systems

Arizona energy technology company Erthos, which makes Earth Mount Solar PV, a mounting system that attaches solar panels flat to the ground, has signed an agreement with renewable energy developer Industrial Sun for a 100+ megawatt (MW) solar project in Texas. It will be the only utility-scale solar farm installed flat on the ground to date.

Erthos writes that “the project has an expected interconnection capacity of 100 MWac, and Industrial Solar is looking to use all of this,” as the exact size of the solar farm has not yet been disclosed.

Industrial Solar faced the challenge of land constraints for this particular project, and that’s where Earth Mount Solar PV came into play. Conventional solar mounting technologies typically require more than five acres of land for each megawatt of capacity. But Earth Mount Solar PV only needs less than 2.5 acres for each megawatt of capacity. Thus, according to Erthos, its flat-mount technique allows solar farms to achieve energy density twice that of conventional utility-scale solar farms.

Erthos claims that its flat-mount solar farm can be built in half the time at half the cost of conventional mounting systems. It also says it uses 70% less cable and needs 70% less trenching, and its system is hurricane-proof.

In September 2021, PV Magazine Australia explained how Earth Mount Solar PV works:

The “ErthCompatible” specification licensed by Erthos calls for the use of IP68 glass-to-glass modules. Module vendors have mostly used duplex modules to meet this requirement. Another feature of the specification is the use of an aircraft cable that runs through the sides of the module to prevent both up, down and side-to-side movement. The safe and flatness of the panels allows the use of another Erthos innovation: the autonomous cleaning robot. A robot or a fleet of robots works every night, and a single robot can clean up to 2 MW of energy every day.

Educational site Solar Tech Advisor explains what IP68 solar panels are:

The highest rating a solar panel can achieve for waterproofing is IP68. This price means that the product is dustproof and can stay in water for a long time. IP68 rated solar panels can be used in areas with high water pressure such as permanent underwater solar applications.

Erthos says its robots take care of dirt and bird droppings. The company’s CEO, Jim Tyler, told PV Magazine Australia:

The estimated cost of cleaning a tracer unit once is about 50 cents per kW. We clean our solar plant for 50 cents per kW for a year.

He also addressed concerns about high temperatures in the same interview:

I did a fatal flaw analysis on the idea. The only fatal flaw that bothered me personally was the temperature. So, after proving the temperature readings of the module’s maximum cell temperature, I was satisfied. I happen to live in Phoenix, one of the hottest places on the planet. When I ran our first plant in 2019, it reached 118 degrees (47.8 C) outside. And I’m pretty sure the module cell temperatures don’t even come close to the maximum cell temperature. I said: Here is the answer.

In March 2022, Erthos closed a $17.5 million Series B funding round led by Capricorn Investment Group, which has also invested in Tesla and SpaceX.

What do you think about installing solar farms flat on the ground? Let us know in the comments below.

Read more: The largest solar landfill project in North America is now complete

Photo: Erthos

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MIT researchers have created ultra-thin, flexible solar cells that can be printed using semiconductor inks and scalable manufacturing techniques. They’re thinner than a human hair, 1% heavier than conventional solar panels, and produce 18 times more energy per kilogram, according to an MIT blog post.

Attached to a strong, lightweight fabric, it is easy to mount on any stable surface. They can provide power on the road as portable power supplies or be transported and rapidly deployed to remote locations for emergency assistance. Because they are so thin and light, these solar cells can be laminated to many different surfaces, from boat sails to tents and tarps used in disaster recovery operations. They could even be used to travel around Australia. The researchers claim that this lightweight solar technology can be easily integrated into built environments with minimal installation needs.

“Measurements used to evaluate new solar cell technology are typically limited to their energy conversion efficiency and their cost in dollars per watt. Equally important is integrability—the ease with which new technology can be adapted. Lightweight solar panels provide integration that drives current work. says Vladimir Bulovich, head of MIT’s emerging technology and Laboratory of Organic and Nanostructured Electronics (ONE Lab). He is also the director of MIT.nano and senior author of a new paper describing this breakthrough work on ultrathin solar cells.

Its co-authors are Mayuran Saravanapavanantham, a graduate student in electrical engineering and computer science at MIT, and Jeremiah Mwaura, a research scientist at MIT’s Electronics Research Laboratory. For readers who want to delve deeper into the technical details of this discovery, you can find more in Small Methods, which published a research paper on December 9. anyone with an internet connection.

The road to ultra-thin solar cells

Traditional silicon solar cells are fragile, which means they must be encased in glass and encased in a thick aluminum frame. This makes them heavy and inflexible, which in turn limits where and how they can be placed.

The search for printed solar cells began more than a decade ago. Six years ago, the ONE Lab team at MIT produced solar cells using thin-film materials that were light enough to sit on a soap bubble. But these ultrathin solar cells are made using complex, vacuum-based processes, which can be expensive and difficult to scale up.

Nanomaterials in the form of printable electronic inks are used to produce these new ultra-thin, flexible solar cells. Working in the MIT.nano cleanroom, researchers coat the solar cell structure using a slot-die coating that deposits layers of electronic materials onto a release substrate made just 3 microns thick. Using screen printing (a technique similar to adding designs to silk-screened shirts), an electrode is placed on the structure to complete the solar module. The researchers can then create an ultralight solar device by extruding a printed module about 15 microns thick from a plastic substrate.

Such thin, self-contained solar modules are difficult to handle and can easily tear, making them difficult to deploy. To solve this problem, the MIT team looked for a light, flexible and high-strength substrate to which they could attach solar cells. They identified fabrics as the optimal solution because they provide mechanical stability and flexibility with little added weight.

They found the ideal material—a composite fabric known commercially as Dyneema that weighs just 13 grams per square meter. This fabric is made of fibers so strong that they were used as a rope to raise the Costa Concordia cruise ship from the bottom of the Mediterranean Sea (it hit a rock and sank after the captain brought it too close to shore to wave to family and friends). They attach the solar modules to those fabric layers by adding a layer of UV-curable adhesive just a few microns thick. This creates an ultra-lightweight and mechanically robust solar structure.

“While it may seem simpler to print solar cells directly onto fabric, this would limit the choice of possible fabrics or other receptive surfaces to those that are chemically and thermally compatible with all the processing steps needed to make the devices. Our approach decouples the manufacturing of the solar cell from its final integration,” explains Saravanapavanantham.

Unusual Solar Panels

MIT researchers testing the device found that it can generate 730 watts per kilogram freestanding, and about 370 watts per kilogram when placed on high-strength Dyneema fabric. That’s about 18 times more than conventional solar cells on a power-per-kilogram basis.

“A typical rooftop solar installation in Massachusetts is about 8,000 watts. To generate the same amount of energy, our fabric photovoltaics would add only 20 kilograms (44 pounds) to the roof of a house,” explains the co-author. When tested for durability, the ultra-thin solar cells retained more than 90% of their original power generation capacity after being rolled and unrolled more than 500 times.

Although MIT’s solar cells are lighter and more flexible than traditional cells, they must be surrounded by another material to protect them from the environment. The carbon-based organic material used to make the cells can be altered by interacting with moisture and oxygen in the air, which can degrade their performance.

“Encasing these solar cells with heavy glass, as is standard with traditional silicon solar cells, will minimize the cost of current development, so the team is currently developing ultra-thin packaging solutions that will only slightly increase the weight of existing ultralight devices. ” says Mwaura.

“We are working to remove as much non-solar active material as possible while maintaining the form factor and performance of these ultra-lightweight and flexible solar structures. For example, we know that the manufacturing process can be further simplified by printing releasable substrates, which is equivalent to the process we use to make other layers in our device. This will accelerate the translation of this technology to the market,” he adds.

We know that the “go to market” part is often the hardest part. A review of CleanTechnica’s library reveals two never-before-seen stories about printed solar cells by companies — one in 2009 and the other in 2016. As Tom Petty once told us, “The waiting is the hardest part.”

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India’s solar energy sector has experienced incredible growth over the past few years. India is one of the largest producers of electricity in the world, but it is unable to meet its energy demand. After installing 60 GW of solar over the past few years, the country still has a pipeline of about 58 GW of utility-scale projects. This demonstrates the rapid expansion and continued development of the solar energy industry, making it a competitive alternative for the country. India requires a strong commitment because its population, size and huge potential for economic growth will increase its energy needs more than any other country in the coming decades. As the country’s economy expands rapidly and becomes a global industrial center, the demand for energy will increase. Increasing urbanization, rising incomes, and an ever-growing population will increase consumer demand for energy. According to studies, India’s share of the world’s total primary energy demand is expected to nearly quadruple to 11% by 2040. India needs to triple its energy production by 2030 to meet this huge increase in demand and at the same time meet its promise to reduce its carbon footprint by 35% from 2005 levels.

Here are some key factors that will influence the future of solar energy in India:

Foreign direct investment in the solar energy sector

Banning foreign direct investment or foreign direct investment in the sector is one of the important and important measures to develop this industry and accelerate the expansion of Indian enterprises investing in solar energy. Making the country more conducive to manufacturing, tax breaks and subsidies can really help the country’s solar sector expand rapidly. This will not only benefit businesses but also demonstrate how India’s overall solar industry can grow. The sector should be backward integrated and the government should encourage it. Many Indian companies are already providing services that meet global standards and can provide better customer service. This will help us stay innovative and achieve greater results in the solar energy market not only in India but globally.

The role of the private sector in promoting renewable energy

Between August and October 2021, India witnessed a coal crisis that resulted in high prices on the power exchange. The nation’s largest corporations have responded by changing course and focusing on more affordable, reliable and clean renewable energy sources. This shows that, in addition to the fact that renewable energy projects generate a higher return on investment, the economy drives such decisions. The growth of the solar sector is mainly driven by private players. Private businesses are getting involved in the renewable energy sector because it promises a faster return on investment than fossil fuel-based energy. Solar energy offers fantastic prospects for investors. According to the REN21 Renewables 2020 Global Status Report, between 2014 and 2019, investments in renewable energy projects and programs amounted to USD 64.4 billion. This result demonstrated the great potential for further expansion of the growth rate of the renewable energy sector.

Geographic Advantage

India benefits greatly from its position as it is located in a tropical region which is favorable for the solar energy sector. It receives an enormous amount of solar energy throughout the year, which is equivalent to almost 3,000 long hours of sunlight. Therefore, due to its vast solar energy potential, India is able to help other nations in addition to meeting its own energy needs. In addition, some states of the country have the capacity to generate significant amounts of power even on cloudy days.

The solar energy sector will promote India’s Aatma Nirbhar mission

India is highly dependent on China for imports of several solar applications such as solar inverters and solar cells. The government’s recent policies are aimed at making India less dependent and self-reliant. The Finance Minister in the Annual Budget 2021 announced an increase in customs duty for the solar industry from 5% to 20% on solar inverters and from 5% to 15% on solar lanterns, making supportive statements that will encourage local manufacturing of solar inverters . The government’s goal is to increase the independence of local producers.

Thus, to combat the high cost of solar equipment, it is important to develop a strong domestic solar manufacturing ecosystem. India will need urgent measures to become self-sufficient and this will be possible only by encouraging and helping domestic manufacturers to give up import dependence and truly transform into Aatma Nirbha. Appropriate government policies in favor of the renewable energy sector must be implemented quickly and efficiently to promote growth and bring India closer to achieving these goals.

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The views expressed above are those of the author.

END OF THE ARTICLE

If your RV, car, truck, or even shed doesn’t have a flat roof, installing traditional solar panels won’t be easy. Instead, pick up one of Renogy’s 100W 12V LTLW flex panels, which are perfect for the task. On sale for today 139 dollars, this is the second best price we’ve seen of all time and the lowest price since July, and now is a great time to buy. We also have a wide selection of Tesla and e-bike discounts in today’s New Green Deals, so you won’t want to miss out.

See below for other New Green Deals we found today, and of course Electrek’s best EV buying and leasing deals. Also, check out the new Electrek Tesla Store for the best deals on Tesla accessories.

Renogy’s 100W flexible solar panel mounts almost anywhere

Amazon offers the Renogy 100W 12V LTLW Flexible Solar Panel. $138.91 shipped. Below $156, today’s deal is the second best price we’ve seen of all time and the lowest price we’ve tracked since July. Designed to be flexible, this solar panel is capable of delivering an average of 500Wh of electricity per day, depending on how much sun it receives. The panel can be installed on curved surfaces as it can bend up to 240 degrees and weighs only 1/3 of the weight of a normal rigid panel. This makes it an ideal solution for cars, trucks and even your RV. It has an IP67 rating and is designed to withstand 5,400 Pa snow and 2,400 Pa wind. Since you can install this solar panel anywhere, it is an ideal solution to deliver power almost anywhere.

Google’s latest Nest Thermostat fights cold temps with Assistant for $90 (save $40), more

Amazon now offers the Google Nest Thermostat $89.99 shipped in several styles. Down from the regular $130 price tag, today’s $40 discount matches last month’s holiday prices. This is one of the lowest prices of the year and the best in several months. Coming as the latest indoor option to bring voice control and scheduling to climate control, the Google Nest Thermostat comes with an updated form factor centered around a frosted glass aesthetic with an LED display. Perfect for keeping things cozy this winter without lifting a finger, you can use Assistant to fight the cold with voice-controlled or even automated heating. Take a closer look at our hands-on review.

While it won’t quite return to the holiday prices set last month, those in need of an even more capable Assistant-enabled climate control system can get the Google Nest Learning Thermostat. 208 dollars. It’s under $249 and one of the best prices of the year. Offering most of the automated climate control features as the basic deal, this model steps up to a more aesthetically pleasing form factor with a touchscreen at the heart of the design. smart home.

Save energy by automating your Christmas lights with a $20 outdoor smart plug

Amazon offers the Etekcity Outdoor Wi-Fi Smart Plug with 2 outlets $19.99 after clipping the coupon on the page. Shipping is free for Prime members or orders over $25. This 23% discount from $26 marks one of the best prices we’ve seen for this smart plug and matches Amazon’s all-time lowest price. Ready to bring Alexa and Assistant control to two separately controlled outdoor outlets, it’s a great way to automate your holiday lighting this Christmas season. It has a capacity of 15A/1800W, which is enough power to run larger light shows. Instead of using the sensor, there are options from sunset to sunrise to select charts that match your local time. Plus, you can choose to use a timer or schedule to turn the lights on or off, or integrate them into your existing smart home modes. All of these things can help you save energy this holiday season because your lights won’t have to stay on all day just to come on at night.

New Tesla deals

After checking out the flexible solar panel on sale above, if you keep reading, you’ll find a selection of new green deals that will make your Tesla experience even better in many ways. From memory to note-taking phone mounts, car chargers, and anything else we can find, they’ll be listed below. Every day we do our best to find new and exciting deals and ways for you to save on fun accessories for your Tesla. Check out the best Tesla store for more gift ideas and deals. Read on for e-bikes, Greenworks and other great deals.

New e-bike discounts + electric scooter discounts

You can use an e-bike or electric scooter for fun, exercise, or even commuting to work or the coffee shop. We have quite a few people here who regularly ride their e-bikes to coffee shops or the office because it cuts down on gas mileage and allows them to spend time outdoors on nice sunny days. Below you’ll find a wide selection of new e-bike deals and electric scooter deals in all price ranges, so take a look at something you’ll be interested in buying. As always, the latest e-bike deals and electric scooter discounts and sales will be at their peak, so shop fast as the discounts will be gone soon.

More New Green Deals

After you’ve purchased the flexible solar panel on sale above, be sure to check out the other deals we’ve found today. These new green deals range from outdoor lawn equipment to anything that can save you money in a variety of ways, such as cutting gas and oil out of your life or enjoying other opportunities that energy-efficient equipment can bring. As always, the newest deals will be at the top, so shop quickly as the discounts are gone soon.

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The RFP (request for proposal) process is the primary mechanism for municipalities to adopt solar energy and meet their sustainability goals. It defines project parameters and creates competition among solar manufacturers to offer the best system design and pricing that checks all the boxes specified in the RFP.

I’ve reviewed and responded to hundreds of RFPs since 2015 and learned a few things about how they should be structured to ensure projects are developed to meet clients’ objectives. Here’s what municipalities should consider about the solar RFP process and the developers who will respond.

Before we begin
Starting with a clear, well-defined goal is the most important thing organizations can do to ensure their RFPs are properly structured and well received. More than any other factor, a well-defined objective will influence the results of the buying process.

Trying to meet your sustainability goals? Or is this project primarily about creating economic value? Understanding the project’s goals will help developers determine the optimal design for the project. Often a choice must be made between a design that offers maximum savings or a design that offers maximum durability benefits.

Understanding the site
In addition to the primary objective, solar developers must understand the site and any limitations. The RFP should clearly identify where the site is, what specific areas the solar array is to be located in, and if known, the size of the desired system. It is surprising how many RFPs fail to adequately identify the subject site.

Keep in mind that most solar manufacturers will not be familiar with your site before receiving an RFP. All RFPs must begin with the site address or parcel number, along with satellite images depicting the areas where you wish to host the installation. Also, make sure you’re looking for a rooftop, parking deck, or ground-mounted installation.

If you’re looking for a system that pays for your facility’s load, you should at least provide annual electricity usage for the site, but it’s also ideal for including utility bills or interval data. If an energy storage system is desired, you must meet your utility bills and usage at 15-minute intervals for one year.

With accurate site definition and annual usage, solar developers can determine in minutes whether a site fits their business model and begin to spend time evaluating project details. If the RFP fails to identify a project, bidders may move on to other projects that more clearly fit their business model.

In addition to the basic details, you should include any additional relevant information such as utility bills, interval information, electrical plans for the site, meter locations and roof information. For roof installation, you need to consider whether the roof is in good enough condition to accommodate solar energy for 15-25 years. The developer will ultimately check this during the development process, but if the roof is 20 years old with no plans for replacement, it will kill the project, so it’s best to understand this as soon as possible.

Understanding economics and structure
RFPs should level out assumptions that are unknown or beyond bidders’ control to allow developers to demonstrate capabilities and achieve the best possible outcome for your project.

Most municipal solar proposals seek projects financed as power purchase agreements (PPAs) with a fixed price per kilowatt-hour (kWh) produced, or leases with the developer paying a fixed annual fee to the municipality. system. In any structure, numerous variables affect the final price provided to the customer, but most variables such as system size, manufacturing and installation costs are within the developer’s control.

Municipalities must balance assumptions beyond the developer’s control, such as who will receive the renewable energy certificates (RECs) generated by the project, any assumed incentive rates, interconnection upgrade costs, and whether union labor or prevailing wages are required. . In the case of RECs, the municipality can choose to buy the credits and pay a higher PPA price, or the developer can keep the RECs and charge a lower price. If the project will receive state or local incentives, the municipality should define the assumed incentive rate to prevent bidders from getting unrealistically optimistic results.

It is also important that the municipality defines any functional or aesthetic requirements for the project. For example, water, snow and ice management is necessary for parking lots in colder climates to prevent dangerous icicles or ice sheets from forming on parking lots. There are many solutions available to manage this risk, but they are expensive and can add more costs down the road if not explicitly stated in the RFP.

By leveling these assumptions, the municipality can evaluate the prices of tender participants on a buy-buy basis and measure their capabilities to meet specific requirements.

Understanding solar power producers
The main purpose of an RFP is to get bids from as many qualified bidders as possible, so it’s important to consider the developers who will respond. Not every developer has the bandwidth to take advantage of every good opportunity. The first RFPs that are often overlooked are those with a high degree of complexity.

Every bidder understands that municipalities typically have strict procurement requirements, including various certifications or tender forms. Some RFPs can run to hundreds of pages and require multiple hard copies to be mailed to the client. This length and format lead to a more time-consuming and costly process. Municipalities should review the requests and determine which questions are repetitive or redundant. Trying to tighten the length of the proposal and the amount of time required to complete a compelling presentation can result in a wider selection of quality proposals.

Much is at stake for municipalities
With the rapid expansion of the solar energy market, the RFP space will continue to be the primary forum for seeking solar energy projects that best meet the needs of municipalities. By developing an RFP that creates a clear mutual understanding of the project, municipalities can increase their chances of choosing the right partner and achieving the best outcome for their community.

Dan Smith has over seven years of experience in solar power generation for commercial, industrial and municipal customers. In his role as DSD’s RFP generation leader, Smith leads the RFP team and all RFP generation efforts. It evaluates available RFP opportunities and selects opportunities where DSD can offer an attractive solution. Prior to joining DSD in 2018, Smith generated successful RFP responses that resulted in the award of more than 200 MW of solar projects, including projects for Wal-Mart, Amazon and FedEx, as well as many projects for municipalities, school districts and utilities. Smith has experience developing projects in 11 states and the District of Columbia. He has in-depth knowledge of all active solar markets, covering all major project structures and incentives, including PPAs, direct purchases, leases, feed-in tariffs, community solar, contracts for differences and other innovative financing models.