Behind this is placed a black plate made from another plastic, Noryl, which is filled with tiny ceramic particles. From this plate, the water absorbs the heat given out by the sunlight which has been trapped. As the water conducts the heat away, the plate will remain cold and there will be a reduction in heat emission to the surrounding area. The particles form an efficient heat exchanger without there being a corresponding rise in pressure as there is in other solar energy production. In addition, the solar panel is emptied as soon as the water supply is switched off.
Water circulation is controlled by a speciallydesigned microprocessor.
Gert Jan Kooij, departmental manager in General Electric Plastics in the Netherlands says that he is extremely pleased with the results of this collaboration with the University of Oslo. We do a lot of work with universities in the Netherlands, and working with the University of Oslo is a new experience for us but a good one all the same. Commercial Research John Rekstad points out that he must remember which hat he is wearing when he switches from his job as a scientist to his position as chairman of the private company SolarNor.