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MIT Opens New Window On Solar Energy

Mon, 14 Jul 2008 23:41:42 GMT

clipped by: Socratoad

MIT Opens New Window On Solar Energy

Imagine windows that not only provide a clear view and illuminate rooms, but also use sunlight to efficiently help power the building they are part of. MIT engineers report a new approach to harnessing the sun's energy that could allow just that.

The work, to be reported in the July 11 issue of Science, involves the creation of a novel "solar concentrator." "Light is collected over a large area [like a window] and gathered, or concentrated, at the edges," explains Marc A. Baldo, leader of the work and the Esther and Harold E. Edgerton Career Development Associate Professor of Electrical Engineering.

As a result, rather than covering a roof with expensive solar cells (the semiconductor devices that transform sunlight into electricity), the cells only need to be around the edges of a flat glass panel. In addition, the focused light increases the electrical power obtained from each solar cell "by a factor of over 40," Baldo says.

Dyed Window Panes Trap Solar Energy

Sat, 12 Jul 2008 20:59:58 GMT

clipped by: seaj11

Clip Source: www.kurzweilai.net

Organic dye lets window panes harvest the Sun

New Scientist news service, July 10, 2008

MIT electrical engineer Marc Baldo had developed a method to turn up to 20% of incident light into electricity at a fraction of the cost of conventional photovoltaic cells.

Exotic organic dyes are coated onto an ordinary sheet of glass, trapping light inside the glass and allowing it to be channelled to photovoltaic cells placed along the edges of the sheet. The dyes can absorb light across the visible spectrum and emit it at the longer frequencies needed for optimal conversion.

Read Original Article>>

Tags: energy, technology, solar, science, green

Solar dyes give a guiding light

Sat, 12 Jul 2008 09:04:39 GMT

clipped by: A53GG4

Clip Source: news.bbc.co.uk

Solar dyes give a guiding light

By Matt McGrath
BBC science correspondent

A new way of capturing the energy from the Sun could increase the power generated by solar panels tenfold, a team of American scientists has shown.

Current solar plants need large mobile mirrors to produce energy

The new technique involves coating glass with a specific mixture of transparent dyes which redirect light to photovoltaic cells in the frame.

The technology, outlined in the journal Science, could be used to convert glass buildings into vast energy plants.

The technology could be in production within three years, the team said.

See how new solar panel technology works

"It makes sense to coat the side of [very tall] buildings with these new panes," Professor Marc Baldo, one of the researchers on the team, told BBC News. "It's not far fetched at all."

The most advanced attempts to generate large amounts of electricity via the Sun require the use of a solar concentrator.

Tags: solar power

Daily Comic Aggregator

Tue, 29 Apr 2008 07:04:02 GMT

clipped by: JediKnut
clipper's remarks: For someone like me, who loves his comics, this is a great resource! There's a lot of these sites online, but this one particularly caught my eye.

Has some of my favourite strips (which aren't as common as Garfield, Hagar) like Zits, Foxtrot, Ctrl+Alt+Del...

Updated daily, so keep going back!

Clip Source: comics.diskoballs.org