Indian fruit could lower cost of solar cells by 40%
Scientists at the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Roorkee discovered that jamun, a black plum, contains a pigment able to absorb sunlight, which could mean that utilizing the fruit in mass production of solar panels may lower costs, inhabitat.com reports.
IIT-Roorkee assistant professor Soumitra Satapathi and two other researchers from the institute used an anthocyanin, discovered by extracting the pigment using ethanol, as a sensitizer in dye sensitized solar cells (DSSCs).
They think utilizing naturally occurring dyes, like the jamun pigment, could lower solar panel costs by 40 percent.
loading...
Anthocyanin is also found in blueberries, raspberries, cherries, and cranberries.
Loading...