Background The creation of effective energy conversion technologies has become essential in response to the challenges of integrating diurnally and seasonally intermittent and variable renewable energy resources. Specifically, one of the most important steps toward the economical production of sustainable fuels and organic chemicals is the conversion...

Photovoltaic (PV) energy systems have played a major part in meeting renewable energy requirements. However, power production from PV systems faces impediments such as partial shading due to environmental and man-made obstructions. Shading causes voltage and current mismatch losses that can significantly reduce the power supplied to the grid. Reconfiguring...

Photovoltaic (PV) cells are typically formed from semiconductor absorber layers. These absorber layers exhibit absorption of light with photon energy above their bandgap energy to generate electron-hole pairs. The absorber layers can also exhibit non-radiative recombination in the bulk of the absorber material. However, the absorber semiconductor...

­Solar energy systems generate power intermittently, for example based on varying cloud coverage and other conditions. This inherent variability can lead to significant inefficiencies in utilizing the renewable energy source. The conventional approach is to utilize a central power converter in the solar energy system for maximum power point tracking....

Solar energy systems generate power intermittently, for example based on varying cloud coverage and other conditions. This inherent variability can lead to significant inefficiencies in utilizing the renewable energy source. The conventional approach is to utilize a central power converter in the solar energy system for maximum power point tracking....

­Thermochemical reactors provide an effective means for water splitting and carbon dioxide splitting. These reactors are able to produce energized chemicals (e.g., hydrogen and carbon monoxide), which can subsequently be used in other chemical reactions (e.g., to reduce, add functionality, etc.) or from which other chemicals can be made (e.g.,...

Despite substantial improvements in solar array efficiency in recent years, accurate fault detection and diagnosis remains an open problem as undetected faults can cause substantial power loss and hazardous conditions. Solar panel arrays can experience several types of faults of varying severity. Some faults, such as those associated with soiled, dirty,...

There is a need for solar cells with highly efficient light-to-electricity conversion and lower cost. Multijunction cells, which include multiple light-absorbing materials, each of which converts a given wavelength range of the solar spectrum, can be used to provide greater conversion efficiency than single-junction thin-film solar cells. However,...

Faults in utility-scale solar arrays often lead to increased maintenance costs and reduced efficiency. Since photovoltaic (PV) arrays are generally installed in remote locations, maintenance and annual repairs due to faults incur large costs and delays. To automatically detect faults, PV arrays can be equipped with smart electronics that provide data...

In the last decade, new solar photovoltaic (PV) cell technologies have emerged for grid-connected systems. However, automatic fault detection and accurate diagnostics for PV array systems are still challenging problems. Even with over-current protection devices (OCPD), ground fault detection interrupters (GFDI), and smart monitoring devices (SMDs) with...