Renewable Energy Research In Science

Demand for solar is surging around the world as high oil and gas prices drive an unprecedented acceleration in the global energy transition. The March data from the Chinese customs authority gives us one of the first clear signals of how the world is responding. The direction is unmistakable. Solar exports from China - a leading indicator for global solar adoption - surged in March, doubling to 68 GW. That's equivalent to the total installed solar capacity of Spain. And it's the regions most affected by the unfolding energy crisis that are seeing the sharpest increases in demand. The March data shows just how broad this surge is: ✅ 50 countries set all-time records for solar imports ✅ Exports to Africa rose 176% - in particular Nigeria +519%, Ethiopia +391% and Kenya +207% ✅ Exports to Asia doubled - in particular India +141%, Malaysia +384% and Lao PDR +108% Records were also set in other markets exposed to high fuel costs, including Japan, Australia and the EU. Another trend is emerging. Exports of solar cells and wafers have now overtaken exports of panels, as countries in Africa and Asia begin moving up the value chain, building their own solar manufacturing and assembly capabilities. We're witnessing how quickly countries respond to rising fossil fuel costs and risks – accelerating solar and electrification more broadly.

Our latest paper on market value of wind and solar energy With Clemens Stiewe, Alice Lixuan Xu and Anselm Eicke In the paper, we empirically study cross-border effects on the value of renewable energy: On one hand, interconnection is a flexibility resource that allows to export energy when it is locally abundant, benefitting renewables. On the other hand, wind and solar patterns are correlated between countries, so neighboring supply adds to the local one to depress domestic prices. We estimate both effects, using spatial panel regression on electricity market data from 2015 to 2023 from 30 European bidding zones. We find that, if wind market share increases both at home and in neighboring markets by one percentage point, the value factor of wind energy is reduced by just above 1 percentage point. For solar, this number is almost 4 percentage points.

NEW RESEARCH - WHY THE ENERGY TRANSITION IS DISRUPTIVE & COULD BE MUCH FASTER THAN WE THINK: The clean energy transition isn’t just about swapping out old tech for new—it’s a complex, non-linear process full of feedback loops, tipping points, and unexpected consequences. Our new “Systems Archetypes of the Energy Transition” brief is a must-read for anyone shaping policy, investing, or innovating in this space. Key takeaways: 1) Feedback loops drive change: Reinforcing loops (like learning-by-doing and economies of scale) have made solar, wind, and batteries cheaper and more widespread, often outpacing even the boldest forecasts. 2) Path dependence is real: Early advantages for a technology (think BEVs vs. hydrogen cars) can snowball into market dominance, making policy choices and timing critical. 3) Limits and synergies: As renewables grow, market dynamics like “cannibalisation” can dampen investment—unless we design markets and storage solutions to keep the momentum going. 4) Policy design is everything: Well-intentioned fixes (like price caps or broad subsidies) can backfire, while smart, targeted interventions can unlock positive feedbacks across sectors. 5) Tipping points and decline: The decline of fossil fuels isn’t just a mirror image of clean tech growth—it comes with its own feedbacks, risks, and opportunities for a just transition. The brief also offers practical guidance on using causal loop diagrams and participatory systems mapping—powerful tools for understanding and managing the complexity of the transition. If you’re working on energy, climate, or innovation policy, I highly recommend giving this a read. Let’s move beyond linear thinking and embrace the systems view—because the future will be shaped by those who understand the dynamics beneath the surface. This briefing was led by Simon Sharpe at S-Curve Economics CIC, Max Collett 柯墨, Pete Barbrook-Johnson, me at Environmental Change Institute (ECI), University of Oxford & Oriel College, Oxford & the Regulatory Assistance Project (RAP) and Michael Grubb at UCL Institute for Sustainable Resources.

Scientists at Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Guwahati have developed an advanced sunlight-driven photocatalytic material that can convert carbon dioxide (CO₂) into methanol fuel, marking a notable step toward cleaner energy and emissions reduction. The research was carried out under the leadership of Prof. Mahuya De from the Department of Chemical Engineering and published in the Journal of Materials Science. The new catalyst works by combining graphitic carbon nitride with few-layer graphene, which enhances energy retention and charge generation under sunlight. This improvement helps overcome the limitations of earlier materials that lost energy quickly and produced fuel inefficiently. The most effective version of the material, with about 15% graphene by weight, demonstrated strong stability and improved conversion of CO₂ into methanol when exposed to sunlight.

🚂 CO₂ is CO₂ - until you try to capture it!! Everyone treats carbon capture like a single engineering problem. But in reality, what you’re capturing from completely changes the game. Let’s break it down: 🧪 Flue Gas (Industrial CO₂) • Higher concentration (4–15%) • Hot, dirty, full of SOx/NOx — needs serious pretreatment • Promising for retrofits, tough on materials 🌾 Biogenic CO₂ • Comes from fermentation, biomass, etc. • Fewer impurities, sometimes carbon-negative • Easier to capture, harder to scale economically 🌬️ Atmospheric CO₂ (Direct Air Capture) • Just 0.04% in the air • Requires massive airflow + smart chemistry • Technically heroic. Economically brutal “for now” Different sources need different tech stacks, energy inputs, and infrastructure. That’s why “plug and play” carbon capture barely works in the real world. The winners in this space? They’re not just great at chemistry. They’re great at matching the right approach to the right source. 🧠 What’s your take? Which CO₂ stream do you think is most scalable in the next decade—and why? 👇 Let’s hear it in the comments. #sustainability #netzero #climatechange #climateaction #carboncapture Deependra Singh Shekhawat Hardik Abusariya Kirti Raj Singh Shekhawat Kushal Rathore Monika Wadhawan, PhD www.tracexero.com

A bold prediction no one wants to hear: Half of all commercial solar systems installed before 2016 will be underperforming or non-operational by 2030. The solar industry is obsessed with the future. Cutting-edge panels (bigger is better). Sleek batteries. Dazzling projections for new installs. But here's the reality we can't afford to ignore: a silent crisis unfolding on rooftops across America—a crisis I've been tackling firsthand since 2012, traveling the country with SunPower to address some of the industry’s most pressing system failures. Across the country, tens of thousands of rooftop solar systems—once hailed as the clean energy revolution—are quietly decaying. Not because the technology failed, but because the industry did. We rushed to install. We cut corners. We promised 25 years of performance… and delivered systems that can’t make it past 10. Here’s what’s killing them: Inverters are dying—many are already out of warranty, with no replacements available. Wiring and electrical infrastructure that was never designed for 25+ years of exposure. Install quality? Forget it—an army of barely trained crews built the boom, and now we’re paying the price. Maintenance? There was no plan. Just a contract, a handshake, and a hope it would all work out. This is not just an engineering issue—it's a financial one. Underperforming assets are generating less revenue than forecasted, while increasing the risk of electrical faults, fire hazards, and insurance claims. And here's the kicker: almost no one is ready to deal with this wave of system failures. Asset managers, facility owners, and even EPCs are discovering that repowering, remediation, or decommissioning is far more complex and expensive than expected. This is where the next frontier of solar energy lies—not in installing the next 100GW—it’s rescuing the first 100GW. Revitalization. Repowering. Responsible end-of-life planning. The question isn’t whether it’s coming. It’s whether we have the guts to face it. Are we going to keep pitching the dream— —or finally clean up the mess we left behind?

Professor Kwanyong Seo held up a solar cell and his colleagues saw a window. A piece of glass you could look through. His team at UNIST in South Korea had spent years on a problem most engineers treated as settled. Solar panels are opaque, heavy, and ugly. Buildings tolerate them on roofs. Nobody wants them on a glass facade. Seo's group moved the electrical contacts to the back of the cell, so the front looked like ordinary glass. They built it. A transparent crystalline silicon solar cell with all contacts on the rear side. Glass that absorbs ultraviolet and infrared light while letting visible light pass through. The numbers: ↳ 12.93% power conversion efficiency ↳ 57% visible light transmission ↳ Previous best for transparent silicon cells: roughly 2% For context, Michigan State's best transparent solar cell hit about 1% efficiency in 2020. Seo's team reached nearly 13%. Think about that. In a demo, the cell charged a smartphone through a pane of glass in ordinary sunlight. South Korea is betting on this direction, with other teams pushing transparent organic and perovskite films toward commercialization. But Seo's work matters most because it uses silicon, the same material the solar industry already manufactures at scale. Existing factories could adapt. The building you are sitting in right now has windows doing nothing but letting in light. Seo's lab proved those windows could also generate electricity, using a material the industry already knows how to make. What is something in your workspace that you wish did more than just sit there? Follow me, Dr. Martha Boeckenfeld, for clear ideas on thriving as AI rises and leadership stays human. Source: Transparent photovoltaic cells and self-powered photodetectors by TiO₂/NiO heterojunction Authors: Led by Professor Joondong Kim (Incheon National University, Korea) Journal: Journal of Power Sources https://lnkd.in/efcT-j6f

Germany built a battery that runs on salt and air — and never needs lithium At a quiet research center in Jülich, Germany, scientists are finalizing tests on a new class of grid battery that contains no lithium, no cobalt — just saltwater, iron, and a ceramic membrane. This is the world’s first scalable sodium-iron-air battery, and its performance is shocking the industry. Instead of relying on rare materials, this battery breathes. Oxygen from the air reacts with iron and saltwater to generate electricity. During charging, the system splits water molecules and stores energy in the form of oxidized iron. On discharge, the oxygen recombines — creating an energy loop powered by rust, salt, and air. The membrane is the real secret. Developed with micro-porous ceramics, it allows oxygen in but blocks corrosion, extending the life of the battery to over 25 years. This makes it ideal for wind and solar farms that need massive, long-duration storage — but without the ethical or supply chain issues of lithium. While it’s too bulky for smartphones, it’s perfect for energy grids, rural electrification, and even disaster recovery units. A pilot farm in Bavaria is now running entirely on wind power stored in these salt-air batteries — showing stable power even during cloudy weeks with no wind. The best part? Every component can be sourced locally, recycled easily, and manufactured cheaply. Germany plans to scale these units across industrial zones and power plants in the next decade — potentially cutting lithium imports by 40%. — in New York, NY, United States.

Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS): More Than Just "Big Batteries" The exploded-view hierarchy below highlights something often overlooked in discussions about grid-scale energy storage: A modern BESS is not simply a collection of battery cells—it is a highly integrated electromechanical, thermal, power-electronics, and software platform. At the plant level, the Power Conversion System (PCS) serves as the heart of the installation, converting power between the grid and battery system. Modern utility-scale deployments increasingly utilize 1500V DC architectures, medium-voltage PCS designs, and grid-forming inverter capabilities to improve efficiency, support black-start operation, and enhance grid stability. Inside the container, energy density continues to climb. While 2–6 MWh containers have become common, the industry is rapidly moving toward liquid-cooled 5–7+ MWh platforms. Advanced thermal management enables tighter battery packing, improved temperature uniformity, and higher continuous power capability. At the rack and module level, manufacturers are simplifying architectures through cell-to-pack designs, advanced compression systems, and integrated thermal propagation barriers that improve both safety and cost efficiency. At the cell level, LFP remains the dominant chemistry for stationary storage due to: - Long cycle life (6,000–8,000+ cycles) - Superior thermal stability - Reduced cobalt and nickel dependence - Lower total cost of ownership Emerging technologies such as LMFP and sodium-ion batteries are also beginning to appear in pilot deployments, particularly where cost and supply-chain resilience are priorities. Several industry trends are accelerating adoption: • Grid-forming inverters • DC-coupled solar + storage architectures • AI-driven energy management systems • Long-duration storage (4–12+ hours) • Second-life and recycling integration • Factory-built plug-and-play deployments For AI data centers, BESS is evolving beyond backup power. Hyperscalers increasingly use energy storage for demand response, renewable firming, peak shaving, and behind-the-meter energy optimization. As global storage deployments continue growing at more than 40% annually in many markets, the industry's key differentiators are no longer just battery chemistry, they are system integration, software intelligence, thermal management, safety performance, and long-term bankability. The future of energy storage belongs to the companies that can seamlessly integrate power electronics, batteries, thermal systems, controls, and software into a single scalable platform. ✅ Educational purpose only #BESS #EnergyStorage #BatteryTechnology #GridModernization #PowerSystems #LFP #EnergyTransition #RenewableEnergy #AIInfrastructure #DataCenters #ElectricalEngineering #BatteryStorage #GridScaleStorage #UtilityScaleEnergyStorage

Green Hydrogen and Biorefineries Integration: Achieving sustainable development requires shifting from a fossil-based to a circular economy, with renewable energy reducing the carbon footprint. This post features four case studies combining bio-based processes with green hydrogen via electrolysis from renewables. 🟦 Case Study 1: Methanation  Biogas upgrading to biomethane involves converting CO₂ to CH₄ through methanation using hydrogen. The plant comprises biogas production, water electrolysis, and an upgrade section consisting of "Mixing and Preparation," "Reaction," and "Separation." The biogas flows in at 590 SCM/h and hydrogen is supplied to maintain a 4:1 molar ratio with CO₂ in the reactor. Methanation can achieve nearly 100% CO₂ conversion, with valuable co-products like heat and oxygen from electrolysis. 🟦 Case Study 2: Hydroprocessed Esters and Fatty Acids The second process is hydrogenating triglycerides to produce GD, a drop-in fuel, using about 700 kt of oil from palm, sunflower, soybean, microbial, and cardoon sources. The design sequence includes a co-current multi-bed adiabatic reactor fed with a hydrogen-vegetable oil mixture, followed by a partial condenser separator. This process yields a gaseous phase (hydrogen, propane, carbon monoxide, and dioxide) and two liquid phases (water and hydrocarbons). A PSA unit recovers and recycles hydrogen, while the combustor processes tail gas for energy recovery. The distillation tower then separates heavy components and produces diesel from the organic liquid phase. 🟦 Case Study 3: Lignin hydrotreatment  The third case study focused on direct lignin hydrogenation to produce alkyl phenols and BTX, utilizing a lignin-rich stream from a second-generation ethanol biorefinery. Lignin valorization provides a viable alternative to combustion. Literature data and simulations evaluated the hydrogenation process for costs, expenses, yields, and hydrogen needs. A plant capacity of approximately 10 t/h of lignin from a Brazilian biorefinery in Alagoas was analyzed. A thermodynamic-based method was employed to model the HDO reaction, identifying relevant reactions and determining reactor yield via a temperature approach. 🟦 Case 4: Sustainable Aviation Fuels from bioethanol  A 4th case study focused on the production of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) using the Alcohol-to-Jet (AtJ) process, aiming for 90,000 t/y of SAF. This process converts ethanol through dehydration, oligomerization, and hydrogenation, producing a mixture of alkanes with low hydrogen consumption. These steps have been successfully demonstrated at a commercial scale, minimizing scale-up risks. The produced ethylene can then be oligomerized into linear α-olefins. Additionally, a biorefinery is under construction in North Queensland, Australia. Source: see post image This post is for educational purposes only. 👇 What opportunity does integrating biorefineries with green hydrogen present?