Smart building materials company ClearVue has inked a binding research agreement with the University of New South Wales (UNSW) through the School of Photovoltaic and Renewable Energy Engineering.
The partnership will see the organisations work together to assess the viability of future technologies which could add further efficiencies to ClearVue’s existing solar-PV glass technology.
ClearVue has developed a technology which produces solar energy from clear glass panes, applicable for homes and commercial sites.
The research team will be led by the respected Dr Shujuan Huang and will explore the development of a clear solar concentrator which uses quantum dots, a nanoparticle with high yield photoluminescence.
Should the test work prove positive, the quantum dots could complement ClearVue’s existing nano-particles which it already embeds within its glass.
The nanoparticles allow the technology to re-direct UV and infrared rays to solar modules at the edge of the glass frame.
The research will explore implementation of a different kind of nanoparticle material than the type that we currently use in our products, in the form of specially developed quantum dots,” ClearVue executive chairman Victor Rosenberg said.
“Our hope with this new research is that we may be able to combine quantum dot technology with our existing technologies … to improve overall power output from our innovative glass products but also to explore other application opportunities,” he said.
The research project is anticipated to take approximately 12 months.
