Chinese solar company LONGi has unveiled its latest perovskite/crystalline tandem solar cell at the Intersolar 2023 event in Germany, which boasts a conversion efficiency of 33.5%.
The company’s panel is the second-most conversion-efficient solar cell in the world, and is 1.7% more conversion-efficient than the module shown at the Smart Energy Conference and Exhibition (SNEC) in Shanghai earlier this year. The panel, dubbed “2681” after it recorded a conversion efficiency of 26.81% in November 2022, has a power capacity of 600W.
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The latest efficiency figure was confirmed by the European Solar Test Installation, an EU body, and is the latest impressive milestone for LONGi. Its Taizhou solar plant in China boasts a capacity of 38GW, and attention will likely turn to how the company can best deploy its impressive technology.
“Improving cell conversion efficiency and reducing the cost of electricity remain the perpetual theme driving the development of the photovoltaic industry,” said Li Zhenguo, president of LONGi during a speech at Intersolar. “As a global inclusive energy source, photovoltaic is sending light and well-being to various countries and regions around the world.”
LONGi has invested considerable time and effort into optimising its solar cells, in particular tandem cells, which consist of two solar panels arranged one on top of the other, each optimised to a different part of the spectrum of light. The company has spent US$2.8 billion (CN¥20 billion) on research into solar efficiency, and its work has broken the world record for solar efficiency 14 times since April 2021.
Alongside the 2681 panel, LONGi is demonstrating what it calls a “new tech conceptual product” at Intersolar. This project, which consists of silicon heterojunction cells, could further optimise the company’s solar power generation, and LONGi noted that its “dual-glass structure” means it may be more reliable and scalable than other forms of solar generation.