A lack of structural integrity to support the weight of traditional, glass-faced solar panels has been a hurdle in utilising this type of roofing. The partners developed Sempradon, a chemical surface treatment to enable flexible solar panels to be used instead.
Alongside Scott Bader's Crestabond structural adhesive, this joint technology is said to provide a fast way to bond flexible solar panels to roofing structures made from a range of materials without the need for screws or expensive tapes. This will enable flexible solar panels to generate green electricity on structures that are currently unutilised.
Oxeco CEO Vassilis Ragoussis said: "By solving this issue, we have removed a major barrier to the solar energy revolution and can greatly accelerate the move to net zero. Flexible solar panels are 80 percent lighter than traditional panels and can conform to many different shapes. Therefore, our collaboration with Scott Bader to deliver this combination product means that flexible solar panels can help more people and businesses harness solar energy.”
The combination technology is expected to provide a high-strength bond, reducing the cost and complexity of installing lightweight, flexible solar panels and improving the aesthetic appearance once installed. It has also been proven to withstand wind loads two times higher than a category-five hurricane.
The partnership has received the support of professor Chas Bountra, the pro vice chancellor for innovation at the University of Oxford. Bountra said: “This partnership will help enable the widespread roll-out of flexible solar panels – an industry that will be vital for achieving a sustainable energy economy.”
Oxeco’s technology was created in the University of Oxford’s Department of Chemistry and developed over more than two decades. It is leveraging this technology within product design and manufacturing for the transport and clean technology sectors.