Is a new paint part of the future of driving? A German automaker thinks the answer is a resounding “yes.” The nearly 100-year-old company is pioneering solar paint. They hope to develop paint that can generate enough energy to power a vehicle. How far? How about equivalent to the distance from Honolulu, Hawaii, to Paris, France?
A novel paint is in the works from Mercedes-Benz. The coating can turn an electric vehicle (EV) body into its own energy producer. Tiny solar modules are key to the trailblazing pigment. The modules are much thinner than a human hair. Yet these teensy units pack a powerful energy punch.
Researchers plastered the modules onto tops and sides of unpainted EV bodies. On a mid-size electric SUV, the energy-making solar paint could possibly run the car’s engine for nearly 7,500 miles in a year.
Electric vehicle owners could also send excess energy straight to the car’s battery or to another network like a home or a power grid. The paint system doesn’t stop when the engine does. It keeps making energy even when the vehicle is stationary—as long as the Sun shines.
Of course, many factors affect how much energy the modules generate. Shade amounts and sunlight intensity can alter energy production. Location on the globe also affects energy levels, since different places receive more or less solar radiation. On its website, Mercedes-Benz says Los Angeles, California, EV drivers, who experience lots of solar energy, could perhaps use energy from solar paint modules 100% of their drive times.
According to NASA, 44 quadrillion watts of power from the Sun hit Earth each year. Yet that power is little compared to the God who made the Sun with a word. He powers the Sun that powers the paint!
Solar paint may provide other potential benefits. The paint ingredients include only non-toxic and plentiful raw materials. That makes the modules easily recycled and far less expensive to produce than their solar panel cousins. Mercedes-Benz hopes to begin using solar paint on vehicles soon.
Although still in the research phase, solar paint’s possibilities seem exciting. If a car’s paint can someday generate energy from the Sun, EVs could become more practical, less expensive, and less dependent on charging stations. That would be good news for drivers worldwide.
With technology making such strides, engineers, architects, and builders may end up painting the town solar.
Why? God’s Sun is a common grace that gives warmth, power, light, and health to Earth and all its creatures. People may be just beginning to tap into the breadth of its application.
