Pilot Production Line PANDA solar cells designed by ECN
The joint project under the agreement endeavors to develop and implement high efficiency N-type silicon solar cells, named PANDA, at Yingli Green Energy’s pilot production line in Baoding, China. The high efficiency cells will utilize the cell design of ECN, the solar diffusion technology and dry PSG removal expertise of Tempress Systems, Inc., Amtech’s solar subsidiary (“Tempress“), and Yingli Green Energy’s leading cell process technology. More
New power stations must be Capture ready
The Netherlands is committed to a substantial reduction in CO2 emissions. To achieve this target, the government needs to pull out all the stops. This includes the introduction of CO2 capture and storage. Daan Jansen of ECN has looked at all the possible technologies for capturing CO2, and he still has plenty to keep him busy. “There is still much to discover and develop,” says the programme manager of the Hydrogen and Clean Fossil Fuels unit. More
Architects just want to develop attractive buildings
A building needs a roof, and an external wall. These are two of the compulsory architectural building blocks. Solar panels are not compulsory. But this does not mean architects are not interested in them. “There is still a great lack of understanding about the possibilities and impossibilities of using PV in buildings,” Henk Kaan of ECN explains. More
Sustainability as a lifebelt for the economy
During a recession many people look to the government for answers. It is the major player when the economy is in decline. Various interest groups (trade unions, industrial organizations) are now calling on The Hague to make the Great Green Gesture: to invest in Sustainability. ECN’s in-house economist Ton van Dril makes his own choices from the range of solutions. More
The quest for the blue flame
The ECN unit Biomass, Coal and Environmental Research is looking at the possibilities of making synthetic ‘natural’ gas in a sustainable manner. The basis for this is gasification of biomass. The gas cleaner OLGA has a very important function in every gasification system. This tar remover, developed by ECN, has been in the commercial hands of Dahlman since 2007 and seems to be conquering the world. More
One turbine sets the tone
For a wind farm at sea, the maintenance and repair costs are responsible for almost a third of the kWh price. It is logical that wind farm managers wish to know as exactly as possible which turbines require maintenance and when. How can this be achieved? “By determining the exact load on a few of the turbines in a wind farm. This information is the basis for a computer model that predicts the load on the other turbines,” Tom Obdam of ECN Wind says confidently. More
Diesel faces competition from hydrogen
This spring it was revealed that new delivery vans emit just as much nitrogen oxide as the old ones. The plan to set up environmental zones round towns and villages was therefore abandoned. In the same period, Paul Lebutsch of ECN presented a study of the present status of fuel cells for vehicles driven by hydrogen. “Our research shows that this technology can be very interesting for urban distribution.” More
The will is there, but problems arise in the execution
Carrying out energy projects involving risks is difficult in our society. The situations in Barendrecht (CO2 storage) and Urk (wind turbine farm) make this clear. The European Commission has investigated how to make new energy projects successful. “The ESTEEM tool, the result of this investigation that was coordinated by ECN, has been available to project managers since 2008,” Ynke Feenstra of ECN Policy Studies observes. More
Salt hydrates as heaters
During the summer, there is enough heat from the sun available to heat a house for the whole year. But how do you store this heat until you need it six months later?
No, an enormous insulated water tank is not enough. But it might be possible with a tank of hydrateable salt, uninsulated and ten times smaller. More
ECN enters into cooperation with leading US research institute
The Energy research Centre of the Netherlands (ECN) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the US research institute NREL (National Renewable Energy Laboratory) to start cooperation between the two institutes. This cooperation comprises a number of specific areas such as policy studies and energy analysis, wind energy and solar photovoltaic energy. More
Rome, 7-8 October 2013
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