Currently, solar panels account for only 0.1% of global electricity consumption. This is largely because the total cost of photovoltaic technology is still high compared to fossil fuels, it cannot be used on cloudy days, and large areas of panels are required to generate electricity.
According to Robert Putto, the third generation of photovoltaic cells is already emerging. This new technology has three main advantages: first, its efficiency will be 2-3 times that of the first and second generation cells; second, it uses inexpensive high-throughput printing and coating technologies, requiring less energy and lower equipment investment during manufacturing, and eliminating the need for the clean indoor environment required by the first and second generation cells; and third, it offers great flexibility, with a thickness of only a few micrometers and high transparency, allowing it to be screen-printed onto windows, thus enabling direct installation inside buildings. This means that future buildings and bridges could potentially become large-scale power plants.
Furthermore, 3D solar panel technology will significantly improve solar energy utilization. 3D solar panels can capture almost all sunlight hitting them. In March of this year, MIT designed a new type of 3D solar panel; this vertical, accordion-like tower structure generates 20 times more electricity per square foot than traditional planar arrayed cells, with almost identical power generation on cloudy and sunny days. Currently, 3D panel manufacturing technology requires further optimization before mass production.
