The printed solar panels of our future

From the University of Newcastle: Australia’s position as a global leader in printed solar has surged, following the unveiling of its first printed solar demonstration site at the University of Newcastle (UON).

Printed solar creator, UON’s Professor Paul Dastoor said that at one hundred square metres in size, there were only two other comparable sites worldwide.

“There are just three demonstration sites at this scale that we know of anywhere in the world, so Australia has joined quite an elite group of global leaders poised to make this technology a commercial reality,” said Professor Dastoor.

Professor Dastoor said the material could be rapidly manufactured, enabling accelerated deployment into the marketplace.

“No other renewable energy solution can be manufactured as quickly. On our lab-scale printer we can easily produce hundreds of metres of material per day, on a commercial-scale printer this would increase to kilometres. If you had just ten of these printers operating around the clock we could print enough material to deliver power to 1000 homes per day,” said Professor Dastoor.

“The low-cost and speed at which this technology can be deployed is exciting, particularly in the current Australian energy context where we need to find solutions, and quickly, to reduce demand on base-load power.”

Professor Dastoor said the demonstration site enabled final phase testing and modifications of the system before the renewable energy technology could be made available to the public.

“This installation brings us closer than we have ever been to making this technology a reality. It will help to determine the lifespan of the material and provide half-hourly feedback on the performance of the system,” said Professor Dastoor.Read the full story on the University of Newcastle website

Story by: Trends