Solar energy systems

Risk, Policy and Vulnerability (RPV) analysts in 2013 looked at how the energy transition might be constrained by the vulnerability of solar energy systems to extreme event risks in a changing climate.

Solar Tower © sbisson | flickr Creative Commons License

Solar Tower

While RPV researchers did not identify any vulnerability to extreme event risks that was severe enough to halt development of solar energy technologies, they did find significant value in exploring options for making photovoltaic cells more heat-resilient and improving the design of cooling systems for concentrating solar power [1].

(The image shows the world's first commercial concentrating solar power tower operating near Seville, in Andalusia, Spain).  

References

[1] Patt A, Pfenninger S, Lilliestam, J. (2013). Vulnerability of solar energy infrastructure and output to climate change. Climatic Change 121, pp. 93-102.


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Last edited: 22 May 2014

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