24/7 solar energy

There really is nothing like solar energy. The sun (or rather sunshine) has enough and more energy to power the Earth (our cities and our homes) till the end of the solar system. However, we do not yet have the technology needed to fully utilise this free and renewable source of energy. Most solar panels that you see on rooftops and even solar power installations can manage only around 20 percent efficiency.

There is also the whole question of tapping into solar energy at night. It is possible to ‘store’ solar energy via batteries, but again, the efficiency level is minimal. Moreover, devices that require ‘direct’ solar energy cannot be operated at night.

Achieving round-the-clock solar energy utilisation will be a major breakthrough. Scientists have now built a system that converts Sun's energy into hydrogen fuel during the day and stores it for later use, allowing people to power their devices even at night. Researchers led by Tom Meyer at the Energy Frontier Research Center at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, USA, have built the system that converts the Sun's energy into hydrogen fuel and stores it for later use. Hydrogen itself is often described as a “fuel of the future” that could power everything from cars to homes.

In fact, the first-mass produced hydrogen fuel-cell powered vehicles would be on the road by end 2015. Scientists involved in the project say so-called ‘solar fuels’ like hydrogen offer a solution on how to store energy for night-time use by taking a cue from natural photosynthesis through which plants obtain energy and sustain themselves.

The new system designed by Meyer and colleagues at UNC and with Greg Parsons’ group at North Carolina State is known as a dye-sensitised photoelectrosynthesis cell, or DSPEC. It generates hydrogen fuel by using the Sun's energy to split water into its component parts. After the split, hydrogen is sequestered and stored, while the by-product, oxygen, is released into the air. It was notoriously difficult to achieve this process until now, but Meyer and his team have apparently overcome such hurdles. However, they will have to do much more work in the coming years to perfect the technology.

Commercialisation

The benefits of this move are enormous. While commercialisation of this new technology could be some years away, more households could be encouraged to switch to solar if devices can be powered from the sun even at night. After all, everyone likes to get electricity for free and once set up, solar energy is virtually free for life, apart from minimal maintenance costs for the panel itself.

Having said that, initial costs for this technology, once perfected, could be rather high. Governments will have to grant concessions to those who opt for such advanced solar technologies (Most Governments already do).

This could be the only way to electrify certain remote villages which the national grid cannot reach due to geographical or other constraints. Attitudes have to change - while the authorities do strive to take the mains grid to all corners of the island, it might simply be not viable to extend it to very remote villages. Any excess electricity generated by solar households can be sold back to the national grid, as is already done.

Solar, along with wind, is an energy source of the future that is available right now. Nevertheless, there should be a quantum leap in technology and pricing before solar (and wind) can achieve universal penetration.

Developing countries, especially tropical ones such as Sri Lanka with abundant sunshine, can benefit more from this kind of technology.

It is also heartening to note that more private companies are forming partnerships for popularising solar. At least one private bank in Sri Lanka offers loans for installing solar panels at your home for powering the light bulbs and other devices (not hot water projects).

The panels have to be sourced from reputed solar vendors named by the bank. This is a win-win situation for all three parties - bank, vendor and end user.

The savings accrued from using a solar system at home can rapidly offset the loan amount (within three to five years), making it a worthwhile long-term investment. More commercial establishments too should consider taking the solar route because the savings could be massive in the long term.

Slowdown

There has been a slowdown in the construction of major solar plants worldwide, but more efficient panels and harnessing technologies could turn the tide once more. Thinking outside the box is very important here - we tend to think that rooftop panels are always required, but what about windows and other structures that can supply solar power far more unobtrusively?

In fact, new solar cells embedded in glass can do wonders for a building or even a home.

Thin films are sprayed onto glass, and within those films, tiny functional organic solar cells (about one-fourth the size of a grain of rice) collect light from the sun and even from light bulbs which is then converted into electricity.

 They also have the extra benefit of allowing/utilising natural daylight (and passive solar heating in cold climes), which cuts down main-line on electricity use as well. Instead of installing separate solar panels, window solar cells can be installed just like conventional windows with a small additional cost. There are even spherical solar cells which can be placed anywhere to generate electricity.

In the future, solar electricity will not be static. Our movements too will be powered by the sun. One example is the recently unveiled Ford C-MAX Energi concept car which has a solar roof that can actually track the sun to get optimal power. Expect more solar cars in the next decade.

There will be plenty of improvements in the solar energy sector during that time frame, including energy storage solutions. Solar energy, along with wind and nuclear fusion, has the potential to light up our world - and our lives - without causing any damage to the environment.

It is a clean source of energy that should get more traction in the years ahead.