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Although solar panels are a great way to generate electricity, some people turn away from them because they require up-front investments. Now, there’s a way to harness sunlight to produce energy without installing solar panels that many people may prefer: solar paint.
Solar paint is similar to normal paint, except it contains a mixture of billions of light-sensitive particles. Once applied to a wall with circuitry, for instance, the surface changes into a solar panel that produces energy as the sun strikes it. This works like a great money-saver since it has the potential to reduce a homeowner’s electrical bill. Plus, it’s environmentally friendly because those using it won’t rely on other sources, including burning coal or oil.
This concept is being turned into reality. The most popular type of solar paint is the one with colloidal quantum dots. These are semiconducting crystals that can be found in LEDs, computers, and solar panels. However, they have an efficiency of 8%, so they’re not ready for commercial use. The University of Toronto made a solar paint that involves spraying quantum dots on a backing, which is rolled up, delivered to the installation area, and applied like wallpaper.
Meanwhile, the University of Buffalo created light-sensitive material for solar paint that can also be applied to a wall. But, the efficiency is still too low to be useful for homeowners.
We need to ensure that it has just the right efficiency. Traditional solar panels have approximately 20% efficiency. The best type of solar paint only has 8% efficiency, which needs to be at 10% to serve as a commercial product. Further developments in this technology could enable it to reach that goal sooner.
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