From the category archives:

Building-Integrated PV (BIPV)

UNSW designs Solar BIPV roofing materials that regulate building temperature

March 30, 2012
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The University of New South Wales’ School of Photovoltaic and Renewable Energy Engineering is in the process of developing building-integrated photovoltaic (BIPV) roofing materials which can also assist in regulating building temperature. The research initiative will be undertaken under the Co-operative Research Centre (CRC) on Low-Carbon Living grant program, which will provide $28 million dollars [...]

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University of Wollongong BIPV System

March 5, 2012
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The University of Wollongong has installed a building-integrated photovoltaic (BIPV) system on the roof of its McKinnon Pavillion. The installation is part of the University’s ‘McKinnon Precinct Landscape Masterplan’, which also includes rain-gardens and a 500,000L in-ground rainwater tank. Blog this! Digg this post Recommend on Facebook Share on Linkedin Share with Stumblers Tweet about [...]

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Dyesol Solar: Dye-and-nanotech Solar Photovoltaics

December 7, 2011
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Dyesol is positioning itself to revolutionise the solar photovoltaics (PV) industry by making available an innovative but still largely uncommercialised PV technology: the Dye Solar Cell (DSC). DSC is a 3rd generation solar PV technology that uses a ‘sandwich’ of materials to mimic the photosynthetic process of plants in order to create electricity from sunlight. [...]

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Solarwatt Easy-In BIPV roof systems

November 30, 2011
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Solarwatt is a solar photovoltaic (solar PV) module maker based in Dresden, Germany. In addition to standard solar modules, the company also provides off-grid solar and building-integrated photovoltaics (BIPV) solutions. Blog this! Digg this post Recommend on Facebook Share on Linkedin Share with Stumblers Tweet about it Print for later Tell a friend

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Q-Cells Q.Pro and Q.Smart Solar Panels: Yes, the “Q” stands for “Quality”

September 16, 2011
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Q-Cells solar modules are some of the most innovative and reliable solar systems in the world; the Germany company believes that “Claiming Leadership Means Proving It”, and the “Q” in the company’s name boldly stands for ‘quality’. A number of features of Q-Cells’ solar panels (including their Q.Pro G-2 and Q.Smart panels) support their claim [...]

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SolarEdge: module-level solar inverters for high-efficiency solar systems

July 22, 2011
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One of the trickiest parts of maximising efficiency in a solar installation is dealing with variations in power output among panels and strings of panels in the same system. SolarEdge is a leading company that has developed a unique solution to the problem of irregularity in solar panel array output. It uses a solar system architecture that utilises [...]

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Solar PV Windows: BIPV Technology by Pythagoras Solar

July 15, 2011
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As it currently stands with most buildings, the sun’s light is often a burden, especially in summer, when it heats up exteriors and necessitates energy to be spent on cooling.  Pythagoras Solar is a company that has created an innovative building-integrated photovoltaics (BIPV) technology that could revolutionise the way that buildings generate and use energy. This [...]

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Solar 2: New York City’s solar-powered education centre

April 26, 2011
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New York city will soon have its first-ever net-zero energy, carbon-neutral building, to replace its current environmental education centre, Solar 1. The new building is to be rather cleverly named Solar 2. Blog this! Digg this post Recommend on Facebook Share on Linkedin Share with Stumblers Tweet about it Print for later Tell a friend

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MIT produces glass-like solar photovoltaic cells

April 20, 2011
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A potentially major breakthrough for the future of solar photovoltaic power has been achieved at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT): organic solar cells that are transparent for visible light, but which collect infrared radiation for electrical power production. This promising technology could offer savings on construction costs as well as operational costs (i.e. less [...]

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Flexible Thin-film Solar photovoltaics

April 13, 2011

In a previous Solar Choice blog entry, Prateek Chourdia wrote about some emerging trends in the future of photovoltaic solar technology, including thin-film solar power. This entry will summarise some of the salient points regarding thin-film technologies, otherwise known as flexible photovoltaics, and discuss their possible future direction. Blog this! Digg this post Recommend on [...]

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How to install a solar panel mounting system on your roof

April 12, 2011
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For most people who decide to mount solar panels on their roof, a mounting system is necessary. This short entry explains the basics of what needs to be taken into consideration when putting a solar array on your roof. -Read about Solar Panel Tilt and Orientation in Australia- (Get a free comparison of solar quotes of the [...]

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Solar-powered carports

April 7, 2011
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The number of small, simple ways to put solar power to use in daily life seems virtually endless, and opportunities present themselves at every corner. Solar carports are one innovative way to turn an ordinarily passive, mundane, everyday item into an electricity generation system that works for you. It’s the sort of thing that, when [...]

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BIPV: Building-integrated Photovoltaics, the future of PV

April 1, 2011
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Building-integrated photovoltaics (BIPV) is exactly what the name indicates: solar power generation modules that are integrated directly into a building in the place of ordinary building materials. BIPV differs in a number of ways from the PV arrays that most of us are familiar with: the roof-mounted or rack-mounted PV arrays that are retrofitted onto [...]

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Asbestos in my roof! Can I install solar panels?

February 24, 2011
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You are now mentally and financially prepared and willing to go ahead with a solar panel (photovoltaic) installation on the roof of your home. The only problem is, after having your potential installer come out and have a look at it, you’ve found out that your roof has got asbestos in it and your installer [...]

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