9Feb

Photovoltaic nanoshell “whispering galleries” trap light for more efficient solar cells

Categories: Green Technology & Efficient Solutions
No comments
Photovoltaic nanoshell whispering galleries trap light for more efficient solar cells

Email, RSS Follow

By

For those unfamiliar with the term, a “whispering gallery” is a round room designed in such a way that sound is carried around its perimeter – this allows a person standing on one side to hear words whispered by a person on the other. Now, scientists from Stanford University have developed a new type of photovoltaic material, that essentially does for sunlight what whispering galleries do for sound. Not only does the material have a structure that circulates light entering it, but it could also result in cheaper, less fragile, and less angle-sensitive solar panels.

(more…)

Share

Tags:
9Feb

Singlet Exciton Fission Solar Cells from Cambridge 44 Percent Efficient

Categories: Green Technology & Efficient Solutions
No comments
Singlet Exciton Fission Solar Cells from Cambridge 44 Percent Efficient

Email, RSS Follow

by Ovidiu Sandru

A team of scientists at the University of Cambridge have developed a new kind of solar cell which uses a phenomenon called “singlet exciton fission” to extract two electrons with the energy of a single photon hitting the semiconductor. Currently available silicon solar cells can only extract one electron, so this would give solar cells a 25 percent boost in efficiency.

Cambridge’s new solar cell has been named “hybrid,” and its creators say it’s able to achieve a 44 percent efficiency, 10 percent higher than what the most cutting edge technology can, 34 percent.

(more…)

Share

Tags:
7Feb

Best solar powered watches for greener times

Categories: Green Technology & Efficient Solutions
No comments
Best solar powered watches for greener times

Email, RSS Follow

Green is the way to go and now you can look for ‘greener times ahead’ by sporting an eco friendly and green watch. You no longer need to worry about your battery weakening, as you can power them with solar energy. Batteries keep getting disposed in the most inappropriate manner and eventually end up overspilling landfills. You can show your responsibility toward the environment by buying yourself a battery free watch. Not only are these solar powered watches eco friendly, they are visually cool too. (more…)

Share

Tags:
6Feb

MIT Researchers Find a Way To Make Solar Panels from Grass Clippings

Categories: Green Technology & Efficient Solutions
No comments
MIT Researchers Find a Way To Make Solar Panels from Grass Clippings

Email, RSS Follow

What if generating solar energy at home required little more than mixing some grass clippings with inexpensive chemicals? That’s exactly what MIT researcher Andreas Mershinhas found to be the case. The scientist says creating a solar cell could be as easy as mixing any green organic material (grass clippings, agricultural waste) with a bag of custom chemicals and painting the mixture on a roof. Once the efficiency of Mershin’s system is improved, this type of solar technology could make cheap energy available in rural places and developing countries where people don’t have access to affordable energy. Read on to see a video of Mershin’s findings

(more…)

Share

Tags:
4Feb

Suntech, DuPont to Collab on Solar Backsheets, Supply Chain

Categories: Green Technology & Efficient Solutions
No comments

Email, RSS Follow

It’s easy to think about modules as singular units of power output, but the reality is that they are a collection of diverse components, each with influence over the end system’s total cost and performance. For DuPont, its focus is of course on the materials side, from metallization pastes used to form contacts on the solar cell, to backsheet materials that protect the panels themselves.

The latter is the focus of a new expanded partnership between Suntech and DuPont, specifically on DuPont’s Tedlar polyvinyl fluoride film (though the deal also includes other materials supplies). The two will explore technology advancements in backsheets: their construction and how that affects their longevity, and how backsheets might even improve the module’s power output, according to Maria Boulden, global sales manager for Dupont Photovoltaics Solutions.

(more…)

Share

Tags:
3Feb

Green solar cell is made from plants

Categories: Green Technology & Efficient Solutions
No comments
Green solar cell is made from plants

Email, RSS Follow

In a mashup of biology and electronics, researchers said they’ve made progress in making low-cost solar cell from plants.

A paper published in Scientific Reports today describes an improved method for making electricity-producing “biophotovoltaics” without the sophisticated laboratory equipment previously needed. Researchers said custom-designed chemicals could be mixed with green plants, even grass clippings, to create a photovoltaic material by harnessing photosynthesis.

(more…)

Share

Tags:
1Feb

Will future smartphones come without chargers?

Categories: Green Technology & Efficient Solutions
No comments
Will future smartphones come without chargers

Email, RSS Follow

Smartphones of today

The world of cellphones is expanding with new models being launched almost every day. Back in 1973, when the first cellphone was made; it was a bulky object with not many functions other than that of making and receiving calls. Now, cellphones have become like mini computers with multipurpose cameras, capable of storing substantial amounts of data, recording videos and music, linking to the internet, playing games and a whole host of other features. These phones fall under the category of smartphones owing to their intelligent capabilities. So essential have they become to consumers that the third quarter of the year 2011 saw 115 million units of these phones being sold worldwide.

  (more…)

Share

Tags:
30Jan

Think Ink for Increased Efficiency

Categories: Green Technology & Efficient Solutions
No comments
solar ink

Email, RSS Follow
One dollar per watt: that’s the mark the solar industry is hoping to hit in order to become cost-competitive with conventional energies.

One dollar per watt: that’s the mark the solar industry is hoping to hit in order to become cost-competitive with conventional energies. In a bid to reach this magic number in the next two years, various Asian manufacturers are striving to reduce costs by increasing volume production. An alternative direction that will benefit the industry in the long term is to target increased efficiencies primarily through new manufacturing processes, new higher-quality materials for metallization and changing the structure of the cell. Nanotechnology companies have developed these new materials and processes that enable manufacturers to both increase quality and lower-cost production, bringing the era of solar grid parity closer than ever before.

(more…)

Share

Tags:
26Jan

Bankrupt Kodak to Produce Thin-Film Solar Cells In Near Future

Categories: Green Technology & Efficient Solutions
No comments
Bankrupt Kodak to Produce Thin-Film Solar Cells In Near Future

Email, RSS Follow

Every end is a beginning. We all heard that before. I guess it’s not Kodak’s turn to test it for itself, as the company filed for bankruptcy just at the end of last week. The announcement is still fresh, but Kodak already has a back-up plan: going into the solar business by manufacturing flexible solar cells.

It may be more of a practical, economic measure that the company needs to take, since Kodak is in possession of a good deal of film production equipment that it needs to dispose of.

(more…)

Share

Tags:
25Jan

Military bases in Mojave desert could generate 7GW of renewable solar power

Categories: Green Technology & Efficient Solutions
No comments
Military bases in Mojave desert could generate 7GW of renewable solar powercould

Email, RSS Follow

According to a study conducted by ICF, a consulting firm for the US Department of Defense, surplus land at four military bases in the Mojave desert in California could be capable of producing up to 7 Gigawatts of solar power. These bases include, the Edwards Air Force base, Fort Erwin, China Lake and Twenty-nine Palms. Some 37,873 acres of land is available for setting these solar power plants, without impacting the space needs of the military for its ongoing operational needs or for potential future needs. The type of solar power plant to be installed, whether silicon flat panels or solar concentrators, has not yet been determined. If the go-ahead happens, power plant construction could commence by 2015.

(more…)

Share

Tags: