While solar panel glass is designed to reduce reflection; a new type of glass developed at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) will virtually eliminate it altogether.
Light reflection can be an issue mainly in the mornings and toward evenings when the sun is low in the sky. During these times, as much as half of the sunlight hitting a panel can be reflected away.
The glass developed by the MIT boffins will not only address this issue, but also enhance existing self-cleaning properties of solar panels; making them more resistant to the accumulation of dust, pollen and other debris. Water droplets hitting the glass literally bounce off it as demonstrated in the video below.
The secret is in the surface pattern of the glass, which consists of nanoscale cones five times as tall as their base width. The cones are fabricated using coating and etching techniques adapted from the semiconductor industry.
With the possibility of creating such a surface via textured rollers while the glass is still partially molten; such a process would add little to the cost of manufacturing according to co-authors of a paper explaining the technology, mechanical engineering graduate students Kyoo-Chul Park and Hyungryul Choi.
Applications for the glass aren’t confined to the solar industry – assuming costs could be brought down enough; it could be used in everything from touch screens to car windows, where its additional anti-fogging properties would be of benefit.
The team has already applied for a patent on the process and further testing will be performed to determine how well the nanotextured surfaces will endure in real-world applications.
The development of the glass is another example of biomimicry; where designs in nature that have developed in ways to address multiple purposes provide inspiration for solving human challenges.
Biomimicry is featuring heavily in the evolution of solar power and related technologies. In the past we’ve covered designs based on butterflies, bacteria , a virus, moth eyes and even sunflowers have inspired more efficient solar components and solar farms.
