In recent years, there have been great advances in solar energy technology. More viable commercial-led energy platforms are becoming available in more locations at lower prices than ever before. The solar energy movement is still nearing maturity and promises exciting developments.
Solar technology has advanced by leaps and bounds in just a few years. Recent developments include:
1、 Super efficient solar cells
2、Solar panels that harvest energy at night
3、The first commercially available perovskite-based photovoltaic device
This progress is likely to continue in the coming years and is driven by growing awareness of potential environmental collapse, energy insecurity and rising living costs. As more experimental solar cells move toward commercialization and more domestic and industrial consumers make the switch, the industry as a whole will continue to accelerate its pace of development and contribute significantly to our collective efforts to reduce our dependence on fossil fuels.
Solar cell efficiency
The efficiency of solar cells (the photovoltaic modules in solar panels that convert sunlight into electricity) is getting better every year. However, scientists continue to study the efficiency of solar cells so that they can produce more power under the same conditions as their less efficient counterparts. A team at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) recently highlighted a record 39.5% solar cell efficiency under natural light conditions.
The cell’s efficiency and simple design make it particularly suitable for highly constrained applications where small panels generate large amounts of power (such as in future aircraft).
It is also suitable for low-radiation space applications, where the energy in the sun’s rays is less than that on Earth. Here, the cell still achieves a conversion efficiency of 34.2%. The study, published in Joule in 2022, demonstrates the record-breaking efficiency of an inverted metamorphic multi-junction (IMM) architecture developed by NREL. This efficiency was achieved after scientists studied quantum wall solar cells and manipulated multiple two-dimensional layers. The scientists embedded the quantum wall cell in the IMM device, which has three junctions, each tuned for a different wavelength of the solar spectrum.
Night solar energy
During the day, radiant energy from the sun greatly heats the Earth’s crust. However, energy is usually lost to the atmosphere and the cold surrounding space. In a new study published in the journal ACS Photonics, a team of photovoltaic engineers at the University of New South Wales Sydney in Australia demonstrated a successful trial run of their new device, which is capable of converting this thermal energy into electricity. A power generation device called a thermal radiation diode is used, which uses infrared energy to work in a similar way to night vision goggles, but scaled up.
Commercial perovskite solar cells
Perovskite was first used in solar cells in 2009. Scientists at the University of Manchester in the UK published details of a new record-breaking perovskite battery in 2016. Perovskite crystals are about a fifth as efficient as silicon at converting solar energy into electricity. However, the first perovskite-based panels were very fragile and had a short service life.
Engineers at Princeton University recently published an article in the journal Science describing the first perovskite solar cell with a commercially viable life. This is an important step towards making perovskite PV the global standard for solar installations.
Engineers believe the device could operate for at least 30 years at an efficiency higher than current solar industry standards. The current crop of commercial solar technologies only has a maximum lifespan of about 20 years. In addition to being highly durable, perovskite installations meet and exceed efficiency standards for solar panels. Silicon-based solar cells have dominated the solar market since they were first introduced in 1954, but the new perovskite cells may mark the end of silicon solar’s supremacy.
Perovskite crystals can be made at room temperature and are much less energetic than silicon. This makes them cheaper to produce and more sustainable. Because of their flexibility — as opposed to silicon’s stiffness and opacity — perovskite crystals can also be used in curved, curved or domed solar panels.
Princeton University engineers have shown how perovskite vulnerability can be overcome with a new accelerated aging technique that could extend the potential of solar cells beyond the limits of silicon.
The future of solar cell technology
Advances in solar cell technology show no signs of slowing down. Efficient, low-cost and easy to install (light, flexible) solar panels may be only a few years away from the market.
Post time: Sep-05-2022