Cheaper Solar Cells

A team of researchers from Durham University in Northern England are currently working on a new revolutionary kind of solar panel material that could possibly start the massive use of solar energy in the world. One of the main drawbacks in the use of solar energy is the price of solar cells. So the team directed by Professor Ken Durose has been researching for 4 years to find a less expensive material for the future solar cells. They are currently developing a new type of light-absorbing material to produce thin layer solar photovoltaic cells.

The thin-layer PV cells would be used to make solar panels that could be fitted to roofs to help power homes with any surplus electricity being fed back to The National Grid.This could lead to cheaper fuel bills and less reliance on burning fossil fuels as a way of helping to generate electricity.

“If solar panels were cheap enough so you could buy a system off the shelf that provided even a fraction of your power needs you would do it, but that product isn’t there at the moment.“The key indicator of cost effectiveness is how many pounds do you have to spend to get a watt of power out?“If you can make solar panels more cheaply then you will have a winning product.”

It looks like this new type of solar cells would be of great interest for vehicles, as they would be cheaper, lighter and able to adapt to any complex surfaces, which is impossible to do with curent cells.