What if you needed a wrench and, when you tried to buy one, you found that they were all the same size? How many problems can be solved with a wrench of only one size? Eventually, you would have to find other ways to solve problems, and you would relegate the single-sized wrench to the class of projects that happened to be compatible.
Much the same is true of today's solar solutions: They come in one size (large, flat plate-glass modules) and are suited primarily to the task of capturing the sun in large open fields. But what about all the other places where energy is either unavailable or not cost-effective? Solving that problem requires wrenches of different sizes and even different shapes. The one-size mentality does not fit all problems, and in fact, a wide variety of alternative and embedded forms are required to really address the potential for solar energy to address the world's energy needs.
Let's look at the problem of needing electricity where it simply isn't available. Solar technology can be integrated into the wings of unmanned aerial vehicles for both military and civilian uses, increasing flight times dramatically. How about charging that cellphone and iPad we carry everywhere with us? Flexible sheets that can be right-sized to fit our portable devices could provide tens of watts of power everywhere we go. And no plug is required.
In the developing world, the need for energy is extreme. In fact, many researchers believe that economic and social prosperity starts by ensuring a ready and adequate supply of energy. The sun shines all day long -- why not build flexible charging mats that can provide kilowatts of energy in an area that's no bigger than a small patio? A 10x10-foot mat could be easily rolled up and stored but provide more than 2kW of energy generation capability when unfolded and exposed to the sun. Even a solar mat the size of a queen-sized sheet would provide 1kW.
In much of the developing world, the primary source of energy generation is either centralized coal power plants or decentralized diesel generators. Why not deploy hybrid diesel systems that use the sun to generate power during the day and only consume diesel at night? The problem of intermittency goes away completely, while the consumption of costly diesel fuel would plummet. The same technology can be deployed to our armed forces, where the cost of carrying extra fuel or batteries is often immeasurable.
Electric vehicles are another good example. The batteries of today's electric vehicles must be maintained at a specific temperature to maintain their maximum storage capacity and overall lifetime. What happens when an electric vehicle is left parked in the hot daytime sun? The cooling system for the battery system will be drawing energy from the same battery it's trying to cool. In some cases, this could result in a catastrophic discharging of the vehicle's battery, destroying the battery. Why not integrate some flexible solar film into the vehicle's roof to solve this problem? One technology that's almost ready for prime time offers thin, flexible solar film sheets that can be molded directly into the car's glass roofing material and could provide more than 500W.
The eventual solution needs to be thin and light and be able to convert a significant amount of the sun's energy into electricity. Glass-plate silicon-based solar panels are too rigid and heavy. Thin film technologies such as CIGS are inefficient. What's coming are superthin GaAs-based solar cells that can be integrated into other materials. Only then can we realize embedding power everywhere.
Rich Kapusta is vice president of marketing at Alta Devices.
The hybrid solar/generator combination the author describes here is what Tokelau is using. That's the 3-island nation that just went 100% sustainable for its electrical need, which we wrote about here http://www.designnews.com/author.asp?section_id=1392&doc_id=254016 I think marrying flex circuit technology with solar cells is a great idea.
Atwell, as of now for household purpose, the ROI from any solar based investment is 7-10 years (from my experience). I had done a comparative study and found that eventhough we are using low quality/cost panels and devices, then also it will take 5-8 years for enough ROI. But if the power tariffs are increasing, then we may able to get a good ROI below 5 year.
Ann, in our country there are some hybrid solar generators are available. Hybrid means a combination of both wind and solar. During day time solar energy is using for power generation and during night and dark time, wind mill will work to generate power. But in both cases, availability of sunlight and wind throughout year may be a concern.
Mydesign, thanks for that input, I wasn't aware of those hybrid generators. At least in concept, they sound like a good idea. In the Tokelau solution, "hvbrid" refers to a combo of solar panels plus coconut oil-based generators for backup and battery charging.
Ann, coconut oils is using for running the generator or some other purposes. Normally we used to have diesel generators, which are using at power cut time, as an alternate source of energy.
On April 21, NASA launched a novel project, putting into orbit three satellites that employ an off-the-shelf commercial smartphone as the control system.
The legacy endpoint devices that control our critical infrastructure (utility systems, water treatment plants, military networks, industrial control systems, etc.) are some of the most vulnerable devices on the Internet.
In a switched-capacitor filter, capacitors and switches take the place of resistors and accurately reproduce the characteristics of continuous-time Bessel, Butterworth, and elliptical filters.
From Dell / Intel® New Paradigms in Design Work Scott Hamilton, vertical market strategist for Dell Precision workstations, 5/2/2013 5
Early in my career, I worked as a draftsman and remember the days of drawing on vellum with numbered pencils and Mylar with plastic lead. This was a fun experience in the sense that I ...
I've been using workstations for more than 10 years and love finding ways to get more performance from my system. With demanding professional applications that require more power each ...
A lasting memory from my first job as an engineer in an auto assembly plant is standing on hard concrete at six in the morning, vending-machine coffee clutched in hand, listening to ...
For industrial control applications, or even a simple assembly line, that machine can go almost 24/7 without a break. But what happens when the task is a little more complex? That’s where the “smart” machine would come in. The smart machine is one that has some simple (or complex in some cases) processing capability to be able to adapt to changing conditions. Such machines are suited for a host of applications, including automotive, aerospace, defense, medical, computers and electronics, telecommunications, consumer goods, and so on. This radio show will show what’s possible with smart machines, and what tradeoffs need to be made to implement such a solution.
To save this item to your list of favorite Design News content so you can find it later in your Profile page, click the "Save It" button next to the item.
If you found this interesting or useful, please use the links to the services below to share it with other readers. You will need a free account with each service to share an item via that service.
Tweet This
7 
