New Energy, NREL Sign CRADA to Develop SolarWindow
The technology uses electricity-generating coatings that are "sprayed" on glass surfaces; the solar coatings are less than 1/10th the thickness of "thin" films and make use of the world’s smallest functional solar cells.
New Energy Technologies, Inc., has entered into a Cooperative Research and Development Agreement with the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) in Golden, Colo., in an effort to advance commercial development of SolarWindow™. The technology would enable the generation of electricity on see-through glass.
“The addition of NREL’s world-class solar research group to our ongoing efforts at the University of South Florida marks a significant step forward for our company and our SolarWindow™ technology,” said John A. Conklin, president and CEO of New Energy Technologies, Inc.
The company's technology uses electricity-generating coatings that are "sprayed" on glass surfaces. The solar coatings are less than 1/10th the thickness of "thin" films and make use of the world’s smallest functional solar cells, shown to successfully produce electricity in a published peer-reviewed study in the Journal of Renewable and Sustainable Energy of the American Institute of Physics.
Under terms of the agreement, NREL researchers will make use of the company’s exclusive intellectual property and NREL’s background intellectual property in order to work toward specific product development goals, including efforts to:
- Further bolster efficiency and transparency;
- Boost electrical power (current and voltage) output;
- Optimize the application of the active layer coatings which make it possible for the technology to generate electricity on glass surfaces;
- Increase the size of the active layer, which is key to increasing the size of the final commercial product; and
- Develop improved electricity-generating coatings by enhancing performance, processing, reliability, and durability.
“We’re always eager to help industry advance renewable energy breakthroughs toward commercial products. I welcome the opportunity to work with New Energy Technologies on the development of its SolarWindow™ technology,” stated Ryne Raffaelle, director of NREL’s National Center for Photovoltaics.
Source: New Energy Technologies, Inc.