"This sounds like the best of both worlds, on one hand capturing the sun's energy, on the other hand leaving the roofs alone so that they can still be painted white (or converted to white tiles) to reflect sunlight, not even considering the aesthetic aspect of the deal." - Christopher Beau
Now, the article:
Like the idea of free and clean solar power but hate the thought of ugly, black panels covering the roof of your home? Help is on the way.
Scientists in Georgia and New Jersey are taking solar panels off the roofs of homes and cars, and moving them into basements and walls. The new panels could unobtrusively provide solar power while simultaneously protecting the delicate photovoltaics.
"No one wants to buy a big, nice, fancy car with a huge solar panel on the roof," said Zhong Wang, a scientist at Georgia Tech designing what he calls the world's first 3-D solar panel system.
Instead of using traditional solar panels, the Georgia Tech scientists will capture sunlight and turn it into electricity using fiber optics cables coated with zinc oxide, the same white compound lifeguards slather on their noses.
The fiber optic cables, each one two to three times the width of a human, would be installed on the roof of a house, car or any other structure.
Only the very tip of the cables would be exposed to the outside environment.
Light enters the tip of the fiber and travels to the end. The light is absorbed and turned into electrical energy along the way.
Once the light reaches the end of the fiber, it actually bounces back, giving the zinc oxide another chance to absorb any light missed during the first pass.
Read more: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/33793775/ns/technology_and_science-future_of_energy/Want to help with Global-Warming? Please visit http://www.whiteearth.org
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