Scientists in Australia have developed the world’s first “solar glass.” This clear glass harvests the suns energy and when used in a greenhouse, can produce crops in any season or climate!
This technology was created at Edith Cowan University’s Electron Science Research Institute in Perth, Australia, in collaboration with ClearVue Technologies.
The solar glass encompasses nanoparticles that take 90% of UV and infrared rays from the sun, convert them to energy, and transfer them into solar cells embedded on the edge of the glass panels while still allowing 70% of visible light to pass through. The energy harvested is then used to power the greenhouse — lighting, heating, cooling, and irrigation.
Director Kmal Alameh at ESRI said that this could be a huge cost-saver in greenhouses. “We hope to end up with a self-sustainable greenhouse that doesn’t need the power from the grid, and then it can be producing its own energy to produce the maximum or a good crop yield.” Professor Kamal went on to state that due to its self-sufficiency, there were no limits to where these greenhouses could be built, no climate too hot or dry. “If you have underground water, that’s all we need to basically produce a crop.”