Scientists Create Energy-Producing Solar Paint
A recent partnership between the steel industry and UK university researchers has led to the development of a unique photovoltaic paint that can be applied to steel.
- » See also: Altus Air Force Base is Flying High on New Green Award
- » Get CleanTechnica by RSS or sign up by email.
The paint is made up of dye and electrolytes that can be applied as a paste to steel sheets. Four layers of paint are applied to each sheet. When light hits the solar cells, excited molecules release an electron into an electron collector and circuit (nanocrystalline titanium dioxide). Finally, the electrons move back into the dye.
Photovoltaic paint has a number of advantages over traditional solar cells. It doesn’t have the material limitations of silicon solar cells, so it theoretically provides many terawatts of electricity at a low cost. Additionally, the paint can absorb light across the visible spectrum— so even cloudy days will reap lots of energy.
According to steel company Corus Colours, the solar cells can achieve a power conversion efficiency of 11 percent.
Production of solar paint will begin soon— a lab built to develop the new technology is starting work on October 30 in North Wales. Ultimately, researchers at the PV Accelerator Laboratory in North Wales hope to develop a way to apply solar paint to steel at 30 to 40 square meters per second.
I only wonder if solar paint will be available for purchase to consumers in the future— if so, it could easily lead to a do-it-yourself solar revolution.
Photo credit: Corus Colours
Refinements of solar technology are coming almost too fast for the market to incorporate them into installable systems. One such refinement has recently been announced by Konarka. Konarka’s list of international corporate partners is as impressive as it’s nanosolar technology with 280 patents.
The Konarka nanosolar technology is NOT 3rd generation silicon based solar cell technology, which converts ONLY infared photon light wavelengths, has only a 15% to 17% photon energy conversion efficiency and a manufacturing cost of $3.25 to $5.85 per watt.
Konarka Nanosolar cell panels are printed on flex-plastic ( up to 10 mils thick ), converts the ENTIRE spectrum of photon light wavelengths, has an 80% photon energy conversion efficiency and a mass production manufacturing cost of approximately $0.10 per watt.
A typical three bedroom home using 3rd generation silicon based solar cell technology, would require a minimum 3 kWp system and cost about $17,000. A Konarka Nanosolar system of the same size would only run $300. (Affordable for everyone).
It might be worth checking it out: Konarka Nanosolar Technologies: http://www.konarka.com
there are companies already developing this. Xerocoat in Australia and Nanosolar in the US
Here’s another one.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cZOyhnlY0Hs
We too have been concluded our patented work on our Solar Liquid Energy coating, or solar paint, which we started in 2007. This year and future few months will be focused on final field trials and metering our advances by collecting and transmitting data directly from test installations and transmitting that data to us automatically 24×7 for data gathering. We wish you great success in your work as well. The world needs our types of solutions.
Very Best
Doug Linman, Ph.D.
SUNTCO
CTO
+1 925 548 4036
I have been involved in solar paint refinement for a number of years and while, yes paint peels, and other matters that might cause one to pause, it remains a fact more efficient than any solar panel, less costly and highly efficient in the $5/kwh range versus the $7 to $9Kwh range, is nearly maintenance free other than “touch up”, does not require a wing to be structurally mounted on any roof, avoids costly insurance matters, and should last about 20 years before you must resurface and repaint/coat. I am sure most people know by now that Solar Panels are terribly inefficient, breakdown a lot, look terrible as a design concept, are way over priced, and structually fall apart in disrepair in much shorter time frames. The world is moving forward in many ways, this technology will now quickly advance to help our growing alternative energy needs. We are now at the field trial demo stage, our implementation is a complete coating for maximum efficiency, 100% American made (no outsourcing) and very close to near future public release(under 36 months).
Hi Folks,
This paint would create wonder in developing countries like mine(India) I remember that around 12-15 years back there was no electrical supply where my uncle from my mothers side were staying. Today too I am sure that there quite many places in our country who are aware about electrical energy but dont have physical access to this due to various reason. The most important being shortage of electricity being produced. People in such region have been using various kinds of machine which run on fossil fuel to enhance their agricultural use but I am sure that this shall be replaced if this technology is introduced here.
The efficiency shall not matter much as demand is so high that availability shall matter more and further generation of this paint can be introduced as the technology develops.
Someone mentioned other solar technologies are getting near 40% conversion efficiency. But how close are they (and solar paint) to commercial reality and how much of a game changer can they be?
Solar paint’s obvious manufacturing strengths could be a game changer helping us ramp up solar production faster. But how soon can the tech be market ready?
Solar Paint on Plug-In Vehicles to Boost V2G Two Way Charging
One of the first mainstream production vehicles with a solar roof panel will be the next generation Toyota Prius due out next Spring. Nissan, VW and numerous other carmakers will offer solar panels on their electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles also. One solar roof panel will only provide a small percentage of the power that todays electric vehicles require. At 20% efficiency (Suniva and Day4 Energy), a solar roof panel could generate up to 270 watts. The panel will be optional and cost under $900. Keep in mind, the cost of solar panels will gradually come down, and the efficiency will gradually go up. Already, there are cheaper and more efficient solar panels being announced. The SunFlake panel, invented by Martin Aagesen who is a PhD from the Nano-Science Center and the Niels Bohr Institute at University of Copenhagen, gets 30% efficiency and will be cheaper than current panels. Innovalight claims they have a solar panel that is 44% efficient at one tenth the cost. At the rate that solar technology is advancing, solar roof panels on vehicles will soon be over 500 watts. The next technology, coming 3 to 5 years from now, is SOLAR PAINT, that will generate solarvoltaic power from the vehicle body, from any direction. This too has the potential to double the wattage again, but from twice the surface area. So we will be up to 2000 watts under ideal conditions (less depending on the angle of the sun and weather conditions).
Recently, Toyota described the 1/X Concept vehicle, a plug-in hybrid about the size of a Prius, but ONE THIRD the weight, only 926 lbs. With a vehicle that is one third the weight, the mileage doubles from the same wattage. Quantum Sphere announced a breakthrough in their lithium ion batteries that produces FOUR TIMES the capacity from the same size cell. Another breakthrough is an electric motor that uses HALF the amount of energy to perform the same amount of work. With this new electric motor, the mileage doubles again. Search: Thor Power: Revolutionary Electric Motor Design Cuts Energy Use in Half. And with that 2000 watts of solar power, we will not be powering the vehicle motor. We will be powering a generator to pulse charge a pack of individual batteries in rapid succession with a pulse width modulator, many times per second. Search John Bedini and Energenx battery charger. This is a motor-generator with a pulse width modulator charging multiple batteries simultaneously. Scientist Tom Bearden explains that when a battery is pulse charged, it continues to charge for a split second, even after the current is briefly switched off. Then, with the power still off, a second line of current flows out of the battery briefly, if there is a load on it. The next pulse charge should be timed to first allow these second and third responses.
A large percentage of the coming electric and plug in hybrid vehicles will be charged at night, when the rates are low, then driven to work and parked all day. If you live in a sunny location, the big pay-off will be Vehicle to Grid (V2G). This concept was originally conceived to transfer a portion of cheap off peak power from your batteries into the daytime peak load grid. You would drive to work, park your car at a V2G receptacle, plug in and tell your car how much power to sell to the grid. Then when you got off work, you would have enough juice left to get home. This was before V2G engineers realized that future vehicles would also be equipped with solar panels or covered with solar paint. With lighter vehicles coming, with high capacity batteries and ultracapacitors, with advanced battery chargers, with vehicle bodies covered with solar paint, a whole new world will open up. Your vehicle will generate 2000 watts of power, either for charging your batteries to move you down the road, or to feed power into the grid at peak load rates while your vehicle is parked. Then you would get a lot of credits on your electric bill. All of this will eventually become a standard feature financed into the vehicle, and it will pay for itself. As a last resort, if your juice was running low, you would plug into the V2G system and charge your batteries from the grid. The power will go both ways. Feed electric power into the grid for credits, or draw power out as debits on your electric bill.
Solar panels, solar glass, and solar paint on vehicles will soon contribute power to your vehicle and to the local grid using V2G. Visualize whole parking lots of solar equipped electric vehicles and plug-in hybrids, capable of feeding the grid, charging, or generating power on the fly. The vehicles of the future will be portable power plants, and their owners will manage energy from solar paint.
Hola.
I saw in another place in Massachusetts, there is a company producing painted plastic solar panels that take the form you want, not steel sheet.
Jean
Where can I buy Solar Paint
Cuurve LLC
1288 Summit Ave. Ste. 107-127
Oconomowoc, WI. 53066
262-951-1336
mdefever@gmail.com