Accordion Like Solar Arrays Tweaked To Capture More Light. 20 Times More?

According to a study, modern solar panels should possess a typical three dimensional structure to capture more light. It’s obvious that flat solar panel do capture sunlight during a strong sunny day. But who can say, how efficient is the system during winter or cloudy conditions?

#-Link-Snipped-#
Accordion Like Solar Array

Researchers from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology published a paper in the Energy and Environmental Science Journal saying that solar panels (arrays) built with elements, setup at different angles can dramatically improve the overall efficiency of the system; it means: more amount of light can be captured at different angles. This system best suits to uneven conditions especially the winter and the cloudy days.

Initially, the group performed several experiments using simulators and miniature test structures. The results showed a rise in power from about two to twenty times as compared to that of traditional flat panels. Further, accordion type structures built using cube like materials stacked together proved to be better power producers without adding the trouble of increased cost.

Fuels especially belonging to the petrochemical group are on the verge of getting depleted; so it’s high time that solar panels can play an authoritative role to make better use of green resources. MIT researcher, Jeffrey Grossman even expects that the price of solar elements would further drop in the near future. Don’t worry! Future equipments would definitely have a solar power alternative.

Grossman even said that the MIT Group’s initiative to optimize light has adopted an engineered approach that can produce 3D Solar Panels in the near future. MIT is now waiting to test the effects of shading on this system.

Source: #-Link-Snipped-#