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Solar Energy Science Projects
There are so many solar energy science projects being implemented accross the world it's hard to know where to begin. And whilst solar power history is a long and colourful one, it is to the future that we are looking to make solar energy an integral part of our everyday lives.
But it's not just governments pouring money into projects but independent bodies as well. A national team of UK scientists led by experts at Durham University are embarking on one of the largest ever research projects into photovoltaic (PV) solar energy. Costing £6.3million, the programme will focus on making thin-film light absorbing cells for solar panels from sustainable and affordable materials. The four-year project, which begins in April 2008, is being funded by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) under the SUPERGEN initiative. Altogether, there 8 UK universities, led by Durham and including Bangor, Bath, Cranfield, Edinburgh, Imperial College London, Northumbria and Southampton, involved in the project and they will be working together with 9 industrial partners towards a goal of making solar energy more competitive and sustainable, particularly in light of the recent rise in fossil fuel prices. At present solar cells -- used to convert light energy into electricity - are very expensive. So solar energy science projects like these are vital in finding new ways to reduce costs. To cut costs in solar cell production the research team will work to reduce the thickness of the cells. Making a solar semiconductor thinner by one millionth of a metre in solar cells generating one gigawatt of power could save 50 tonnes of material. Researchers will also experiment with sustainable low-cost materials which could be used in the manufacturing of solar cells and on the use of nanotechnology and dyes on ultra-thin silicon to capture increased amounts of energy from the sun's rays. To return to our solar energy home page.
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