Spray-on film turns windows into solar panels
Testing the spray-on film inside a deposition chamber. (Credit: EnSol)
If the very idea of a spray-on film that can turn any window into solar collectors sounds too good to be true, well, think again. After all Japan's University of Tokyo did come up with a Wi-Fi-blocking paint, while a number of companies including Konarka has developed solar cells that sit within the window.
Pushing the envelop on solar panel technology is Nowegian company EnSol with a thin film solar cell technology designed to be sprayed onto any glass surface. In fact, plans are afoot for a thicker solution to coat exterior walls. Certainly, this takes away the need to plonk big solar panels on rooftops, particularly for apartment dwellers.
Unlike traditional silicon-based solar cells, EnSol's film uses metal nanoparticles embedded in a transparent composite matrix. Its collaboration with the University of Leicester's Department of Physics and Astronomy should have the product see light of day by 2016, with a cell efficiency of at least 20 percent.
Via Gizmag
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