Giant clams could inspire better solar power systems [Video]

Solar panel and biorefinery designers could learn a thing or two from iridescent giant clams living near tropical coral reefs, according to a new study.

This is because giant clams have precise geometries—dynamic, vertical columns of photosynthetic receptors covered by a thin, light-scattering layer—that may just make them the most efficient solar energy systems on Earth.

“It’s counter-intuitive to a lot of people, because clams operate in intense sunlight, but actually they’re really dark on the inside,” says Alison Sweeney, associate professor of physics and of ecology and evolutionary biology at Yale.

“The truth is that clams are more efficient at solar energy conversion than any existing solar panel technology,” Sweeney says.

In the new study in the journal PRX: Energy, a research team led by Sweeney presents an analytical model for determining the maximum efficiency of photosynthetic systems based on the geometry, movement, and light-scattering characteristics of giant clams.

It is the latest in a series of research studies …