PARIS: Generation power from reflective sunlight off land, working at night, even helping to grow strawberries: solar panel technology develops fast as costs plummet for a key segment of in the world Energy transition.
International Energy Agency says solar power needs to scale up significantly this decade to achieve the Paris Climate Goal of temperature limit rises 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels.
good news that costs have fallen sharply.
In the report on decisions earlier this yearIntergovernmental Group on Climate change said solar panel costs fell by 85 percent between 2010 and 2019, and the wind fell by 55 percent.
“Some say it’s the cheapest way humans have ever been able to produce electricity on a large scale,” said Gregory Nemeth, professor in university of Wisconsin-Madison and lead author on that report.
Experts hope for high fossil fuel prices and fear over energy security caused on Russia invasion of Ukraine will speed up the assimilation of renewable energy sources.
Momentum dialed pace on Sunday with Ambitious US climate bill with $370 billion in efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 40 percent by 2030.
According to experts at Princeton University, the bill could be considered five times. times in rate of solar additions in 2025 as it was in 2020.
Nemeth said that only solar power could do up half of in the world electricity system by the middle of the century, although he warned against looking for for “silver bullets”.
“I really think big potential,” he told AFP.
Swift changes
“photoelectric effect”—the process by which solar cells convert sunlight into electrical energy—was first discovered in in 1839 by the French physicist Edmond Becquerel.
Decades later of innovation, siliconsteel-based solar cells developed in United States in 1950s with in the world first solar powered satellite launched in 1958
IPCC said of all energy technologies, small-scale like Solar panels and batteries have so far been improved and implemented faster than the more bulky ones. options like nuclear.
Today almost everything of panels flicker on rooftops and spread over vast fields, made in China using silicon semiconductors.
But technology is changing rapidly.
A recent IEA report states that these new solar panels were one-fifth more effective in transformation light to energy than standard modules installed just four or five years ago.
There is also master of new materials and hybrid elements that experts predict could improve efficiency.
These include cheap, efficient and lightweight “thin films”. technologies, like those using perovskites, which can be printed with ink.
Experts say they boost perspective of a dramatic expansion of areas where solar energy can be harvested – if they can be made strong enough to withstand a couple of decades of use.
Recent research gave hope that it might be possible.
AT one research published in science magazine in April, scientists added metal-containing materials to perovskite cells, making them more stable with efficiency next traditional silicon models.
Another research mixes materials for different goals.
One study in Nature used the “tandem” models, with perovskite semiconductors for near infrared absorption light on solar spectrum, while organic carbon based material absorbs UV and visible parts of in light.
What happens after sunset?
This was stated by researchers from Stanford. year they created a solar panel that could collect energy in one night, using heat leakage from earth back in space.
“I think there are many of creativity in this industry,” said Ron Schoff, who Head of the Department of Renewable Energy Sources and Fleet Support Technologies of the Electric Power Industry Research Institute. research.
Location, location
Generation more energy from everyone panel will become increasingly important as the solar power rolling out on a larger scale, causing concerns about land use and damage to ecosystems.
Schoff said one efficiency improvement design it becomes more popular for large-scale projects are “two-way” solar energy.
These double sided units absorb no energy just directly from the sun, but also from light reflection off earth below.
Other solutions include using same space for multiple goals – like semi-transparent solar panels used as a protective roof for strawberry plants or other crops.
India has been a pioneer in use of solar panels over canals ten years ago, reducing evaporation as they produce power.
Scientists in California said that if the drought-prone US state shaded its canals, it could save about 63 billion gallons.
Construction on pilot project happens due to begin this is year.
All shapes, sizes
Experts say solar power will be one option of energy options, with another technologies more appropriate for different places.
Schoff said that ultimately these energy networks with more than 25 percent solar and wind need ways store energy – with batteries or large objects using things like pumped water or compressed air.
Consumers can also play his part, said Nemeth, moving more of their energy use during the daytime or even host your own solar grids in Airbnb-style approach.
He said modular nature of sunny means it can be rolled out in development countries with rare access to traditional grids.
“You can have sunshine on something like small like a clock and something like big as the biggest power plants in in world,” he said.
“I think that’s what makes people delighted with it.”
