The State of California is pushing solar energy as a way to both reduce greenhouse gases and enhance energy security. What are the barriers to widespread use of solar energy in the United States?
At a cost of between 20 cents to 30 cents per kWh, solar energy is considerably more expensive than other existing fuels for electricity generation, thereby rendering solar power an unattractive primary fuel source based solely on economics. Making solar energy easier and cheaper to store remains a key challenge. Sadly, despite solar energy’s great potential as an unlimited renewable resource, U.S. federal spending on solar energy is quite small because it lacks a large political constituency to push for its funding. U.S. federal spending on solar energy is only $70 million per year, compared to $2 billion per year for clean coal research. Such a small budget for research and development for solar energy reduces the chances of a major breakthrough to lower the costs for producing this ideal source of energy. Nanotechnology has contributed, and should continue to contribute, tremendous benefits for the advancement of solar technology by opening the possibility for new, more efficient te
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