Solar energy project teams four Triad universities

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GREENSBORO - Four Triad universities are looking beyond solar panels to a less expensive and more economic technology to harness the sun's energy for electricity. The joint effort is called the Four Universities Solar Consortium and includes North Carolina A&T State University, Winston-Salem State University, Wake Forest University and the University of North Carolina-Greensboro.

Solar farms are fast becoming commonplace around the state, but researchers say the farms' photovoltaic panels are still relatively expensive and inefficient despite decades of development.

"To install thousands of those takes acres of land or you may see them on homes,? said Barry Burks, vice chancellor for research and economic development. ?Those panels are very expensive. The return on investment for a solar farm is years. "

The consortium is developing what's called a solar concentrator that would capture the sun's energy at a lower cost.

"Like a mirror that focuses the light,? said Burks. ?[It] concentrates it down to a small source and you only need then a small panel, say, one panel or even smaller of the very high efficiency solar collector."

Researchers envision the use of a large number of the mirrors optimized for capturing light, as opposed to reflecting it, and converting it into electricity. The system also would extract hydrogen from water to generate electricity and make use of the heat that solar panels waste.

"We're going to try to capture that heat that is there, it's just a waste, and also turn that into energy," said Burks.

Burks is certain the solar concentrator, its mirrors and waste heat conversion will be cheaper and more efficient than solar panels. The project will determine by how much.

"It's not that we're trying to create something that we don't know whether it's going to work or not,? said Burks. ?It's just how well will it work and how much will it cost. So, it's really not a leap of faith. It's more a matter of optimization."

Two local companies, 3A Composites of Colfax and Slane Marine in High Point, will fabricate some of the materials used in the system. The joint project was one of three finalists for a $100,000 dollar grant from the schools' Triad Interuniversity Planning Project.

Source: http://charlotte.news14.com/content/local_news/triad/696964/solar-energy-project-teams-four-triad-universities

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