Overheating is a major issue that can reduce the efficiency of solar panels by 10-25% and shorten their lifespan. Here’s a promising solution we found during our search:

Lumenco, a US-based company, developed an innovative infrared (IR) reflecting film to enhance solar panel efficiency. Here’s why this might interest you:

Efficiency Improvement: The film reflects over 50% of infrared light, which can lower the temperature by up to 20°C. This helps to Increase the efficiency of solar panels by 10-12%.

Increased Lifespan: Lowering by more than 20°C could potentially extend the lifespan of solar panels by 30-40 years.

The films are made using advanced metal-dielectric composites and nanostructured materials. Let’s understand this in detail:

• Microstructures: The film includes linear, hexagonal, or other-shaped microstructures that are less than 400 nm in dimension. These microstructures are specifically designed to optimize IR reflection.
• Reflective Elements: Thin metal layers, each less than 0.1 microns thick, are used to create a reflective mask. This mask allows visible light to pass through while effectively blocking IR light, thereby reducing the heat that the panels absorb.
• Material Composition: The combination of metal-dielectric composites and nanostructured materials enhances the film’s ability to reflect IR light while maintaining transparency to visible light.
• Application Flexibility: The film can be either applied to existing solar panels or incorporated during the manufacturing process. Additionally, its versatility allows it to be used in other products like synthetic decking materials and thin-film photovoltaics.

This technology offers considerable potential for improving the performance and longevity of solar PV systems.