Nuclear fusion: what are the challenges?
Nuclear fusion could provide a limitless supply of zero-carbon energy from the 2030s onwards. Thus 30 private companies have raised $4bn to progress new ideas. But the goal of this…
First Solar: thin film solar breakthrough?
First Solar Technology Review. This patent screenbreaks down First Solar technology efficiency. First Solar: a solar panel manufacturer, listed in the US, founded in 1999, employing 6,400 people. It has…
Nexwafe: PV silicon breakthrough?
Nexwafe technology review. Nexwafe is developing a next-generation PV silicon technology called the EpiWafer process, growing standalone silicon wafers onto mono-crystalline seed wafers, with no need to slice ingots and…
TOPCon: maverick?
A new solar cell is vying to re-shape the PV industry, with 2-5% efficiency gains and c25-35% lower silicon use than today’s PERC cells. This 13-page note reviews TOPCon cells,…
Levelized cost: ten things I hate about you?
‘Levelized cost’ can be a useful concept. But it can also be mis-used, as though one ‘energy source to rule them all’ was on the cusp of pushing out all…
Solar trackers: efficiency improvements?
This data-file quantifies solar trackers’ efficiency improvements. Depending on location, 40-90% of new utility-scale solar plants are being fitted with ‘trackers’ in the early-2020s; constantly re-positioning panels to face the…
Solar volatility: interconnectors versus batteries?
The solar energy reaching a given point on Earth’s surface varies by +/- 6% each year. These annual fluctuations are 96% correlated over tens of miles. And no battery can…
Electrification: the rings of power?
Electrification is the largest, most overlooked, most misunderstood part of the energy transition. Hence this 10-page note aims to explain the upside, simply and clearly. Electricity rises from 40% of…
Energy costs of energy transition?
Reaching net zero requires building wind, solar, grid infrastructure, energy storage, electric vehicles and capturing CO2. Energy is needed to build all of these things. The total energy costs of…
Silicon carbide: faster switching?
Silicon carbide power electronics will jolt the energy transition forwards, displacing silicon, and improving the efficiency of most new energies by 1-10 pp. Hence we wonder if this disruptor will…