Award winners at Asia Pacific Solar Research Conference 2024

ACAP congratulates all the award winners at the Asia Pacific Solar Research Conference 2024.

Every year the APSRC presents prizes to the finest students and early career researchers. All awards require the submission of an Abstract for peer review. The awards are based on the quality of the Abstract, with that quality confirmed through the oral presentation or poster.

This year, Zubair Abdullah-Vetter won the ACAP PV Devices Award for Outstanding Student Paper and Presentation with his work, "An unsupervised learning approach to model potential induced degradation in photovoltaic modules".

Zubair Abdullah-Vetter receiving his Award from ACAP Executive Director Renate Egan (L), and Jessica Yajie Jiang (R).

The study proposes using machine learning to predict how photovoltaic modules perform under stress tests lasting 96 hours. The deep learning model uses data from the first 60% of the test to accurately predict results for the entire test. It also analyses how accelerated test conditions affect module degradation. This research can help improve the reliability of photovoltaic systems and could transform the solar energy market.

ACAP is a funding Partner of the APSRC and has great pleasure in supporting this award with a value of $750.

All APSRC 2024 Award Winners

Zubair Abdullah-Vetter: "An unsupervised learning approach to model potential induced degradation in photovoltaic modules"

Winner of the ACAP PV Devices Award for Outstanding Student Paper in the PV Devices stream

Zeinab Haydous: "Energy Yield vs. System Longevity: An Innovative Algorithm for Single-Axis Solar Trackers in a Curtailment-Prone Landscape"

Winner of the Muriel Watt Award for Outstanding Female Student Paper 

Gaia Maria Javier: "Efficiency loss analysis in solar cells using explainable AI on I-V data and luminescence images" Winner of the Wal Read Memorial Award for Best Student Paper and Presentation

Rama Sharma: “Automated Multiclass and Severity Classification of Defects in Photovoltaic Module Luminescence Images using Unsupervised Machine Learning” Winner of the Wal Read Memorial Awards for ECR Paper

Sijin Wang: “Applications of a machine learning model for real-time interpolated PVsyst simulations”

Winner of the REDI Award for Best Student Paper 

Jamie Harrison: “Potential Power Output of Terrestrial Thermoradiative Diodes from Atmospheric Modelling”

Winner of the Energy Advances Best Student Poster Award

Vox KaLai Wong: "Optimal Performance of Semi-transparent Solar Cells in Cities"

Winner of Monica Oliphant Award for Best Female Student Poster

Ryan Chang Sun: Reverse Poster Award for providing the most insightful feedback to the poster presenters. 

Many of the winning projects are funded by ARENA and CRC–P grants, and received additional support from ACAP.

Jamie Harrison with her poster that won the Energy Advances Best Student Poster Award.

Muriel Watt with Zeinab Haydous and Jessica Yajie Jiang. Haydous won the Muriel Watt Award for Outstanding Female Student Paper.

Sujin Wang receives the Award for Best Student Paper and Presentation in the REDI Stream from Dr Rob Passey.

Vox KaLai Wong receiving the Monica Oliphant Award for Best Female Student Poster at the APSRC 2024.

Gaia Maria Javier won the Wal Read Memorial Award for Best Student Paper and Presentation. With Rob Passey and Jessica Yajie Jiang.

Chang Ryan Sun (centre) and his Reverse Poster Award, with Ziv Hameiri and Jessica Yajie Jiang.

Rama Sharma receiving the Wal Read Memorial Award for Most Outstanding ECR Paper.

Award winners (with their awards) from Ziv Hameiri's ACDC research group at UNSW. From left, Zubair Abdullah-Vetter, Sujin Wang, Gaia Maria Javier, Rama Sharma, and Chang Ryan Sun.