Although lithium-ion is currently the market leading battery technology in energy storage, this status cannot be guaranteed in perpetuity. Three leading figures from the lithium-ion battery industry give Andy Colthorpe their views how the technology can continue to prosper.
One of the planet’s most abundant elements, hydrogen has the capacity to be a game-changer in decarbonising the global energy system, writes Janice Lin, founder and president of the Green Hydrogen Coalition.
Energy storage systems were historically used for grid balancing purposes within Europe, limiting their use to such applications or to be considered as “auxiliaries” to renewable generation assets. However, as market prices evolve and new revenue streams emerge, stakeholders must discover the diverse applications that such systems can tap into, writes Naim El Chami.
Ensuring high quality levels in the manufacturing of lithium-ion batteries is critical to preventing underperformance and even safety risks. Benjamin Sternkopf, Ian Greory and David Prince of PI Berlin examine the prerequisites for finding the ‘sweet spot’ between a battery’s cost, performance and lifetime.
A string of high-profile cyberattacks on energy infrastructure highlights the vulnerability of solar farms as they become increasingly reliant on digital systems. Alice Grundy looks at the rising threat of cyberattacks and the measures asset owners can take to mitigate the risks.
Finlay Colville, head of market research at PV Tech Power publisher Solar Media, discusses what’s inside the Q3 2020 update of the PV ModuleTech Bankability Ratings report and how it details a module supplier’s strengths and weaknesses.
As larger floating solar projects become a more common sight around the world, bankability is increasingly coming to the fore to satisfy the demands of financiers. Jeremy Ong, Ken Tay and Harald Hammer look at some of the areas where careful due diligence is vital to managing and mitigating technical risks for lenders.
Alongside the recent rapid boom in bifacial solar deployment, extensive work has been underway to fine-tune the yield modelling of bifacial systems. Drawing on case studies from the ATAMOSTEC test site in Chile, researchers involved in the collaborative venture describe how it is helping improve understanding of bifacial yield and laying the foundations for a set of new rules to inform system design and installation.
Mark Osborne analyses the sixth instalment of PV Evolution Labs’ annual module rankings and the insights it offers into the state of PV reliability and performance as technological change continues apace.
