A new solar technology developed at RTI International laboratories could make solar energy even cheaper and more efficient
He is about to end up run over, his mother saves him
A new tech solar developed at the laboratories of RTI International it could make the sun's energy even more accessible. The new solar cells developed by the RTI have been created with materials and processing techniques potentially capable of reduce costs by up to 75 percent.
Le solar cells RTIs are formed by solutions of semiconductor particles, known as colloidal quantum dots, which can have a power conversion efficiency greater than 5 percent over traditional cells but at much lower costs.
Solar energy has the potential to become the driving force behind the renewables sector. However, so far the high costs associated with photovoltaics and devices that convert sunlight into electricity have not provided the sector with the driving force that would have led to widespread diffusion in homes and businesses.
But the new solar cells developed by RTI promise to fill this gap. How? Through the use of low-cost materials and processing techniques capable of reduce the primary costs of photovoltaic production, and even decreasing the energy associated with their production. Unlike traditional solar cells, they can be treated at room temperature, further reducing energy requirements.
Through the preliminary analysis of the costs of the technology, it was calculated that the cells can be produced for less than $ 20 per square meter, which is up to 75 percent less than traditional solar cells.
"Solar energy currently accounts for less than 1 percent of the global energy supply, and a substantial reduction in the costs of materials and photovoltaics are needed to increase solar energy use," he said. Ethan Emphasis, researcher at RTI and co-Principal Investigator of the project. "This technology solves each of the main cost factors of photovoltaics and could pave the way for achieving that goal."
“The efficiency of these devices is mainly limited by the amount of sunlight that is absorbed,” he said Jay Lewis, senior researcher at the RTI. "There are many well-known techniques for improving absorption, and this suggests that performance can increase substantially."
The study was published in Applied Physics Letters.
Francesca Mancuso
