Jan 24 - McClatchy-Tribune Regional News - Kat Hughes Columbia Daily Tribune, Mo.

Imagine that instead of paying to install solar panels on the roof of a new home, homeowners could simply purchase roof shingles that have a built-in photovoltaic system, ready to be plugged in to provide a home with energy.

Columbia is one of several sites nationwide where testing of new technology will occur to make solar technology more efficient, less costly and more innovative.

The project is part of the U.S. Department of Energy's Solar America Initiative, and it will partner the Columbia Water and Light Department with the University of Missouri chemistry department, Prost Builders Inc. and Dow Chemical to test new materials to provide cheaper and more adaptive solar technology that would replace more expensive and rigid silicone materials now used in photovoltaic devices.

"Dow makes many building products, and the idea is to incorporate solar voltaic technology into the shingles of a roof or the siding of a house, something homeowners already have to spend money on anyway, but it will also collect energy. That is the Holy Grail," said Vaughn Prost, president and owner of Prost Builders Inc. "But it obviously has to be cost-effective where the typical homeowner would think to do it. Also, silicone is very brittle, but a shingle has to be flexible, so how do you do that? That's what we're working on."

Dow Chemical is paying $50,000 to install a 5-kilowatt photovoltaic system at the city's West Ash Street pump station that, starting in April, will start harnessing the sun's energy and channel it to the city's power grid. The city will donate land for the demonstration and spend about $23,000 to outfit the area with fences and technology that will allow Dow to monitor output of the system online.

In addition, the MU chemistry department will use the data from the demonstration to further study photoelectric effects and apply for graduate student grants to conduct more research. "Dow wants to get more experience with working with a utility, and Columbia is uniquely situated because it owns its own utility," Prost said.

Columbia water and light spokeswoman Connie Kacprowicz said electricity produced by the demonstration would be sufficient to power about 3,700 homes.

"Right now there are not a lot of Midwest applications for solar technology," Kacprowicz said. "This is important because it will help measure solar efficiency from this location, which will give not only the utility but also residential users more information on what to expect from solar systems."

Prost said there now are only a handful of solar installations in Boone County. He said Columbia is the only Missouri city to take part in the initiative, the goal of which is to lower the cost of solar energy to make it cost-competitive by 2015.

Aside from providing the city with discounted electricity, the solar demonstration's output can also be applied toward Columbia's renewable energy standards.