Developing high-efficiency colored solar panels for buildings

The power transition in Germany, Europe, and internationally is driving strong demand for photo voltaic panels. Alongside excessive power yields, aesthetics and acceptance are additionally more and more necessary components. To accommodate these traits, a staff of researchers from the Fraunhofer Institute for Photo voltaic Power Techniques ISE has developed an revolutionary photo voltaic facade aspect that may be integrated right into a constructing’s exterior virtually invisibly and with none vital lack of effectivity.

With the event of MorphoColor coating know-how, consultants have made an necessary contribution to the enlargement of built-in photovoltaic systems in Germany. For this groundbreaking mission, they are going to be offered with the Joseph von Fraunhofer Prize for 2024.

Photovoltaic programs should not a well-liked design characteristic amongst architects and constructing house owners. Researchers Dr. Oliver Höhn, Dr. Thomas Kroyer and Andreas Wessels from Fraunhofer ISE, primarily based in Freiburg, got down to change that by creating aesthetically pleasing coloured solar panels that characteristic angularly secure, saturated colour with minimal lack of effectivity, to allow them to be built-in virtually invisibly into constructing exteriors.

Impressed by morpho butterflies

There are two essential components for photo voltaic panels for building-integrated photovoltaic use. First, they should behave optically like a conventional coloured aspect, and second, they need to nonetheless be capable to generate as a lot energy as potential. To fulfill this problem, the researchers appeared to nature for inspiration—and located it in morpho butterflies.

“The 3D photonic structures on a morpho butterfly’s wings allow for an intensive, angularly stable colored impression thanks to a fundamentally low-loss interference effect,” explains Kroyer. Following this organic mannequin, the consultants from Fraunhofer ISE succeeded in utilizing a vacuum course of to use an identical floor construction to the again of the glass masking their photo voltaic panels. Relying on the effective construction, this technique can be utilized to supply glass coverings in numerous colours.

The coating system for coloured photo voltaic panels has now surpassed the organic mannequin when it comes to its properties. “Independent measurements confirm that the colored solar panels with MorphoColor coatings can achieve about 95 percent of the power of a comparable uncoated panel,” Wessels explains. That makes MorphoColor know-how far superior to all different comparable applied sciences accessible available on the market.

MorphoColor know-how: A flexible plug-in answer with potential for the long run

The plug-in answer can be utilized with all commonplace commercially accessible photo voltaic applied sciences in addition to these foreseeable sooner or later, plus it may be manufactured industrially at low value. Cell and panel applied sciences with a uniform look are an particularly good match. These embrace rear contact solar cells and the shingle matrix know-how additionally developed at Fraunhofer ISE—an meeting technique paying homage to a brick wall.

“In shingle matrix technology, the conductive adhesive bonding of the solar cells eliminates the need for reflective metallic connectors between the cells, which leads to a homogeneous appearance. That means the solar cell technology remains completely invisible behind the colored layer. And that in turn enables aesthetically pleasing and complete visual integration into facades or roofs,” Höhn explains.

The MorphoColor trademark is already registered within the EU, Switzerland, China, the USA, Japan, and South Korea. A license was granted in 2023 to Switzerland-based Megasol Energie AG, a number one European producer of photo voltaic panels and in-roof and facade set up programs that’s presently establishing the MorphoColor know-how available on the market.

Integration of photo voltaic panels into autos is one other promising subject of growth. Fraunhofer ISE offered glass automotive roofs and hoods with built-in MorphoColor photo voltaic panels on the IAA automotive commerce present. All the main German automotive producers confirmed nice curiosity within the new technology.