What technologies are transforming renewable energy?

What technologies are transforming renewable energy? 

The green energy industry has evolved to the point where leading-edge technologies are shaping the future of renewable energy today.  

Innovation is solving longstanding challenges, such as intermittency, storage, and grid integration, thereby accelerating clean energy adoption. 

Pulling renewable energy even further into the 21st century is smart grid and digitalisation, allowing a full view of what type and where the renewable energy is coming from. This enables the integration of advanced software and hardware options, such as the Internet of Things (IoT), AI, and blockchain, optimising energy flows and facilitating real-time energy monitoring and predictive maintenance. All of these technological elements unite, ensuring grid resilience and flexibility for the future.  

Energy storage technologies are transforming renewable energy

Batteries and other types of energy storage are making renewable energy a more viable option. This is because weather-related factors can cause low production periods, such as reduced solar power on cloudy days. However, storage can allow excess renewable power generated to be banked in storage devices and utilised at a later date to prevent blackouts.  

Advancements in lithium-ion and solid-state batteries 

The batteries themselves are also advancing: lithium-ion batteries are utilising new materials such as lithium-sulfur and silicon-carbon composites, with improved recyclability. Solid-state batteries are improving charging times, and overall, batteries are seeing enhancements in energy density and safety.  

Grid-scale storage and its role in solving intermittency 

The integration of batteries and technologies, such as hydrogen storage tanks, is going some way to address the intermittency of renewable energy sources, allowing the lights to remain on even when renewable energy can’t be generated. The growth of pumped hydro, flow batteries, and seasonal storage all combine to plug the gaps in intermittent renewable energy.  

Advanced solar and wind technologies 

Utilising sunlight on both sides of the solar panel, bifacial solar panels can produce a higher amount solar power compared to standard solar panels. Floating PV systems enable improved cooling and reduced water evaporation, thereby increasing the efficiency of the solar panels. High-altitude and offshore wind innovations enable wind arrays to access more consistent wind, resulting in a more reliable source of wind power. Improved capacity factors and longer turbine lifespans all contribute to making renewable energy a more stable and viable option for future power generation.  

Green hydrogen and sector coupling 

Green Hydrogen can be used both as a fuel for generating energy and as a storage device to store energy. Hydrogen fuel cells and hydrogen storage tanks store excess banked energy, some of which can be transported to a different location and undergo electrolysis to produce energy for utilisation. Hydrogen can be created via renewable means, storing the excess energy for use at a later date. This can make renewable energy a more viable option for decarbonising heavy industry and transport, as it can remove the intermittency of renewable energy.  

AI and data analytics in renewables 

The energy industry is being propelled forward in terms of efficiency thanks to AI and data analytics, which increase reliability by predicting how a renewable system might behave before operations fail. Data analytics utilises the IoT - a series of tiny sensors across energy networks - to monitor the health of plants and detect when a plant might be about to experience an issue, acting in advance and preventing blackouts. AI can take this process to the next level, automating predictive maintenance and removing human operatives and errors from the equation, thereby making predictive maintenance faster. AI can also analyse the data gathered about consumer habits, identifying patterns in customer demand, forecasting demand, and optimising generation. Utilising AI in predictive maintenance enables a more holistic view of renewable systems, as well as advanced, rapid machine analysis, leading to enhanced efficiency in asset management.  

 Integration of EVs and vehicle-to-grid (V2G) 

We can treat electric vehicles like large battery storage devices - banking energy from the grid and releasing it back to the wider network when demand is high. This can allow consumers to be part of stabilising the wider network, improving frequency regulation - responding to fluctuations in the grid frequency - as well as and becoming involved in peak shaving - discharging energy from EV batteries during high-demand. This decentralised storage option makes V2G applications a good solution to grid balancing. Policy and infrastructure requirements will have to evolve to make this solution suitable for widespread use - this involves streamlining factors such as smart charging standards to ensure electric vehicles can be charged at desirable periods as well as incentivising EV owners to take part in V2G processes and developing markets that allow a suitable revenue stream for the EV owners taking part.  

Emerging technologies to watch 

As a relatively new industry compared to its fossil fuel counterpart, the green energy sphere is continuously evolving. While solar technologies have been in operation for some time, improvements to the technology are being developed. Perovskite solar cells are a key innovation, offering a cheaper alternative to current PV arrays. Perovskite solar cells utilise a hybrid organic-inorganic lead or, alternatively, a tin halide-based compound, which is highly efficient and cheaper to manufacture than traditional solar panels. The film-like nature of perovskite solar cells is also aesthetically pleasing, making them suitable for a wider range of applications.  

Next-gen bioenergy systems are another innovation to look out for. These seek to find fossil fuel alternatives such as non-food biomass, which doesn’t affect agricultural output in the same way that other biomass technologies do. This includes water, oils, algae or agricultural waste or byproducts.  

Advanced tech like AI, hydrogen, and smart grids ensure renewable energy becomes more reliable, scalable, and central to a zero-carbon future.