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The more than 23,000 large aircraft worldwide consume approximately 350 billion liters of fuel annually and account for about 3 percent of human-caused CO2 emissions. For long-haul flights over 4,000 km in particular, there is no alternative to liquid fuels, as only these provide a sufficiently high energy density. The development of sustainable aviation fuels (SAF) has now reached an important milestone: Following successful qualification by the international standardization organization ASTM, methanol has been recognized as an approved feedstock for the alcohol-to-jet production pathway. This means that in the future, methanol-to-jet blending components can be produced and mixed with at least 50 percent by volume of conventional kerosene to create a “drop-in” fuel—one that is fully compatible and can be used without any modifications to aircraft, engines, or existing infrastructure.

Researchers from the Early-Career Research Group on Optoelectronic Thin-Film Materials at the Institute for Sustainable Technical Systems (INATECH) at the University of Freiburg and the Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems ISE have developed a new process chain for perovskite-silicon tandem solar cells that operates entirely without solvents. The research findings have now been published in the renowned journal Joule.

Organic solar modules score points for their flexibility, transparency, and a particularly good environmental footprint. Wavelength-dependent transparency, in particular, is a major strength of organic photovoltaics. Researchers at the University of Freiburg and the Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems ISE have now succeeded in building 14.5 by 14.5- centimeter organic PV modules with an average transparency of 43.2 percent and an efficiency of up to 9.26 percent. To achieve this, they used a combination of sputtering and slot-die coating – both processes that are industrially proven and highly scalable to large module areas.

The American company Source Energy and the Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems ISE have jointly developed a new product line for space satellites based on silicon solar cells. The solar arrays are using a special interconnection technology. Combined with inexpensive silicon solar cells, this enables modules at much lower costs compared to standard III-V technology that currently dominates the space sector. The automated production process, utilizing the M10 Solar Equipment GmbH’s Shingle-Matrix Stringer, allows Source Energy to delivery their products in less than six months from the time of order.

The Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems ISE has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Himachal Pradesh University (HPU) in Shimla, India. The goal is to collaborate on research projects in the field of renewable energy, to facilitate the joint supervision of master’s and PhD students and to offer exchange programs. The collaboration will focus in particular on research into floating photovoltaic systems as well as agrivoltaics.