A glimpse of photovoltaic cell development: Darren Bagnall /U.Southampton

Dr. Bagnall is just one of hundreds of scientists who are involved in energy research, but I came across his site serendipetously and was pleased to see that so much progress was being made.

In April 2004 we started a number of photovoltaic workpackages that form part of the EPSRC's "Supergen" program. Working with Loughborough, Bangor, Durham, Northumbria and Bath universities and a number of industrial collaborators we aim to develop a number of new technologies to help realise a new generation of solar cells.

...

3rd generation Concepts

Light Harvesting. Research at Southampton has demonstrated substantial enhancement in light absorption by combining crystalline silicon with light harvesting structures to form photosynthetic reaction centres. We expect to demonstrate significant efficiency improvements without significant extra cost.

Impact Ionisation. The feasibility of impact ionization assisted efficiency enhancement was demonstrated by Kolodinski et al , following our own theoretical proposals. Maximum efficiencies of 60% are predicted using semiconductors of ~0.8eV bandgap.

Hot electron. Single junction solar cells convert the energy of band-band excitation but cannot utilise the energy of free carriers which are generated by light (about 50% of the incident energy in the case of silicon). Theoretical work indicates that, by using bandgap grading and three- dimensional micromachined structures, photogenerated carriers can be made to undergo a Carnot-cycle type process which, in principle, could almost double the voltage of the cell. (emphasis mine)

The complete page is at http://www.ecs.soton.ac.uk/~dmb/pv.html -- and for the science wonk, there are other interesting things to read, too, including an article on the swastika's shape and the chirality ("handedness") of light.

--p!

Airliners don't run on electricity and they won't run on batteries either.

Our real problem is restructuring the transportation system in an era of declining oil supplies.

Lookout world are you ready for the return of trains and sailing ships?

Use Solar, etc. where feasible. Leave more jet fuel for jets.

Replacement found for the concentrated, lightweight energy represented by fossil fuels.

It is this property of concentrated, light weight that makes things like jet liners feasible.

We won't see coal stokers adding fuel to a steam driven airplane.

Northwest has grounded some older, less fuel-efficient jets.

Boeing has developed a new 7E7 passenger jet -- now named the 787. The 787 is a mid-size, fuel-efficient plane, flexible enough to fly long routes but land at smaller airports. Like those in, say, China.

Eclipse, and other companies are developing Very Light Jets for air-taxis and business travel between smaller airports. These jets are very fuel efficient.

A drop in the bucket, I know, but if we get enough drops......

Nonetheless, I can see the handwriting on the wall.

But - can Jet Fuel be made from bio-diesel? Also, you have probably heard about Changing World Technologies who turns garbage, currently leftover turkey parts from a Butterball Turkey Plant, into oil. This oil can be refined into gasoline - but I think they are currently selling it to a power plant to determine exactly how it behaves compared to existing gasoline. Here is an article on this: http://www.heise.de/tp/r4/artikel/18/18953/1.html.

I don't think it will be possible to have a single replacement for oil. We will have to come up with a number of different solutions. Each one will work for a particular application. This makes the situation seem more hopeless than it is, IMO. Of course - if we continue to do absolutely nothing and build giant houses and drive giant cars, we are doomed!

However, all of these processes require energy to convert from the form they are in to the form needed. So there is no free lunch. Decision trade-offs will have to be made that rank the relative value of diverting these feed stocks into fuel or other useful commodities like medicine or fertilizer.

The difference from today is that we will have to ration energy through the marketplace, personal conservation, or government sanction because we will not be living in an era of ever increasing cheap energy i.e. oil.

This will have a profound effect on a society that is accustomed to the idea of economic growth based on cheap oil. Those days are drawing to a close. We will all have to "tighten our belts" in some form or fashion for "society" to continue.

Jet fuel is very similar to diesel fuel, which is very similar to bio-diesel.

All of the gas & oil used for transportation in this country could be replaced with biodiesel grown from algae ponds on 10 million acres of land. For comparison, there are currently 450 million acres of cropland and 500 million acres of grazing land.

That doesn't account for reducing usage, more efficient cars, or increased use of mass transit.

As for ground transportation, I like these two:
www.carfree.com
www.skywebexpress.com

"Dirigibles"

eom

:-)

http://www.motherearthnews.com/top_articles/2002_August_September/Build_a_Solar_Home_and_Let_the_Sunshine_In

I have wondered if some existing homes will become obsolete because they require too much energy to heat and cool.

eom

I posted this last night - but it didn't get any response. I sent this e-mail to Mike Millikin of Green Car Congress ( http://www.greencarcongress.com / ) and he replied with a very well thought out response. Too good not to share with DU.

Subject: Are photovoltaic car bodies in our future?
Hello,

I really like your site. Very upbeat! I have been following some of the recent advances in photovoltaic materials, and I am wondering if photovoltaic car bodies are in our future? You seem like the right person to ask. I'm dreaming of a hybrid car that would be able to charge it's battery from photovoltaic materials incorporated into the car body. Perhaps the car could get enough power from sunlight to allow me to drive home from work without using any gasoline. The new battery from Toshiba
also makes me wonder if hybrid cars will just get better and better.

I'd be interested in hearing your thoughts.
Thanks,
Suzanne

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His Great Response:
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Hello Suzanne,

Thanks for the kind words! Much appreciated.
Re: photovoltaics as part of the material of the car body...yes, but not for awhile in terms of mass market.

However, there is a much shorter-term solution, and that's to use either a full electric vehicle or a plug-in hybrid vehicle charged by electricity generated from a renewable source: i.e., solar or wind. That's the approach Austin, TX is taking with its support for the DaimlerChrysler hybrid plug-in vans.

With solar becoming more of an option for individuals, you could generate your own for your home and charge your car. Or an apartment/condo building could co-generate heat and power, and have recharging ports for vehicles.

Re: Toshiba battery, yes...which loops back to the earlier point. If you have a good battery that can hold enough of a charge, you can do away with much of the need for the engine. Combine the battery with an ultracapacitor for sudden spikes in power, and you have a terrific vehicle that is doable in the short term.

Thanks for the note!

Regards,
Mike
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Link to article about new Toshiba battery:

http://www.betanews.com/article/Toshiba_Battery_Charges_in_One_Minute/1112209978

:-)