Plastic Solar Panels

Tiago Maranhão Alves with a strip of the newly developed solar plastic.

PORTO ALEGRE, Brazil, Mar 12 2013 (IPS) - As part of the country’s growing
emphasis on green tech research, Brazilian scientists have developed plastic solar panels
that could revolutionise power generation from this clean, renewable energy
source.What looks like a thin, flexible sheet of regular plastic is actually a solar panel
printed with photovoltaic cells, which convert sunlight into electricity. This new
material, totally unlike the heavy and costly silicon-based panels commonly used to
generate solar power today, was created by scientists at CSEM Brasil, a research
institute based in the southeast Brazilian state of Minas Gerais.

Made by incorporating organic photovoltaic cells into common polymers, the new
panels resemble transparent sheets of plastic with stripes where they have been printed
with carbon-based organic polymers. The technology to produce these organic
photovoltaic cells has been studied in Europe and the United States for a number of
years, and has now been further developed in Brazil. According to its inventors, the new
“solar plastic” could represent a minor revolution in the way clean energy is produced
from sunlight. “While the capacity for power generation is almost the same, its small
size means that it can be given uses that are almost impossible for silicon panels,” said
the chairman of CSEM Brasil, Tiago Maranhão Alves, a physical engineer who
participated directly in the research.

The lightweight, flexible material can be used to power 1. the electrical components of
automobiles, 2. electronic devices like mobile phones, 3. wireless computer keyboards
and 4. mice. But the Brazilian researchers are concentrating on the production of solar
panels, which can be used to cover relatively large areas, like windows. “A panel with a
surface area of two or three square metres could be sufficient to generate the energy
needed in a house lived in by a family of four,” Alves told Tierramérica*.“Because of
its good cost-benefit ratio, it could also be an option for bringing energy to remote areas
without electric power service. In Brazil (with a population of over 192 million) there
are still close to a million places in this situation,” he added.
Ease of transport is one of the main advantages of the new panels over silicon panels.
“Because they are easy to transport, logistical costs are lower. In addition, people can
take them with them when they move to a new home,” he said.The plastic can also be
used to cover buildings and venues like airports and sports stadiums, avoiding the need
to set aside an area for the installation of conventional solar panels.

Some ten million dollars were invested in developing the formula for the new Brazilian-
made material, and investment is expected to double in the coming year. “We are now
going to study the best way to scale up the product. In its current state it could already
be launched on the market, but the price should be analysed on a case-by-case basis,”
said Alves.The resources invested, which also enabled the creation of CSEM Brasil,
were provided through a partnership between the venture capital firm FIR Capital and
the Centre Suisse d’Electronique et de Microtechnique (CSEM).

The project has also received support from the Minas Gerais State Research Foundation
(FAPEMIG).The method has not been made public, since it is still classified as a trade
secret. “This is a multi-billion-dollar market, and there are a lot of research centres after
this technology,” commented Alves.The breakthrough announced by the researchers in
Minas Gerais reflects a growing trend in Brazil: investment in clean technologies.Last
year, the Studies and Projects Financing Agency (FINEP), a public company
administered by the Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation, launched the
Sustainable Brazil Programme, which will distribute some 10 million dollars in lines of
credit for initiatives aimed at the preservation of natural resources.

According to FINEP, the programme responds to a demand perceived by the agency,

which over the last eight years has provided 2.3 million dollars in financing for projects
with a “green” component. One quarter of these projects have involved clean energy
production.André Pereira de Carvalho, a business administration professor, believes that
the increase in funding for this type of research is a result of the fact that both private
investment funds and public institutions view green tech as a lucrative field.

“These organisations primarily evaluate whether the product is a good one, with a
formula that is difficult to copy and the potential for large-scale production. This applies
to any investment, whether it is in an information technology company or a green
technology initiative,” said Carvalho, who has coordinated studies on innovation for
sustainability.Compared to the United States, Japan or Germany, Brazil is still “in
diapers” when it comes to the green tech industry, but it has the potential to learn to
walk very quickly, Carvalho told Tierramérica.“A few years ago, an entrepreneur who
wanted to invest in this sector would run into many more obstacles. Today there is still a
degree of mistrust towards what is commonly viewed as a more costly niche market, but
it has already become much easier to obtain financing,” he added.
 Questions for solar panels

1. A solar panel printed with photovoltaic cells, converts sunlight into electricity.

2. Who created this material? It was created by scientists at CSEM Brazil

3. Who is Tiago Maranhão Alves? He is chairman of CSEM Brazil

4. The lightweight, flexible material can be used to power: a. The electrical

components of automobiles b. Electronic devices like mobile phones c. Wireless
computer keyboards d. Mice

5. What can be done because of its good cost-benefit ratio? It could also be an
option for bringing energy to remote areas without electric power service

6. What is one of the advantages of the solar panels over silicon panels? They are
cheaper and less heavy

Summary:

This text talks about what a solar panel is and the benefits they give us by being
economical and more respectful with the environment, which is an important aspect. It
is very good that this way of obtaining energy is being implemented but even so, I think
that for some people with low incomes they are a bit expensive, that is, it would cost a
lot of money to condition their house with solar panels so they do not do it, but I hope
that in time this can be solved and everyone can turn to this alternative.