The U.S. Department of Energy's $300,000 grant to the University of Toledo in Ohio for solar technology research recently caught the eye of the head of a residential solar PV and energy efficiency solutions company.
PosiGen CEO Thomas Neyhart commented on social media on Tuesday, Nov. 2 about the investment.
"U.S. Department of Energy invests in UToledo solar technology research," Neyhart said in his Twitter post.
Founded about a decade ago, PosiGen currently operates in Louisiana, New York, Connecticut, New Jersey and Florida.
Neyhart's Twitter post linked to one of a number of news outlets' reprint of UToledo's news release that same day about the DOE's investment. The DOE funds will help support the work of university physicists who "are pushing the limits of solar electricity to ensure a clean energy future."
University physicists are trying to combine two types of solar cells to harvest light not only from the sun what is reflected off the ground, all the while pushing for creation of stronger and long-lasting solar panels. Specifically, the researchers are looking at technology that could integrate perovskite solar cell technology into existing production lines for cadmium-selenide-telluride (CST)-based solar cells to maximize performance of thin-film tandem solar cells.
If they succeed, the new technology could reduce energy costs.
The DOE's investment is intended to advance that research.
The university's research team is being led by Dr. Zhaoning Song, research assistant professor in the College of Natural Sciences and Mathematics, and Dr. Yanfa Yan, distinguished university professor of physics. The two previously set the world record for the conversion of sunlight to electricity using perovskites and increased total electrical power generated by using two different parts of the sun’s spectrum.
"Based on theoretical calculation, the monolithic bifacial tandem design can boost the output power density limit of conventional CST solar modules by up to 50% with a light color concrete ground," Song said in the news release. "Our proof-of-concept device demonstrated a greater than 25% conversion efficiency improvement."
