VirtuPVT is the first evacuated hybrid solar collector to receive certification from TÜV Rheinland, one of the leading organisations in the world for testing and certification across a very wide range of industries including aviation, infrastructure and renewable energy technologies, with over 35 years of experience in the solar industry alone. Its testing process put VirtuPVT under extensive pressure and found that it can withstand internal temperature ranges from -40°C and 240°C, while enduring extreme weather conditions such as hailstorms, frost, heavy rain and even fire, and still perform to the highest standards.
Each VirtuPVT tube is angled towards the sun. To maximise summer outputs an integrated reflector increases peak performance by as much as 40 percent, and average annual yields by 15 percent. The vacuum inside the tube reduces heat losses, enabling VirtuPVT to deliver higher temperature outputs up to 75°C for hot water and process heat even in colder climates. The vacuum within the tubes also protects the PV cells from humidity.
The technology combines solar photovoltaics (PV) and solar thermal technology, generating both electricity and heat from a single solar collector. It provides up to four times more carbon savings, is three times more efficient than traditional PV panels and is already being used across the UK on iconic buildings such as The British Library and the UK’s first energy positive office building, the Active Office in Swansea.
The TÜV certification comes on the back of a successful year for Naked Energy, which announced a partnership with ELM Solar to manufacture the industry-leading tech in the United States earlier this year.
The company also secured £17 million in the first close of its Series B funding, led by E.ON Energy Infrastructure Solutions and Barclays. This funding allows Naked Energy to expand and offer its technology to more businesses in the commercial and industrial space across the globe.
“TÜV Rheinland has been recognised as the leading body for certification for businesses across a huge number of sectors for a long time” said Christophe Williams, CEO of Naked Energy. “To know that our product has been certified as the cream of the crop when it comes to the solar industry is incredibly rewarding and satisfying. Hardware takes a long time and a lot of money to get right, and it’s taken a lot of hard work to get to this point, and I’m incredibly proud of the Naked Energy team for developing our industry-leading tech. We cannot achieve net zero without decarbonising heat, and we cannot do that through electrification and software solutions alone. Our grid doesn’t have the capacity to carry us to net zero on its own any time soon, so we need more innovative hardware solutions like VirtuPVT that decarbonise heat at the point of use. TÜV certification goes a long way in assuring the industry that this tech is of the highest quality, which will provide a further incentive for businesses in the commercial and industrial sectors to decarbonise their heat demand.”
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