New ‘breakthrough’ solar PV technology
UK solar PV firm Oxford PV has developed a new type of solar panel which can produce up to a third more electricity than typical silicone solar PV panels.
The panels use a combination of perovskite crystal and silicone to increase their efficiency to 27.3 per cent. The efficiency of a standard silicone solar PV panel is around 22 per cent.
The added efficiency increases the panels’ power generation and can lower the overall cost of energy. Dr Chris Case, chief technology officer at Oxford PV, said to the Guardian, “Silicon has reached its culmination of capability. There are residual improvements to be made, and cost of production opportunities, but from a performance standpoint it is at its efficiency limit. The perovskite material is something totally innovative for solar.”