Category: Tech Talk

Overview of drivetrains, gearboxes and direct drives technologies

Overview of drivetrains, gearboxes and direct drives technologies

Aug 21, 2023 |

Improvements in drivetrains are expected to emerge in tandem with the overall growth in the wind turbine sector. New developments may include single-stage gearboxes, direct drive systems and permanent magnet generators. The advancements in direct-drive magnets and generator designs for wind turbines have resulted in low-cost and lighter wind turbines. The cost of permanent magnets used in direct drive turbines has also decreased which has further increased the prospect of direct-drive turbines.

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Solar Landscape: Overview of different PV technologies

Solar Landscape: Overview of different PV technologies

Aug 6, 2023 |

The most widely used solar cells today are based on crystalline silicon, where silicon atoms are connected to form crystal lattices. Crystalline silicon cells can be ca­te­gorised as either polycrysta­lline, which is made from several silicon fragments melted together, or mono­cr­ystalline, whi­ch is made from single crystals of silicon. The monocrystalline cell has a higher efficiency as compared to polysilicon becau­se it is composed of a single crystal with more room for electrons to move.

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Energy storage in Europe: Poised for greater role in power system management

Energy storage in Europe: Poised for greater role in power system management

Jun 25, 2023 |

Several developments have taken place recently as policymakers and industry acknowledge the potential role that energy storage is likely to play in future and the need to remove barriers to their deployment. Notably, on March 14, 2023, the EC adopted the ‘Recommendation on Energy Storage – Underpinning a decarbonised and secure EU energy system’, which contains 10 recommendations for European countries to help accelerate storage deployment.

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Fuel of the Future: Key properties, storage and applications of liquid hydrogen

Fuel of the Future: Key properties, storage and applications of liquid hydrogen

Jun 5, 2023 |

It is important to note that hydrogen is not a silver bullet for decarbonisation as its production can be carbon-in­tensive if it relies on fossil fuels. This is because the majority of hydrogen currently produced comes from steam methane reforming, a pro­­­­­cess that requires fossil fuels as feedstock. In addition, the production of hydrogen from renewable electricity can be ex­pe­nsive and inefficient as significant amo­unts of energy are requ­ir­ed to produce hy­dro­gen through the pro­cess of electrolysis.

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Floating Offshore Wind: A potential solution to meet global decarbonisation needs

Floating Offshore Wind: A potential solution to meet global decarbonisation needs

May 26, 2023 |

Floating offshore wind turbines are affixed on platforms that are firmly moored to the ocean bed and conn­ec­ted by dynamically suspended cables. As a technology, floating offshore wind (FOW) can be considered supplementary to fixed-seabed wind technology. It d­e­ploys fixtures and component configurations that are compatible with conventional systems, including power substations, undersea transmission networks and feed-in infrastructure of the existing grids.

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Critical Components: Trends in solar cables and connectors market

Critical Components: Trends in solar cables and connectors market

May 22, 2023 |

Solar cables are designed as a medium to carry solar power throughout a solar system and serve as connecting cables for critical equipment. They have a great mechanical strength that allows them to survive harsh weather conditions. These cables are typically installed outside and exposed to high temperatures in a solar project over their lifetime. The number of wires and their gauge are used to classify solar cables.

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Cybersecurity concerns, challenges and solutions

Cybersecurity concerns, challenges and solutions

May 15, 2023 |

Cyberattacks are carried out with ma­licious intent, and have the po­tential to compromise the power supply system and render the grid insecure. They can result in equipment maloperation and damage, and may even have a cascading effect leading to a grid blackout. Cyberattacks are staged using the tactics and techniques of initial acc­ess, execution, persistence, privilege es­calation, defence evasion, command and control, and exfiltration.

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O&M Opportunity: Wind market trends and outlook

O&M Opportunity: Wind market trends and outlook

Apr 23, 2023 |

The operations and maintenance (O&M) of wind power plants plays a key role in the development of the wi­nd energy segment and the broader energy transition, by ensuring that wind turbines are able to operate at their full pot­ential during their useful life. In addition, the after-sales service business continues to be an increasingly important so­urce of revenue and employment for the wind industry.

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Energy Storage: Technologies, challenges and future outlook

Energy Storage: Technologies, challenges and future outlook

Apr 2, 2023 |

In 2022, the global energy storage market size was $19,000 million according to a recent report by Acumen Research and Consulting. The market is set to grow at a CAGR of 9 per cent, reaching $48,500 million by 2032. The Asia-Pacific region is ex­pected to be the fastest-growing market for energy storage systems with demand co­m­ing from countries such as China, India, Ja­p­an and South Korea.

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Integral Components: <strong>Market overview of solar inverters</strong>

Integral Components: Market overview of solar inverters

Feb 25, 2023 |

The global solar inverter market is set to grow over the coming years owing to the massive deployments expected for utility-scale solar power consumption as well as solar deployments in residences, commercial establishments, industries, and institutions. The solar inverter industry is likely to be largely driven by technological improvements, increasing demand for solar power and cost reduction in components.

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Robotic Cleaning of Solar Panels

Robotic Cleaning of Solar Panels

Feb 15, 2023 |

The use of robotic cleaning solutions is gradually gaining traction and will become more cost effective as project sizes grow larger. Utility-scale developers and operators of solar parks prefer automated clea­ning solutions since the expense of manual labour for cleaning panels increases with the project size. It might take some time before robotic cleaning totally repla­ces manual cleaning due to the low labour costs in some regions, but as the cost of these solutions falls, more developers are opting to use this innovative technology.

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Reactive Power Management for Renewable Energy Integration

Reactive Power Management for Renewable Energy Integration

Jan 30, 2023 |

The increased injection of renewables causes voltage fluctuations in the gr­id, causing harmonics, flicker ph­e­nomena, unbalanced loads and power oscillation, thus impacting pow­er quality and power transfer capability. There­fore, reactive power management is crucial to ensure grid stabilisation, enable voltage management and maintain po­wer quality. Reactive power ma­na­geme­nt reduces voltage fluctuations and im­proves the stability of AC systems.

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Top 10 Energy Storage Trends in 2023

Top 10 Energy Storage Trends in 2023

Jan 14, 2023 |

At the beginning of each year, we pause to reflect on what has happened in our industry and gather our thoughts on what to expect in the coming 12 months. These 10 trends highlight what we think will be some of the most noteworthy developments in energy storage in 2023. Lithium-ion battery pack prices remain elevated, averaging $152/kWh. In 2022, volume-weighted price of lithium-ion battery packs across all sectors averaged $151 per kilowatt-hour (kWh), a 7% rise from 2021 and the first time BNEF recorded an increase in price.

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Virtual Power Plants

Virtual Power Plants

Jan 12, 2023 |

A virtual power plant (VPP) is a collection of small-scale energy resources that, aggregated together and coordinated with grid operations, can provide the same kind of reliability and economic value to the grid as traditional power plants. If homes and businesses can save the grid from going dark for free just based off a text message, imagine what they could do if there were a proper market for VPPs.

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Strong Support: <strong>Overview of the solar mounting structure market        </strong>

Strong Support: Overview of the solar mounting structure market        

Jan 4, 2023 |

Module mounting structures have an important part to play in the functioning of a solar power plant. They are the supporting structures that hold solar panels to the ground. In order to harness solar power efficiently, mounting structures need to be manufactured and installed at sites in a specific way. How­ever, the quality of mounting structu­res is often compromised to cut costs.

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Powering Up: Technology trends in the EV charging space

Powering Up: Technology trends in the EV charging space

Dec 28, 2022 |

Currently, most EVCSs operate on traditional grids. However, such uncoordinated charging with sudden peaks and troughs in demand can potentially cause fluctuations, leading to outages and deterioration of the grid. Hence, in the up­coming years, the growth of EVCS will be accompanied by the growth of smart grids and captive sources of power. It makes more business sense for an EVCS to have captive capacity, as this re­duces the operational overheads related to power procurement.

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Drones and Robotics : Offers cost effective solutions to power industry

Drones and Robotics : Offers cost effective solutions to power industry

Dec 14, 2022 |

Drones and Robotics have quickly found their places in electricity sector. Their cost effectiveness and ease of use, are expanding their employability in the industry. Use of drones and robotics for power grid inspection brings several advantages such as higher safety and low risks to maintenance technicians, reduction in maintenance equipment downtime, enhanced accuracy in data collection of an asset’s condition, reduced staffing need and associated employment cost, and more accurate asset inventory management. 

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A Growing Market: <strong>Trends in the remote solar monitoring space</strong>

A Growing Market: Trends in the remote solar monitoring space

Nov 16, 2022 |

The performance of solar plants is a function of multiple components su­ch as panels, inverters and transformers. These devices are subject to malfunctions and failure due to environmental and systemic factors. In order to effectively and timely manage inefficiencies in the solar power system, remote solar monitoring sy­stems are being dep­lo­yed.

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Technology Edge: Using robots and drones for efficient solar O&M

Technology Edge: Using robots and drones for efficient solar O&M

Nov 10, 2022 |

Artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning and computer vision (CV) are gradually occupying room in the renewable energy generation space. The deployment of these modern te­chnologies alongside ro­bots and drones plays a significant role in the operations and maintenance (O&M) of renewable energy par­ks. With the help of these advanced automated technologies, the landscape of field inspections and monitoring of renewable energy projects is changing for good.

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Increasing Innovation: Emerging trends in wind turbine drivetrains and towers

Increasing Innovation: Emerging trends in wind turbine drivetrains and towers

Sep 11, 2022 |

A range of wind turbine drivetrains with various costs, techno­logies, physical features, efficiencies, deg­rees of reliability and materials currently exist in the market. Another crucial component of a wind energy system is the turbine tower. The material, height and size of turbine towers are key determinants of the power outcomes and economic returns of wind energy projects.

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