Solar and Wave Technology Combine Forces
Marine Solar Cells (MSC), a new solar panel design from Phil Pauley, boasts the ability to generate energy from both the sun and waves. The offshore solar installation of these solar-wave units would increase efficiency of the solar panels due to the reflections of sunlight beaming off the water, enabling the panels to capture 20 percent more solar power.
Each device acts as a subsea battery or power plant and can be placed nearly anywhere off-shore by attaching the units to underwater mooring.
A web of energy generators capture offshore storage, using floating photovoltaics and the natural buoyancy displacement of the units in a marine environment.
"These hybrid marine generators would be an effective way of capturing more energy per square metre," Pauley told the press. "The design means they could be largely constructed from recycled materials too."
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Minimal maintenance will be required for the units, which can be made from recycled materials. The initial and ongoing financial equipment are expected to be at a fraction of a cost of traditional solar farms or wave power designs.
The technology is still under development, but holds great commercial potential. The company expects to install hundreds of low-cost solar-wave units soon, generating thousands of new jobs and a whole new industry with worldwide implications.
