On Tue, Dec 18, 2012 at 1:43 PM, IVP wrote: > > http://newsinfo.nd.edu/news/28047-notre-dame-researchers-develop-paint-on= -solar-cells/ > > If you're painting the house anyway ..... > > -- > > First I've seen the paint, but I've seen several variations on the theme. As Russel has, and like will again :-), pointed out, a good solar _panel_ is much more than just the cells. I've seen a lot of people working on getting the cost of the cells down, mostly by trying to eliminate the monocrystalline silicon substrate. There's been some attempts on various polymers and even one on stainless steel sheet. It seems the basic idea is looking at cell cost/watt rather than cell area/watt or watt/mass. I.e. if the cell is cheap enough, it can still be effective in many applications even if it is significantly less efficient at converting light to electricity. Fair enough, to a point.... As long as the cells are the dominant system cost this is a viable strategy, but a system is a lot more than just cells. Mounting, weatherproofing, cabling, controls, inverters, chargers, batteries, maintenance, etc. When the cell cost gets low enough, these costs become a greater relative factor. And all that's still before various governments start playing with various "incentives"... As someone else pointed out - It is a *very* complex system= .. The question I keep asking myself is, dollars aside, will solar cell X produce enough energy in it's useful life to fabricate a duplicate of itself. I don't believe I've found a "yes" yet... -Denny --=20 http://www.piclist.com PIC/SX FAQ & list archive View/change your membership options at http://mailman.mit.edu/mailman/listinfo/piclist .