Solar panels under water

Imagine solar panels that continue to work perfectly, even when they are submerged. It sounds like science fiction, but thanks to a new invention by researchers funded by the US Navy, it could soon become a reality.

Anyone who has ever owned a boat knows the following problem: once something is in the water for a long time, everything from algae to barnacles grows on it. It is a constant battle to keep equipment clean. This problem, known as 'biofouling', has made underwater solar panels impractical until now.

Researchers at the Technical University of Denmark have now developed a coating that addresses this problem. They describe it in a paper published in the scientific journal Progress in Organic Coatings. The coating combines three elements: an organic biocide (a substance that kills organisms), a special binder and small soluble pigment particles.

Self-renewing coating

The clever thing about this coating is that it constantly renews itself. As soon as the coating comes into contact with seawater, the pigment particles dissolve and form a porous layer. This allows seawater to penetrate, releasing the biocide and preventing fouling.

The binder reacts with the seawater during this process, causing the coating to wear off evenly. As this process continues, a new layer of the coating is exposed, ensuring that the surface continues to renew and polish itself.

Promising results

The results of the tests are already promising. After 12 weeks underwater during a test in Florida, the solar panels with the new coating retained almost 100 percent of their efficiency. That is a huge improvement compared to existing methods.

There is one caveat. The coating only works in salt water.

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