Power Plastic – Super flexible, see-through solar material of the green future

As we turn to sun for powering up every possible thing on earth, latest innovative materials are being designed to reduce the cost and increase the efficiency. One such ingenious material on the horizon is Konarka’s Power Plastic. This super-light fabric is ultra-flexible and affordable in comparison to the traditional silicon panels. With such high flexibility potential, Power Plastic can also be fused into fabrics…..giving rise to solar powered tees, skirts, jeans and more. The maker is also working on a translucent version of the material that could also be used to put up on the windows of the eco-towers. Such Power Plastic windows will help to energize the whole tower with its sun-soaking powers.

The solar film is made by printing a secret polymer ink onto thin filmstrips using a converted Poloroid press. When light contacts the film, the ink emits electrons and generates an electric current.
Along with going transparent, this material also boasts of its ability to print camouflage and other patterns. This in turn has attracted the attention, imagination, and investment of several branches of the US military, the National Science Foundation, DARPA, the Department of Energy, the Department of Commerce, Fortune 100 companies, and leading venture capital firms.
[Cleantechnica]