- Servicing Queensland since 2010
Solar Breakthrough: Australian Scientists Increase Solar Efficiency
December 8, 2014
Image via Yahoo!7, AFP
Australians have introduced several revolutionary innovations to the world – this time, they’ve created a “world first” with solar power.
Professors at the University of New South Wales were able to convert 40% of sunlight into electricity through solar panels. This is apparently the highest efficiency ever reported in the field under ‘normal’ conditions.
According to an article by AFP, “While traditional methods use one solar cell, which limits the conversion of sunlight to electricity to about 33 percent, the newer technology splits the sunlight into four different cells, which boosts the conversion levels…”
Martin Green, known as the father of photovoltaic, said in an interview with AFP, “This is the highest efficiency ever reported for sunlight conversion into electricity. We used commercial solar cells, but in a new way, so these efficiency improvements are readily accessible to the solar industry.”
According to an article by Business Insider Australia: “The Australian 40% efficiency milestone is the latest in a line of achievements by University of NSW solar researchers spanning four decades. These include the first photovoltaic system to convert sunlight to electricity with over 20% efficiency in 1989, with the new result doubling this performance.”
The technology is hoped to eventually be used on people’s rooftops to help reduce energy costs even further. This could lead to some fantastic results for new and existing clients of Apollo Solar alike.
