Innovative Systems of Harnessing Solar Energy

Just imagine the below

1. A day with your mobile phone with 0 battery
2. A day with no battery in laptop
3. No electricity for 24 hours
4. A day with no internet

It seems like in any of the case the day would not start even. The world would come to a halt. And we are so very much use to these things that we may go crazy without them.

But do you really think the coal reservoir we have will last for all the years to come of this earth, in spite of the speed with which we are using them. As a matter of fact, these reservoirs are reaching their finishing point. And this is a signal for us to start looking for alternatives to harness the energy to fulfil our present demands and to meet the future upcoming demands of the power.

There are many potential renewable sources of energy. This blog is dedicated to the different methods of harnessing Solar Energy.

1. Spherical Sun Power Generator –

German Architect Andre Broessel designed a Spherical Sun Power Generator, just to revolutionize solar power. He has created a prototype of Spherical Sun Power Generator, which is also called as the Beta Ray.

This system is combination of two technologies – Spherical Geometry and dual axis tracking system, which allows for twice the output of a conventional solar panel.

The spherical power generator can harness sunlight during overcast days, early mornings, late evenings and it is even able to absorb the moonlight. It comprises of hybrid collector which absorb the thermal energy and convert it to electricity. The spherical shape of the Beta.ray makes it a natural optical tracking device, allowing it to be used on almost any large area, including walls and surfaces which are inclined. The crystal globe is able to concentrate diffused light onto a tiny, hyper-efficient photovoltaic cell.

See Also: Energy Generation through Vehicle Generated Winds

2. Tulip Shaped Solar Plants to be Installed in Ethiopia –

AORA Solar came with this new concept of harnessing the solar energy. It has begun the construction of this solar-biogas power plant in Ethiopia. The concept is inspired by the Sunflower, by creating the Solar Panel that faces the Sun.

These energy plants consists of a tulip-shaped tower with a lens in it and is surrounded by a field of mirrors designed to track sun and reflect the concentrated solar rays to the tulip tower. Behind the lens, the 1000 Celsius temperature is used to heat the pressurized air, resulting in a hot pressurized gas. This gas is used to move the blades of a turbine to generate electricity.

During a cloudy weather or nightfall, the tower would switch to using biofuels to heat the air inside and power the turbine to produce uninterrupted utility grade power 24/7.

3. Solar energy from space –

Space-based Solar Power is the technique of collecting the solar power in outer space and distributing it to Earth. Japan Space Agency is working hard to develop technologies to wirelessly transmit electricity.

The solar energy available in space is literally billions of times greater than we use today. Space solar power can provide the needed clean power for any future electric transportation systems. The big advantage of this concept is the collection rate of solar energy will be higher in the space as the sunlight is available for longer time due to lack of diffusing atmosphere. So, more energy could be generated.

4. 3d Printed Solar energy trees –

3D Printing is actually benefitting and entering almost all the spheres of life. Now it is spanning its advantages into the Power generation field. The scientists at VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland have developed a prototype for a 3D Printed tree that uses its surroundings to harvest solar energy.

They have 3D printed the tiny prototypes of a tree in which the leaves are made of organic solar cells. These solar cells react with sunlight to produce enough electricity to power cell phone or other small device.

These leaves can also harness wind energy, as they are made up of flexible cells which generates electricity when they vibrate on blowing of the winds. The trunks are 3d printed using wood-based biocomposites.

5. A power Sticker to Boost Solar Power Generation –

Traditional and old ways could be less efficient but we can never completely part away from them as they are the basis of future developments. And we can always see the traces the traditional system in the developed ones. And then some do developments over traditional systems to increase their efficiency.

The latest development in solar panel division is a large transparent sticker applied to the front of the panel which increases the power output by about 10%. Genie Lens Technologies is the firm behind this development. These polymer are capable of absorbing more light, hence more power is generated. The microstructures in the polymer sheet are capable of bending and redirecting the sunlight.

The three main actions that come to work after applying these polymer films are:

1. It prevents the sunlight from reflecting back from the solar panel surface.
2. These polymer trap the sunlight inside the semiconducting materials which convert it into power.
3. It obstructs the light from just passing through the surface rather it redirects the light to travel along the semiconductor material surface. Hence, it increases the likelihood of absorption of light more than before.

The sole objective behind these new developments is to increase the potential of power generation through these renewable sources of energy. The blog listed some new systems for harnessing the solar energy. The scientists are not just developing new systems to harness energy from singular sources but are also working to develop systems that generate power from the combination of sources. In my subsequent blogs, I would be listing such systems that use more than one renewable energy resource.