Authored By: Solar energy still hasn't lived up to its potential to power homes and businesses. One of the biggest problems is that it is both difficult and expensive to install the box-like solar panels on the roofs of buildings.
However, scientists at the Department of Energy's Pacific Northwest National Laboratory have taken a big step toward solving that problem by inventing solar panels that are flexible and shaped like shingles. These panels are cheaper to install and should last for 25 years.
The new panels, called building-integrated photovoltaics, are based on a thin-film technology that is already being used to keep flat panel television displays from being damaged by moisture. They could soon turn the wasted space on rooftops into a source of renewable energy.
This program first published September 2009
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