According to a Stanford University study, solar cells can extract energy from the surrounding environment and continue functioning even after the sun sets. This means that there is no need to use batteries. The study’s findings were published in the journal ‘Applied Physics Letters.
Researchers have created a photovoltaic device that captures energy from the environment at night and day, and makes use of heat leaking back into space from Earth. Solar cells radiate heat into the sky at night, reaching temperatures just a few degrees below ambient air. The thermoelectric module generates voltage and current from the temperature gradient of the cell and the ambient air. This setup is very affordable and could be integrated into existing solar cells.
The study found that approximately 750,000,000 people around the world don’t have electricity at night. While solar cells can provide power during the daytime, it is necessary to store substantial amounts of energy for later use. Solar cells lose heat to the atmosphere at night and radiate heat to the sky. This can reach temperatures a few degrees lower than the ambient air. The thermoelectric module generates voltage and current from the temperature gradient of the cell and the ambient air. This process is dependent upon the thermal design of your system, which has a hot and a cold side.
Sid Assawaworrarit, author, stated that thermoelectrics should have good contact with both the cold (the solar cell) and the hot (the ambient environment). You won’t get much power if you don’t have this.” The team demonstrated power generation in the device during the day when it runs in reverse, which adds power to the traditional solar cell, as well as at night.
The setup is very affordable and could theoretically be integrated into existing solar cells. It is also easy to construct in remote areas with limited resources. “What we did here was build the whole thing using off-the-shelf parts, have a very high thermal contact, the most expensive thing in all of it was the thermoelectric,” said Zunaid Omair.
Only a few watts are required to use electricity at night for lighting. The current device generates 50 watts per square meter. This means that 20 square meters would be required for lighting. Shanhui Fan stated that none of the components were designed specifically for this purpose. “So, I believe there’s room to improve in the sense that if each component was designed specifically for our purpose, I think performance could be improved.”
The team is working to optimize the thermoelectric and thermal insulation components of the device. They are investigating engineering improvements to the solar cells to increase its radiative cooling capability without affecting its solar energy harvesting capabilities. (ANI)
(This story was not edited by Devdiscourse staff. It is generated automatically from a syndicated feed.
