The future of solar energy It involves squeezing the most of the energy that can be extracted from each ray of light.
In an ideal future we will have left behind the use of fossil fuels to use renewable energy and, at least, less polluting. Solar energy continues to grow in use, we have a source inexhaustible of energy such as the Sun, and we must take advantage of it.
The good of Elon Musk (Tesla, SpaceX, among others) tries in each presentation to sell us the benefits of solar energy, the benefits that our planet would have if we promote it (in terms of polluting emissions) and, also, get into our heads that we do not So much land is needed to feed the world with the Sun.
New record of efficiency of a solar cell
The solar cells They are our way of converting sunlight into energy and one of our main objectives is to maximize their efficiency. Now, a team of Australian researchers has busted what was the efficiency record to date, which was at 24%.
The University of New South Wales has managed to achieve a 34.5% efficiency in the conversion of energy sunlight through a new configuration of the solar cell, making it a new world record and, not only that, but it is also very close to the theoretical limit of efficiency of this technology.
This efficiency has been achieved with a cell with solar light without focusing, that is, without using mirrors as light concentrators, although this same team achieved in 2014 an efficiency of 40% with the use of mirrors.
In any case, the solar cell they have developed is 28 square centimeters and is capable of achieving that efficiency by means of thesplitting sunlight into four bands. In other words, light passes through different layers of different compounds to generate energy.
Near the theoretical limit
It seems that even the researchers themselves have been surprised by what they have achieved since some studies pointed out that an efficiency of around 35% was not reached until approximately 2050.
That s, let’s not get excited either because this type of solar cells will not reach our homes. They require greater care and maintenance, so their destination would be large-scale solar plants, where control is continuous.This joins recent developments such as cells capable of generating energy with raindrops or the construction of the largest floating solar plant in Europe.
