Exclusive Articles
Thermal imaging cameras: a fast and reliable tool for testing solar panels
Quality assurance is of fundamental importance for solar panels. The failure-free operation of the panels is a prerequisite for efficient power generation, long life, and a high return on the investment. To ensure this failure free operation a fast, simple and reliable method to evaluate a solar panel’s performance is required, both during the production… Read more »
Silicones improve the reliability and durability of optical concentrators
Advances are being made in the field of concentrating optical units – and silicones are leading the charge. Inexpensive optics can cut down on precious solar-cell surface area – this is the basic idea behind photovoltaic concentrators. Many manufacturers use concentrating optics composed of Fresnel lenses to achieve this aim. The lens system is increasingly… Read more »
On The Up
While some European countries have effectively snubbed growing PV markets by slashing FiTs, several fresh untapped markets are emerging in different parts of the planet. We identify the world’s new solar hotspots… In 2011, Europe accounted for more than 70 per cent of the world’s new PV installations; in 2012 this number was around 55… Read more »
Breaking the 20 per cent barrier for mass production
It is no secret that manufacturing success in Europe lies not in attempting mass production on the scale seen in Asia, but in creating the technical and process solutions that are needed to serve this mass production. These are the dedicated and highly-technical companies making new and clever equipment needed by vital and growing global… Read more »
Building an industry in which we can trust
One of the industry’s leading module recycling companies, Loser Chemie GmbH develops and distributes future-oriented and environment-friendly products, plants and processes. It’s currently focussing on getting the very most out of PV recycling, but as Dr. Wolfram Palitzsch (CTO) and Ulrich Loser (CEO) observe, there are a few obstacles that need to be negotiated along… Read more »
building the solar pyramid
We take a look at this ambitious Scottish design, which posed an immense challenge for its project planners due to its steep inclination of almost 45 degrees…Tom King has come full circle. The managing director of Sustainable Renewable Technologies (SRT) began his career as a land surveyor in the coal mining industry in exactly the… Read more »
Measurement Solutions With Light
A well-established company that enjoys an excellent reputation as an optical metrology solution provider in Europe, omt has been servicing the PV sector since the mid-2000s. Since then, the company has gone on to introduce its industrial Raman microscope and, just last year, the 3-in-1 microscope. PES: Welcome back to the magazine. When we last… Read more »
State aid, community energy, the European Commission and UK Government policy
imon and Sarah are part of a working group co-ordinated by Carbon Leapfrog which is assisting community energy project, MOZES, to challenge the UK Government’s policy on state aid and community energy projects. Here, they outline the impact of the policy and compare to elsewhere within continental Europe where the legislation has been more liberally… Read more »
Harvesting the sun for production
Self-consumption of solar energy is on the rise as Feed-in Tariffs decline and electricity prices go up. This is an interesting option, not only for house-owners, but also for companies and communities as the case of the AmeyCespa waste treatment plant shows. Power Purchase Agreements are one way to use the energy of the sun… Read more »
Towards low cost, efficient and stable Organic Photovoltaic Modules
The Organic PhotoVoltaics (OPV) shared research program addresses efficiency, lifetime and production costs for (near) future OPV applications. The balance of these three parameters depends on the envisaged application, but in the end, OPV should be able to compete somehow with Si PV in the future. We take a look at the notable collaborative work… Read more »
