Thin-Film CIGS Solar Cell Sets New Efficiency

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Excerpt: Researchers from the Germany Center for Solar Energy and Hydrogen Research (ZSW) have broken a new efficiency record for thin-film copper indium gallium diselenide solar cells.The researchers produced a 20.3 percent efficient cell, only a fraction less than the best multi-crystalline cells o …

PV Vision Sensor Identifies Smallest Solar Cell Inconsistencies

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Excerpt: SensoPart Industriesensorik GmbH (Wieden, Germany) expanded its program of vision sensors by adding a solution for photovoltaics: The new vision solar sensor FA 46 is the only sensor in its price category available on the market that measures each individual cell and is consequently able to ident …

World’s Largest Concentrated Solar Plant Gets The Green Light

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Excerpt: Solar Trust of America announced that its project development subsidiary, Solar Millennium, LLC, has received a proposed decision from the California Energy Commission (CEC) granting the license to build and operate its Blythe Solar Power Project in Riverside County, which would be the largest C …

Fused Quartz, A Critical Component Of The Solar Power Industry

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Excerpt: As the photovoltaic industry advances, the use of fused quartz becomes more vital, in creating thin films and silicon chips as well as manufacturing and laboratory ware.Much of the success of sustainable energy sources depends on the achievement of improved efficiencies, and photovoltaics are …

New Solar Cell Generates Electricity Via Sun’s Light & Heat

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Excerpt: A team of scientists has invented a new type of solar cell that converts both the sun's heat and light into electricity, potentially giving a boost to the efficiency of solar energy harvesting devices. The cell combines a photovoltaic process that turns light into electricity with another that c …

Researchers Create Organic Photovoltaic Panels From Graphene

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Excerpt: Despite the fact that graphene has been known to exist for decades, only recently have researchers begun to study graphene in earnest. The reason for the relatively late start into research using grapheme is that the material was difficult to make in quantities needed for research.Once that h …

Concentrated Solar Converters Prefer the Shine

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Excerpt:By John Gyorki, Editorial DirectorSolar energy can be converted to electrical energy in two ways: First, with photovoltaic (PV) cells and second, with solar energy collectors that use the sun’s heat to run turbines coupled to electric generators. If you are contemplating either system for …

IBM Creates “Cooling Liquid” Which Significantly Reduces Costs For CPV

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Excerpt: IBM announced a research breakthrough in PV technology that could significantly reduce the cost of harnessing the Sun's power for electricity.By mimicking the antics of a child using a magnifying glass to burn a leaf or a camper to start a fire, IBM scientists are using a large lens to con …

Magnolia Solar Receives $1M To Advance Thin-Film Solar Cells

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Excerpt: Magnolia Solar has received a US$1 million award from the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA). This award is to develop advanced thin-film solar cells in partnership with the College of Nanoscale Science and Engineering (CNSE) of the University at Albany.Magnol …

Research Shows Nanotube Thermocells Can Be Excellent Power Sources

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Excerpt: According to a study published in the American Chemical Society's Nano Letters journal, researchers at the University of Texas at Dallas have determined that thermocells based on carbon nanotube electrodes could be used for generating electrical energy from heat cast off by chemical plants, auto …