Cleantech
Addressing cleantech problems too complex to solve in a single domain

PARC & new venture SolFocus, Inc. have collaborated to develop low-cost solar energy systems. Above: lead team members pose in front of a first-generation CPV module installed at PARC.

PARC's Cleantech Innovation Program combines in-depth technical expertise and concrete industry experience to address key cleantech problems in a variety of markets.

Benefits

• Deliver cost-effective, manufacturable solutions that appeal to target markets
• Address key cleantech problems too complex to solve within a single domain of expertise
• Translate visionary ideas into fundamental IP and working prototypes
• Accelerate time-to-market through multiple commercialization channels

About the Program

The program began as a grassroots initiative by a small group of dedicated scientists, and has evolved into a strong, multidisciplinary effort aimed at developing cost-effective cleantech solutions for clients – especially since one of the main obstacles to the widespread adoption of cleaner technologies is cost. PARC also draws on insights from visiting technologists and other strategic partnerships to engage the market early and ensure a viable commercialization path.

For every client engagement, PARC assembles a custom team of scientists, engineers, ethnographers, and business development leads from a range of relevant backgrounds. For selected startups, PARC also provides access to facilities resources such as office-lab space, operational support, R&D tools, and more.

Example Work

PARC researchers are harnessing deep, multidisciplinary competencies to develop novel, cost-effective cleantech solutions that meet concrete industry needs. Some examples of problems we're working on include:

• Affordable solar energy — By integrating the optical, thermal, and electrical aspects of high-efficiency concentrator photovoltaics into a monolithic glass tile, PARC & SolFocus, Inc.’s 2nd generation solar concentrator is smaller, lighter, inherently more reliable, and more cost-effective to manufacture in high volumes. The resulting solar power generation is significantly more affordable and scalable than competing approaches. More...
   
• Water Filtration — By applying expertise in particle manipulation, microfluidics, and MEMS, PARC has developed a high-volume, membrane-free, spiral fluidic filtration approach that reduces requirements for physical space, chemicals, and energy in conventional water treatment. For a typical 20 MGD installation, PARC technology could cut land use in half, and reduce capital, operations, and maintenance costs by over a third. More...
    
• Solar-cell efficiency — PARC’s novel “co-extrusion” technology prints high aspect ratio structures for the front metallization on Si solar cells, By reducing shadowing and improving efficiency by 1% absolute (6% relative), extrusion-printed frontside gridlines translate into profits for solar PV manufacturers – over $150K net gains per MW, at roughly the same capital cost . The PARC spinout based on this technology has access to over 25 patents covering the printing method, printer hardware, specific ink designs, and other PV process innovations. The co-extrusion technology also enables new high-density structures for fuel cells and batteries.
   
• Data-center optimization — PARC is extending expertise in model-based control and real-time optimization, planning, and scheduling towards optimizing energy and resource utilization in data centers. These dynamic optimization techniques – which enable millisecond-level decision-making, learning, and adaptation – have already been implemented in high-end printing systems commercialized by Xerox. By integrating virtualization operations with PARC’s optimization layer into a closed loop, data centers can reduce energy use and manage feedback about energy costs to better plan capacity, price services, and fulfill specific service-level agreements – yielding an additional 30% improvement over virtualization alone.
   
• Paper usage reduction — In collaboration with Xerox, PARC scientists developed self-erasing, re-usable paper for printing temporary documents such as cover sheets, daily assignments, and e-mail. The technology development was informed by PARC ethnographers’ studies of actual office paper use, which revealed that nearly half of all office printouts are “transient documents”, typically used only once before being discarded. PARC scientists developed the hardware for the technology, which uses an ultraviolet LED light bar to print the erasable image. More...
   
• Renewable liquid fuels — To provide a commercially viable alternative to fossil fuels, PARC is working on an electrochemically driven atmospheric CO2 capture device. Coupled with carbon free electricity generation such as from solar, wind, or geothermal, atmospheric CO2 capture could enable a carbon neutral source of liquid hydrocarbon fuels for transportation and energy storage. PARC scientists have already demonstrated the world’s most efficient continuous CO2 extraction from the atmosphere to date, and are currently evaluating the technology application against air handling, rate, cost, reliability, and other production issues.

Background

PARC's Cleantech Innovation Program began as a grassroots initiative by a small, dedicated group of PARC employees interested in sustainable technologies. After forming a discussion group to understand the critical technology challenges in this area, the group engaged experts and hosted (in collaboration with other local organizations) a special PARC Forum speaker series on "Sustainability" — topics included renewable energy systems, sustainable development in emerging markets, green buildings, and “cradle-to-cradle” approaches. After identifying areas where PARC could best apply its multidisciplinary insights and cross-industry expertise, our researchers initiated specific technology projects.