They find an unexpected replacement for it solar panels: algae. Research shows that it is possible to create free energy in the garden. The light-producing glass near the windows predicted the end of solar panels, but this algae is a before and after for the industry. The solar panels They are a popular source of renewable energy because they extract energy from nature Sol and converts it into electricity.
However, despite its potential, there are conditions that prevent its installation in certain homes or businesses. In this context, there are other renewable energy options that users can consider, for example wind energy, hydropower or geothermal energy, each with their respective energy instruments.
They become feasible ways to produce electricity without greenhouse gas emissions. All options have their own requirements and limitations, although they are viable alternatives to solar panels.
But before solar energy turns to other options, it continues to reinvent itself day after day. Companies and industry experts alike are working to bring new energy solutions to the world that are adaptable to each individual’s situation.
The dependence on scarce materials and their recycling solar panels still pose an obstacle to the sustainability of these devices at the end of their lifespan. For this reason, researchers are exploring new ways to produce solar panels to produce more energy and make them more recyclable and ecological. It has been discovered that algae is the unexpected replacement solar panels.
Solar panels are a thing of the past: algae are hailed as the future of energy
A group of Indian scientists have managed to use it for the first time living macroalgae integrated into small cells of 1 cm2 to produce small voltages. They developed innovative solar cells from living algae. The engineers of the Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeethama prestigious university of Coimbatorein the south of the country, are behind this new biophotovoltaic device, made from an algae that commonly grows in ponds and other bodies of freshwater. By combining it with several layers of other materials they managed to produce electricity, according to a study published in the journal Advanced materials and devices.
Algae offer many advantages when it comes to replacing artificial and non-renewable materials, such as those used in the manufacture of the solar cells that are later mounted in the panels. The potential to generate different energy sources is striking and the main advantage over other plants is that it does not require arable land or drinking water. Many of them are not suitable for human or animal consumption, meaning their use would not have any adverse effects on the food chain.
In addition, its cultivation can be carried out on a large scale in any season of the year, without relying on fertilizers or other chemical products that can harm the environment. In particular the macroalgae Pithophora roetteriwhich is part of the green algae family, is common in lakes, swamps and reservoirs in various parts of the world. It is filamentous and has certain similarities to fungi, due to the way it reproduces through spores and colonizes its aquatic habitats. Likewise, it usually grows on the bottom and forms dense ‘carpets’ on the surface of the water.
Solar panels have a new energy rival: algae
The team of scientists from the Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham They have been analyzing its properties and possibilities for years. To test the extent to which they could generate electricity with a new device, they collected samples in a pond in the region Coimbatore.
Then they cleaned them to throw away all other components present in the water and started grinding them to obtain a uniform paste and clamping it between two modified electrodes.
To realize a viable BPV (biophotovoltaic) cell, they distributed thin layers of algae between an upper electrode made of copper and coated with activated carbon and an inner electrode made of titanium oxide (TiO2) covered with tin oxide doped with fluorine (FTO). With this procedure they developed what is probably the first device with which ‘living freshwater macroalgae generate electricity’.
It has an area of only 1 square cm and has sufficient capacity to produce an open-circuit voltage of 0.35 V and a short-circuit current of 10.19 μA. For the time being, performance is well below solar panels of silicon and perovskite.
However, it can be applied to low power devices. This feature makes them ideal for Internet of Everything (IoT) sensors, which until now have relied on small sensors solar panels and integrated batteries.
It was therefore concluded that algae can replace solar panels in certain contexts. What a revolutionary concept with this photovoltaic antenna that follows the sun from the garden.