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Conserve Energy with Nanotechnology Solar Panel


With the evident effects of environmental neglect, energy all over the world is becoming more and more depleted. With energy sources becoming scarce, it generally results to a stiff competition to obtain the limited sources for energy resulting to high power charges. There are several sources of energy, and some of them are even natural resources such as wind, solar, and hydro. But even if the sources of energy are natural resources and should be delivered to the people at a lower cost, still, power costs are high due to expenses incurred while generating electricity.
For several years now, scientists and researches has been looking at other means to obtain the following:
  • minimize generation costs of energy
  • provide energy to the people without causing any damages to the environment
  • generate renewable and recyclable energy resources
  • provide energy and electricity with the least possible charges
  • deliver electricity and energy to the public at the lowest possible cost
Achieving These Goals Using Nanotechnology Solar Panel
Nanotechnology aims to build important things with the use of tiny machines or by producing highly advanced, essential, and quality products using tools and techniques provided by nanotechnology.
Part of the researches being conducted is to come up with a solar panel that would accurately capture solar energy that can be utilized at home, in the office, and even in large-scale industrial areas. Although there are already solar panels available in the market today, these solar panels that are usually made of silicone panels only capture 67.4% light incident or solar energy emitted by the sun. Whereas, with nanotechnology, industrial and electrical manufacturers can now produce a coating for solar panels using nanorods that can capture 96.7 % light incident.


Nanorods used in nanotechnology solar panel looks like multi-layer funnels designed to capture light incident. The first layer absorbs the light that hits the panel at wide outer angles and turns it to a slightly narrower angle. The succeeding layers become narrower, like they are passing the light to the next layer even further as it funnels the light till it reaches the active region of the panel at a 90° angle. This process makes the solar panel securely capture the sun’s energy without having to rotate with the sun.


Benefits of Nanotechnology Solar Panel


Installing a nanorod on your solar panel can give out a lot of benefits not just for your personal advantages but to the whole of mankind. Some of these benefits include:

Lower solar power cost. The usual silicone solar panels available in the market today are placed at a single angle and can therefore absorb and generate lesser energy making the cost of solar power high. Nanotechnology solar power is designed to absorb the sunlight from any angle thus making generating more energy and making it available at a lesser cost.

Environment friendly. By patronizing renewable sources of energy such as energy coming from the sun, you would help in saving the world in your own little way. Solar power is also proven safe and does not emit hazardous waste.

Generating energy in a clean and green manner is, of course, just one element of a low carbon economy. Another element is the way in which energy is used and finding ways to reduce waste. In this area, home insulation is a very important factor – just think of how many poorly insulted homes there are in the world! A technology being developed to assist with insulating buildings use formaldehyde. The current tests are developing ways to coat ordinary doors and surfaces with the chemical to trap more air in, reducing heat transfer. This will be another breakthrough of the future.


Use Of Nanotechnology In Lighting


The way we see, feel, and touch things is about to change. In fact, the change has already begun and though it hasn’t touched our lives in any significant manner yet the day when that happens is around the corner.

From self-cleaning windows to super energy efficient lighting, nanotechnology is revolutionizing the way we live.

Lighting has been an important aspect of our lives, of our existence.

Due to the awareness that the world is fast running out of fossil fuels and other natural sources of energy, the need for finding green and efficient lighting sources has become even more important.

CFL and LED or light emitting diodes lights are just two of the most common examples of green lighting sources.

However, as technology improves, and newer grounds are covered in science, the use of nanotechnology to further increase the efficiency of LED lighting has started looking more realistic.

LED Lighting

LEDs were first discovered in the 1920s. They are semi-conductors that have the capability to change electricity into light. Once the light switch is turned on, electrons journey through an area with larger numbers to an area with lesser numbers, and release small pools of energy or photons (which is the lowest form of light).

The best part about LED lights is that they don’t release any heat unlike traditional tungsten bulbs.

So also, LED lighting uses only a small percentage of energy as required by regular bulbs and they don’t contain any toxic metals like mercury that are used in CFL (compact fluorescent light) bulbs. All this makes LED lights efficient, durable, and longer lasting.

LED Lighting Colors

You’ve probably seen LED lighting in colors like blue, green, yellow, and white. The color of the LED lights is dependent on the type of semiconductors used. Red colored LEDs were the first on the scene, followed by orange.

After many years, the most commonly used, blue LED lights used in mobiles, laptops, CD players, and other electronic appliances, were developed. However, the most important of all LED lights are the white LEDs.

There is no such thing as a true white LED. The white LED used is actually blue LED filtered through a coating of yellow phosphorus that emits faux-white light that has a perceptible bluish hue.


Experts believe that if white LEDs are paired with green LEDs, we should be able to get lighting in almost every visible color.
Green LED
If a high performing green LED light can be developed, it would pave the way for high performing, energy efficient electronic devices like LED TVs, Computer monitors, and many others.


Unfortunately, green LEDs are a lot more difficult to develop than perceived. Ongoing researches in the US are aiming to create LEDs in green color, which would be at par with red/blue LEDs.

Nanotech LED Lighting

As explained above, passing electrons through nano semiconductors, also known as ‘quantum dots,’ emit light which has many applications in fields like biology, computers, medicine, solar heating, and lighting.

Perhaps, that is why there is a huge focus on related R&D and scientists are researching the use of different nanotechnologies to create more energy efficient LEDs.

Companies like Nanosys are using semiconductors of remote phosphorous to develop LEDs that turn blue light into a warmer shade of white that is similar to the currently used traditional white of fluorescent bulbs. The phosphorous used in this experiment is created from ‘nano-materials.’

Since human eyes are hyper-sensitive to the color green, the LEDs have an increased level of green to give us a false sense of brightness, without actually heightening the brightness level of the display.

This helps create an excellent picture quality, but by using only very little energy, making it the primary method to be employed in devices that have display panels.

This is promising news for those following the use of nanotechnology in various fields. With this attempt by Nanosys, the company believes it will be able to design LEDs in just about any color, which is going to be a huge leap forward from the currently used LED displays as well as in other electronic devices that emit stronger hues.

While the company has created many experimental LED bulbs, these LED quantum dots will firstly be used for TV and notebook displays to offer consumer a wider range of colors. However, a larger range of colors may lead to poor battery life, especially in case of laptops etc.

The day when nanocrystals can be ‘painted’ on flat surfaces to create paper-thin displays are not far!

Furthermore, not too far from now, we’ll be able to use LED to paint walls in colors of our choice, rather than actual paint. Yes, truly with use nanotech, life is only going to be more exciting and, dare we say, vibrantly colorful!






Advances in Nanotechnology That Might Cure HIV


One of the frequent scourges that affect mankind is the problem related to the human immunodeficiency virus that is more popularly known as HIV. Affecting Sub-Saharan Africa, parts of Asia, and some parts of Europe, the HIV problem is of pressing need to man and governments because of its impact to health. This is why researches for the development of cures for HIV has been in feverish pitch since the disease was first discovered in the early 80s. However, despite all these, cures for HIV are something that is still elusive. That was the case until nanotechnology came along and gave mankind its first real hope of winning against this dreaded disease. Today, various products of nanotechnology that might cure HIV are seriously pursued in the hope that it will put an end to man’s worrying of the disease.


Approaches to the Treatment of HIV

Using nanotechnology that might cure HIV comes in various forms. Most of these are still in the laboratory testing stages and are not yet available for mass treatment. Nonetheless, feedbacks have been very encouraging to the point that experts regularly call their efforts already a success even with the absence of actual testing on HIV patients. The following are some of the most common approaches in using nanotechnology that might cure HIV:

Neutralization of the HIV virus. Because HIV virus has been so resilient and tough to crack, one of the keys to a successful treatment of HIV cases is to neutralize the very virus that causes it. In this, scientists have developed nano particles that attack the virus. Because nano particles are very small, they are not easily detected and neutralized by the virus. Instead, they are able to penetrate the mantle of the virus, thus rendering it harmless.

Another approach in nanotechnology that might cure HIV is the strengthening of a person’s immune system. This is made possible with the use of nano particles that are injected into a person’s body. Such particles boost the immune system and help the body to repair damaged tissues, which is something very common among HIV patients. On the other hand, because they are very minute particles, they easily mix in with the bloodstream and distributed in the body.

Combination therapy is one of the techniques using nanotechnology that might cure HIV. In this, the therapy of attacking the HIV virus is paired with the strategy of enhancing the immune system. Because of this, patients who would have died from an HIV infection now have a better chance to survive the virus instead. Moreover, the immune system is boosted and rejuvenated, which not only improves the chances of a person surviving HIV but also a chance for a better health.

Despite the very promising and rosy picture all these products of nanotechnology that might cure HIV brings, the reality is that these are all still in the planning board. Scientists themselves acknowledge that plenty of researches have to be done before these treatments will be available on a mass basis.



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