Research Underway To Develop Less Expensive Solar Power
We here at Cooler Planet are devoted to solar energy. Beyond providing resources for homeowners to locate, install and use solar power, we also like to keep track of advances in solar power research and development. Leading the way to a renewable future is our purpose for being, and rescuing a planet beset by emissions seems like a worthy goal to aim for.
With that in mind, we\'d like to inform our readers about a new project at Harvard University and IBM, which aims to harness the power of a million idle computers to bring about a newer, cheaper form of solar power that could transform the current renewable energy paradigm.
Using IBM\'s World Community Grid, researchers are embarking on a project which taps into volunteers\' computers around the world to run calculations on multiple compounds to discover a combination of organic materials that could be use to make plastic solar cells that are less expensive, and more flexible, than the silicon-based ones currently in use.
This network could potentially shorten research into organic solar from a maximum of two decades to as little as two years, but it requires cooperation.
The technology, once identified, could be used to coat windows, building surfaces, roofs, sidewalks and possibly even roadways to produce solar energy. Incorporated into everything from backpacks to blankets (think of solar tents in winter, for example) it could provide isolated solar energy circuits that deliver light and energy where none was possible before. For example, a solar-cell woven backpack material could absorb the sun\'s rays during the day and use that power at night to light the backpack, keeping children safe during the dark days of winter as they travel to and from school.
The technology exists, but making it cheap enough to commercialize is the ultimate goal, says Alan Aspurur-Guzik, a chemistry researcher at Harvard, noting that current organic cells only deliver about five percent of the energy they receive, as compared to a 20-percent efficiency rating for silicon-based photovoltaics.
If you want to participate, visit World Community Grid.org. Participants will be asked to install a free, small, secure software program onto their computers and, when idle, will be used to \"cloud\" compute the best way toward organic solar. A screen saver will prompt users when their computers are being used.
In the meantime, if you\'re serious about solar, check out our solar power resource page for a verified, experienced solar installer who can help you reach that cleaner, greener future today. The cost for solar has never been lower, the tax incentives higher or the productivity greater, and your kids will think you\'re Super Parent!
With that in mind, we\'d like to inform our readers about a new project at Harvard University and IBM, which aims to harness the power of a million idle computers to bring about a newer, cheaper form of solar power that could transform the current renewable energy paradigm.
Using IBM\'s World Community Grid, researchers are embarking on a project which taps into volunteers\' computers around the world to run calculations on multiple compounds to discover a combination of organic materials that could be use to make plastic solar cells that are less expensive, and more flexible, than the silicon-based ones currently in use.
This network could potentially shorten research into organic solar from a maximum of two decades to as little as two years, but it requires cooperation.
The technology, once identified, could be used to coat windows, building surfaces, roofs, sidewalks and possibly even roadways to produce solar energy. Incorporated into everything from backpacks to blankets (think of solar tents in winter, for example) it could provide isolated solar energy circuits that deliver light and energy where none was possible before. For example, a solar-cell woven backpack material could absorb the sun\'s rays during the day and use that power at night to light the backpack, keeping children safe during the dark days of winter as they travel to and from school.
The technology exists, but making it cheap enough to commercialize is the ultimate goal, says Alan Aspurur-Guzik, a chemistry researcher at Harvard, noting that current organic cells only deliver about five percent of the energy they receive, as compared to a 20-percent efficiency rating for silicon-based photovoltaics.
If you want to participate, visit World Community Grid.org. Participants will be asked to install a free, small, secure software program onto their computers and, when idle, will be used to \"cloud\" compute the best way toward organic solar. A screen saver will prompt users when their computers are being used.
In the meantime, if you\'re serious about solar, check out our solar power resource page for a verified, experienced solar installer who can help you reach that cleaner, greener future today. The cost for solar has never been lower, the tax incentives higher or the productivity greater, and your kids will think you\'re Super Parent!