Exploring Solar Panel Efficiency Breakthroughs in 2022

[@UndecidedMF]

UPDATE: The US congress recently extended and raised the solar tax credit as part of the Inflation Reduction Act. Do you think these advancements are a good sign of what’s to come? Visit brilliant.org/undecided to sign up for free. And also, the first 200 people will get 20% off their annual premium membership. If you liked this video, check out How Nanotech Can Help Solve the Fresh Water Crisis kzbin.info/www/bejne/emLOonqvhaymfJo

[@faica]

Would you please cover thermal solar cooling technology because a huge amount of energy is spent on cooling, the solution is cooling using thermal solar (not using PV solar energy) If this becomes main stream, it will be a huge energy/CO2 saver.

[@EzraM5]

Finally a video that actually makes me a bit excited! I've maintained for years that it is the way that we use our infrastructure on the scale that we do that needs focus, and with these advancements in the field of solar energy, especially with making them more longer lasting and more flexible, it could be the support that many of our grids need in order to cut down our emissions! While I still believe that we shouldn't just bank on one technology and would rather that we take a holistic approach to our energy grid, something like this is one pretty big step towards the whole!

[@freedomer342]

I have a 12V solar panel that is supposed to output 18V max. I actually can output 21V so I must have the most effecint solar panel of all.

[@dertythegrower]

Yes. Thank you, Matt.

[@yin-fire3263]

I missed the "I'm Matt Ferrell, welcome to undecided" at the beginning of the video. Thanks for the news, makes me really hopeful for future solar panel technology.

[@PeterCrooks-ss4vs]

This panel can put out close to 100 watts kzbin.infoUgkxOqI2yqX0XVrhR2BMJciTWrHJpG8FhJyg when positioned in the appropriate southernly direction, tilted to the optimal angle for your latitude/date, and connected to a higher capacity device than a 500. The built in kickstand angle is a fixed at 50 degrees. Up to 20% more power can be output by selecting the actual date and latitude optimal angle.The 500 will only input 3.5A maximum at 18 volts for 63 watts. Some of the excess power from the panel can be fed into a USB battery bank, charged directly from the panel while also charging a 500. This will allow you to harvest as much as 63 + 15 = 78 watts.If this panel is used to charge a larger device, such as the power station, then its full output potential can be realized.

[@ianrickey208]

It would be fascinating to see an episode on "decided", where new technologies of 10-20 years ago are now taken for granted. Especially tech that was trolled in media and is now taken for granted. I suspect there are more of these examples than we currently understand.

[@caiusmadison2996]

Nuclear. Look intonits advancements across the world. When you realize none of this needs to be the main anything, you'll wonder why its the only pushed form.

[@llspragulus]

Let's do the ancient "bolt" which keeps the world together LOL

[@ianrickey208]

Matt, have you seen this series? en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Connections_(British_documentary) It was amazing way back.

[@ianrickey208]

@@llspragulus ?

[@amentco8445]

it should also cover technologies that were overhyped and actually were scams at the same time.

[@TheAllMightyGodofCod]

This month my country's experts made the biggest ever breakthrough in solar panels: they refuced VAT from 23 to 6%. I hope one day it goes down to zero. Not sure if it happened just here or all over the EU but it is an amazing improvement!

[@Peter-hm4oz]

That's great news. We had a similar change in the UK in April - solar is 0% VAT rated.

[@SchwertKruemel]

For that very reason most people run their solar cells in german as a company to save on vat

[@BR.]

Excellent!

[@Filthat]

Where are you from?

[@einfelder8262]

@@Filthat Ireland, Poland, or Portugal. My bet is Portugal.

[@Iampalindrome]

I worked on the regulatory side of siting solar arrays. When asked why more parking lots were not fitted with solar canopies, the answer was the infrastructure necessary to hold the weight of the panels. Organic solar, even at 10% efficiency, would be a game changer for parking lot instillation, allowing square miles of additional solar for minimal infrastructure. The sun side of tall buildings as well.

[@brentwalker3300]

Most of the public schools in my California city have been retrofitted with outdoor covered parking structures designed to support solar arrays. Schools and school administrative buildings together have become an enormous electricity generation source.

[@uSlackr]

These are a boon to sport arenas as well. Cover the parking lots and spots are dry on rainy days allowing pre-game festivities !

[@brentwalker3300]

@@uSlackr Tailgate parties and power generation. A win-win.

[@dougmoore4653]

@@brentwalker3300 - drive up, plug in your power to the pole, party time and even charge your car

[@JasperJanssen]

You seem to forget about wind loading etc. The weight of the panel itself is only a minor part of the infrastructure needs.

[@steelavocado1]

I am interning at a thin film solar cell lab. We are working on so much with tweaking every layer deposition it’s amazing to see how good these cells are. We can push out a few hundred a week and our good numbers are 18 percent. We’ve gotten up to 21 I believe, using special glass but it’s amazing how this stuff works. I’m learning so much about it I never knew existed

[@cleebe823]

Loved material physics and semiconductor sciences in uni. Really innovative stuff, organic cells were just being touched upon at that point but hadn't really seen commercial production. Hope to see more breakthroughs!

[@hectorvelasco2342]

Well I’ve been in this industry for more then 10 years and I thin film for over 30, solar is good but not the panacea we sell the common consumer , I can’t get into the or disclose more , but becuase it would be counter productive to my career but solar is the most efficient way to produce power , the chemicals , the water and power needed are never discussed in the “Green” talk I rather have hydro or nuclear, also other more efficient methods , but the chemical need to be mined and that takes energy and the equipment for thin film deposition need power and you can’t power a thin film coater with solar , yes perovskites but not 30% but it’s a an ongoing challenge. But even then only 30% , so you lose 70% but reality is much less 28% but only in miniature, not scaleable as yet

[@Rmi_brandito]

Hopefully the breakthrough come where oil is never needed.

[@loftsatsympaticodotc]

@@hectorvelasco2342 Sorry Hector but your exhortations do not add up. You CAN power a "thin film coater " with solar. Just scale up. You also said other contrary things: "solar is the most efficient way to produce power" but THEN you add "I rather have hydro or nuclear, also other more efficient methods". ... so what are you REALLY" trying to conclude?

[@SadSackGaming]

@@Rmi_brandito petroleum will always be needed. It's the evolution of humanity. We use it in every aspect of our daily lives.

[@snugglyhugs8698]

My mother got solar panels for her home in Sacramento, CA. Once her roommate left, they ended up not only covering her total home energy costs, but they created a surplus. They've nearly paid for themselves over the course of 3 years. Solar is awesome!

[@SMGJohn]

Depends where you live, but in most of the world, you gonna need solar + wind turbines to really stay self sufficient unless you have a home designed to be energy efficient.

[@snugglyhugs8698]

@@SMGJohn Agreed. I live in Alaska where if it isn't snowing, it's raining. Solar here would be a waste, but we have hydro which has powered our city non-stop (other than an avalanche back in 2009). So while Solar isn't perfect 100% of the time in 100% of the places, it's still awesome!

[@corruptcanada2950]

Liar

[@marteroma]

In some countries, there are laws that allows you to sell that energetic surplus to the national energy grid company. try checking that out!

[@MattyEngland]

If you live in California, then on a small scale, yes. For the rest of us and for distribution purposes, no.

[@tk-zh3dd]

Love watching all this awesome stuff people are working on. This isn’t about which form of energy is better than the others. It’s about making every option as good as possible. Thanks Matt 🙏

[@mavismoi1]

oh look another fake video.

[@williamcrowley5506]

Exactly

[@bleehole]

If only we could invest more into it.

[@ManyHeavens42]

You got style, *

[@phironosurvivors2069]

"Isn't about which form of energy is better". Sorry but I'm against the (everyone gets a trophy mentality).... Investing money in a product with MUCH BETTER potiental. Rather than peel off investing on making some poor performer better.. They call that wasted spending and bad business.

[@davidc339]

Hey, I actually played a role in some of these advancements. I added solar to my roof last week, which of course meant new technology would be revealed right afterwards. You’re welcome everyone!

[@jwhite5008]

you won't be able to buy the new tech PVs yet, and at first they will be too expensive. In a decade, when tech and market solidifies, you might want to replace yours with the new ones. Meanwhile you will have already benefited from the older version of technology for a while at that point

[@themissinfowar6629]

Could you buy some minoxodil? I could really use a breakthrough in hair regrowth - thanks 🙏

[@yehudagoldberg6400]

The advancements are not close to coming to market.

[@lylestavast7652]

Thanks for taking one for the team buddy ! :D

[@comfortablynumb9342]

By the time you need new panels they'll be far better

[@emmgeevideo]

One thing I like about this channel is that it almost always leaves me hopeful about something. It's entertaining and through-provoking. It's very educational. It's the "hopeful factor" that makes me feel that the world isn't totally going down the tubes that is the secret sauce IMHO.

[@world-needs-cheap-energy]

It should depress you. Cheap abundant reliable energy is of the greatest benefit possible for mankind, and energy from solar panels, wind turbines and suchlike is never going to provide that!

[@Victor-nd2gj]

@@world-needs-cheap-energy what about nuclear☢️

[@philliprobinson7724]

Hi. I agree, it's hopeful, but not "hype-ful". Cheers, P.R.

[@Calvito-]

Yeah, okay. It`s basically a pile of shite.

[@emmgeevideo]

@@Calvito- Spoken like a true scholar! I bow to you Baldy. You must know quite a bit about solar power.

[@HaysClark]

I've had solar on our home for the past 10 years and have generated 60 MWh in the PNW. In my experience, I've had little to no issues with my panels; however, I've run into issues with bad Micro inverters.

[@ReinhardSchuster]

That's why nobody should buy cheap Inverters.

[@jam99]

There is a difference between 'bad products' and products that have gone 'bad'. Post your experiences here. Name and shame.

[@kuzeraper3909]

Micro inverters are known to fail better to go with a single inverter

[@jam99]

@@kuzeraper3909 Because they are mounted on the back of panels and get hotter you mean?

[@jam99]

@The Tired Horizon "changes in the elements" - what elements? You mean weather? Yes, high temperatures. Capacitors fail with increasing voltage and increasing temperature. The voltage should not be an issue if designed properly. Large electrolytics going dry is a problem with inferior makes of capacitor, age and high temperatures. Solar panels get hot in the Sun.

[@michaelmoorrees3585]

Efficiency is less important than cost per watt. Those who emphasize efficiency are myopic thinkers. Cost is the more important factor. If you can get the cost down, so that it compares to getting your house painted, then you can get away with both reduced efficiency, or short lifespan. This applies to grid storage too. If you can get the cost down to 1/10 the current energy cost, then not only will replace fossil fuels, but boost the economy, to the next level !

[@baronvonlimbourgh1716]

Most people only have limited space for panels. Efficienty is important for now. In a decade or so it will be at that pricepoint, if production capacity keeps growing at the curent rate we will hit it before 2030 easilly

[@westasleep]

Yes and no. You have to consider that panels are only a part of the cost of a _usable_ solar generation system. If you cut the cost of solar panels to zero today, you'd only reduce the cost of a full domestic install by 20-35%

[@Kiev-in-3-days]

@@baronvonlimbourgh1716 It isn't if you cut your need by 3 to 10 as virtually any American and most Europeans could easily do.

[@waqasahmed939]

@@westasleep I guess it's like when you look at buying appliances. The EU has changed the EPC rating on most appliances A D rated dishwasher used to be say A+++ before the new changes. The new A rated dish washers only use 20Kwh less per 100 cycles which is just around £5.60 in savings for 100 cycles. Then, those dishwashers are triple the price of the D rated ones Equally, I'm looking at a C rated fridge freezer because the maths makes a bit more sense on those. It's a bit of both. It is both cost per watt, and also how much extra it costs. According to my EPC report, 10,000KwH is all that's required to heat the house I'm buying. If the solar cells are able to produce that at a relatively fine cost ie: where something used to be 300W a panel and now say 700W a panel, at the same size (which isn't going to happen straight away) , that'd be amazing because that means I can cover all of my energy costs, and not use gas for heating

[@mauroscimone8584]

They are linked togheter. More efficiency means less costs for medium and greater solar PV plants. For homes and small application it is not so important.

[@mischadebrouwer9855]

Wait, windmills are the grandfather of renewable energy, right? Not solar cells.

[@curiodyssey3867]

Hes probably talking about modern renewable energy

[@dewiz9596]

I’m not undecided. This channel is worth getting up for. The breakthrough of today is the product of tomorrow. So true

[@jccapwell]

Great content. As a retired Organic Chem instructor had this been available when I was working with students I would use this after introducing chiral molecules. The whole point being a use of this process in the research lab but also for chemical engineering pathways. Pointing out that nothing stays the same in science but always moves forward. Thank you.

[@danchadwick1495]

Matt, solar panels thermal and PV, working in tandem with high CoP refrigerant and vortex tube, and a turbine have a potential to bump over all efficiencies into self powering. The CoP of ammonia is 8. A vortex tube can separate hot and cold streams by as much as 300°F, and the heatpump compressor feeding a turbine can generate multiples of the energy collected by the solar PV panel. Not perpetual motion because the energy is coming from the environment. Working better during the day obviously, but capable of working overnight and on overcast days. This also works in confined spaces converting heat to electricity. Heatpump powered by the PV panel with feedback from the turbine will push the system well beyond the 39% of even the newest PV cells.

[@scottstewart5784]

As someone who just bought a log cabin on 33 acres with a well, I'm starting the process of getting off the power grid. Have a 900 foot stream, but it's probably too flat for hydro, so I'll probably go with solar. I have a little bit of FOMO on the near-future tech advances, but it will always be so.

[@adamorick2872]

If water flows, you can get power. The question is more how much, and if it can be increased with minimal impact on environment. Building a dam on property is really hard to get approved.

[@Panboy2k]

bucket water wheels work very well in small streams so long as there is a flow you can fill a bucket,

[@HecTechFPV]

Wire up a washing machine motor as a generator, there's a few videos on KZbin about it

[@John-Adams-Can]

I have 33 acres as well. I have two solar systems and literally have not set them up since I bought a year ago. it is sort of a luxury. We use virtually zero power and if we really need it I run a generator. everything else is on batteries we charge in our truck when we go to town.

[@marco.9900]

@@adamorick2872 Absolutely, any amount of flow generates electricity. There are also micro hydro units that are commercially available, negating the need for a dam. Of course, these are pretty expensive.

[@ZacLowing]

Solar is not the grandfather of reusable energy and I find it ironic you said that when showing windmills that go back hundreds of years. Still, love your channel my man!

[@paulrollinson7604]

Gm Matt, Great research/reporting. I currently have 5.8KW on the roof and may add a panel or two to maximize the inverter. House and roof angle are not optimal but I haven't paid a bill (service fee yes) in the 4 years they've been on. I tell friends considering panels, you're prepaying your bill at a locked in price while adding value to your home. I think that's a good way to look at it and justify the upfront cost. We are building our retirement home within 2 years. Panels will definitely be part of the equation. A straight EV may be in our future as well. I love engines and the experience (I own a '72 TR6) but for day to day use, EV's seem like a good solution and as battery life improves, so does range. I still don't think we could go without a fueled vehicle as we do travel long (12 hrs) distances from time to time to visit family. Be part of the solution not part the problem.

[@ChrisM-tn3hx]

It's a small vehicle, but you might like to check out the Aptera. It's a two-seater that's incredibly efficient, and has a max range of 1000 miles (1600 Km) on a single charge. At the same time, it has solar panels built in, and if you average over time driving about 20-40 miles a day, depending on location, season etc., you will virtually never have to charge it. The perfect vehicle for being totally off grid. Starting price is around 25K I believe.

[@ChrisM-tn3hx]

@Jebus Hypocristos I'm thinking about it. It's either that, or an XBUS.

[@worldcomicsreview354]

A seventies Triumph? I bet you love engines, you must have to fix it three times a week!

[@paulrollinson7604]

lol.... It actually runs great. No issues. Love driving it but usually only weekends and ice cream grabber...lol Low rust but one of these years i need to start working on the body. The only think I've done to the engine is re gapped the valves. The carbs have already been rebuilt before I bought it. I'm looking at a 1960 F-250 now to add to the fleet. Vintage cars will always be around, but remember, they probably represent > .01% of the annual miles driven so very little impact on the environment or oil consumed.

[@patrickmusson4571]

As for solar, the efficiency of solar power has to do with the efficiency of the panels, but also the efficiency of battery storage. Solve the battery problem and you're well on the way to success. Renewable energy can only ever be part of a mix of all other forms of power generation. One thing we must not do is use farmland to grow renewable energy, that's for food.

[@Teeurbo]

The vast majority of utility scale renewables can be on land with dual uses. You can still farm food on a wind farm. There is plenty of evidence emerging that crops grown under PV actually grow better due to being better protected and alternatively you can run livestock on the same land

[@addammadd]

@@Teeurbo *some crops. Let’s be measured in our approach.

[@Teeurbo]

@@addammadd True, some crops. But the vast majority of large scale renewables projects can be constructed without sacrificing farmland. And where it is constructed on farmland the farming doesn't necessarily have to stop

[@ryanhan1477]

I remember reading about a farm that used Solar Panels on the same land they had crops on. It helped to manage the environmental conditions (direct sunlight, heat etc) for the crops, keeping the temperature regulated or something. I think Solar could be used hand-in-hand with farmland depending on the specific type of crops/farming being done

[@spacelemur7955]

Battery storage, in its many forms of energy storage, is taking place in parallel. Likewise, other forms of sustainable production. We are make good overall progress. Support it however you can with what you buy or personally boycott. Best wishes.

[@PeterSedesse]

I think efficiency is one aspect, but another aspect is how to integrate solar cells onto other structures rather than just having a solar panel field. Tesla's solar roofs have been a letdown, but that really is what we need to do more of. Like there are a lot of countries covering water bodies with panels to prevent evaporation and to make the panels cooler. There is the combination of solar and aggriculture where we use panels to create shade for free range chickens and other animals.

[@john38825]

So close to 1 million subs! I have been watching for almost 2 years now and have loved every video. Showing the technology of the next decade currently in development in such a informative easy to understand format while being entertaining through the script and editing on top of clearly explaing current pros and cons really makes this channel unique and I think it has a really positive impact on everyone you reach which is in the millions now. Keep up the great content!

[@foe11191969]

John; Matt is 23,000 subscribers away (from a million). Not to diminish your enthusiasm, but it'll take a while. Looking up at my post, it almost looks like a Biblical verse. John 3:16, For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. There is Matt, Matthew 28:19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Sorry for the interlude, I can't help myself sometimes, but I have an electric car and numerous solar panels and love that I can make my own energy! I haven't bought any gasoline in 8 years, and I don't miss it at all. Become a living testament to others.

[@fsenepin]

I'd be curious to understand how the different solar panel technologies compare when it comes to material's availability as well as how easy these would be to recycle, which is definitely going to be an important factor in producing energy from solar panels in the long run.

[@kenoliver8913]

Well there isn't enough Gallium for that to be the basis of utility-scale solar cell production, for sure. It's very high efficency and durability make it really promising for specialist solar panels (eg spacecraft) just as Gallium Nitride is taking over some high-power semiconductor apps - but that's all.

[@TheNobodyZone]

I have no idea how you break all this science down to how a Lehman can understand what your subject matter is, but you for sure do. I always get the big picture to what you are speaking about. Thanks man.

[@fruz1378]

Interesting, however let us not forget that more materials (often more minerals) = increase in environmental costs. There are cases where the production (including mining and bringing all materials) makes solar panel more destructive to the environment than coal based energy, so it is important to remember that because it is solar technology, it is just "clean".

[@fruz1378]

@@el-angel-1337 That was absolutely not my point though, building and shipping costs affect all kind of technology in our societies, with much, much, much heavier costs than what you are talking about.

[@fruz1378]

@@el-angel-1337 I think it's not a simple problem and wind power has its place, but probably not how it's been made in many places (there are many different kind of windmills, I have seen some interesting designs here and there).

[@tomasnielsen5132]

I've had solar panels for 11 years here in Sweden. November, December, January and February are 0% efficiency. If it is not constantly dark there is snow on the panels. We do get 50% of our electricity from solar, because the summer is fantastic. But solar is a marginally addition in the month that you don't need that much electricity anyway. We have a real energy crisis here in Sweden because the "Green" party has shut down most of the nuclear reactors without building new power generation. People are turning down the heat to the point of the buildings are getting damage because they can't afford the electricity bill. So don't come and tell me solar is a solution. It is a nice addition but you need real power generation to handle the real load.

[@Mpactpics]

Sounds like storage from the peak months would help. We need more efficient way to store electricity.

[@andersnilsson251]

Haha, we all know this, does not help does it!

[@kenoliver8913]

But Sweden has plenty of precipitation and mountains to store it in . Aand what it doesn't have it can easily borrow from next door, which is over-endowed with mountains and snow. Storage is just not an issue. But down here in Australia solar gives plenty of production all year around. It is hydro storage that is in short supply on the driest and flattest inhabited continent on earth.

[@hundun5604]

"We have a real energy crisis here in Sweden" Wow, we have the same issues in the Netherlands. Except the gov here closed the gasfields and prices tripled for consumers. With also 15% inflation, people live in cold houses nowadays, they've no money for heating. It's unbelievable, both countries are some of the richest in the world.

[@linusmlgtips2123]

@@hundun5604 at least your cities are walkable

[@daves1646]

Matt, Thank you for the review of advancements. Despite their lower total efficiency, I think organic cells, with a high lifetime, ability to be used on curved surfaces, AND collect energy even in modest lighting have a major role to play. If costs favor their heavy use, putting them on otherwise non-productive surfaces, especially if they blend into the surface or are in less public spaces (like the wind mill’s shaft) can add a massive amount of energy now left behind with little ‘resistance’ from nay sayers. Thanks again to you and your crew for great current content!!

[@w8stral]

"Perovskites" are amazing and the future... all it requires is GOLD... which host just glosses over and pretends is not on the page he highlights... Holy Hell. This is why I come here; to LAUGH!

[@electroflame6188]

@@w8stral "Computers" are amazing and the future... all it requires is GOLD... which host just glosses over and pretends is not on the page he highlights... Holy Hell. This is why I come here; to LAUGH!

[@w8stral]

@@electroflame6188 Ah, irrelevant mocking using piss poor allegories. Think more, type less.

[@Kiev-in-3-days]

@@w8stral #GOP_troll

[@worldcomicsreview354]

@@Kiev-in-3-days Yeah I hate these left wing naysayers. Anyway, the video also shows TRANSPARENT panels! If they can print those up cheaply, imagine covering the inside of every window in a skyscraper with them! Who cares if it's only 10% efficiency, you'd be pumping out kilowatts and kilowatts in the morning and evening, with the horizontal sun.

[@RobertDeloyd]

I've been on solar since the '70s and seen a lot of hype on the newest tech on cells throughout the years, but in all this time I haven't seen anything come out of this hype that isn't better than silicon cells, be it in price, ruggedness, and lifetimes; I have an Arco 55watt I bought in the '70s that is still putting out power. I power my whole house on solar. The only improvement I've seen in all these years has been in lithium iron phosphate batteries and LED lights 🌞 Right now these silicon solar panels are on the market for pretty cheap compared to what I've seen them go for in price over these many years; they are a proven technology that's a blessing 🙏🏻

[@CinePhil101]

It's all mostly vaporware at this point. This channel loves pushing products that will never see the light of day.

[@SnapScienceOfficial]

Wow, it always blows me away the amount of effort and research you put into ever video you produce. Do you see any of these technologies being used in conjunction with some of the new Iron based hydrogen fuel cells for green production and storage?

[@avinashdas1013]

agreed

[@charetjc]

@Charles McKinley or how 10% efficiency only leaves a "little bit to be desired".

[@informatimago]

We're probably far from it. The problem is how do we renew the solar panel parc once we don't have oil anymore: we'll need to use the energy produced by the solar panels, to mine and build new solar panels. (let's include recycling as an expensive mining). When the efficiency of solar panels was 13%, I computed that we needed 40 years of solar panel electricity to be able to replace the parc. Unfortunately, solar panels lasted only 10-13 years then. I don't think the numbers have improved drastically. Remember: we don't need alternatives just to replace electricity production, but also to replace oil use out of electricity production. This is at least the double what you thought. But also, often more, because of the inconvenience of electricity vs oil. (eg. now you need batteries, so more mining, more energy to build and recycle them, more energy to move them (eg. 40 kg gas vs 400 kg batteries in a car).

[@davesutherland1864]

Solar cells with efficiency over 30% have been used on satellites for over 20 years. I think they are triple junction cells. However, they have been so expensive that they have a significant impact on the spacecraft cost. Getting the cost down will be important before you can start putting solar panels everywhere.

[@harambeduck4110]

In addition to all these efficiency improvements I would also be interested in the production waste they cause. I mean, let's say, a cell is improved by 10% efficiency but the production process causes more than doubles or triples the waste of the normal ones, ...

[@albertbatfinder5240]

Odd as it sounds, stories about new records in solar efficiency takes me back to the 1970s and 80s. There was always a story about a how university researchers had achieved higher and higher percentages of energy captured. It actually was an distracting pursuit because the real breakthroughs were in economic efficiency. Given an intricate laser cut nanotech cell that attained 70% efficiency, or some rugged roofing tile or plastic sheet offering 20% efficiency but cost pennies to produce and install, I’d pursue the latter every time.

[@MarkOakleyComics]

The U.S. patent office has a standing order, enacted in the 1950's, to seize and shelve for military and other national security purposes, a wide variety of breakthrough inventions. There's a public list on one of the government websites listing all the categories under which such innovations are to be reviewed for seizure. To date, there are around 6000 such patents which have been locked down. Specifically named on the list for review are any solar panel innovations which provide more than 20% efficiency. Sounds like conspiracy fluff, but it turns out to be a matter of public record.

[@albertbatfinder5240]

@@MarkOakleyComics Links? I can’t find anything but a whole bunch of patents granted for such technology.

[@MarkOakleyComics]

@@albertbatfinder5240 KZbin doesn't allow me to post links, but... Look up: "35 USC 181" Then look up: "January 1971 Patent Security Category Review List" That'll do it.

[@AttilaTheHun333333]

Your "this changes everything" breakthroughs didn't change a thing so far.

[@dianapennepacker6854]

It takes time to get from the lab onto the streets. Which sucks yet it is what it is.

[@dennisduncan7561]

Implementing these kind of changes don't happen overnight bud.

[@Jerguu]

Hey Matt, I've been watching your videos for a while, as a quick aside, most people who work at NREL pronounce it by saying the N and then combine the "REL". Just something I've observed while around my wife's coworkers. Keep the dope solar videos coming :)

[@UndecidedMF]

Thanks for the tip!

[@circeverba4394]

This is true for NREL. Same with my agency lol.

[@byloyuripka9624]

dope it with phosphorus or boron??

[@Wesstuntube]

Can confirm.

[@tristanauer3629]

your pacing in this video opening is amazing love all the knowledge I've come to expect in all your content. keep it up, great work.

[@michaelokeefe7412]

Sage advice to not wait for new tech. After all, it makes more sense to just add a few more panels of 20% efficiency than to wait for panels of 30% costing twice as much.

[@ferfromla]

Thanks for the update. New solar technology is moving ahead, but as you noted, there are many barriers to bringing these advances to market. Still, it only takes a breakthrough, and suddenly everything scales and becomes practical. While we are not there yet, research is moving in the right direction.

[@SeeNickView]

Matt, you covered a lot about different unique solar technologies, but in your research, did any of the original inventors take recyclability and the circular economy into account? End-of-Life for renewables is a big hurdle that I don't see mentioned enough.

[@einfelder8262]

The Greens don't care about total cost of manufacturing "green" things. They just focus on their more favourable looking agenda. For example, the cost of extra copper needed for all those windmills and cabling to join grids from a hillside miles from anywhere are ignored, and, as you point out, they never mention how end of life things are recycled. Solar panels and windmill blades, for example, are just dumped in a suitable unseen place.

[@joeyager8479]

@@einfelder8262 Single use plastics used around the world far out weigh the disposal and recycling of old solar panels and wind turbine blades that will last 30 years on average. Copper and aluminum are two of the most recycled metals on the planet. Also decommissioning a solar or wind farm is quick as they don't cause pollution to they land they occupy. Whereas it takes several decades to decommission a nuclear power plant and store a significant amount of radioactive contaminated matter safely for over 10,000 years.

[@einfelder8262]

@@joeyager8479 Decommissioning solar and wind farms is far from quick. Clearly you haven't seen any articles on what happens to the blades. Try googling dumping of wind turbine blades.

[@Kiev-in-3-days]

@@einfelder8262 The Greens care a lot about total cost of manufacturing "green" things. They are actually THE people who care about such things. But when the pros are 10 order of magnitude better than the cons there is actually not much to talk about. You are like against curing cancer despite having the vaccine because of the pollution generated by produced syringes. Utterly stupid.

[@joeyager8479]

@@einfelder8262 Actually I have seen videos of junked wind turbine blades. These have an average life of 25-30 years. They are made of fiberglass reinforced plastic resins. I worked in the fiberglass pultrusion industry for several years. Fiberglass is considered an inert material that is okay for disposal in landfills. Ideally these could be recycled because they are about 70% glass which can be recycled if the will to it is there. By contrast, you seem to have missed my point. Because of radiation contamination, much of the steel, concrete and other parts that were in contact with nuclear fuel and wastes cannot be recycled and must be safely stored for a minimum of 10,000 years. Clearly way more costly than removing a solar or wind farm.

[@davidconner-shover51]

About a decade ago, I'd purchased a Kw or so of panels at over $3/watt and 135W/square meter I gave them to my folks years ago as they live off grid and needed more power, they are still using them at 90% of original ratings Last year, I purchased about 1.5Kw of panels that cost less than a third that, at $.90/watt with much higher collection at 192W/square meter. yes the tech is improving, in fact, the panels themselves are the cheap part of a system, batteries are now the bigger factor

[@Kiev-in-3-days]

You probably don't need batteries. Or at least big batteries. The key is to change you way of life for a better, saner, healthier one. Sleep at nigh. Stop eating junk food so that you can get rid of your microwave and freezer, etc...

[@hawaiifishguy]

Thank you for sharing. You had me right until the end.. when you politely told me I was a moron for waiting to buy. My current assessment of cost to benefit results in a need to wait (and we pay 50 cents a kilowatt in Hawaii). But I guess I'll always be waiting according to you.

[@uiteoi]

The big problem in solar is no longer solar panels. They are cheap enough and represent 20% or less of the cost of a full featured solar system. We now need to drastically reduce the cost of everything else, staying with mounting systems and associated installation costs, then inverters, batteries, and smart home appliances to manage energy demand intelligently.

[@baronvonlimbourgh1716]

There will always be just another better version on the horizon. If it saves you money and can afford it, today is just as good as any other.

[@petertimowreef9085]

What I think would really help the adoption of solar panels by private homw owners is a cheap and easy way to create custom shapes. The panels themselves aren't necessarily ugly but the fact they're always rectangular means they almost never match the aesthetics of the rest of the house, like a slapped on after thought. If the panels matched the contours of the roof that'd be so much better.

[@uSlackr]

I like this annual review. To your point about not waiting for future advances, I'd appreciate it if you add a 'state of the art' section telling us what's available for real world applications today. What efficiency today's panels have and maybe what they cost.

[@raff5604]

I'm at a loss when people argue against renewables. I understand the "cost factor" when traditional methods are cheaper but when my local Hydro bill has a "debt repayment" due to provincial mismanagement I don't see why every roof isn't mandated to be a solar roof. I used $36.00 of electricity last month. The "delivery fee" AKA the dept repayment charge $62.00.

[@journeymanadventure]

I've been using solar panels for thirty years, the last ten years on a boat and the largest issue with this is real estate, I only have a small area that I can use and of course the panels can't be place at an optimum inclination so even the best panels struggle to preform. For me the solar input dictates the battery storage and how much electricity available to use so the more efficient per square meter they can be along with the ability to capture light from all angles the better it will be.🏴‍☠️

[@junkmaillite]

Matt, You are at the top of your game! Keep up the great work.

[@patricklyons7683]

PV magazine

[@maikolrodrigues]

Amazing video thanks for sharing the knowledge. We have 7.3Kw system and we use some and export the rest of the energy. We use our appliances at lunchtime such as washing, dishwasher and try to use the heater for few minutes (we have a high efficient air con). Thanks to Covid most of us can work from home. Two years ago we did renos, I put R5 on the ceiling and 2.5 under the floor. In overall you must know your energy consumption, get high efficient appliances and use the energy that you produce. Greetings from Sydney!

[@austinbambooinc2507]

Rectennae (rectifier + antennae) based printable solar voltaics were developed a few decades ago. The guy that had the initial patent (I forget his name) had a background in polarized lenses and films, and claimed a 50% efficiency rating. Using two sheets at 90 degree alignment, he said he could get around 80% efficiency, similar to microwave antennae. Unfortunately he passed away and his widow didn't want to share the patent. Other versions have been developed with similar high efficiencies, and since they could be printed on a flexible substrate, they were billed as a flexible panel. With the right configuration, it was said that you could feed electricity back through them at night and use them for a light. I would be interested in knowing what has become of that technology.

[@austinbambooinc2507]

Found one! Alvin Marks was his name.

[@fgregerfeaxcwfeffece]

Sounds like weapons grade BS, patents are public and expire after 1 year without renewal or 20 years.

[@rogerphelps9939]

Rectennae are applicable to microwaves with mm wavelengths , not optical wavelengths more than 10000 times shorter.

[@randomjasmicisrandom]

In the UK the solar industry has installed the same amount of panels in the first six months of this year as they did in the whole of last year. The FIT Tarif that paid solar owners for the energy they produced was removed in about 2015, and the demand collapsed. Now house batteries are available and the cost of solar has halved, the current energy price crisis has seen many people make the leap into getting solar on their roof. Me included! I’ve paid my deposit and now I’m waiting for the installation survey.

[@jcoghill2]

In some other video I saw an experiment where a solar plant was tested over a white background as opposed to grass. The white background generated 20% more power. Solar cells are capable of picking up reflected light from behind the panel. It's terrible putting cells over green grass that has to be mowed or you will soon have a problem. Lay down white vinyl sheeting used in roofing before you build and you will never have to mow under there again and you'll get a 20% bump in power output.

[@alexandruilea915]

It won't stay white for too long tho, better to put some metallic reflective sheet like Inox.

[@trbowlin]

I understand cirality from organic chemistry, but after watching that segment three times, I still don't get it. How does being asymmetrical improve electron harvesting?

[@majorfallacy5926]

yup same. It's better to leave out the technicalities if you don't understand them well enough to explain them properly.

[@LorentzInvariance]

I usually assume 5-15 years from bench top to commercial availability. Scale up is tough and takes a lot of time and effort. I suppose I’m just so use to that timeline, that it doesn’t seem like a long time. It’s absolutely exciting to see the breakthroughs and read the peer review papers coming out all the time. There are thousands and thousands of amazing scientists and engineers working in this space, and I’m really looking forward to what they come up with.

[@loftsatsympaticodotc]

Alexander- With will, there's a way.. Look at the speed of anti-Covid vaccines

[@homoruge]

Hi. First of all thank you for the contents you provide. I am in renewable energy business in Mongolia (country between Russia and China). When I watch your videos I always think that you might have some great ideas what Mongolia could be doing to help world becoming cleaner and better place that are commercially viable. Let me know if any ideas comes into your mind.

[@Willwind1Utube]

Once you have a break through on one energy source mysteriously a different one will have a break through. Like they keep it suppressed until something else threatens them. Like they slowly feed the technology for maximum profits

[@ElusivEnigma]

FML.... Solar Technician here, with the amount of PV panels layered out WORLDWIDE I can only imagine the hell it's going to be too replace them all for the upgrades....

[@whotknots]

Matt I wonder if organic polymer solar panels could ultimately be amenable to incorporation with flexible structures such as yacht sails?

[@Chengmaster]

Flexible solar films finally improving. Hopefully they can put more of these on cars like the hyundai sonata already does. It’s very little for now, but with improved efficiency, it can slowly work towards being much more viable in conjunction with electric cars.

[@JeroenJA]

The films could become huge! Since all skyscrapers and car front screens needs some sun filtering on their windows anyway! And concentrate on east west glass wall first would seriously help out to even out production spike at noon of solar energy somewhat. If gov now want to promote it should focus on more east west oriented production;-)

[@dannydiaz2]

I wish there was a way for our home roofs to have a holding base, to hold all the solar panels, installed. Then, all the manufacturers can create their panels to easily clipped into the holding base. There will always be upgrades and advancements. It just sucks that every XX years, we'd have to buy new panels and the holding base and the installation people to remove and install the new one over and over. I'd want to just go up there, unclip them, and just push in the new ones (like a door on a frame, or changing a light bulb). 👀🤷🏻‍♂️ Maybe even be able to resell the older solar panels to someone on ebay (similar to how we upgrade phones) sell the old one back to Apple. 😎🤓

[@rico831]

Agree, should be a standard ISO type mount with different sizes that can be used (a bit like DIN rail or something)

[@flackstar007]

Agreed that would be a massive improvement to the current system, change tends to be slow when the installers of solar panels are invested in the current method (after all they would the ones losing money/clients).

[@luhdoh9860]

lol this is hardly an issue for a 10-20 year replacement schedule. imagine getting paid to generate power and then complain that YOU have to do the maintenance lmao

[@splitliving]

Or send them to Ukraine-god knows they could use them!

[@joeh6877]

Nice video. Always lots of information presented in a reasonable way. I didn't think I'd discover anything significant on KZbin but you've taught me about heat pumps for example. Your work is much appreciated.

[@UndecidedMF]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@bonnitaclaus2286]

I am 75 yrs old. I have been looking forward to this day. I am living to see my dream that in 1962 was a fantasy. I received an “F” on a design project in 1962. A self contained underground home, recycling, I had an unknown tech indicated of solar energy, with methane back up from our wast. I also designed a vacuum tubs of polished metal to direct light into the home. Unfortunately my mother threw out my drawings. I dug up cold caller technology with food storage on a vertical Conveyor belt into the sub basement, so you could save space in a small kitchen. The house was also equipped for handicapped and wheelchair. I had a large dumbwaiter from the surface to the kitchen area, for moving objects such as groceries. There was several more innovations and things I gleamed From someplace that I read or saw. I had to do the project over and I still only received a C because the project was late. I turned in a cracker Box house.

[@ukestudio3002]

Great video ! Informative and entertaining Matt, you do a nice job of deciphering the tech .!

[@UndecidedMF]

I appreciate that!

[@petes7185]

Hi Matt, I'm fairly new to the channel and am enjoying it so far. You've covered a lot on photovoltaic cells, but was wondering if you've covered solar hot water. I have a solar hot water system installed on my house in Southern NY. These systems aren't very popular in my area and I'm not sure why that is, these systems are a great way to offset your hot water heating costs. Would like to know your thoughts on the matter.

[@michaelwalker5880]

As a former Solar energy business owner and hvac business owner, heating domestic hot water 24/7 for 3-4 hrs per day of use with electricity is the biggest single waste of energy in our homes. Natural Gas On-Demand systems solve this but are expensive to buy and can be very costly to install, especially in retro-fit and require considerable maintenance. Solar hot water panels are one of the most cost effective uses of solar energy. The reason they are not popular is simple. They are cheap to build and install and do not require buying ANYTHING from China! There are several tracking parabolic hot water systems in operation that produce stem to run steam generators across America with excess energy stored underground for night time use but again, this is not part of the Biden Admin's farce Green Energy Agenda. Kudos to you for doing it.

[@entelin]

Solar and Fission both have a huge amount of potential for development. Fusion is an unknown. However I don't think wind turbines have much of a future, they are pretty much as good as they can get, and have high maintenance requirements due to moving parts. Obviously fission is complex and has plenty moving parts and maintenance requirements, but it's very energy dense and scales well. Fission is overall the safest power source we have, even compared so solar when you take into account environmental impacts of manufacturing them.

[@entelin]

@@gags730 I think you are mixing things up. Firstly yes I agree, commercial fusion is a total unknown, maybe it will eventually be a thing, maybe not, we can't plan on it. I was talking about *fission* having significant amounts of development potential. Solar has come a LONG way. Early panels, like the ones you are thinking about on the white house installed by the Carter administration, and pretty much all of the ones I remember from my childhood that were installed on houses were thermal panels used to heat water, not for power generation. Early solar electric panels had an efficiency of only 1%, todays most advanced panels are pushing 25-30%. That's efficiency in terms of how much total energy from the sunlight hitting the panels can be converted to useful electricity. Additionally, adjusted for inflation, over the last 40 years solar panels have reduced in cost by around 97%. They are starting to be directly competitive with oil at scale. But even more interestingly there will be possibilities of integrating solar into city infrastructure, on the top of buildings, or even low efficiency solar paint, parking lots, etc.

[@entelin]

@@gags730 btw many early solar power plants also were not made with solar electric panels but rather mirrors that would focus the light to the center of the farm to boil water and spin a turbine. At scale this was more efficient and cost effective than the electric panels of the time. But things have changed a lot since back then.

[@entelin]

@@gags730 I'm not really sure what you are arguing about. Nuclear is hands down our best large scale power option and also has lots of room for improvement like I said. Gas&Oil are enormously subsidized by the government due to not being required to pay for health effects. I never said solar has historically been a competitive option, but it definitely is becoming that, along with the needed economies of scale and reduction of prices that battery technology is seeing. Batteries are not the only way of storing power of course, there's various mechanical storage options as well. I feel like you are arguing about things that have nothing to do with anything I've said. I simply said that the two power sources that have a significant future are nuclear and solar. Both are good now, and importantly, have room for significant improvements. While wind, will not improve significantly from where it's at now.

[@aranthos]

Every year there are reports of breakthroughs on efficiency, durability and cost for about 10 years now and yet it feels like now could be the time they’re actually nearing the point when solar becomes not just sense, but nonsense NOT to utilise in cars, atop trucks, on roofs of barns and homes, anywhere with unobstructed light. I’m really looking forward to the next 2 years and hoping the barrier to solar capture (€) is so low I don’t blink an eye.

[@babalonkie]

Nature observation and preservation is the key to human success. Surrey's honeycomb system is something that needs to be applied immediately... a potential 25% increase in solar energy is MASSIVE... it also is able to be applied to existing panels and makes them more durable.

[@TheCrakkle]

I have always loved the idea of Solar power, whether heating or photovoltaic, ever since I first saw a solar cell on Tomorrow's word back in the 70's I wanted to try one. I finally got my hand's on one from our local Tandy mid 70's, how disappointed I was at the performance to cost is hard to put in words. For me I still like the idea of producing photovoltaic electricity but until I see at least 70% efficiency I will not invest nor in good conscience recommend it's use in earnest. Admittedly you can trickle charge batteries for small items but little else. Roof top home units are only affordable due to subsidies and I have not seen a truly cost effective system that could be practically used here in the UK

[@JB-Voices]

glad at least some people have the same point of view, solar and more specifically photovoltaic is (in my opinion) just plain ridiculous(y bad) concerning efficiency, what most people also seem to forget as that in summer the panels are least efficient due to being too hot In our "battle" for green energy I am very much pro nuclear, but sadly the big majority are still afraid, mostly because of what happend decades ago at/in Chernobyl I my opinion green hydrogen could be a very good alternative, but also comes with certain "risks" some people might deem dangerous, mostly concerning storage In the "search" for green hydrogen I'm very much looking forward to the further development of the hydrogen pv panels of the KU Leuven here in Belgium, at the moment they have a rather (very) low efficiency of 15% but even in our weather that results in around 250 liters of hydrogen gas a day :D

[@paperburn]

I kinda do something similar , energy efficacy and efficiency . With the past advancements in solar over the past ten years , solar is not the problem. The reality now is the the building most people are trying to put solar on are not designed for the usage case. I would equate it to putting a Lamborghini engine into a Vega. (or an Austin Mini Metro) yes, you get some better performance but nothing near what it should be because of the limits of the house. Retrofitting of the home is not cheap either , you would far better off doing spending money on that instead of solar. you would gain on the average five times the value doing a energy retrofit and get the same returns. After than then it might make sence to add solar but not before. (rules apply and results will not be typical without prior planning and research.)

[@ukgroucho]

@@JB-Voices @TheCrakkie Two very uninformed views. I've have 8.5Kw of Sanyo HIT (Hybid) panels for 10 years or so. There was no grant but I got a good Feed in Tarriff rate and they paid for themselves in around 7.5 years - even ignoring the 'free' electricity we got. Added a Tesla Powerwall 18 months ago and it has doubled the amount of solar that I generate AND can use. So now over a year it's roughly a third off the roof, a third off the Tesla and a third off the grid. We still export a bunch of power (EV car will help with that when we can get it delivered). I look at the last few months and I've used hardly anything off the grid. The comment about the panels being least efficient when hot is true but during those months of the year (in the UK) you get long days so you still generate loads. With the price of electricity going up and up and the price of solar dropping I think a lot of people would benefit if they could swallow their scepticism. It's now right for every house (roof alignments etc.) and battery storage solution to cover overnight could be cheaper but I know that I've been 99% self powered for the last 3 months or so and will be for another couple...

[@JB-Voices]

​@@ukgroucho what you call uninformed views, is what I (and most likely TheCrakkie as well) would call a realistic view, pv panels are (very) inefficient and whether or not you can be self sufficient does not change that fact, and it is your good right to invest in what you believe is a good option for you but I do wonder how your at that point around 8 year old panels magically produce more energy just by hooking them up to a battery (aka powerwall)?? Concerning your HIT panels, they are indeed a bit more efficient when hot then regular panels, but the only way to really get the full potential out of pv panels is by actively cooling them with water, those panels do exist but are rather rare (and thus expensive)

[@ukgroucho]

@@JB-Voices I take a note from Matt Farrells book 'if you are on the fence waiting for the next big development then get off it'. I paraphrase of course. Bottom line is if more people had the 'courage' / lack of cynicism to put some micro generation in their lives they would most likely save money (in the longer term) and help reduce dependancy on non-renewables. On the installing a battery comment. No (and maybe my sentence was a little badly constructed). By having the Tesla Powerwall I am able to use more of what I generate in my house - rather than export it. In reality double the amount that I can use just feeding stuff off the roof when the sun shines. Of course I export less but that is not my concern.

[@Ren-1979]

I love your videos Matt. Thank you. 🙂 That said. To have more efficiency is really good, but if not combined with equivalent storing and recycling capabilities it is not good enough. Is there any update on that front?

[@janedoe3043]

Question: Would the printable cells be something that we could run along the entire surface of say, siding to collect a significant amount of energy for the grid?

[@phironosurvivors2069]

A car would be a good candidate since it reflects hot air anyways. Studies show solar panels across the Sahara desert would change the climate to a tropical climate and desert climate elsewhere. Cause and effect

[@worldcomicsreview354]

I remember reading an article about the printable panels years ago. Not as efficient, but hopefully cheap enough it will be trivial to cover your entire house in them. And the possibilities of big commercial buildings are crazy

[@michaelokeefe7412]

Video says for indoor use only.

[@phironosurvivors2069]

@@michaelokeefe7412 solar panels use HEAT and LIGHT to generate electricity. What time exactly does it say use indoors only? 😅

[@michaelokeefe7412]

At 6:49 and 8:00.

[@rashaseden7062]

I got 20 panels in 2015 on my average sized house in New England, and since then, I’ve only had two electric bills , and they’d already paid for themselves. I will upgrade as soon as I can when these efficiency improvements are available.

[@rquinsey1]

Matt, thanx for the continued brain food. Time for me to speak louder about solar panel windows. They must be within reach. This video's breakthrough teases that idea. Since the days I drove by or rode in a bus covered in a view-through vinyl advertisement, I said if that could be a solar panel, every window in the house could produce electricity. Imagine, window manufacturing could offer the interchangeability to plug and play into a transmission cable as panels age. Albeit a small amount of electricity, well, so are LED lights or my 110v electric air-fry oven. I can't remember the last time I used my 220v oven. In general, with the other brain candy episodes you publish, we need to remember to stay close to mother nature, she obviously has experience. Lastly, as to comment on desalination brine, might that have value as a natural pesticide or herbicide, or used in manufacturing roads in icy places. Keep up the great work!

[@tjay9971]

Hey Matt. I am new to your channel and have to say, the way you explain everything and how you place your jokes, it does not get boring. Thank you for this clip! :) Regarding the topic: I would love to see every building window have a solar layer between the glass layers. Especially the roof windows would be quite efficient in my opinion. One house would probably not make a huge change, but if you sum up all buildings on the planet, that would make an formidable amount. Do you know of any projects regarding this?

[@oppothumbs1]

Matt don't believe everything you hear or read. Solar panels have to be disposed of carefully or they are toxic. They cost 20 thou for the average home and maintenance is 1500 a year and they may have to be replaced after 15 years not really 20 years.

[@wyskass861]

Also, must keep in mind that energy storage is a major limiting factor in widespread renewable sources. Without that we cannot replace conventional power plants. Nuclear is the only option currently.

[@jhwheuer]

I expect panel sandwiched of several types of materials to absorb different radiation to increase yield

[@zacharycrago2753]

As soon as we've achieved the necessary technology to make solar feasible, I'm ALL for it. I don't think we're too far off from it.

[@arakwar]

It’s already doable though. Not in every scenarios, but the number of houses running mostly on solar shows that it works. Getting more efficiency or more lifetime simply makes it cheaper. The next biggest challenge is storage. If all houses could have efficient batteries, we’d have a completely different power grid right now.

[@barneylinet6602]

Band gap solar cells are limited to about 40% efficiency, max. Optical rectennas have a Landsberg theoretical efficiency of 93%. This technology is in its infancy but i predict it will eventually dominate for a number of good economic reasons.

[@GCRAAY]

Challenge: It seems to me that near every claim with solar, wind, automotive efficiency etc is rarely based on real life. The reports tend to make claims based on the best “possible” controls. Cars don’t account for the weight of people and the loads. Solar seems to always need direct sunlight and wind constant wind. Not to mention the units need to be in peek operating condition. Now, take that to the average neighborhood with dirty panels, shade from trees, clouds, snow, and tell me what’s likely going to happen vs what’s probably not achievable consistently enough to make these sources worth it. Then I’ll be impressed.

[@AaronK910]

Bingo! Circle gets the square.

[@HandlebarWorkshops]

LOL. The comment literally above this in my feed is "Hays Clark 4 days ago: I've had solar on our home for the past 10 years and have generated 60 MWh in the PNW. In my experience, I've had little to no issues with my panels; however, I've run into issues with bad Micro inverters."

[@rumls4drinkin]

I got really excited when you mentioned chirality being applied to solar cells, I thought it was the physics version, not the chemistry version of the term. I thought someone made a photon trap. the honeycomb structure has good promise, minimizing back scatter. They could even be a layer they apply onto another companies junctions.

[@truegret7778]

Interesting. For a reference - 30% efficient solar cells in the 1990s made using Gallium Arsenide (of course enhanced with lenses used on space missions. The first known operational use of GaAs solar cells in space was for the Venera 3 mission launched in 1965. I worked at ARCO/Siemens Solar back then and recall one of the scientists providing a lecture. Very challenging ( Arsenide is not good to work with ).

[@luhdoh9860]

there are many solar cell recipes like gallium arsenide which generate higher than earths potential PV in space. the closer you get to the sun, the more efficient your panels get (as long as you don't have an atmosphere)

[@greyzone3801]

Request: Could you do a video on solar roof tiles as of 2022?

[@iketheranter9126]

We are so close, it's maddening. Energy freedom for the masses will change the world for the better.

[@by9917]

Solar panel are too inefficient is a moronic argument. Solar panels are as efficient as standard ICE engines and much better when the energy used to extract, transport and refine is considered. I've put solar on two homes and found that solar can produce all of the energy needed by the home and an EV with just a fraction of the roof surface covered. My previous home produces more electricity than it used with 2 EVs charging at home, so much more that the utility paid me $185 for the last year when I moved out. Gas was off that entire time.

[@travis5732]

Comparing a solar panel with an ICE engine doesn't make sense. Your argument shows they are not useless, which is true, but they are no efficient by themselves, that is, factoring out climate variables. It's simply not a reliable/cheap enough source to fully power a big city (yet).

[@gazsm1]

I've often thought that patents should be removed and all research on renewable energies shared freely. Ideas often get stuck or even ended because the experts within a company can't make something work. However, it's very possible that another company, or even a single person, that has access to their research could take the idea further or possibly solve the problems.

[@westasleep]

I'd agree that the patent system isn't working as intended, but it's still vital that the R&D gets funded. This could be through bounties, direct government funding, compulsary purchase orders on patents, or price controls on patent licenses.

[@samsonsoturian6013]

If that happens there'll simply be no incentive to fund research. Recall that private corporations fund much of all practical science and they must turn a profit just to exist.

[@jestes7]

Imagine all that work and not making a dime off it. F that.

[@gazsm1]

@@jestes7 and you're statement sums up everything that's wrong! Greed before welfare.

[@jestes7]

@@gazsm1 Funny you think it's wrong, when it is a system that undisputedly *works*. Perhaps you don't realize the impact of patents on your every day life. Perhaps you take for granted all the gizmos and gadgets and technology you use every day that were generated through patents. Is wanting money to survive greed? Is wanting protection for something you put your hard earned money, sweat, and tears into inventing greed? What makes you think anyone will do this for free?

[@thokim84]

The amount of solar energy that falls on my house captured by the 19% efficient panels powers my house 24/7 with the server rack battery in my garage. Total system cost about $14k. My California electric bill disappeared completely saving me about $2,500 per year. The fact that it also charges my car means I don't pay $6 per gallon either. I drive about 150-180 miles per week so that is another $30 per week. My self installed $14k system will save me more than $4k this year and inflation makes those savings even better.

[@Waynesification]

What happened to that nano antenna array technology could get very high percentages above 50%. The good thing about that, is that chemical reactions and vapour disposition can produce structures that, maybe cheaply in bulk.

[@kianakan96826]

I love your videos and I love hearing and seeing you talk about everything with enthusiasm. Thank you very much

[@paulmichaelfreedman8334]

The organic cells may be worth a slightly longer wait. We have been comtemplating getting panels this year , but haven't yet. We were also lucky that our energy contract was three years fixed (old) price. With the price surge we now pay way less than the average family does for energy. But we really need solar soon before the contract ends to prevent our energy bill from surging.

[@andrewbraid4265]

Off the topic, there's a company in Tasmania Australia that has perfected the wave generator, they have done this by designing a blowhole system, the current one has been powering 200 households on Kangaroo Island, as a pilot project, but they're talking about scaling it up. It doesn't have any effect on the marine wildlife and can be set up on any coastline around the world, I believe there's even been interest by the U.S in the technology. I think there needs to be a mix of wind, solar, tidal and geothermal tech for renewal energy to be a powerhouse in energy production. But all the recent developments in renewable are going the right way, with the support of government, the private sectors ect

[@rolyantrauts2304]

I still wonder about solar thermal as its far more efficient at creating heat. PV even with next gen efficiency during winter still falls short of thermal. Thermal could create electricity with excess in summer and stay as heat in winter in more Northern latitudes.

[@Etheralysium]

Loved this video! I'm definitely showing this to the office! I work for ADT Solar in Virginia so if you ever need any advice or have any questions on residential solar please feel free to comment below!

[@johnn3542]

Used to do the electrical work for a solar company in Michigan. Did it on all sizes of houses, people always seemed happy, we would usually end up back to do other small electrical jobs. People would talk about how they made like 50 cents on a good sunny day.

[@cgwworldministries83]

My problem with this "breakthrough" is as always, an issue of scale. 1) how long until I can get my hands on some panels with this technology? 2) what will they cost per panel? They can't be charging an arm and a leg per panel or they won't have an impact.

[@indisputablefacts8507]

One of the things I think holds us back is listening to people yack on about how "efficient" the panel is when what they mean is "energy/area". I have a lot of units of area near me; what I don't have a lot of is dollars. We need to really focus on "lifetime-energy/lifetime-cost" as the only "efficiency" worth talking about. Any producer that's not focused on that is going to be a bit-player, and we shouldn't waste our time with them.

[@Jourei_]

Finally a video where they say "This is already in small scale production" instead of "This theoretical invention..."

[@sailorcherry1742]

Perovskite Bifacial panels are the key to our decarbonization goals, imho. Think small groups in "trees" all over the place but especially small spaces. Framing can mitigate fragility. I have 3 arrays on my boat I use to test (no Perovskite yet, but two diff bifacial and mono). I have some even in my electric engines throttle to power it remotely. So we need multiple types of solar cells to meet zero, but we can do it!

[@AerialWaviator]

Great video. Efficiency breakthrough are great, but not as important as many people think. Mostly efficiency just translates into physical area of panel coverage need to produce a given amount of energy annually. Today a typical home only needs to use a portion of roof to harvest enough solar to be financially and energy offsetting to have significant value. Cheaper panels on other hand (vs. hight efficiency) opens up market for solar to more people.

[@elijah_9392]

Higher efficiency means fewer panels required, which means less panels needed to be economically sensible for home owners.

[@garrygballard8914]

Tks Matt For the Perovskite update. Things move so slow. Its been years since I first heard of it.

[@terjeoseberg990]

I don’t care how efficient solar panels are. I only care about longevity and price per watt. I really don’t care whether I need to cover 1%, 5%, 10% or 100% of my roof to supply all my energy needs. I only care how much it costs to do so. Efficiency is only important for airplanes, because they actually have to carry them.

[@siddharthavarmachittari7034]

Yes but when solar is to a become a major power supply to replace gas or oil, the low efficiency we have right now isn't enough and to truly power entire nations on it, one would have to clear out major swathes of land. For the general consumer, current solar might be okay but for it to become something much bigger than it is right now, space isn't the only thing that needs to be maximized, it's efficiency.

[@DavidBirchler]

Please look into rectennas, specifically Novasolix seems quite feasible. An antenna will always be able to be more efficient than a junction. Needs more research!

[@redmonika9187]

I'm a current student at the University of surrey and was pleasantly surprised to see the university mentioned here.