Solar News From Solar Daily - 24/7 News Coverage of the Solar Energy Industry

Phase Change Foam Sustains Solar Desalination Through Low Light And Darkness
4 May 2026 at 1:33pm
Tokyo, Japan (SPX) May 01, 2026 Researchers from Ocean University of China and Huzhou University have developed a phase-change photothermal foam that continues to produce freshwater after sunlight fades, addressing one of the core limitations of solar-driven desalination technology. The material, designated PPy-CS/PF@DDA, is constructed by confining dodecylamine inside a polypyrrole-coated chitosan/phenolic resin foam. P

Biochar Hydrogel Hybrid Pushes Solar Desalination to New Efficiency Levels
4 May 2026 at 1:33pm
Tokyo, Japan (SPX) May 01, 2026 A new study published in the journal Biochar demonstrates that combining biochar with advanced polyzwitterionic hydrogels can sharply improve the performance of solar-driven water evaporation systems, offering a practical pathway toward low-energy desalination and water purification. Freshwater scarcity continues to intensify globally, with the vast majority of Earth's water locked in ocea

Robotic AI System Runs 50000 Perovskite Solar Cell Experiments and Hits 27 Percent Efficiency
4 May 2026 at 1:33pm
Tokyo, Japan (SPX) Apr 30, 2026 Perovskite solar cells have emerged as one of the most promising next-generation photovoltaic technologies, but their development still depends heavily on time-consuming trial-and-error synthesis and labor-intensive device fabrication. Researchers from the Hong Kong Polytechnic University and collaborating institutions have now reported an agentic robotics system that carries out the full cycle

Molecular Lock Design Pushes Perovskite Solar Cell Efficiency Past 26 Percent
4 May 2026 at 1:33pm
Tokyo, Japan (SPX) Apr 30, 2026 Inverted perovskite solar cells are widely considered the future of next-generation photovoltaics due to their high efficiency, low cost, and ease of manufacturing. A collaborative research team from the Southern University of Science and Technology (SUSTech) and The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) has proposed a new approach to stabilizing the delicate interfaces inside these devices,

Electron Microscopy Alone Can Now Fully Characterize Organic Solar Cells
4 May 2026 at 1:33pm
Berlin, Germany (SPX) Apr 30, 2026 Using three-dimensional electron diffraction (3D ED), researchers at Friedrich-Alexander-Universitat (FAU) Erlangen-Nurnberg have demonstrated that electrons can provide the averaged structural information previously accessible only with X-rays. For the first time, this allows a comprehensive structural characterization of organic solar cells within a single instrument - a transmission electron

AI Forecasting Method Lifts Solar Output by Optimizing Panel Tilt Angles
4 May 2026 at 1:33pm
Los Angeles CA (SPX) Apr 30, 2026 Researchers have developed a feature selection-based solar irradiance forecasting method to improve the operation of stand-alone photovoltaic systems. The approach uses a bidirectional long short-term memory hybrid network to forecast solar irradiance and then applies the forecasted data to estimate the optimum tilt angle of photovoltaic panels, helping increase PV output power. Solar irra

Sensor-Free Prediction Method Guards Stirling Generators Against Piston Overshoot Damage
4 May 2026 at 1:33pm
Tokyo, Japan (SPX) Apr 30, 2026 Researchers have developed a fast prediction and suppression method for transient piston displacement overshoot in free piston Stirling generators, addressing a fault condition that can quickly escalate into mechanical damage in solar thermal power systems. The new approach detects dangerous overshoot without relying on displacement sensors and suppresses the fault response early enough to maint

Improved Energy Management System Boosts Reliability of Off-Grid PV Fuel Cell Microgrids
4 May 2026 at 1:33pm
Tokyo, Japan (SPX) Apr 30, 2026 Researchers have proposed an improved energy management system for a stand-alone hybrid photovoltaic and proton exchange membrane fuel cell microgrid, aiming to maintain DC-link stability while reducing converter count, battery stress, and hydrogen use. The system integrates photovoltaic generation, a proton exchange membrane fuel cell, and battery energy storage to improve reliability under cha

Rice engineers suppress perovskite yellow-phase degradation with dual additives
4 May 2026 at 1:33pm
Los Angeles CA (SPX) May 04, 2026 Rice University chemical engineers have developed a method to make perovskite-based photovoltaics more durable by driving the material directly into its desirable black crystal phase while making it harder to degrade into an inactive yellow phase. Aditya Mohite and collaborators used two key additives in the precursor solution to create perovskite crystalline films that retained 98 percent

Chiba team models energy alignment for perovskite solar cells
4 May 2026 at 1:33pm
Tokyo (SPX) May 04, 2026 Researchers at Chiba University have developed the first universal model for energy level alignment at electrode, hole-collecting monolayer, and perovskite interfaces in solar cells, establishing a physically consistent framework that explains and provides guidelines for material performance across diverse combinations. A team led by Professor Hiroyuki Yoshida from the Graduate School of E

Crystalline buffer layer pushes organic solar cells to 20.21 percent efficiency
4 May 2026 at 1:33pm
Tokyo (SPX) May 04, 2026 Researchers have achieved a power conversion efficiency of 20.21 percent in pseudo-planar heterojunction organic solar cells by introducing a crystalline polymer buffer layer that shields against solvent-induced erosion during fabrication. The study, published in Chinese Journal of Polymer Science, addresses a persistent challenge in layer-by-layer deposition. During application of the top

UK team finds intermediate materials for solar fuels, batteries
4 May 2026 at 1:33pm
London (SPX) May 04, 2026 Researchers have identified previously unknown materials, including a new form of a widely studied clean-energy material, by carefully controlling and tracking how molecular precursors break down during heating. The study, published in Nature Communications, uncovers a series of hidden intermediate stages that appear when molecules are heated to become materials. Capturing these intermedia


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Solar Energy News, Analysis, Education

Global Renewable Energy Capacity Surging to New Heights
21 Jul 2023 at 12:53pm
by Ryan Regan
Russia’s prolonged war in Ukraine roiled global energy markets, forcing fossil fuel prices up, and helped cement energy security as a dominant policy area focus in Europe and beyond. These trends and the continued price competitiveness of renewable energy are combining to boost global solar and wind capacity to historic heights. IEA Report Outlines Record […] The post Global Renewable Energy Capacity Surging to New Heights appeared first on Solar Tribune.

Texas Emerges as Solar’s Latest Hotspot As Legislative Threats Emerge
16 May 2023 at 1:51pm
by Ryan Regan
California has long been the state where the solar industry has shined the brightest across residential, commercial, and utility-scale markets. That fact largely remains true today, but Texas is emerging as an ascendant solar energy powerhouse that is poised to give a major lift to national renewable energy generation goals. Texas Solar Capacity Hits Peak […] The post Texas Emerges as Solar’s Latest Hotspot As Legislative Threats Emerge appeared first on Solar Tribune.

Solar Manufacturing Growth Picks up in U.S.
6 Feb 2023 at 7:04pm
by Ryan Regan
Manufacturers of solar panels, inverters, and related solar energy components have overwhelmingly been based in China over recent decades as few countries around the World could compete with China’s combined natural resource and low-cost manufacturing advantages. While China’s supply chain stranglehold is likely to persistent for some time, recently announced investments by solar manufacturers in […] The post Solar Manufacturing Growth Picks up in U.S. appeared first on Solar Tribune.

Floating Solar Panels Sail Forward
7 Dec 2022 at 3:43am
by Ryan Regan
As solar energy has become more mainstream, solar panels have found their way onto more and more unique places, from theme parks to airports to old landfill sites. Floating solar panels offer an even more creative use for solar that fundamentally alters conventional assumptions about solar generation opportunities. How Do They Work? Solar panels themselves […] The post Floating Solar Panels Sail Forward appeared first on Solar Tribune.

NIMBYism Threatens to Stymie Solar Progress
27 Oct 2022 at 5:32pm
by Ryan Regan
The solar industry has arguably never been in a better position in the wake of the passage of the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA). A rise in NIMBY-inspired land-use policies, however, is threatening to disrupt some of that optimism. A Worrying Trend The passage of the IRA is a seminal moment for the solar industry that […] The post NIMBYism Threatens to Stymie Solar Progress appeared first on Solar Tribune.

IRA Passage Ushers in New Era of Stability for Solar Industry
13 Sep 2022 at 5:50pm
by Ryan Regan
It only took Congress 34 years, but a federal law to meaningfully address the harmful effects of climate change – the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) – finally passed the body and was signed into law by the President just weeks ago. The first congressional hearings on climate change were held way back in 1988, and […] The post IRA Passage Ushers in New Era of Stability for Solar Industry appeared first on Solar Tribune.

Global Heat Wave Puts Solar Panels to the Test
2 Aug 2022 at 5:27pm
by Ryan Regan
July was a scorcher of a month, with many countries and prominent cities across the world experiencing record-breaking temps. You may think that this was good news for the world’s solar industry as the Sun was seemingly working in overdrive, but in fact, blazing temps can greatly complicate solar generation efforts. This year’s hot summer […] The post Global Heat Wave Puts Solar Panels to the Test appeared first on Solar Tribune.

Rooftop solar: Good for the economy, good for the grid
27 Jul 2022 at 4:29pm
by Rebecca Snow
Solar continues to create jobs, investment, economic development and grid resilience while reducing energy costs for utilities, businesses, industry and consumers. It reduces the environmental impact on air, water and carbon.  And amazingly, it can be placed atop your house. Guest Post by Tim Echols, Originally posted in the Athens Banner-Herald Tim Echols is Vice-Chair of the Georgia Public Service […] The post Rooftop solar: Good for the economy, good for the grid appeared first on Solar Tribune.

Solar Panels Helping Old Landfills Embrace a Greener Future
30 Jun 2022 at 12:53pm
by Ryan Regan
As the solar industry has matured over recent decades, solar panels have found their way onto more and more unusual places. Cars, lakes, airports, and Disney World are just a few examples. Although notably less sexy than those examples, solar arrays placed on capped landfills are definitely becoming “a thing” that continues to gather more […] The post Solar Panels Helping Old Landfills Embrace a Greener Future appeared first on Solar Tribune.

The Rise of Agrivoltaics
3 Jun 2022 at 6:18pm
by Ryan Regan
Once upon a time, a common argument by solar energy skeptics was that expansive solar farms would overtake large swaths of American farmland, to the eventual detriment of American farmers seeking to grow crops or raise livestock. The industry has grown and matured in such a way that not only rebuffs this concern but shows […] The post The Rise of Agrivoltaics appeared first on Solar Tribune.

The Solar Powered Cars are Coming…Sort of
4 May 2022 at 6:26pm
by Ryan Regan
The electric vehicle and solar energy markets are both simultaneously growing at record clips, which begs the question, why haven’t cars powered entirely by the sun taken root as the next big thing? On the surface, the prospect of a car powered by an infinite and free power source that is never “off” sounds like […] The post The Solar Powered Cars are Coming…Sort of appeared first on Solar Tribune.

Cleaning Innovations Key to Solar PV Efficiency
2 Apr 2022 at 1:30pm
by Ryan Regan
The efficiency of a solar energy system’s individual PV panels and the amount of sun exposure that said panels receive play a pivotal role in the system’s over ability to harness solar energy. Keeping the surface of the solar panel clean is critical to achieving optimal efficiency and getting the most out of your system. […] The post Cleaning Innovations Key to Solar PV Efficiency appeared first on Solar Tribune.


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