The market for second-life solar modules is growing rapidly: in addition to use in smaller stand-alone systems and as balcony power plants, entire solar parks can also be equipped with used modules. After all, 70 per cent of old modules are immediately usable.
A research project by the ZSW in southern Germany is developing environmentally friendly energy storage systems for both urban transport and stationary applications.
Electromobility is booming worldwide. In China, most cars with electric drives crossed the counter. In Germany, almost every third buyer opted for an electric car.
Instead of a toxic solvent, ZSW researchers in Germany have used a water-based chemical to produce cathodes with a high nickel content. The batteries produced with this chemical are not only more environmentally friendly, but also last longer.
The Centre for Solar Energy and Hydrogen Research Baden-Württemberg (ZSW) and the German Association of Energy and Water Industries (BDEW) have presented current calculations on electricity consumption in Germany. Here are the parts:
The electric vehicle market is booming. Last year 681,000 new electric cars were registered in Germany. That means a more than two-fold increase of EV registrations in Germany.
At the research facility, the ZSW combines perovskite solar cells with various other semiconductors. In this way, the researchers want to accelerate the further development of the tandem solar cell.
Scientists plan to use artificial intelligence to optimize the processes used to manufacture battery cells. The goal is to develop eco-friendly, cost-effective and solvent-free ways of producing battery electrodes.
Demand for raw materials is rising fast as the transportation and energy sectors’ appetite for large lithium-ion batteries continues to grow. The European Union has designated some of these raw materials as being critical. Cobalt, lithium and natural graphite fall into that category, but today’s recycling processes can only recover some of the metals, and lithium not at all.
