Solar energy — high-efficiency colored solar panels for buildings
A team of researchers from the Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems ISE has developed an innovative solar facade element that can be incorporated into a building’s exterior practically invisibly and without any significant loss of efficiency
Photovoltaic systems are not a popular design feature among architects and building owners. Researchers Dr. Oliver Höhn, Dr. Thomas Kroyer and Andreas Wessels from Fraunhofer ISE, based in Freiburg, set out to change that by developing aesthetically pleasing colored solar panels that feature angularly stable, saturated color with minimal loss of efficiency, so they can be integrated practically invisibly into building exteriors.
Inspired by morpho butterflies
There are two crucial factors with solar panels for building-integrated photovoltaic use: First, they need to behave optically like a traditional colored element, and second, they should still be able to generate as much power as possible. To meet this challenge, the researchers looked to nature for inspiration — and found 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 biological model, the experts from Fraunhofer ISE succeeded in using a vacuum process to apply a similar surface structure to the back of the glass covering their solar panels. Depending on the fine structure, this method can be used to produce glass coverings in various colors.
The coating system for colored solar panels has now surpassed the biological model in terms of 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® technology far superior to all other comparable technologies available on the market.
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