Solar is booming. Now, a Swedish tech innovator is putting its potential in the
hands of the masses — one rechargeable device at a time.
Almost 200 GW of new clean energy generation capacity was added last year,
according to Ren21 figures; and the lion’s
share of that — 115GW — came in the form of solar power.
In fact, the solar photovoltaics market grew 12 percent in 2019, with strong
demand across the US and Europe making up for a substantial fall in
sales in China. Worldwide, on- and off-grid capacity now stands at around
627 GW. Just a decade ago, that number was less than 23 GW.
The popularity of solar energy use is no surprise. It has quickly become the
most competitive option for clean electricity generation in a number of places,
whether for residential or business use — and, increasingly, for the big utility
players. Prices for solar have fallen by more than 80
percent
since 2010.
By the end of last year, 22 nations had enough solar power capacity to meet at
least 3 percent of their electricity demand; 12 countries had enough for at
least 5 percent.
While such deployment speed might not be enough to satisfy the IEA’s
‘sustainable
development’
scenario (it predicts the world will need 300 GW of new clean energy capacity a
year between 2018 and 2030), and rooftop solar installation forecasts for
Europe and the US have been
slashed
this year, thanks to
COVID-19; solar is
certainly having its day in the sun right now.
But while energy generation capacity is rolled out at speed, making effective
and efficient use of the energy created by the Sun remains a fertile testbed for
innovators everywhere. Creating energy is one thing; harvesting it, storing it
and making it available to people everywhere is quite another.
One such innovator is Giovanni Fili, founder of
Exeger — which has spent the last decade exploring how
centralised power distribution might be transformed. Inspired by the work of
Professor Michael Grätzel, a wizard in
the world of electron transfers and photovoltaics, the business has taken many
of his theories and developed them further into a revolutionary new,
light-harvesting material that can be mass-produced.
“From the start, our vision has been to go from one centralised power
distribution, to a distributed clean power generation where individuals can have
control over their power consumption,” Fili told Sustainable Brands™
in a recent interview. “We wanted to democratise energy.”
To do this, Fili and his team have created
Powerfoyle — a patented solar material
capable of converting all types of light into energy, making it possible to
charge any device or appliance from natural daylight, sun or indoor lighting.
Powerfoyle can be printed in any shape, for any surface; and can take almost any
texture — such as leather, wood or fabric.
Exeger founder Giovanni Fili, with Powerfoyle | Image courtesy of Exeger
To kick off, Exeger has started working with companies such as US headphones
manufacturer JBL, to embed Powerfoyle into the products. It has also teamed
up with POC — a company that makes wearable safety equipment such as cycling
and snowboarding helmets — seamlessly applying the solar material into smart
helmets to enhance safety by protecting users before, during and after an
accident.
Fili says it has taken ten years to refine Powerfoyle into what it is today.
“When we first began, I told Henrik [the company’s CTO, Dr. Henrik Lindström]
that I only wanted him to create something that would serve a real purpose to
consumers — something that is useful, and can contribute to lessening the damage
and strain we are putting on the environment due to charging personal
electronics. In those ten years, we have developed — from start to finish — a
unique piece of technology that has near-endless applications.”
So, what does he mean by “near-endless”? What is it about Powerfoyle that is so
exciting? Well, in a market struggling to get a grip on the mountain of
e-waste
that continues to build as batteries
die
and electronic gadgets are thrown away, Powerfoyle has a big role to play. The
cells work similarly to the way that plants photosynthesize; absorbing light in
many different conditions and using that energy to generate fuel — in this case,
electricity.
Powerfoyle cells can be applied to any ‘dumb’ or ‘passive’ surface, rendering it
‘smart’ — and thus serving many more purposes for the consumer. When applied to
consumer electronics — such as headphones, tablets and e-readers — the material
enables them to self-charge, even when being used in ambient light.
“Imagine a world where your street signs, lights, speakers are all powered by a
material that doesn’t have to rely on sunny weather or plugging them into a wall
or computer, in order for them to work,” Fili says excitedly.
What usually happens is that electronic products get thrown away or left in a
drawer, never to be used again. Products integrated with Powerfoyle, to date,
have either aged, broken or have aged faster than the Powerfoyle — which
prolongs the battery life by reducing and avoiding the aging process of full
battery charge cycles.
“The ambition has remained the same from our initial idea; putting consumer
electronics which have near-endless battery life, into the hands of the masses,”
Fili says. “No charging — just complete, untethered living without having to
worry about plugging in.”
It’s a bold ambition; but with some good partners already on board, the future
is bright. The JBL Eternal
headphones,
featuring Powerfoyle, were due to launch this October, but COVID-19 has delayed
things. The partnership with POC will come to fruition at the end of the
year. Softbank and Samsung have also confirmed interest in making use of
Exeger’s innovations.
“We’re on a mission to restore the carbon balance of the planet by freeing
people from the requirement to recharge their tech products — a process which
creates a significant, yet typically overlooked, burden on the planet’s
resources.”
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Tom is founder of storytelling strategy firm Narrative Matters — which helps organizations develop content that truly engages audiences around issues of global social, environmental and economic importance. He also provides strategic editorial insight and support to help organisations – from large corporates, to NGOs – build content strategies that focus on editorial that is accessible, shareable, intelligent and conversation-driving.
Published Jul 20, 2020 8am EDT / 5am PDT / 1pm BST / 2pm CEST