Enhanced Power Generation Research Articles

Quantitative Estimation of Albedo and Tilt Angle Variation in Bifacial Perovskite Solar Cells.

Bifacial perovskite solar cells (Bi-PSCs) have attracted substantial attention within the photovoltaic (PV) community due to their potential for enhanced power generation, suitability for integration into building structures and applicability in multijunction PV systems. This study presents the fabrication of efficient Bi-PSCs and investigates their unique properties using various characterization techniques, including Lambertian reflection effects through tilt angle arrangements and bottom albedo illuminations. The control device achieved a maximum power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 17.46% under front-side 1 Sun AM1.5G illumination. A significant influence of ground Lambertian reflection is observed with tilt angle variations, resulting in an increase in PCE from 17.46% → 18.82% as the tilt angle reached 20°. Additionally, enhancing the rear-side albedo to 0.5 Sun yielded a maximum PCE of 26% with a bifaciality factor of ∼90% at a tilt angle of 20°. Consequently, the synergistic effect of 0.5 Sun albedo and a 20° angular light inclination led to the development of Bi-PSCs with an efficiency of 26.46%. SCAPS-1D simulations are further employed to validate the experimental Lambertian reflection effects. Moreover, the Bi-PSCs exhibited intrinsic self-encapsulation and chemical robustness (T80 for 2000 h in the N2 atmosphere). This study anticipates that cost-effective and highly efficient Bi-PSCs will emerge as a leading PV technology in both single-junction and tandem PV configurations for electricity generation in the near future.

Numerical study of magneto convective ag (silver) graphene oxide (GO) hybrid nanofluid in a square enclosure with hot and cold slits and internal heat generation/absorption

Energy transmission is widely used in various engineering industries. In recent times, the utilization of hybrid nanofluids has become one of the most popular choices in various industrial fields to increase thermal performance and enhance power generation, entropy reduction, solar collectors, and solar systems. Motivated by this wide range of applications, the present article explores the mixed convection flow and heat transfer of magnetohydrodynamic \\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$\\:Ag$$\\end{document} (Silver) and \\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$\\:GO$$\\end{document} (Graphene) nanofluids hybrid nanofluids in a square enclosure with heat generation/absorption by using the MAC method. The vertical walls of the enclosure are assumed to be adiabatic. The horizontal walls are also assumed adiabatic except for the center portion of the top and bottom walls of the cavity. The center portion of the horizontal upper wall is maintained as a cold is \\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$\\:{(T}_{c})$$\\end{document}and the lower wall is maintained as hot \\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$\\:\\left({T}_{h}\\right)$$\\end{document}. The dimension equations are transformed into dimensionless form and then discretized and solved with the finite difference Marker and cell (MAC) method. Numerical modelling is implemented, by changing Richardson number \\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$\\:\\left(Ri\\right)$$\\end{document}, The results are located graphically using MATLAB software. The Nusselt number graph was displayed for the Reynolds number (Re), Richardson number\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$\\:\\:\\left(Ri\\right)$$\\end{document}, and Hartmann number \\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$\\:\\left(Ha\\right)$$\\end{document}. The findings show that enhancing the values of the Richardson number and Reynolds number enhances the Nusselt number values except for the Hartmann number. The findings indicate that the combination of the new model is very good at predicting thermal conductivity and correlates experimental results well. The augmenting strength of magnetic force diminishes fluid flow. Developing the coefficients for the heat source and sink improves energy transmission and heat transfer enhancement. Hybrid nanofluids like \\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$\\:Ag-GO$$\\end{document} enhance heat transfer and efficiency. They improve cooling in heat exchangers, radiators, and electronics, boost solar energy systems, aid in cancer treatment and drug delivery, enhance geothermal and wind turbine efficiency, and improve manufacturing processes. Overall, they optimize thermal management in various applications.

Advanced smart grid controller: a next-gen alternative to Fuzzy-logic for UPFC

A very valuable component of flexible AC transmission systems (FACTs) is the Unified Power Flow Controller (UPFC). By simultaneously regulating both active and reactive power on transmission lines, it maintains voltage stability on linked buses. This study devised a thorough control strategy for the Unitary Power Flow Controller (UPFC), combining traditional and artificial intelligence (AI)-based methods. To see how the system would react in different situations and how well artificial intelligence control worked compared to more traditional proportional-integral power control, we ran a lot of simulations. The study found that the control strategy based on artificial intelligence (AI) was better than the proportional-integral (PI) control at managing power flow, keeping the voltage stable, and responding to changes in the environment. The results of this study emphasize the capacity of artificial intelligence methods to improve the performance and stability of FACT components such as the UPFC. The research provides important insights into power system control and optimization, indicating that strategies based on artificial intelligence could greatly enhance power generation. In order to enhance the AI control strategy, future research should focus on its practical application in actual power systems.

Enhanced power generation by carbonized microsphere embedded with bimetallic carbides nanoparticles as efficient electrocatalyst in bioenergy harvesting systems

The performance and preparation method of anode are the key factors for power generation and magnified application of microbial fuel cell (MFC). This is because the anode plays an essential role in whole process for extracellular electron transfer (EET) as the carrier of exoelectrogens. In this work, dual-phased Mo2C-W2C microsphere are prepared on carbon-based matrices as binder-free anode by in-situ pyrolysis of Mo/W precursors. As expected, the Mo2C-W2C/CC anode exhibits brilliant electrocatalytic activity, electron harvesting capacity and improved EET rate, thus the maximum power density of corresponding MFC achieves 4.89 W/m2. The above enhancement can be attributed to the microspherical three-dimensional structure consisting of numerous carbon nanosheets embedded with Mo2C-W2C heterogeneous nanoparticles, which will provide more catalytic active sites for microbial metabolic reactions. The microbial community analysis indicates that the formation of electroactive biofilms has been promoted by the selective screening of Mo2C-W2C for exoelectrogens and other bacteria related to sulfur metabolism. Finally, the bioenergy harvesting system assembled with Mo2C-W2C electrocatalyst successfully charges the 12 V battery. This study provides a facile, low-cost modification method for the development of high-performance MFC anodic materials conducive to large-scale preparation and has a promising effect in practical application.

Static reconfiguration method of photovoltaic array based on improved competence square

Partial shading can reduce the power output of a photovoltaic (PV) array due to mismatch losses. Therefore, various static and dynamic reconfiguration techniques have been proposed to address this problem. Although dynamic reconfiguration methods are fast and flexible, they face challenges such as complex hardware circuits and high costs. In contrast, static reconfiguration methods simplify control complexity, improve system stability, and significantly reduce costs. Among the existing static reconfiguration techniques, the competence square (CS) method, which changes the physical positions of PV panels without modifying the total cross tied (TCT) based electrical connections, has been introduced to enhance power generation. However, this arrangement faces drawbacks due to the lack of effective chromatic dispersion and insufficient power enhancement under shading conditions. This paper proposes an improved competence square (ICS) reconfiguration method to further improve the power output. The ICS method first reconfigures the PV array using the CS method, then applies the lo shu (LS) method for secondary reconfiguration to determine the optimal connections. This method is compared with TCT, CS and improved northern goshawk optimization (INGO) methods. Additionally, the performance of the proposed method is evaluated against various existing photovoltaic array configurations by comparing the global maximum power point (GMPP), fill factor (FF), mismatch loss (ML), and power enhancement (PE). The experiment shows that under shading conditions of square shading, rectangle shading, trapezoid shading, triangle shading, L-shaped shading, cross shading, discontinuous shading, and irregular shading, reconfiguring PV arrays using ICS consistently achieves the highest power improvement. Compared to TCT, the power output increases significantly by 16.6%, 2.1%, 18.0%, 16.0%, 19.1%, 5.0%, 4.0%, and 3.0%, respectively. Comparison results validate the proposed ICS method in enhancing the global maximum power under shaded conditions.

Modelling and experimental investigation of cooling of field-operating PV panels using thermoelectric devices for enhanced power generation by industrial solar plants

The performance of commercial solar power plants degrades due to an increase in module temperatures for which standard PV-T air or water-cooling techniques are mostly used. In this study, a thermoelectric cooling system is studied for improving photovoltaic cell power efficiency and hence solar power generation. The cooling optimization requires solar cell temperature prediction of field operating PV modules, for which analysis of six models, is presented. The experimentation results show that TEC cooling maintains PV cell at 25 °C whereas PV cell without TEC operates at 55–63 °C, a higher temperature range, showing the effectiveness of the thermoelectric cooling system in precisely controlling PV cell temperature to operate at or near STC conditions in the field creating a temperature difference of 30–38 °C. The NOCT and Faiman model results are found close to the experimental values in comparison to other models. The potential for cooling and a corresponding increase in solar plant energy production is assessed using PV Syst modeling and simulation for three practical PV installation scenarios for 31 different climatic zone locations worldwide showing 6–27 % power loss due to elevated temperatures, which is not studied in previous studies adding novelty to the analysis. The results show that PV-TECS is an effective system to control the temperature of field operating PV modules, which can be used in future photovoltaic power plants. Field results and analysis of PV temperature models is crucial for the optimization and future development of PV-thermoelectric systems deployed under actual outdoor conditions as well as the expected cooling gains in different climatic locations. These aspects are collectively studied in the current work adding to the novelty of the study.

Optimal operation model of ecological flow of hydropower station based on genetic algorithm and neural network

Amid diverse water demands, the conflict between ecological flow adjustments and power generation flow adjustments in hydropower station water resource dispatching, coupled with an increasing diversity of constraints, complicates the issue of water resource optimization and dispatching. How to scientifically develop feedback regulation mechanisms to promote a virtuous ecological cycle, fine tune existing hydropower station scheduling plans, and achieve multi-objective optimization scheduling is the core issue in researching the comprehensive utilization of water resources. This study establishes a reservoir flow regulation model with the objective functions of maximizing power generation and achieving optimal average ecological protection. The model, constrained by water balance, reservoir capacity, unit output, and unit overflow, was optimized and solved using the genetic algorithm-backpropagation neural network (GA-BPNN) approach. This study establishes a reservoir flow regulation model with the GA-BPNN algorithm was applied in multi-objective optimization to identify an optimal solution that maximizes overall system performance while adhering to ecological flow constraints. The results indicate that the optimized plan has performed effectively in hydropower station operations. It not only satisfies ecological flow requirements, but also significantly enhances power generation efficiency. Specifically, power generation increased by 32,680 kw·h, a 23.85% growth rate. The optimized plan significantly enhances the comprehensive utilization efficiency of water resources. It offers a scientific basis for the rational planning, dispatching and utilization of water resources in hydropower stations and reservoirs.

Heat Energy Utilization of a Double-Flash Geothermal Source Efficiently for Heating/Electricity Supply through Particle Swarm Optimization Method

The principal aim of this article is to optimize the thermal and electrical efficiency of a geothermal combined heat and power system through metaheuristic particle swarm optimization (PSO) method. The objective of this research is to conduct a thorough analysis of the incorporation of metaheuristic PSO technique, with a specific emphasis on the potential advantages and obstacles associated with the utilization of metaheuristic approaches in improving the effectiveness of geothermal energy systems. The utilization of a double-flash geothermal system in conjunction with a transcritical carbon dioxide Rankine cycle is utilized for the co-generation of electricity and thermal energy. The research utilized a PSO method to enhance power generation, heating capacity, and overall system efficiency. The PSO algorithm was employed to determine the optimum operational parameters for a pressure level of 820 kPa and a pressure ratio of 1.59, leading to the maximization of power output to 2591.4 kW The PSO algorithm effectively identified the optimal operational parameters as a pressure of 820 kPa and a pressure ratio of 1.59, resulting in the achievement of a peak power output of 2591.4 kW. The methodology has determined that a pressure of 916.4 kPa and a pressure ratio of 1.5 represent the optimal parameters for achieving a maximum heating capacity of 12329.1 kW.

Impact of biocatalytic behavior of Shewanella sp. through electron transfer processes on effective treatment of beer brewing wastewater in a microbial fuel cell and power generation

AbstractThis study examines the performance of a microbial fuel cell (MFC) utilizing Shewanella bacteria through electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS). Exo‐electrogen bacteria are key agents in an MFC. Shewanella sp. as a common exo‐electrogen bacteria can transfer electrons from the cell surface through different electron transfer mechanisms. In this work, EIS was used to probe the effects of biofilms of Shewanella sp. and the solution of 10% V/V Shewanella on the MFC performance. This research investigates the effects of both microbial biofilms and Shewanella bacterial solutions on MFC efficacy. Findings revealed that biofilm formation on the anode surface significantly reduces anode charge transfer resistance, thereby enhancing power generation. Notably, a 10% Shewanella solution resulted in a 25% higher power density compared to the biofilm. Furthermore, the MFC demonstrated up to 80% chemical oxygen demand removal efficiency in treating brewery wastewater. The study underscores the viability of Shewanella bacterial solutions as an efficient alternative to biofilms, emphasizing their role in improving MFC performance and wastewater treatment efficiency.

Enhancing Power and Thermal Gradient of Solar Photovoltaic Panels with Torched Fly-Ash Tiles for Greener Buildings

Solar photovoltaic (PV) panels that use polycrystalline silicon cells are a promising technique for producing renewable energy, although research on the cells’ efficiency and thermal control is still ongoing. This experimental research aims to investigate a novel way to improve power output and thermal performance by combining solar PV panels with burned fly-ash tiles. Made from burning industrial waste, torched fly ash has special qualities that make it useful for architectural applications. These qualities include better thermal insulation, strengthened structural integrity, and high energy efficiency. Our test setup shows that when solar PV panels are combined with torched fly-ash tiles, power generation rises by 7% and surface temperature decreases by 3% when compared to standard panels. The enhanced PV efficiency is ascribed to the outstanding thermal insulation properties of fly ash tiles and their capacity to control panel temperature. To ensure longevity and safety in building applications, the tiles employed in this study had a water absorption rate of 5.37%, flexural strength of 2.95 N/mm2, and slip resistance at 38 km/h. Furthermore, we find improved structural resilience and lower cooling costs when up to 30% of the sand in floor tiles is replaced with torched fly ash, which makes this method especially appropriate for sustainable buildings. Key performance indicators that show how effective these tiles are in maximizing energy use in buildings include thermal emissivity (0.874), solar reflectance (0.8), and solar absorption (0.256). While supporting more ecofriendly building techniques, this study highlights the advantages of utilizing burned fly ash in solar PV systems: enhanced power generation and thermal comfort. The main results open a greater potential for fly ash use in different building materials. The use of torched fly ash in building materials enhances thermal insulation and structural integrity while lowering cooling costs, making it an ideal choice for eco-friendly construction and highlighting the potential for further research into environmentally responsible, energy-efficient solutions.

N/NiO-ornated graphitic fiber-engrained micro-carbon beads: Innovative packed bed type capacitive electrodes for microbial fuel cells

Nitrogen-doped nickel oxide-catalyzed carbon nanofiber-decorated micro-activated carbon beads (NiO-N-CNF/ACB) were synthesized through suspension polymerization and employed as capacitive fixed-packed bed electrodes in microbial fuel cell (MFC-) for wastewater treatment and byproduct electricity generation. The capacitive electrode was meticulously designed to manifest enhanced characteristics crucial for MFC applications. The large specific surface area of NiO-N-CNF/ACB offers advantages in terms of catalytic sites and stored charge produced by electrogenic bacteria to form an electrochemical double-layer on the electrode, thereby enhancing power generation. The incorporation of NiO, coupled with graphitic contents, biocompatibility, and the formation of three-dimensional structures, contributes to the excellent performance of the NiO-N-CNF/ACB electrodes. The NiO-N-CNF/ACB electrodes-based MFC operated in batch mode demonstrated an open-circuit potential of 0.8 V, an impressive maximum power density of 2900 mW/m3, and a noteworthy 74 % reduction in chemical oxygen demand. Additionally, the synthesized NiO-N-CNF/ACB exhibited a remarkable specific capacitance 754 F/g and a cumulative total charge of 255 C/g, surpassing the corresponding values for plain NiO-ACB and ACB. This study positions NiO-N-CNF/ACB as a promising capacitive packed bed electrode material, offering enhanced power generation, efficient wastewater treatment, and superior biofilm formation, thereby advancing the potential for sustainable and efficient MFC systems.

Biochar-alginate jointly immobilized Chlorella vulgaris in cathode enhanced power generation in photo microbial fuel cells

The present research investigated for the first time the performance of photo microbial fuel cells (photo-MFCs) with biochar-alginate joint immobilized Chlorella vulgaris (BAJIC) as a cathodic microorganism. The results showed the stabilized voltage output reach 0.182 V in photo-MFCs with BAJIC, which is 61.1 % higher than that of the alginate immobilized C. vulgaris and 2.43 times that of suspended C. vulgaris. Light intensity affected both the cathodic potential and internal resistance of the photo-MFCs with BAJIC. The cathodic potential increased from −0.258 to −0.173 V (vs. Ag/AgCl) when the light intensity was increased from 1500 to 2500 lx. Meanwhile, the internal resistance decreased from 583.88 to 392.51 Ω. The results also showed that BAJIC with the smaller bead diameter generated larger voltage. BAJIC dosage affected the voltage of the increasing stage, while did not influence the stable voltage. This work demonstrated that biochar, as an efficient additive to the alginate immobilized microalgae beads, can boost the performance of microalgae matrix, and thus provide an economical and effective approach to enhance the efficiency of photo-MFCs.

Study of ash deposition characteristics of photovoltaic arrays taking into account the effect of photovoltaic module spacing and its effect on output characteristics: Indoor experiment

The problem of ash deposition on the surface of photovoltaic (PV) arrays during actual operation seriously affects their power generation efficiency. Because traditional research does not consider the PV module spacing, it cannot reflect the actual PV array ash deposition problem. This study explored the influence of PV module spacing, combined with different tilt angles and inlet wind speeds, on the characteristics of ash deposition and power output of the PV array through indoor experiments. The study designed a set of experimental equipment for simulating the formation process of ash deposition on the surface of PV arrays and set up an experimental platform to measure the influence of ash deposition on the maximum output power (Pmax), open-circuit voltage (Uoc), and short-circuit current (Isc) of the PV modules. The findings indicate that as the tilt angle increases, the PV array experiences reduced ash deposition and increased output power. Conversely, higher inlet wind speeds lead to greater ash deposition and decreased output power. Moreover, widening the spacing between PV modules results in increased ash deposition and reduced output power. Notably, within the PV array, the front PV module accumulates more ash than the rear module, with larger particle sizes. These research findings have significant implications for optimizing PV array design and enhancing power generation efficiency.

Efficient layout optimization of offshore wind farm based on load surrogate model and genetic algorithm

Wind farm layout optimization (WFLO) has become a significant approach to enhancing the efficiency of wind energy utilization. However, load also represents a critical factor that must be considered during optimization. To enhance power generation while controlling loads within limitations, an innovative load-constrained layout optimization method that employs a surrogate model based on artificial neural networks and genetic algorithms was proposed. This paper verified the accuracy of the surrogate model and then conducted layout optimizations on a single and a full wind condition case to assess the proposed method. The results indicated that the mean absolute percentage errors of load channels can meet the precision requirements for WFLO. A comparison of layout optimization results between the method proposed in this paper and the traditional method showed that in the single-wind-condition case, the method proposed in this paper reduced the maximum load by 5.64 % compared to the traditional method, with nearly identical power output; in the full-wind-condition case, the reduction of maximum load was 1.70 %, while only sacrificing the annual power generation by 0.10 %. This study provides a load-constrained WFLO method, promising to effectively ensure the lifespan of wind turbines while increasing power generation and offering significant engineering value.

Enhancing Cu2+ removal efficiency in a hybrid electrodeposition system based on vertically placed thermally regenerative batteries using gradient porous electrodes

Thermally regenerative batteries (TRB) can combine with an electrodeposition cell (EC) to develop a hybrid system (TRB-EC) for low-grade waste heat disposal and Cu2+ recovery from wastewater. To improve the Cu2+ removal efficiency in EC, a vertically placed reactor and gradient porous electrodes are proposed to remiss ammonia crossover and enhance power generation in TRB. The vertically placed reactor effectively reduced the NH3 concentration difference on the both side of anion exchange membrane, inhibiting NH3 transmembrane transport. Moreover, the gradient porous anode is used to adjust the physical and chemical distribution in anode chamber. The results indicate that the maximum power density of 14.6 W/m−2 is obtained in a TRB employing the gradient porous electrodes (the pore order is large-middle-small scale), which is 22 % better than that of electrodes with uniform-size pores. Through the strategy of flow catholyte, the maximum power density can be further increased to 19.4 W/m−2 and the cathodic coulombic efficiency is improved to 92.7 %. Due to above optimal design, the Cu2+ removal efficiency of the hybrid system can reach an impressive value of 98.4 % (87.7 % in TRBs and 10.7 % in EC), showing a promising method of heat waste and Cu2+ disposal.

Study on circulating cooling water pre-mixing for thermal performance improvement of twin thermal power units sharing one dry cooling tower

For an advanced power plant of twin thermal power units sharing one dry cooling tower, power production is easily impacted by variations in cooling tower performance. Circulating cooling water pre-mixing (CCWPM) was proposed to maximize cooling potential of the tower under varying working conditions, thereby enhancing power generation for the whole power plant. An integrated simulation model was established to capture cooling behaviors of the shared tower and operating characteristics of both power units before and after implementing CCWPM. Simulation results indicated that CCWPM effectively mitigates the uneven distribution of airflow temperature inside the shared tower and reduces the high-temperature area. As power load of one specified unit drops, both units experience a decline in power cycle efficiency, and the implementation of CCWPM further decreases the efficiency of this unit while increasing the efficiency of the adjacent unit. The whole power plant benefits from CCWPM in power generation, particularly when the unit with radiators directly facing the crosswind operates at a low power load. Power generation efficiency achieves an absolute increase of 0.43 % via CCWPM for the upwind unit and its adjacent unit operating at 40 % and 100 % power loads and the shared tower working at 8 m/s crosswind speed.

Enhance Power Generation of PV Array under Partial Shading Conditions by a Lo Shu and Optimal SuDoKu Puzzle Fusion Topology

A novel Lo Shu and Optimal SuDoKu Puzzle Fusion Topology (LS-OSDKP) is presented to disperse shading effects and enhance photovoltaic (PV) array output power under partial shading conditions (PSCs). Incorporating the ancient Chinese Lo Shu magic square puzzle and the Optimal SDKP topologies, the proposed LS-OSDKP is capable of alleviating current mismatch losses, decreasing wiring loss, simplifying the P-V curves of the array, and significantly improving shading dispersion. Under six PSCs, the performance of the proposed topology was evaluated using a 9 × 9 PV array and compared to the total-cross-tied (TCT), Twisted Two-Step, SDKP, Optimal SDKP, and Lo Shu topologies. Simulation results confirmed that the proposed method could extract the highest averaged power of the PV array among the six topologies, with a 10.47% power improvement when compared to the TCT. Additionally, the LS-OSDKP is capable of effectively reducing the wiring length by 29.09% compared to the Lo Shu. Moreover, the proposed method has the highest potential for energy savings and revenue generation. Compared to the conventional TCT configuration, it could improve extracted energy by approximately 9.58% and shorten payback time by approximately 9.06%. Consequently, the advantages of the proposed LS-OSDKP topology include an increase in extracted power, a reduction in wiring loss, and a shorter energy payback period.

Transient thermal hydraulic analysis of a small passive lead–bismuth eutectic cooled fast reactor

The lead–bismuth eutectic cooled fast reactor (LFR) emerges as a cutting-edge technology in nuclear reactor design. This study introduces a compact, passive, and long-life LFR reactor LFR-180. The LFR-180 incorporates modular helical-coiled once-through steam generators (H-OTSG) and direct reactor auxiliary cooling systems. This integration enables the generation of superheated steam and passive safety features of the LFR-180, eliminating the necessity for a water-steam separation device and contributing to enhanced power generation efficiency. A detailed transient thermal hydraulic analysis is conducted with tailored models for LBE solidification and H-OTSG thermal hydraulics. Results demonstrate that LFR-180 is a fully passive reactor, requiring no intervention up to 149.1 h after shutdown. The H-OTSG can serve as the heat exchangers of the active safety systems that can effectively reduce the peak core outlet temperature from 1003.6 K under the SBO accident to 724.2 K after shutdown.

Initializing Compression Stress to Stabilize the Phase Homogeneity in Bifacial Semitransparent Perovskite Solar Cells

AbstractSemitransparent perovskite solar cells (ST‐PSCs) hold great promise for various commercial applications, including building integrated photovoltaics and tandem solar cells. The all‐inorganic perovskite, known for its outstanding optical transparency and thermal stability, emerges as a top contender for ST‐PSCs. However, challenges persist due to phase segregation, which hampers charge carrier transport and operational stability. In this study, an approach is proposed to address these challenges by employing strain engineering to reconstruct the perovskite texture, eliminating inhomogeneities within the perovskite film. The crucial role of compressive strain in stabilizing lattice rigidity and suppressing light‐induced ion migration is demonstrated. Furthermore, a transparent light‐harvesting architecture is devised utilizing a sandwiched layer of gold embedded between MoO3. This design enhances power generation by efficiently harnessing incident light from both the front and rear panel surfaces. Therefore, bifacial ST‐PSCs achieve an equivalent efficiency (ηeq) of 13.97% with an average visible light transmittance of 41.58%, yielding an outstanding light utilization efficiency of up to 5.8%. This research not only advances the understanding of perovskite material phase‐segregation behavior but also introduces an effective strategy for enhancing optical gain without compromising the semitransparent characteristics.

Fuel transport mechanisms and power generation enhancement in air-breathing microfluidic fuel cells with discrete-hole anode

Current challenges in air-breathing microfluidic fuel cells (AMFCs) technology include insufficient fuel transfer and unsatisfactory power density. To address these issues, this study develops a three-dimensional computational model to optimize the performance of AMFC with a discrete-hole anode. This model reveals that the "petal-shaped" non-uniform fuel distribution is due to the shearing and dilution effects of the electrolyte. Additionally, discrete-hole structures such as size have a slight influence on fuel transport and current production, with performance deviations under 1.6%. Significant improvements are achieved by reducing the electrolyte flow rate and electrode length. Transitioning from a single cell with a long anode to a series/parallel stack of cells with short electrodes significantly boosts net power output and fuel utilization. Under optimal conditions, a maximum power density of 349.9 mW cm−3 and an output of 19.2 mW are obtained. This research provides valuable insights into fuel transport mechanisms and power enhancement strategies in the AMFCs, guiding the future design and optimization of microfluidic reactors for energy conversion.