A new €30 million ($40 million) UK research centre is proposing the use of organic photovoltaics to power unmanned aircraft payloads and airliner cabin electronics. Organic photovoltaics are carbon-based electronics that can absorb solar energy.
The photovoltaics are produced as thin films just a few microns thick, making them lightweight and conformable in comparison to silicon-based solar cells. The Centre for Emerging Nano, Micro and Photonic Systems (Cenamps), in north-east England, will begin thin film production by April next year.
"With organic photovoltaics an area of 5-10m2 (54-108ft2) will deliver 1-2kW. The photovoltaics could cover the wings. Organic photovoltaics can absorb energy across a wider range of wavelengths and so a cloudy day is not a problem," says Cenamps science and innovation director Raymond Oliver.
A third of the €30 million, which was provided by industrial partners, the One NorthEast regional development agency, European Union regional aid and grants from the UK's Department of Trade and Industry, is being spent on manufacturing process technology.
As well as photovoltaics, the thin film technology can produce organic electronic circuits and batteries using three processes. They are inkjet printing, which uses inks filled with metal particles the extrusion of multilayered thin films and the traditional printing process.
Source: Flight International
