These systems can also energize the formation of fruits and vegetables for the benefit of other creatures. This chemical energy can then be accessed during dark night hours, or even longer if necessary.Įven with at most 28.6 percent efficiency, the energy system of plants is able to provide enough power to fuel the light-to-energy collection and storage machines themselves, as well as support all the other plant equipment and processes-including DNA, protein, and vitamins, and both intra- and extracellular nutrient transportation. Collections of sugar molecules, typically in the form of starch, serve as plant “batteries” by storing the chemical energy. However, like solar cell panels, unless plant cells store their energy in a stable yet retrievable form, their systems would all shut down within minutes in the dark. This adds up to 1665 kilo-Joules (a standard unit of energy) of light that are required to store 477 kJ of chemical energy in the plant, resulting in a maximum efficiency of 28.6 percent. They draw on specific wavelengths of light and typically use eight photons to store one molecule of carbon dioxide. These God-devised “solar cells” convert solar energy into chemical energy, rather than electric. While this presents a problem for scientists, God has already invented efficient solar energy capture and storage mechanisms-in plants. Solar cells do not operate in the dark, so if the energy they capture in daylight cannot be stored, it cannot be used at night or on cloudy days. 1Īlthough other labs have solar cell prototypes that have reached and exceeded 40 percent efficiency, 2 some researchers are concerned that unless an improvement in energy storage is achieved, trying to make progress in harvesting solar energy might be a waste of time. The result was attributed to improved “contact structures” of solar cells, according to Frank Dimroth at the Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems ISE in Freiburg. Advances in solar cell technology have produced a new European record of 39.7 percent efficiency.
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