No Energy No Problem
Innovation is continuing to be a staple for advancement in our modern society. We are seeing an increasing amount of everyday materials and spaces be better utilized for more efficiency and lower costs. Recently in Boulder, Colorado a team of researchers has developed a new material for keeping homes and buildings cooler in the summer. Hoping to see a reduction in energy consumption from air conditioning and other types of cooling systems.
By utilizing a glass-polymer film to reflect solar energy into the atmosphere we can limit the heat that roofs absorb. This will allow solid surfaces to be cooled via infrared thermal radiation. The glass-polymer contains microspheres scattered throughout the polymer film and a silver undercoat to optimize spectral reflectance. Initial estimates indicate a 100 to 200 square foot home can be cooled during the summer months with this method.
The implications don’t end there either. Research is continuing on in hopes of utilizing this material with solar panels and solar roofing tiles to help keep the solar system cooler. This will help the solar panels and solar roofing tiles to be more efficient. Despite their refractive properties the glass-polymer can potentially increase the efficiency by 2 percent. While this isn’t a huge gain it is certainly a step in the right direction.
Energy no longer needed to reduce energy