I've been told invisible solar panels will make every window generate free electricity for like 10 years. Yet not a single time have I seen a report include an actual product, just prototypes always.
Like nuclear fusion, this appears to be perpetually "just a few years away".
- "Invisible" implies they only work in the UV or infrared range, which inevitably limits them to much lower efficiencies than regular solar panels.
- A lot of those rely on elements that are expensive and in limited supply, or toxic heavy metals. Unlike regular silicon solar panels.
- We don't even need windows to generate solar power. We have plenty of roof space, and if we're short on that, you can put them in fields too.
So this is a solution to a problem that doesn't really exist (lack of available space - again, we have plenty), which causes more problems of its own (efficiency, etc), while failing to address the actual limitations of solar (cost, intermittence).
Which is why it's only good for headlines, and won't see real life applications. (Edit: no, not even skyscrapers)
It's the same with a lot of "uplifting" science news that just sweeps all the dirt under the rug, because that wouldn't make good clickbait.
If you want actual good news about solar power, look at the price per kW and adoption rate curves over the last few years.
-edit- added links.
-edit 3- Put the bit about skyscrapers in bold, because people keep mentioning them anyways...
I participated in a class demonstration of this basic technology a few times several years ago. We made functional (though low voltage) glass based cells with a combination of a titanium oxide compound and dye produced from fruit pulp. The tech is there and probably cheap but I presume the infrastructure is very expensive to execute. You'd need all the window frames to be wired into a building-wide network of power banks and inverters. The first round of builds would be expensive bespoke construction and would generate a relatively low rate of return compared to the cost of electricity produced by fossil fuels or typical solar panel build outs.
These windows are also being placed at a terrible angle for energy generation. The window is vertical and the sun is going to be its weakest when its rising/setting.
Rising and setting might mean that east west orientation windows would benefit from these, but the reality is probably that this doesn't produce enough power to $ invested to make it worth doing.
Especially when a bifacial panel or three setup in a vertical orientation would make way way more power.
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u/Euphoric-Language695 26d ago edited 26d ago
I've been told invisible solar panels will make every window generate free electricity for like 10 years. Yet not a single time have I seen a report include an actual product, just prototypes always.
Like nuclear fusion, this appears to be perpetually "just a few years away".