Generally, they are an eyesore and expensive to install.
Well, since the solar power business has boomed in many parts of the world, and governments and private sector alike are now interested in powering up their grids with renewable energies, lots of private companies, laboratories and public sector entities have thrown in their cash and started developing solar energy programs, new solar energy techs and programs for the mass market.
Europe, China, India, the US, South Korea and Japan all have invested HUGE amounts in the technology and in some places, like in 2017 India, solar power is just as cheap as coal power!
This is what drives whole businesses to change, including the Energy industry.
And with interest in the market, comes innovation, not only in efficiency, but also in form factor and ergonomics.
I discuss this movement and where it may lead in the video below:
Now for some examples of great looking solar panels:
IKEA
Yep, Ikea is ready to sell you solar panels of its own. Fortunately (or is it unfortunately), you won't be installing these yourself. Experts do it after delivery. They look pretty standard for solar panels, so nothing very beautiful about those, however, it does show that solar panels are becoming a sort of commodity in a similar way that LED lighting has become something of a standard for car lights nowadays.
TESLA
I love Tesla's concepts. They always think of beauty whenever they design something, whether it is their cars, their battery packs and now solar panels on the roof. The image below shows the new concept they are going with. Can you tell that those shingles are actually solar panels? This is a case of camouflage indeed! You wouldn't know if those were solar cells or just normal shingles...
BUILD SOLAR
We've heard of solar roofs and solar windows. But how about making opaque or semi-transparent walls solar power capable as well? This company's concept can make walls look futuristic, have good insulation and generate power as well. I don't think these are out yet, but does show some ideas and innovation.
SKYCOOL SYSTEMS
This is a spinoff company from Stanford University and these are NOT solar panels. What they do is perhaps act to avoid additional energy needs for cooling buildings in hot areas or hot times of the year, thus avoiding the need for solar panels in the first place. Less juice needed for cooling = less energy demand on the building. The concepts currently look like ugly solar panels, unfortunately, but they could be melded properly to a roof surface in a similar way to the Ikea idea for solar roofs (or perhaps better), once they get these into commercial form factors. What these panels do is absorb thermal energy (heat) from the bottom surface in contact with the building and shoot the radiation out into the cold, cold vacuum of space. It's top reflective surface reflects 97% of all of the sun's energy back to where it came from, thus keeping the building cool even in strong heat. Now, these clever guys thought of something pretty neat: what if they coat solar panel surfaces with their energy re-transmission material? That has the effect of keeping the solar panel cooler (increasing solar panel efficiency), and keeping the building underneath cooler as well, thus reducing the need for electricity in the first place. So combining both material and solar panel tech could potentially require us to use fewer solar panels and still have energy to spare. Great idea guys!
All in all, the Solar Energy industry is just gearing up as costs for solar are down enough to warrant such investments. This will in turn make solar energy even more cost-effective than it is now... and with clever people working on these, we can have nice homes and offices, fully charged, nice to look at, and COOL!
Catch you all next week for another installment.
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