Purple Pokeberries Yield Cheap Solar Power

separsons writes "Researchers at Wake Forest's Center for Nanotechnology and Molecular Materials created a low-cost solar power system geared towards developing nations. By coating fiber-based solar cells with dye from purple pokeberries, a common weed, scientists created a cheap yet highly efficient solar system. Wake Forest researchers and their accompanying company, FiberCell Inc., have filed for a patent for fiber-based solar. Plastic sheets are stamped with plastic fibers, creating millions of tiny 'cans' that trap light until it is absorbed. The fibers create a huge surface area, meaning sunlight can be collected at any angle from the time the sun rises until it sets. Coating the system with pokeberry dye creates even greater absorption: researchers say the system can produce twice as much power as traditional flat-cell technology."

Comments

Pokeberry's weed status is endangered

[Anonymous Coward]

Weeds are only weeds because we don't want them. If this solar technology takes off, the Pokeberry will cease to be a weed. Horrors!

Unobtainium Still Required

[Black Gold Alchemist]

This page indicates that indium tin oxide is still used in the solar panel. Indium has got to be removed because it is an extremely expensive, worth over $500/kg, and it is rare and unsustainable. It's used to make transparent conductors. If we could make some kind of plastic as a transparent conductor, that would be helpful.

Or we could skip the solar panels and build a steam engine.

Re:Still need nuclear

[TheMeuge]

Total world energy consumption ~ 1.5 terawatts.

At 1.5x10^13 / 1.1x10^3 = 1.4e10 m^2

= 1.4e4 km^2... or roughly a patch of land just 116km x 116km.

So assuming the unachievable 100% capture, we could generate all the power we need in the world by covering the state of Connecticut with magic solar panels.

I totally support the idea of clean nuclear power, but let's get our figures straight.

Longevity?

[Locke2005]

Current photovoltaics are expected to last for 30 years; what is the functional lifetime of this device? It seems to me that plastic and pokeberry dye won't last anywhere near as long as silicone.

Re:Great...

[gstoddart]

Most of the "Developing nations" out there are still having trouble with clean water, roads, and reliable power. So we're going to stick them with solar ? First, who is going to pay for it ? Second, if they aren't getting reliable power through more traditional means (like coal), how is this REALLY going to help them at all ?

Well, solar can be hooked up directly to the building you need to power, so you could get power into a school, for example, without needing any infrastructure.

And, I can see someone using this to run one of those UV water sterilizers. Imagine that -- a method of actually getting them sanitary water.

Getting cheap power to remote places facing the problems you identify might actually help them to try to alleviate some of the problems. I bet there's loads of examples that people can identify that if you can provide power, you can do something. Having power is better than not since you get more options.

Cheers

Re:Sounds like a Graetzel cell

[Anonymous Coward]

If the big problem with DSSCs is that the dye breaks down, and this dye comes from a source that's as common and easy to cultivate as pokeweed, I don't see why a dye-flush couldn't be performed on the cells when it reaches the end of its lifetime.

More stable dyes would be great, but something that can be cheaply recycled/refreshed might be just as good.