Physics Comment Magazine March 2018 Issue Physics Comment March 2018_v1.3 | Page 26

Nelson Mandela University’s Photovoltaics Research Group is strongly focused on conducting research
that addresses industry needs – with group leader Professor Ernest van Dyk and his team shaping the
PVRG into a launching pad for new innovations to meet the needs of South Africa’s growing
photovoltaics (PV) industry.
Through its own newly-established university spin-off company, called PVinsight (PVi) Pty Ltd,
members of the PVRG also aim to serve the urgent need for standardised testing and verification in the
PV industry. With many large and medium-scale commercial PV installations maturing after several
years of operation in often harsh environments in South Africa, owners and operators of these systems
need the assistance of expert PV laboratories to assure the long-term performance of their investments.
With the university as a shareholder, the company currently operates from a laboratory on the Ocean
Sciences Campus.
Responding to a strong industry demand, the PV Testing Laboratory (PVTL) has been offering testing
services since 2014. The South African National Accreditation System (SANAS) awarded the laboratory
ISO17025 accreditation for its five in-lab tests in February 2016, making it the second fully-accredited
testing laboratory at Nelson Mandela University. “PVi is a spin-off of our fully-accredited PV Testing
Lab, which has become a research and technology-testing base for industry, able to conduct laboratory
and indoor tests to verify module quality, as well as on-site testing,” said Professor van Dyk.
“We also create opportunities for students studying at the university in the photovoltaics field to work in
the laboratory, providing them with valuable experience in an accredited environment and enabling
them to gain first-hand knowledge of PV technology.” In addition to the establishment of the spin-off
company, the PVRG is also working on the development of Concentrator Photovoltaics (CPV).
Currently, the focus of this work is on the development of a patented hybrid Concentrator
Photovoltaics (CPV) technology, which is in the pre-commercialisation phase. This work is led by PV
researcher and PVi technical advisor Dr Freddie Vorster – and has been the subject of four MSc and two
PhD projects.
“CPV technology has the potential to lower the cost of PV-derived electricity production by focusing
sunligh tonto very high-efficiency small PV cells,” said Dr Vorster. “The unique feature of this patented
module design is that it allows direct as well diffuse sunlight to be converted to electricity very
efficiently. The modules containing the small PV cells resemble a honeycomb structure when they
are grouped together and can be configured and sized according to the needs of the
consumer, which is another unique feature.” The late stages of this work were funded by a Technology
Innovation Agency (TIA) Seed Fund Grant, through the university’s Innovation Office. “We are looking
at commercialising this technology, sourcing components locally. This will make the hybrid CPV
technology a highly competitive energy source,” said Dr Vorster. “As physicists, we’ve got to think in
an entrepreneurial way. I encourage my students to always be thinking about how they can turn a
research outcome into a business opportunity, getting engineers and business partners involved to make
it real.” For more information, go to: www.pvinsight.co.za.
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