Sri Lanka milestone for Shell Solar

Shell Solar has reached a milestone in its efforts to provide rural communities with access to energy, in bringing PV electricity to 20 000 homes and small businesses in Sri Lanka. The company says strong demand for PV systems is likely to continue in Sri Lanka, where only 59% of households are connected to the electricity grid and thousands of rural residents rely on batteries and kerosene.Visit www.re-focus.net for the latest renewable energy industry news     

The Solarex approach to expanding the PV business

Solarex was founded in 1973 to develop photovoltaic products for terrestrial applications. Over the last 24 years, the company has moved from single-crystal silicon technology to polycrystalline silicon and has also developed both single-junction and multi-junction amorphous silicon solar cell technology. Solarex is now starting to produce 8-ft² amorphous silicon tandem modules in a new plant in Virginia and has initiated new programs to develop the grid-connected markets in the USA and overseas. However, the current USA lead in photovoltaics is in jeopardy as government programs in both Japan and Germany are aggressively supporting the development of building integrated photovoltaic systems in those countries. In order to maintain its leadership in photovoltaics, the USA needs to implement a new national initiative to support the development of building integrated photovoltaics. © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Photovoltaik in Österreich — Marktdaten, Kostenentwicklung, Fördermaßnahmen und Erfahrungen

The first autonomous photovoltaic systems were used to supply electricity on board of satellites. In Austria the first applications of solar electric systems were transmitter stations and mountain cabins in the Alps. This market segment developed very well even without any funding. Grid connected photovoltaic systems are modular units. Solar panels can be integrated in roof surfaces and facade elements in the building sector. The market developed well with help of funding systems like the Austrian 200 kW Rooftop Programme. As a consequence a lot of know how could be gained. In co-operation with the Technical University of Vienna an innovative inverter was developed by the company Fronius.     

War or Peace Journalism? Asian Newspaper Coverage of Conflicts

This study examines the extent to which four Asian regional conflicts involving India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Indonesia, and the Philippines are framed as war journalism or peace journalism based on Johan Galtung's classification. A content analysis of 1,338 stories from 10 newspapers suggests that, overall, the news coverage of these conflicts is dominated by a war journalism frame. The Indian and Pakistani coverage of the Kashmir issue shows the strongest war journalism framing whereas the coverage of the Tamil Tiger movement and the Mindanao conflict by the Sri Lankan and the Philippine newspapers reveals a more promising peace journalism framing. The three most salient indicators of peace journalism are the avoidance of demonizing language, a nonpartisan approach, and a multiparty orientation. The war journalism frame is supported by a focus on the here and now, an elite orientation, and a dichotomy of good and bad.     

Emerging Role of the Band‐Structure Approach in Biohybrid Photovoltaics: A Path Beyond Bioelectrochemistry

Emulation of natural photosynthesis is central to modern photovoltaic research targeting sustainable and economic ways of solar energy harvesting. Natural photosynthetic systems have succeeded in efficiently harvesting solar energy which is key to the sustenance of life on earth. With numerous advances in understanding the structure and function of the natural photosystems, the last decade has witnessed new perspectives in developing bioinspired photovoltaics. Interestingly, organic photovoltaics (OPVs) adopting photosynthetic design principles and biophotovoltaics (BPVs) adopting solid‐state device architectures have now converged at a juncture. Several reports in recent years point to a new scope of improvement in OPVs and BPVs stemming from mutual inspiration. At this juncture, there are new perspectives by which a BPV can be designed that were previously limited only to conventional optoelectronics. Treating natural pigment–proteins as optically and electronically functional materials in any photovoltaic design, from the band‐theory viewpoint, is a promising direction for advancing BPVs beyond the boundaries of bioelectrochemistry. This article presents an overview of selected reports on BPVs in the last few years utilizing new design concepts based on band‐theory and its associated principles. In light of this, the scope of the band‐structure approach in BPVs is discussed, eliciting prospective research directions.     

Building-integrated PV activities within the IEA framework: Going from task 16 to task VII

Early in 1997 a new task will be launched within the scope of the International Energy Agency (IEA) Photovoltaic Power Systems Implementing Agreement. This new task, Task VII, aims to develop building-integrated photovoltaic (BIPV) technology, consider ing technical viability, economics and aesthetic quality. The task concentrates strongly on the involvement of architects, building engineers and urban planners, and the ability to increase their interest in BIPV. Task VII succeeds Task 16, ‘Photovoltaics in Buildings’ of the IEA Solar Heating and Cooling Program, completed in March 1996. It has proved to be very effective in developing and demonstrating new concepts for building-integrated photovoltaics, with t he international cooperation in the task assisting in advancing and promoting the application of photovoltaics in both residential and commercial buildings. Task 16 played a pioneering role in obtaining the World's attention for BIPV. It is expected that Task VII will provide accelerated development and market acceptance of this promising technology.     

Examples of successful architectural integration of PV: Japan

By the end of 2002 more than 1300 MWp of photovoltaic power was installed in industrialized countries worldwide. Of this, approximately 640 MWp, or 48%, is installed in Japan, mainly on buildings. This makes Japan the most prominent country in the field of building-integrated photovoltaics (BIPV). The interest in integration of PV among Japanese architects has increased accordingly, which has resulted in many sophisticated and innovative designs. This short communication introduces four examples of successful architectural integration from different fields. The Japanese government aims at an installed PV capacity of 4820 MWp in 2010. In parallel, the Japanese PV industry needs to develop into a strong sector which is able to operate without direct market support. The role of architects in this process should not only be to increase the volume of building integrated PV, but also to make comprehensive, integral designs, which include sunlight shading, thermal insulation, energy saving, passive use of solar energy, and obviously also photovoltaics. Furthermore, architects could make an important contribution to establishing a new, sustainable urban environment in which BIPV is used on a large scale as a distributed source of energy. This fits well within the new international effort in the framework of the International Energy Agency (IEA), Photovoltaic Power Systems (PVPS), Task 10. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Rural photovoltaic electrification programme on the Bolivian high plateau

From 1988 to 1993, the Institute of Solar Energy at the Universidad Politécnica de Madrid carried out a programme on the Bolivian high plateau that attained photovoltaic (PV) electrification of 1500 rural households by means of individual Solar Home Systems (SHS). This programme focused on three aspects: domestic electrification, transfer technology and user participation. In the case of domestic electrification, the SHS design presents some special features related to reliability and security, including the use of car batteries with lower than usual electrolyte density. The transfer technology process has been focused o n the fabrication of lamps and charge regulators specifically designed for this programme. At present, good-quality and competitive local products are available in Bolivia. User participation has been structured around a specific organization named ADES ( Asociación de Electrificación Solar). Each user has contributed an initial fee of US$ 80 plus a monthly maintenance fee of US$ 1. The results of the programme show the maturity of PV technology for rural electrification projects in developing countries. In our particular case it is also the cheapest way to achieve rural electrification on the Bolivian high plateau.     

Organic photovoltaics based on 5-hexylthiophene-fused porphyrazines

Organic photovoltaics based on 5-hexylthiophene-fused porphyrazines as the donor material were investigated. Bilayer solar cells consisting of a solution deposited donor layer and a vapor deposited C₆₀ acceptor layer showed decent photovoltaic performances of up to PCE of 1.2%, which is comparable to the corresponding CuPc/C₆₀ bilayer solar cells. On the other hand, bulk-heterojunction solar cells with PC₆₁BM gave much reduced photovoltaic performances with maximum PCE of 0.70%, which can be ascribed to poor film morphology.     

Employee perception towards electronic monitoring at work place and its impact on job satisfaction of software professionals in Sri Lanka

Electronic monitoring is a rapidly growing phenomenon in Sri Lankan software industry. It allows employers to observe what employees do on the job and review employee communications, including e-mail and internet activity that employees consider private. Often, employers use electronic monitoring to ensure organizational confidentiality, limiting employer liability for employee misconduct. From the perspective of employees, electronic monitoring by employers involves several privacy and confidentiality concerns. Most of the time, employee performance and productivity aspects captured via electronic monitoring are effectively used by the Human Resources Departments, for decision making associated with the employees.Majority of the software development organizations in Sri Lanka today use some means of electronic technology to monitor their employee activities. Most of the time, employee perception towards electronic monitoring at work, contradicts with the need for law enforcement within the organization intended by the top management. Employers justify electronic monitoring at work place in terms of protecting the company’s confidential information, preventing the misuse of the organizational resources while uplifting the quality of work and productivity. On the other hand, the mutual trust that should be there between the employer and the employee is in question. Therefore, this study empirically investigated the relationship that might exist between the software professionals’ perception towards electronic monitoring at work place and its impact on their job satisfaction.Based on disproportionate stratified random sampling, data were collected from 380 software professionals in Sri Lanka, by administrating a structured questionnaire in which items were of 5 point Lickert scale. The data analysis included the univariate, bivariate and multivariate analyses.In this study, Perceived Relevance to Work and Personal Judgment of Effectiveness which were two variables used to measure perception of electronic monitoring were positively correlated with Job Satisfaction. This means that the software professionals, who view electronic monitoring as something which is relevant to their work as well as which uplifts the quality of their work, are satisfied in their jobs. Perceived Invasion of Privacy was negatively correlated to Job Satisfaction, which sheds some light in organizational electronic monitoring policy making. Also, Perceived Task Satisfaction was negatively correlated to Job Satisfaction. This means that the software professionals, who thought that working in an electronically monitored environment makes their tasks more complex, are rather dissatisfied in the job. Also, it appeared that the impact of electronic monitoring at work place on the job satisfaction of software professionals becomes less significant along with higher professional experience.The findings of this research can be incorporated in IT security policy making in the software development organizations in Sri Lanka and in similar economics, with a special emphasis on the job satisfaction of their employees, which is the most valuable asset of the organization.     

Erfahrungen mit 2000 Photovoltaikdächern in Deutschland

The German Federal-State 1000 roofs photovoltaic programme is the largest, broadly based test world-wide of low-power grid-connected systems. The programme has shown that photovoltaics today is already a safe and reliable technology. The solar modules proved to be the most reliable components in the systems. Among other effects, the progamme influenced the development of new inverters for the low and medium power range. Optimization of the components and the whole systems is still needed. The average system yield was slightly below 700 kWh/kWp, with a very large range in results among the systems being observed.     

太阳能光伏发电路灯照明工程设计探讨

太阳能光伏发电是近年来新兴的环保、节能、清洁的可再生能源,开发利用太阳能对于解决能源紧缺、环境污染问题至关重要。本文就如何利用太阳能光伏发电解决路灯照明设计问题作了重点介绍,旨在有助于推动规模化太阳能光伏照明方面的开发利用,以获取更多、更好的经济、社会、环境效益。     

Life-cycle assessment of photovoltaic systems: results of Swiss studies on energy chains

The methodology used and results obtained for grid-connected photovoltaic (PV) plants in recent Swiss life-cycle assessment (LCA) studies on current and future energy systems are discussed. Mono- and polycrystalline silicon cell technologies utilized in current panels as well as monocrystalline and amorphous cells for future applications were analysed for Swiss conditions. The environmental inventories of slanted-roof solar panels and large plants are presented. Greenhouse gas emissions from present and future electricity systems are compared. The high electricity requirements for manufacturing determine most of the environmental burdens associated with current photovoltaics. However, due to increasing efficiency of production processes and cells, the environmental performance of PV systems is likely to improve substantially in the future. © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Assessment of the adequacy of EN ISO 15927‐4 reference years for photovoltaic systems

The long‐term performance prediction of photovoltaic systems requires representative meteorological data from a particular location. Among the numerous proposals in the field of solar energy, most of them include procedures oriented towards the generation of test reference years (TRYs). These synthetic years are composed of the concatenation of 12 actual months of the time series of meteorological measurements. Using TRYs to simulate the performance of different types of solar energy systems reduces the computational effort of the simulation and simplifies the analysis of the results. In this sense, the technical standard EN ISO 15927‐4 describes a procedure for constructing a reference year suitable for evaluation of the annual heating and cooling long‐term needs in buildings. In this work, the adequacy of the EN ISO 15927‐4 reference year for photovoltaic systems was studied. The electricity production obtained by simulation with this TRY was compared with that obtained by the Weather Year for Solar Systems. This latter reference year only uses the monthly thermal energy collected by the system as a selection parameter of typical months. This comparison was performed for seven locations in the USA considering two 5.6 kWp grid‐connected photovoltaic systems that only differ in the solar tracking system. The suitability of the EN ISO 15927‐4 reference year for the estimation of the electrical energy generated by a photovoltaic system has been proved, showing good results in the annual and daily predictions in most of the cases studied. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Ionically Generated Built‐In Equilibrium Space Charge Zones—a Paradigm Change for Lead Halide Perovskite Interfaces

Methylammonium lead iodide (MAPI) is the archetype of the intensively researched class of perovskites for photovoltaics. Nonetheless, even equilibrium aspects are far from being fully understood. Equilibrium space charge effects at the MAPI/TiO₂ and MAPI/Al₂O₃ interfaces are discussed, which are of paramount significance for solar cells. Different from the photovoltaic literature in which such built‐in potentials are considered as being generated solely by electronic charge carriers, a generalized picture that considers the equilibrium distribution of both ionic and electronic carriers is applied. Experimental evidence is given that shows it is the ions that are responsible for the equilibrium space charge potential, the reason being a pronounced ion adsorption at the contacts. The electronic redistribution is a sheer consequence of the so‐established electric field. Experiments with mesoporous oxide as well as experiments with MAPbBr₃ (MAPBr) indicate photovoltaic relevance and material generality in terms of the choice of the lead‐based perovskite. The occurrence of space charge effects at heterojunctions generated by ionic redistribution is not only a novel concept in photovoltaics, it also provides a new path to modifying charge‐selective interfaces, as well as a better understanding of the behavior in mesoporous systems.     

Grid‐connected photovoltaic systems: the Brazilian experience and the performance of an installation

Just as in several other countries, the Brazilian experience of installing in place solar photovoltaic technology was first aimed at meeting the needs of rural areas. More recently, the effects of the international trend towards grid‐connected photovoltaic systems are beginning to be felt in Brazil. In less than five years, the first four grid‐connected photovoltaic systems have been installed, and other projects are in progress. This work presents the overall characteristics of the first four systems and the technical performance achieved by one of them, with an annual production in the range of 1500 kW h/kW_p. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

China to install turnkey solar cell fabrication line

GT Solar Technologies of Nashua, New Hampshire, will install a turnkey GT Waffab photovoltaic wafer fabrication line for installation at Baoding Yingli New Energy Resources of Baoding, China.     

Influence of Average Photon Energy index on solar irradiance characteristics and outdoor performance of photovoltaic modules

Solar spectral irradiance measurements on a routinely basis are relevant to study the influence of solar spectrum on the photovoltaic (PV) module performance, especially for thin film and third generation PV. Two spectroradiometers from EKO were added to the instrumentation available at the ESTER outdoor station of the University of Rome Tor Vergata. A detailed characterisation of the spectral irradiance at the site was carried on during more than 6 months of monitoring activity measuring spectral solar irradiance in the range 350–1700 nm with a time interval of 10 min on a horizontal plane. A wide variety of spectra were acquired in various weather conditions, and indications about the spectra behaviour on a daily and seasonal basis were obtained. Moreover, information about the effect of the weather conditions on the solar radiation spectral distribution were identified. The Average Photon Energy index was used as an indicator of the spectra characteristics. The same index was also used to evidence the solar spectrum influence on polycrystalline and double junction amorphous silicon PV modules. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Spectral study and classification of worldwide locations considering several multijunction solar cell technologies

Multi‐junction solar cells are widely used in high‐concentration photovoltaic systems (HCPV) attaining the highest efficiencies in photovoltaic energy generation. This technology is more dependent on the spectral variations of the impinging Direct Normal Irradiance (DNI) than conventional photovoltaics based on silicon solar cells and consequently demands a deeper knowledge of the solar resource characteristics. This article explores the capabilities of spectral indexes, namely, spectral matching ratios (SMR), to spectrally characterize the annual irradiation reaching a particular location on the Earth and to provide the necessary information for the spectral optimization of a MJ solar cell in that location as a starting point for CPV module spectral tuning. Additionally, the relationship between such indexes and the atmosphere parameters, such as the aerosol optical depth (AOD), precipitable water (PW), and air mass (AM), is discussed using radiative transfer models such as SMARTS to generate the spectrally resolved DNI. The network of ground‐based sun and sky‐scanning radiometers AErosol RObotic NETwork (AERONET) is exploited to obtain the atmosphere parameters for a selected bunch of 34 sites worldwide. Finally, the SMR indexes are obtained for every location, and a comparative analysis is carried out for four architectures of triple junction solar cells, covering both lattice match and metamorphic technologies. The differences found among cell technologies are much less significant than among locations. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.