MyScience-Green Dye Solar Cell Breakthrough

The Green Dye sensetized Solar cells harness more energy from the Sun

Solar energy is the most attractive option, because, in it’s base form, that is where Earth gets pretty much all of its energy. Plants do a very efficient job of converting this energy into useful forms; our solar cells can’t compare. Either for straight up electricity, or hydrogen generation, artificial photosynthesis could solve many of our energy problem.And here’s come the breakthrough by harness the nature and its chlorophyll photosynthesis effect state of Green by dye sensitised it.

Researchers at Massey University of New Zealand developed range of natural dye sensitised solar cells which could extract more energy from the sun and cost only one tenth of current silicon photo electric solar cell.The invention was headed by Dr Wayne Campbell with his team of researchers in the Uninversity’s Nanomaterials Research Centre.

To elaborate further ,

“The refining of pure silicon, although a very abundant mineral, is energy-hungry and very expensive. And whereas silicon cells need direct sunlight to operate efficiently, these cells will work efficiently in low diffuse light conditions,” Dr Campbell says.

The green solar cells are made of less costly titanium dioxide than silicon cells , and is environmental friendly - non toxic , renewal in abundant from New Zealand’s black sand.The green dye is a synthetic dyes are made from simple organic compounds closely related to those found in nature - synthetic chlorophyll derived from the light-harvesting pigment plants use for photosynthesis. Moreover , this titanium dioxide is already in used with toothpastes, white paints and cosmetics.

The Green Solar cells 10X10cm application could generate enough energy under low light conditions to even run a small fan and even during cloudy climates.These dyes can be incorporated into the windows to tap the sun energy to generate electricity.

The Centre’s new director Professor Ashton Partridge says they have the most efficient porphyrin dye in the world and by making use of nanotechnology to develop far efficient green solar cell to convert sun’s energy as much as possible into electricity.Its next commercial viable application would be build into roof and wall materials.

What a breakthrough it will be - the next world most environmentally friendly at minimum economical scale of cost and maximise the energy into electricity from the sunlight.