Writer: Sing

Recent studies of foldable electronics have been intensive, and just as we await the 2nd generation of foldable phones to be announced, we witnessed an unexpected breakthrough in the sustainable energy venture. An international research conducted by a team from South Korea’s Pusan National University lately enabled an innovative and feasible solution in turning huge, broad-scale solar panels into a foldable, and walkable device.

To make solar cells flexible and bend repeatedly without breaking, the team abandoned the usage of traditional solar panel materials and applied single-walled carbon nanotube (SWNT)¹ films during manufacturing, they are known for their thin, high transparency and mechanical resilience appearance. SWNT is then applied into a polyimide(PI)² substrate, filling the void spaces in the nanotubes³ so it can be stuck to the base without using other chemicals. Molybdenum (a chemical element) is also used to increase conductivity to make the foldable solar cell more resilient and yield more folding cycles.

The result of the study sees a huge refinement. The 7mm prototype has showcased a 15.2% efficiency and almost 80% transparency that can withstand 10000 folding cycles without breaking. The result is so gratifying that the research term concluded the innovation as “some of the best among those reported thus far for flexible PSCs (perovskite solar cells) in terms of both efficiency and mechanical stability.”

The invention of foldable solar cells means solar panels is possible to be integrated with all sorts of gadgets and everyday appliances - from charging headphones, mobile devices, smartwatches, and Bluetooth earpieces to smart inventions in the future such as smart glasses, and holographic performances. Although the development of foldable solar cells is still in its very beginning stage, it has proved the possibility of producing handy solar devices and merging them into any electronic device you can imagine.

Source:
https://www.intelligentliving.co/breakthrough-solar-panel-technology-fully-foldable-cells/
https://www.printedelectronicsworld.com/articles/23084/new-technology-makes-foldable-solar-cells-a-reality
https://renewablesnow.com/news/research-in-s-korea-comes-up-with-fully-foldable-solar-cells-730945/
https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/advs.202004092

Image Source:
https://www.intelligentliving.co/breakthrough-solar-panel-technology-fully-foldable-cells/

Remarks:
[1] To put it in simpler words, SWNT is a single long wrapped graphene sheet.
[2] Polyimide is a type of polymers known for its durable high-temperature performance and chemical resistance
[3] Nanotube is a nanoscale material discovered in 1991 that is used to construct miniature cylindrical carbon structure and has hexagonal graphite molecules attached at the sides. Compared to titanium, nanotubes are lighter, cheaper, and have twice the tensile strength.