SoylentNews is people
SoylentNews
Electrochromic glass essentially uses electric charge to switch a window from allowing sunlight into blocking it out. Some have estimated that such "smart windows" could cut lighting needs by about 20 percent and the cooling load by 25 percent at peak times.
Now researchers at the University of Texas Austin have found a way to make them even better. They developed a novel nanostructure architectcure for electrochromic materials that enables a highly selective cool mode and warm mode—something thought to be impossible a few years back.
In research published in the journal Nano Letters, the University of Texas researchers along with scientists at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory were able to get nanostructured electrochromic materials to control 90 percent of the near-infrared (NIR) light and 80 percent of the visible light. What's more, it only requires a few minutes to switch between these two modes, whereas previously reported materials took hours to make this transition.
This would make a huge difference for energy efficiency everywhere, since windows are the Achilles' heel of a structure's insulation.
(Score: 2, Interesting) by Spamalope on Sunday July 26 2015, @03:16PM
In a market where the office building owner has to pay property tax on the cost of high tech efficiency upgrades (and interest on the loans for the cost) if the owner installs them, but tenants have to pay the higher utility costs if he doesn't then the upgrades don't make financial sense to the decision maker even if they're money savers over-all. Why pay tax and interest for an upgrade that saves someone else money?
(Score: 2) by tibman on Sunday July 26 2015, @07:40PM
Not every decision has to be made in the direction of more money.
SN won't survive on lurkers alone. Write comments.