或维护完毕后产生的渗漏量通常较大。而当渗漏达到某个程度后，市售的氦气检漏仪将无法再继续使用。市售氦气检漏仪的最大工作压力通常约在 6 到 25 mbar 之间。如果产生大量泄漏，该等压力条件可能无法通过抽空过程而达到。图 1 所示的是一个 Si3N4 （氮化硅）涂层系统。可看到，在某次维护后，通过抽空过程仅能将压力降至 80 mbar。有一种方法可降低所用检漏仪的入口压力，那便是使用针型计量阀。 但该方法不仅会导致响应时间延长，而且还必须使用辅助泵。与其对真空检漏仪实施节流调节，我们不妨使用普发真空 ASM 340 检漏仪。此款检漏仪能以定性方式创建一种大规模检漏模式，从而找到当前渗漏所处位置。 以流程泵支持检漏仪 理想情况下，检漏仪应按图 1 和图 2 所示方式连接至真空系统的前真空管线。不过，检漏仪本身适用于洁净环境，而抽空降压过程产生的压缩热会引起严重的热应力，因此，为保护检漏仪，使其免受该等热应力的影响，可能需另行连接一个流程泵。流程泵不仅对热应力不敏感，而且还可抽出所有气体、蒸汽和扬起的颗粒。 另行连接一个流程泵的做法既能提升检漏仪的可用性，还能显著延长检漏仪的维护周期，进而大大降低运营成本。 在抽空降压过程中，一旦压力达到相应的低水平，检漏仪便能一直保持真空。检漏仪中的前级泵功率越大，检漏仪可进一步抽出的气体就越多，真空容器的内表面也就会越大。
摘要：我们使用太阳模拟器分析了以最高生产率生产硅太阳能电池时可用的测量时间，并阐述了该时间在确定太阳能电池特性所必需执行的不同测量之间的分布方式。针对高效太阳能电池，我们详细说明了“如何减少确定其 IV 特性所需的测量时间以便在所有情况下皆满足生产率要求”。我们发现，通过结合使用电压扫描速度自适应和增强型磁滞评估，可在不牺牲测量精度的同时获得最高生产率，即便对于容量最高的异质结 (HJ) 电池也是如此。 简介 现代太阳能电池生产线生产率极高，生产周期低至 1 秒或不到 1 秒。在不久的将来，单条太阳能电池测试仪和分选机生产线上须实现低至 800 毫秒的生产周期（ 相当于高达 4500 片电池/小时的生产率） 。为实现如此短的生产周期，传输和测量时间需满足严格要求。 同时，随着硅太阳能电池效率的不断提高，有效电荷载流子寿命日益变长，使得电池容量不断增大。由此，设备由于工作条件改变后达到准稳态条件所需的时间也随之增加，这是精确测量太阳能电池额定功率的先决条件。在 IV 测量期间，施加的电压从 0 V 变为开路电压甚至更高，即工作条件发生巨大改变。
由香港中文大学（中大）机械与自动化工程学系副教授卢怡君教授领导的研究团队最近为水系锂离子电池研究了一款新型的电解液，它的材料成本低且不易燃、毒性低、相对环保，更重要的是新型电解液应用到电池中能提供稳定的电压作日常使用，朝改善水系锂离子电池的性能迈进了一大步。研究结果已刊登于国际期刊《自然材料》。 锂离子电池的未来：从易燃有机液到安全水系 全球的经济以及人类的日常生活一直依赖着各类型电子设备，例如手机和笔记本电脑等等，而锂离子电池因为能提供相对稳定的能量，而且可以再充电重复使用，成为了这些可充电式电子产品的核心要素。然而，制造锂离子电池的主要材料之一是有机电解液，即使经过多年改良，这些电解液仍然含有毒性及高度易燃，有机会引发严重的安全问题 — 早年三星Note7手机爆炸、锂离子电池在波音公司787新型客机起火等事故就是其中的例子。 科学界近年深入研究以水系电解液取代传统有机电解液，因水的特质可解决易燃问题。然而，水系锂离子电池一直有个弊病，就是其电池电压和能量密度受到水电解限制。当电压高于1.23伏特，电解液中的水分子便会分解为氢气及氧气，大大影响电池运作及电压输出。增加水系电池电压的新兴做法是利用高浓度锂盐（每公斤21至55摩尔）制造人工固体电极介面及减少自由水含量，以改善水的稳定性，然而这个方法引起了对成本和毒性的忧虑。
Innovations at the Borssele Wind Farm Site V Climate change and the need to reduce CO2 emissions are drivers for the rising demand of renewable energy sources. With proven experience and an impressive 20-year track record, Van Oord is leading the way in the transition towards renewable energy by constructing offshore wind projects. With innovative… Read more »
In a bid to access stronger and more stable winds, wind farms are moving ever farther from the shore, with current planned projects up to 210km or more out to sea. The challenges associated with increasing wind farm output, however, are many, raising flags at every stage of the wind farm lifecycle. From project delays… Read more »
In recent years, wind energy has become the main source of renewable energy and it is expected to be the number 1 source of power in Europe before 2030 [1]. By now, thanks to the environmental agreements signed by developed countries and being the drive to address climate change, an exponential increase of wind turbine… Read more »
Support structures of wind turbines have already been in serial production for a long time. There are now some 1,350 turbines installed in the German North Sea and Baltic Sea alone. The large dimensions, the high dynamic loads, and the specific environmental conditions offshore pose particular challenges and establish the limits of what design codes… Read more »
Abstract: The continuing increase in rotor diameters is pushing the structural load-carrying capabilities of turbine blades to the limit. In order to ensure reliability and structural integrity, representative testing and validation methods are now more important than ever before. Development in wind turbine blades Wind turbine manufacturers are continuing to increase rotor diameters with the… Read more »
2010, ZephIR HQ, Worcestershire, U.K: the ZephIR 300 Lidar, a remote sensing wind measurement tool capable of collecting wind data remotely from its installed location by use of an infra-red laser, was born, following an 18-month product development program that focused on improving the ‘usability’ of remote sensing devices. The resultant product was described as… Read more »
Maintenance in the energy industry is a costly challenge for asset owners; a study by NACE International revealed that the annual global cost of corrosion is estimated to be $2.5 trillion. As a result, abrasion and corrosion resistant coatings for metal components are in high demand, particularly locations where environmental factors heavily influence the lifespan… Read more »
Abstract: The continuing increase in rotor diameters is pushing the structural load-carrying capabilities of turbine blades to the limit. In order to ensure reliability and structural integrity, representative testing and validation methods are now more important than ever before. Development in wind turbine blades Wind turbine manufacturers are continuing to increase rotor diameters with the… Read more »
The growing importance of sustainable energy is encouraging the wind industry market to aim for larger wind turbines and bigger wind farms. Driven by the search for larger construction areas, the offshore market began to spike investors’ interest. However, it quickly became obvious that this dynamic working environment is associated with new challenges and uncertainties… Read more »
Control, guidance, monitoring and access to the wind turbine are primarily organised by the control electronics. Why does everyone currently seem to be talking about this? We think it’s because with advancing technical developments, comes more and more functions, a higher level of complexity and increasing digitalisation, so control technology is now the brain of… Read more »
The UK is currently faced with the same chicken or egg scenario as Germany, both have announced a national target of expanding e-mobility, but how is it working out so far? Electric cars will only be purchased if the charging infrastructure is large enough to support them. And yet, the charging infrastructure will not be… Read more »
In times of growing demand for renewable energy sources and clean electricity, there are more and more small private installations on rooftops, carports and similar, in addition to large PV plants and projects on an international scale. But successfully ‘going solar’ requires thorough planning and careful evaluation of components to be installed. This article describes… Read more »
Loser Chemie GmbH (LC), a chemical plant from Saxony, acquired parts of the former Solarworld AG, an internal recycling site, to launch recycling over the whole photovoltaic value chain. LC are now in a position to close material cycles for the photovoltaic industry, by exploiting all existing synergies. There is an invisible tidal wave looming… Read more »
Increasingly, the solar energy industry is reporting an unsatisfactory incidence of losses, both financial and productive, that relate to the detrimental effects of solar module soiling. Here at PES we decided to take a closer look to find out what solar module soiling is, what the effects of it are, and what can be done… Read more »
The commercial availability of larger-diameter SiC substrates and improved crystalline quality has fostered an ever-increasing interest in the development and manufacture of power electronic devices, exploiting the unique electrical and thermophysical properties of this wide-bandgap semiconductor material. Silicon carbide (SiC) isn’t a new material, but its use as a semiconductor substrate is helping to advance… Read more »
The way to the optimal subfab process byproduct gas abatement system: accurately tune to the desired application to ensure the lowest total cost of ownership (TCO). Processes with many safety concerns, such as silicon epitaxy, require looking across many possible technologies. Increasingly complex production processes in the industrial sector lead to rising expectations to the… Read more »
A particular irony in the process of adopting renewable technologies is that the locations, which are most suited to the introduction of solar and wind energy sources, are those which face the greatest barriers to implementation. Many of these are developing nations in regions such as Sub-Saharan Africa, the Caribbean and the South Pacific. While… Read more »
Wireless technology brings the industry together Wireless technology has transformed the way we live. Every day, people depend on wireless systems to communicate at work, at home and when on the move. In fact, with advances in technology, it wouldn’t come as a surprise if in a few decades from now, we were all living… Read more »
The drivetrain of a wind turbine generator is an expensive but important component of the energy generating system. It’s composed of the main bearing, main shaft, gearbox, brake, generator shaft, and generator. The multi-physical complexity of this arrangement and the expense involved in downtime and maintenance due to failure, ensures that it is both recommended… Read more »
The offshore wind installation industry, is faced with the challenge of investing in next generation installation equipment, for the installation of wind turbines that are still on the drawing board. This brings a lot of uncertainties. What we know for sure is that in the past the growth rate of turbine size and weight consistently… Read more »