Focus on an engineering aspect of an alternative or renewabl

Focus on an engineering aspect of an alternative or renewable energy related topic. You may also consider topics related to energy efficiency, energy storage, carbon sequestration, etc. Your topic may range from the specific (e.g., design and performance data from the Oregon Offshore Wave Power Demonstration Project) to more general (e.g., review of devices for harnessing power from waves). However, it should not be too broad (e.g., solar energy)

Solution

INCINCREASING EFFICIENCY OF SOLAR CELLS USING CARBON NANOTUBES.

The new solar cell material – a transparent conductor made of carbon nanotubes – provides an alternative to current technology, which is mechanically brittle and reliant on a relatively rare mineral.
Due to Earth\'s abundance of carbon, carbon nanotubes have the potential to boost the long-term viability of solar power by providing a cost-efficient option as demand for the technology increases. In addition, the material’s mechanical flexibility could allow solar cells to be integrated into fabrics and clothing, enabling portable energy supplies that could impact everything from personal electronics to military operations.

Silicon is abundant and an efficient solar energy gatherer, yet is expensive to process and manufacture into solar panels. As a result, alternative materials like carbon nanotubes is of great importance.

Solar cells are comprised of several layers, including a transparent conductor layer that allows light to pass into the cell and electricity to pass out; for both of these actions to occur, the conductor must be both electrically conductive and also optically transparent. Few materials concurrently possess both of these properties. Currently, indium tin oxide is the dominant material used in transparent conductor applications, but the material has two potential limitations. Indium tin oxide is mechanically brittle, which precludes its use in applications that require mechanical flexibility. In addition, indium tin oxide relies on the relatively rare element indium, so the projected increased demand for solar cells could push the price of indium to problematically high levels.

If solar technology really becomes widespread, as everyone hopes it will, we will likely have a crisis in the supply of indium. There’s a great desire to identify materials – especially earth-abundant elements like carbon – that can take indium’s place in solar technology.

Alternative to indium tin oxide is single-walled carbon nanotubes, tiny, hollow cylinders of carbon just one nanometer in diameter. Because carbon nanotubes are flexible, as opposed to the brittle indium tin oxide, the findings could pave the way for many new applications in solar cells. For example the cells could be integrated into clothing, backpacks, or purses for wearable electronics.

Carbon nanotube solar cell has approximately three times higher efficiency than the conventional solar cells and will be relatively cheap, hence it has the potential to replace the conventional solar cells.

OTHER APPLICATIONS

Carbon nanotubes (CNT) can be used in solar powered pumps. Pumps with carbon nanotubes will pump large volume of water as compared to conventional solar powered pumps. Moreover, pumping would be faster.

Carbon nanotubes can be used in solar panel attached to street lights. Efficiency of the solar panel will nearly increase by three times. This energy can we stored and used at night.

Since efficiency increases by using CNT, more energy can be made available to solar powered vehicles. Vehicles with large energy requirement can be made to run on solar energy.

If produced at low cost, solar cells with CNT have enormous application in our day to day life.

In villages, with no/less availability of electricity this project will be boon.