Think thin-film solar is still eons away from ubiquity? Think again. Seattle-based company LivinGreen has some sweet solar tech that could make manufacturing solar cells cheaper and easier.
Dye sensitized solar cells work like photosynthesis in plants. A nanoparticle dye on a titanium electrode captures light, converting it to energy. The catch, says LivingGreen CEO Chris Tagge, is that the nanoparticles end up behaving like Rice Krispies doused in milk--the light passes through, reducing efficiency.
LivinGreen, which was a finalist in the recent Cleantech open, has a unique nanoparticle aggregate called AggraLight developed by University of Washington professor Guozhong Cao. Particles are clumped together like popcorn balls or Rice Krispies treats to bounce light around the layer so it can be absorbed. Competitors use "blueberries"--nanochunks--to scatter the light instead of making "treats." But that tends to make the layer thicker and more expensive to produce, Tagge says. AggraLight requires far less material, potentially reducing costs by 40 percent per watt while upping efficiency by 50 percent.
The solar cell companies LivinGreen is talking to are definitely interested in AggraLight, which Tagge says they hope to bring to the market in the next 18 months or so. For all the research going on, solar power is still only a tiny fraction of the global energy supply. We're going to need a ton of treats to turn that around.
Photo: Not a marshmallow treat but a closeup of the nano-aggregate, AggraLight. Courtesy Guozhong Cao, University of Washington.
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