“Transparent” Solar Panels EU to Meet Its Renewable Energy Target Before 2030 - Politico

“Transparent” Solar Panels Will Contribute to the Development of Horticulture

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Due to its transparent nature, the panels can completely cover the area used for agriculture, such as fields and greenhouses, without covering the plants below with darkness, disrupting the natural environment.

The so-called “transparent” solar panels created by researchers at Hebrew University allow only the required amount of light to the plants, and the rest is converted into electricity that can be used for other purposes.

Because the world is fixated on energy, its cost, conservation and environmental impact, researchers at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem have developed green solar technology that they say will “change the rules of the game” when it comes to agriculture.

Cost of energy will be reduced by 75%

The developers of the solar cells, Professor Chaim Rabinovich of the university’s Faculty of Agriculture, Food and the Environment and Professor Lioz Etgar of the Institute of Chemistry, say the new method will reduce the cost of energy in Israel by 75% — and can be used across the planet.

Solar cells are made from perovskite crystals instead of traditional silicon, which is described as “a relatively simple process using cheap and affordable materials,” EastFruit reports.

The panels are processed so that they become transparent to the light necessary for photosynthesis (the method by which plants convert light into energy), while producing green electricity from light that plants do not use.

Maximize the production of solar energy

Over the years, it has been obvious that most of the light energy in agricultural greenhouses is wasted, as plants use only part of the energy of sunlight and the rest is emitted back into the atmosphere, says Professor Etgar. — Our solution maximizes the production of solar electricity on agricultural land by up to 300%.

According to Professor Rabinovich, the use of translucent material is the key to storing electricity from new solar cells.

Plants only need 10% of all light energy for photosynthesis, the rest actually comes in the form of heat, he explained. — Why can’t I use this energy to generate electricity? But we can’t do that with silicon because I can’t make silicon translucent, so we were able to open a window in [the cell] so that it absorbs the whole world, except for what I need for photosynthesis.

Due to its transparent nature, the panels can completely cover the area used for agriculture, such as fields and greenhouses, without covering the plants below with darkness, disrupting the natural environment or harming the environment.

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