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A comment on Japanese company develops a solar cell with record-breaking efficiency. Parent comment

Re:Japanese company develops a solar cell with record-breaki... by ihaveajob on Thursday March 23, 2017 @10:09AM (#13939840)
For reference, in https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Photosynthetic_efficiency there is mention that photosynthesis has a nominal efficiency of about 30%, but in practice the absorbed energy stays in the 3-6% range, with sugar cane being exceptionally efficient at 8%.
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Re:Japanese company develops a solar cell with record-breaki... by the8472 on Thursday March 23, 2017 @10:35AM (#13940070)
That 3-6% range is stored energy after the plant consumed some of the produced glucose to maintain itself and grow.

Photovoltaics don't do that on their own, so you can't compare that to a solar cell's nameplate efficiency.

Either you have to compare PV efficiency with gross glucose production or you need to compare the full PV lifecycle (production, installation, maintenance and recycling) with the harvestable sugar content.

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