Solar energy news and discussion

[caltrek]

New Method Makes More Efficient Solar Cells at Room Temperature
by Harrison Tasoff
May 7, 2024

Introduction:

(Futurity) Researchers have developed a method to make high-quality perovskite films at room temperature.

Finding reliable, eco-friendly power sources is crucial as our world grapples with increasing energy needs and the urgent call to combat climate change. Solar energy offers one solution, with scientists devising ever more efficient materials for capturing sunlight.

Perovskite solar cells have emerged as a promising alternative to conventional, silicon solar cells, boasting a number of advantages. But processing the material has been a complicated affair.

The new innovation not only simplified the production process but also increased the material’s efficiency from under 20% to 24.4%.

Read more here: https://www.futurity.org/perovskite-so ... urce=rss

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The 458 MW Red-Tailed Hawk solar plant near Houston is now operational.

Red Hawk comes online just in time for another Texas heat wave expected in the next few days.

Texas now has about 23 GWs of solar operational, and more solar is being built rapidly there.

https://x.com/johnrhanger/status/1793365947929203190

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India's new solar additions grew 5x in the first quarter of this year, hitting nearly 10GW

Chart by @MercomIndia
: "There is a substantial pipeline of large-scale projects scheduled for 2024, positioning India for a record-breaking year by a significant margin."

https://x.com/DrSimEvans/status/1793630889731350745

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In March, Texas generated more power from solar than from coal for the first time.
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/GOV-ns7WUAA ... name=large

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[wjfox]

Now 5 Million Solar Installations Across USA, 5× More Than In 2016

11 hours ago

The U.S. solar power industry, particularly the rooftop arm of the industry, is going through a bit of a tough time at the moment. The country’s biggest solar market — by far — is California, and the industry there has been hit quite hard by the huge solar policy downgrade to “Net Metering 3.0.”

Nonetheless, there’s a lot to celebrate when it comes to solar power progress in the United States. The Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) recently reported that the country has passed 5 million solar installations. Five million!

Perhaps more interesting and telling — this is a 5× increase from the 1 million solar installations the country had reached in 2016. Solar power has been growing fast in the country. Can we double that 5 million in another 8 years? Can we double it quicker — by 2030, for example? SEIA seems to think that we can indeed double the number before 2030.

“Today 7% of homes in America have solar, and this number will grow to over 15% of U.S. homes by 2030,” says SEIA president and CEO Abigail Ross Hopper.

SEIA expects total solar installations to not only double to 10 million by 2030, but the organization also expects them to triple to 15 million by 2034. That increase from 5 million to 10 million would thus come in about 6 years while the increase from 10 million to 15 million (also a 5-million-installation increase) would take about 4 years. So, despite Net Metering 3.0, SEIA expects solar power growth to actually increase.

https://cleantechnica.com/2024/05/28/no ... ince-2016/

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