Comments on: BREAKTHROUGH IN CHEAP SOLAR POWER!

By: Shaman Hawk

Shaman Hawk — Sun, 18 May 2008 18:46:55 +0000

This is great news. Not only could we plug into our clothes but my girlfriends sex toys could just sit on the window sill and we won’t need batteries.

By: Johan

Johan — Fri, 01 Feb 2008 09:12:19 +0000

I living in South Africa, and with our powergrid in upgrade we will battle to have enough power for the next 3 – 5 years. I have found many websites that announce new and cheaper solar panels etc, but none of them refers a person to a distributor of such products.
Any help in this department??

By: Chris

Chris — Fri, 16 Nov 2007 04:08:19 +0000

I’m building a house and ready to roof. Can someone give me bottom line on availabilty or costs of the solar shingles? Should I put up solar roofing now, vs. adding panels later? I can’t find anything about availabilty of anything (or costs) outside of traditional solar panels.

Thanks for your quick reply, in progress NOW!

By: Hariram

Hariram — Fri, 25 May 2007 05:29:19 +0000

What will be the circuit diagram to connect and collect elecron-charges from the dyes?

By: Guru

Guru — Wed, 23 May 2007 14:21:33 +0000

Well sounds great. I guess it will take a few more years to bring it to market though. Allot of testing will be required to determine useful life against cost etc…

By: Mark

Mark — Sun, 13 May 2007 06:13:17 +0000

Forget it all, just turn your lights off when you leave the house, don’t forget your bike, and lastly stop wathcing so much tv.
Mark

By: Reagan

Reagan — Thu, 19 Apr 2007 06:56:53 +0000

I think it sounds great ( provided it doesn’t decompose ). It could have several benefits, especially in places like the gulf (UAE), where sunlight is plentiful and space is no problem. If the cost is feasible, we could easily have buildings being constructed completely clad with such cells.

By: bernard

bernard — Mon, 16 Apr 2007 14:43:25 +0000

climate change is damaging our planet versy fast, please distribute the technology ASAP even without royalty to pay this is anemergency to ourplanet

By: Nick Simpson

Nick Simpson — Sat, 14 Apr 2007 09:53:47 +0000

Whatever way you look at it if it’s a step in the right direction it’s good news. Photovoltaics (i.e. panels that convert the sun’s energy into electricity instead of hot water) simply aren’t financially viable yet. Anything that makes it take that step towards being viable is great.

By: David

David — Thu, 12 Apr 2007 01:24:27 +0000

Jorge-
FYI-If I am not mistaken, they are “silicon” not “silicone” solar cells.

By: Robert

Robert — Wed, 11 Apr 2007 16:36:51 +0000

The comment about Michael Graetzel is correct. He is the originator of the titanium dye cell. The Konarka company in Lowell, Mass. has further developed this kind of cell in the US, and their products should be widely available in the next year or two.

By: Fred

Fred — Wed, 11 Apr 2007 11:52:56 +0000

People have been doing this for decades. The idea is that TiO2 is very efficient at turning light into electricity, if the light is in a relatively narrow band in the UV (where sunlight is weak). The dyes absorb light, and inject an electron into the semiconductor, adding an absorbance band where sunlight is stronger. Unfortunately, the dye minus an electron is very reactive, and oxidative decomposition is one of the reaction paths open to the dye. The problem has always been that the dye decomposes fairly rapidly (this incidently has been used to clean up some rather nasty chemical problems on the bench scale). The press release linked to above doesn’t mention if this problem is solved

By: charles

charles — Wed, 11 Apr 2007 11:11:18 +0000

this technology was invented in 1991 bei swiss physicist called michael graetzel. it’s know under the common name “graetzel-cell”

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dye-sensitized_solar_cells

By: Jorge Chapa

Jorge Chapa — Wed, 11 Apr 2007 05:30:06 +0000

Well, from what I can gather, and I admit to not being an expert in the matter, the embodied energy of silicone solar cells is much higher than those manufactured from these dyes.

By: Ty Jones

Ty Jones — Wed, 11 Apr 2007 03:22:08 +0000

WOW … is this the break through, or a leeast a lead forward, that consumers have been waiting for?

By: Dan

Dan — Tue, 10 Apr 2007 23:54:22 +0000

The useful lifespan of the product is as important as it’s initial cost. i.e. if it only lasts a few years before it’s performance is significantly degraded then it’s ROI may not be as competitive as it first appears. The embodied energy, particularly of the titanium dioxide component, must also be taken into consideration.