The ZEUS Challenge to harness photo voltaic power in house with nanowire know-how
by Hugo Ritmico
Madrid, Spain (SPXR) Oct 10, 2024
The College of Malaga (UMA) is collaborating in a world consortium to advance the gathering and transmission of photo voltaic power in house by the ‘ZEUS’ challenge, a part of the Horizon EIC Pathfinder Challenges. This European challenge, coordinated by Lund College in Sweden, has been awarded practically euro 4 million to develop modern nanowire photo voltaic cells designed to function within the harsh circumstances of house.
The ZEUS challenge, or Zero-loss Vitality harvesting Utilizing nanowire photo voltaic cells in Area, focuses on creating radiation-resistant photovoltaic cells that may effectively take in photo voltaic power. Nanowires, that are needle-shaped constructions simply 200 nanometers in diameter-much thinner than a human hair-allow for prime resistance to radiation and optimum gentle absorption.
“Masking roughly 10 % of a floor with lively materials is all that’s wanted to soak up as a lot gentle as a skinny layer overlaying the whole floor of the identical materials would do,” defined Enrique Barrigon, professor of Utilized Physics I at UMA and the challenge lead on the college.
Presently, nanowire photo voltaic cells utilized in house obtain round 15% effectivity. ZEUS goals to spice up this considerably, doubtlessly reaching as much as 47% effectivity by using superior III-V semiconductor supplies. The challenge additionally explores transferring these photo voltaic cells to versatile, light-weight substrates, which may very well be used to create massive deployable photovoltaic panels for house purposes.
Along with its concentrate on technical innovation, the ZEUS challenge emphasizes environmental sustainability, together with decarbonization and the environment friendly use of crucial uncooked supplies. Professor Barrigon highlighted that the challenge not solely seeks to exhibit the industrial viability of nanowire photo voltaic cells but in addition to evaluate their environmental affect, significantly for space-based energy era techniques. One potential software is rising the facility output of communications satellites.
The College of Malaga will play a key function in characterizing these superior photo voltaic cells and conducting the exams required to make sure their sturdiness within the house atmosphere.
The Horizon EIC Pathfinder Challenges program helps pioneering applied sciences like ZEUS that would form the long run by enabling the event of revolutionary applied sciences. The College of Malaga can also be concerned in different initiatives beneath this program, together with ‘BioRobot-MiniHeart’ and ‘SONICOM,’ furthering its contributions to cutting-edge innovation.
Analysis Challenge:Zero-loss Vitality harvesting Utilizing nanowire photo voltaic cells in Area (ZEUS)
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