Could growing a sea of absolutely tiny nano-fiber hairs prove the key to actual returns from solar energy?
Scientists at the University of California, San Diego have developed a new method for growing hair...on solar cells! The improved technique, they say, will ultimately be used to increase the efficiency of photovoltaics something on the level of six or seven orders of magnitude.
So, say you got your average 200W solar cell today, in the future of tomorrow that sucker just might net you:
200 W ^ 7 = 12, 800, 000, 000, 000, 000 W
That's almost 13 quadrillion watts!
And that fold-up 6.5W unit you used to take backpacking to keep your iPod running?
6.5 W ^ 7 = 490, 222 W
Now that's cooking!
The key to this technology is its shape. The combined surface area of those billion hairs dwarfs that of an average solar panel just like the Milky Way Galaxy dwarfs Brittney Spears' legal issues.
Also, the hairs being as small as they are and so closely grouped together invokes another little understood principle of quantum mechanics wherein the electrons are more easily separated from the other part of themselves, the "holes", that are left over afterwards.
Just like when you make donuts...
From NanoLetters via Newswise.com:
"If you provide electrons with a defined pathway to the electrode, you can reduce some of the inefficiencies that currently plague thin-film solar cells made from polymer mixtures. More efficient transport of electrons and holes - collectively known as carriers - is critical for creating more efficient solar cells," said Clint Novotny the first author of the NanoLetters paper.
Now that they've figured out how to effectively grow the hairs on any metal surface, they just need to get them to last.
Before these kinds of electron superhighways can be incorporated into photovoltaic devices, a series of technical hurdles must be addressed - including the issue of polymer degradation. "The polymers degrade quickly when exposed to air. Researchers around the world are working to improve the properties of organic polymers," said Paul Yu, a professor of electrical engineering at UC San Diego's Jacobs School of Engineering.
With these kind of revolutions right around the corner, what kind of tech do you think we'll be seeing in the next ten years?
Also, what are the health risks? A new study (posted online today at Nature Nanotechnology) by scientists at the University of Edinburgh suggests that carbon nano-tubes, a relative of the fibers here, have been shown in lab tests to behave similarly to asbestos when ingested or inhaled.
But do the benefits outweigh the costs?
Personally, I'm no alarmist but I am also no fan of the idea that one bad move could turn us all to grey goo. What are your thoughts on the matter? Do we need to restrict this potentially revolutionary tech for fear of health concerns, or do we just need more protective measures?
posted on Slashdot.org via Ecotechdaily.com via Newswise.com
This is such a simple (yet brilliant) way to increase the surface area and hence the heat generated for energy use. Although I do share your sentiment to a degree regarding the uncertainty of carbon nano-tubes. I read a recent article that said they are at this time non-degradable...
Posted by: Nar Williams at May 24, 2008 7:46 AM