Lightweight plastic mirrors drop cost of solar thermal energy by 40%

[Hurricanelover]

Lightweight plastic mirrors drop cost of solar thermal energy by 40%
By Abhimanyu Ghoshal
May 18, 2025

Lightweight plastic mirrors drop cost of solar thermal energy by 40%

Researchers in Australia are working on a way to lower the cost of producing solar thermal energy by as much as 40% with the help of shatterproof rear-view mirrors originally designed for cars.

newatlas.com

Researchers in Australia are working on a way to lower the cost of producing solar thermal energy by as much as 40% with the help of shatterproof rear-view mirrors originally designed for cars.

That could be huge for agriculture and industrial facilities which need large amounts of heat for large-scale processes at temperatures between 212 - 754 °F (100 - 400 °C). That addresses food production, drying crops, grain and pulse drying, sterilizing soil and treating wastewater on farms; industrial applications include producing chemicals, making paper, desalinating water, and dyeing textiles.

A quick refresher in case you're out of the loop: solar thermal energy and conventional solar energy (photovoltaic) systems both harvest sunlight, but they work in fundamentally different ways. Solar thermal setups capture the Sun's heat rather than its light, use reflectors to concentrate sunlight onto a receiver, and convert solar radiation directly into heat energy. This heat can be used directly for heating buildings, water, or the aforementioned industrial processes.

Awesome advancement!

 

[toobfreak]

Awesome advancement!

Pretty funny that engineerrs developing solar heating didn't realize there were cheap plastic mirrors available! But no matter as plastic will never hold up sitting out baking in the sun all day.

 

[justoffal]

Lightweight plastic mirrors drop cost of solar thermal energy by 40%
By Abhimanyu Ghoshal
May 18, 2025

Awesome advancement!

Plastic???? Do you have any idea how hot those mirrors get? I wish them luck... but plastic???
Kind of like building a brick wall out of sugar cubes isn't it?

 

[MarathonMike]

A plastic solar panel wouldn't make it through one Arizona summer.

 

[wamose]

I remember getting pissed off at pay phones that robbed my money and I punished a few of them, but you could never put a mark on one of them. That plastic was indestructible.

 

[Old Rocks]

My 2003 Dodge Caravan has almost 200,000 miles, has sat outside all of it's life, and has two small plastic mirrors that are original equipment. Seems that especially designed plastic mirrors for that purpose would work. And, by the way, the inside of cars in direct sunlight get very hot, and those mirrors still work.

 

[petro]

Yay!
More micro plastics to get into the environment and our bodies.

There's your "Green" tradeoff.
Every form of energy has an environmental cost.
No free rides.

 

[toobfreak]

My 2003 Dodge Caravan has almost 200,000 miles, has sat outside all of it's life, and has two small plastic mirrors that are original equipment. Seems that especially designed plastic mirrors for that purpose would work. And, by the way, the inside of cars in direct sunlight get very hot, and those mirrors still work.

But the mirrors are not in full direct sun all day long aimed straight into the sunlight like a solar mirror. And the inside of the car gets hot due to trapping of IR radiation, what we are talking about here is not IR energy by UV degradation.

 

[Seymour Flops]

Lightweight plastic mirrors drop cost of solar thermal energy by 40%
By Abhimanyu Ghoshal
May 18, 2025

Awesome advancement!

Yes, alternative energy sources (alternative to fossil fuels) are the thing of the future. The fairly distant future.

Powering electric vehicles, home heating, and stoves with electricity derived from fossil fuels and believing that the planet will be saved thusly is pretty silly.

 

[elektra]

Lightweight plastic mirrors drop cost of solar thermal energy by 40%
By Abhimanyu Ghoshal
May 18, 2025

Awesome advancement!

Yet, thermal solar is still a 100% failure technically

Ivanpah and Desert Dunes is the proof.

 

[westwall]

Lightweight plastic mirrors drop cost of solar thermal energy by 40%
By Abhimanyu Ghoshal
May 18, 2025

Awesome advancement!

Working on......means they haven't done it yet.

Learn how to read for comprehension.

 

[Old Rocks]

Working on......means they haven't done it yet.

Learn how to read for comprehension.

They were working on lithium batteries many years ago. So, how did that work out?

 

[westwall]

They were working on lithium batteries many years ago. So, how did that work out?

They are still working on them.

Where you been?

 

[Old Rocks]

They are still working on them.

Where you been?

And sodium batteries, zinc batteries, water-iron batteries, as well as some chemistries that I have not came across yet. And as the batteries get less expensive, get lighter, and more powerful, we see them in ever increasing roles. I used pneumatic impact wrenchs for most of my career as a millwright, but in the last ten years of it, used battery driven impacts that were much easier to use. Same for hand drill motors, used extension cords, then the batteries took over. And the water-iron battery looks to be a real winner on grid scale storage;

The world's largest battery is set to be built in Lincoln, Maine, by Form Energy, utilizing iron-air technology. This facility will store 8,500 megawatt-hours of energy, making it the largest battery in the world. The project is funded by the U.S. Department of Energy with a $147 million grant and is part of a larger initiative to enhance grid resilience and optimize the delivery of renewable energy. The iron-air battery system, which uses iron, water, and air, is expected to be operational by 2028. This project is crucial for New England's energy future, as it will help reduce reliance on gas-fired power plants and improve the reliability of the grid during peak hours or extreme weather.

MSN

 

[Old Rocks]

Yet, thermal solar is still a 100% failure technically

Ivanpah and Desert Dunes is the proof.

There have been many successful uses of mirrors and Stirling engines.

 

[Old Rocks]

Yes, alternative energy sources (alternative to fossil fuels) are the thing of the future. The fairly distant future.

Powering electric vehicles, home heating, and stoves with electricity derived from fossil fuels and believing that the planet will be saved thusly is pretty silly.

LOL Another Trumpanzee ignoring the obvious. 90% of new energy generation in 2024 was renewables. Not for political or ideological reasons, but because of economics.

In 2024, renewable energy sources accounted for nearly 90% of all new electrical generation capacity in the United States. Solar energy alone contributed 78% of the new capacity during the first nine months of the year. This trend has been consistent, with solar being the largest source of new capacity for 13 consecutive months. The growth of renewable energy is a significant shift in the U.S. power sector, with solar and wind now representing over 21% of the country’s total generating capacity. When combined with other renewable sources, they account for 30.3% of total U.S. capacity. This surge in renewable energy is a testament to the increasing investment and deployment of clean energy technologies in the U.S.

Mix of all renewables provided over 90% of new US generating capacity in 2024

A review by the SUN DAY Campaign of data just released by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) reveals that the mix of renewable energy sources (i.e., biomass, geothermal, hydropower, solar, wind) accounted for more than 90% of total US electrical generating capacity added in 2024...

renewablesnow.com

 

[Old Rocks]

Yay!
More micro plastics to get into the environment and our bodies.

There's your "Green" tradeoff.
Every form of energy has an environmental cost.
No free rides.

Well, it simply looks like fossil carbon energy has the highest cost by far.

 

[toobfreak]

And as the batteries get less expensive, get lighter, and more powerful, we see them in ever increasing roles.

What do you mean "as" they get lighter and more powerful? Yes, batteries have improved a lot in size and weight and energy storage since the days of NiCads and such, but current lithium technology has pretty much hit a technological roadblock, and you will not see any further dramatic increases in bulk reduction or energy storage for a long time. The impetus now is on developing new technologies which rely less on rare earths like lithium mainly sourced from China to more available elements.

The world's largest battery is set to be built in Lincoln, Maine, by Form Energy, utilizing iron-air technology. This facility will store 8,500 megawatt-hours of energy, making it the largest battery in the world. The project is funded by the U.S. Department of Energy with a $147 million grant

Pretty funny. Isn't the DOE the same people who just blew 96 billion dollars in 74 days giving it all away on grants to half-baked outfits with no real business model or viable products to show for it?

 

[elektra]

There have been many successful uses of mirrors and Stirling engines.

Yes, in a laboratory or for a unique special tax but never a success on a commercial level or industrial. Thank you for pointing this out

 

[westwall]

And sodium batteries, zinc batteries, water-iron batteries, as well as some chemistries that I have not came across yet. And as the batteries get less expensive, get lighter, and more powerful, we see them in ever increasing roles. I used pneumatic impact wrenchs for most of my career as a millwright, but in the last ten years of it, used battery driven impacts that were much easier to use. Same for hand drill motors, used extension cords, then the batteries took over. And the water-iron battery looks to be a real winner on grid scale storage;

The world's largest battery is set to be built in Lincoln, Maine, by Form Energy, utilizing iron-air technology. This facility will store 8,500 megawatt-hours of energy, making it the largest battery in the world. The project is funded by the U.S. Department of Energy with a $147 million grant and is part of a larger initiative to enhance grid resilience and optimize the delivery of renewable energy. The iron-air battery system, which uses iron, water, and air, is expected to be operational by 2028. This project is crucial for New England's energy future, as it will help reduce reliance on gas-fired power plants and improve the reliability of the grid during peak hours or extreme weather.

MSN

Yeah, look at that, YOU have been breathlessly telling us about all these new batteries that will change the world.....


Squadoosche.