Advanced fibers and textiles for energy conversion and storage

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Solar photovoltaics is of great importance to Canadian economy and society as one of possible means to reduce our dependence on fossil fuels and mitigate the negative environmental impact of existing energy generation technologies. While it is likely that silicon based technologies will dominate large-scale photovoltaic installations in the near future, there are numerous applications that can and should be explored in order to boost the amount of energy produced in Canada from clean sources. In this proposal, we target one of such underused areas, solar light harvesting using advanced textiles. Windows are essential part of any house; however, they are also a prime channel for energy losses in winter or unwanted heat in summer. Therefore, sun and heat blocking window coverings are increasingly popular with consumers. Light reflective coverings such as blinds or curtains reflect sunlight back outside and thus are capable to significantly reduce the inside temperature thus decreasing the need in air conditioning and the associated energy demand. However, all the currently available products and solutions do not make any use of the light and just reflect or dissipate it, while it would be very advantageous to harvest this light and convert it into electricity. This would further reduce the amount of unwanted heat at the same time providing additional electricity for the needs of the household and at the time when it is most needed (the time of use tariffs as well as electricity demand are at their highest during summer afternoons). The proposal is aimed at development of photovoltaic fibers and fabrics as a non-traditional approach to harvesting solar energy. A further line of research is aimed at development of fiber-based batteries for electrical energy storage and their integration into the photovoltaic fabrics to create new line of innovative green consumer products for Canadian manufacturers.