Imagine if the next coat of paint you put on the outside of
your home generates electricity from light-electricity that can be used to
power the appliances and equipment on the inside. A team of researchers at the
University of Notre Dame have made a major advance toward this vision by
creating an inexpensive "solar paint" that uses semiconducting
nanoparticles to produce energy.
"We want to do
something transformative, to move beyond current silicon-based solar
technology," says Prashant Kamat, John A. Zahm Professor of Science in
Chemistry and Biochemistry and an investigator in Notre Dame's Center for Nano
Science and Technology (NDnano), who leads the research.
"By
incorporating power-producing nanoparticles, called quantum dots, into a
spreadable compound, we've made a one-coat solar paint that can be applied to
any conductive surface without special equipment."
The team's search for
the new material, described in the journal ACS Nano, centered on nano-sized
particles of titanium dioxide, which were coated with either cadmium sulfide or
cadmium selenide. The particles were then suspended in a water-alcohol mixture
to create a paste.
When the paste was
brushed onto a transparent conducting material and exposed to light, it created
electricity.
"The best
light-to-energy conversion efficiency we've reached so far is 1 percent, which
is well behind the usual 10 to 15 percent efficiency of commercial silicon
solar cells," explains Kamat.
"But this paint
can be made cheaply and in large quantities. If we can improve the efficiency
somewhat, we may be able to make a real difference in meeting energy needs in
the future."
"That's why
we've christened the new paint, Sun-Believable," he adds.
Kamat and his team
also plan to study ways to improve the stability of the new material.
NDnano is one of the
leading nanotechnology centers in the world. Its mission is to study and manipulate
the properties of materials and devices, as well as their interfaces with
living systems, at the nano-scale.
(Source: http://www.solardaily.com/reports/Notre_Dame_researchers_develop_paint_on_solar_cells_999.html)
