R&D is at the heart of the Sunlight Group and extroversion is one of our most significant pursuits. Both these aspects of our operation are reflected in the company’s participation as implementation partner in a wide range of innovative research projects, to which we offer our expertise, state-of-the-art equipment, and facilities. This platform is dedicated to such projects.

The SELAS Project

Project SELAS, named after the Greek name of the Aurora –or polar lights– phenomenon, pertains to the design and development of new photovoltaïc panel technology that will cover the energy needs of highways infrastructure, such as toll stations and parking lots. The goal of the project is to power this infrastructure, utilizing diffused night lights from the headlights of passing cars and other such energy sources, stored in Sunlight Group’s innovative energy storage products. To achieve this goal, the project will combine mainstream solar panels with 3^rd generation ones (DSSCs) and Sunlight Group’s “smart batteries.”

The project is implemented in collaboration with CERTH (Centre for Research and Technology-Hellas), the National Centre for Scientific Research “Demokritos,” and the Egnatia Odos motorway, where it will initially be implemented.

The SELAS project has a budget of ca. €730,000 and is co-financed by the European Regional Development Fund, via the EPAnEK operational programme COMPETITIVENESS-ENTREPRENEURSHIP-INNOVATION. The project started in October 2018 and is estimated to be concluded in autumn 2022. Currently, the preparatory stages have been implemented and the project is undergoing the testing phase, upon the conclusion of which the photovoltaïc panels will be installed at the Egnatia Odos motorway for the pilot run.

Specific project goals and estimated benefits

SELAS is a pioneering project in the sense that it will explore the operation of new photovoltaïc panels for 24 hours a day, i.e. also during the night. Its specific goals include:

• The design and development of innovative photovoltaïc systems to be integrated in the actual highway infrastructure of Egnatia Odos.
• The development of a software tool that will process, predict, and optimize energy services needed for said infrastructure.
• The simulation of case scenarios via this tool that do not yet exist in Egnatia highway –e.g. electric cars charging stations and “smart” lighting– to render the tool as future-proof as possible.
• The development and installation of a battery-storage system, specially produced and customized by Sunlight Group with the use of lithium technology, along with the photovoltaïc application that will help the project achieve self-consumption.
• The utilization of renewable energy sources in real economy applications, thus reducing carbon footprint, as well as energy costs.

Sunlight Group’s commitment to ESG

SELAS is yet another project reflecting Sunlight Group’s commitment to incorporating Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) factors across its operation and activities. At Sunlight, we acknowledge the significance of ESG and sustainable development as one of our highest priorities. This acknowledgement and commitment; the ensuing benefits of the project to local communities, the environment, and the conservation of natural resources; the significance of our project partners; as well as the potential of scaling the project and its benefits, informed our decision to join and contribute to the SELAS project.

The Team

The Sunlight Group Team working on this project is led by Symeon Parcharidis and comprises Christos Bouzinidis, Vaggelis Dinolazos, Konstantinos Kelesidis, Aristoklis Karamanidis, Konstantinos Mitrou, Othon Monachos, Efstratios Thomaidis, and Emrach Zoumpre. Working along the Sunlight Team are respective teams from the collaborating partners, with CERTH acting as overall Coordinator.

The teams have already issued two publications related to the project:

• MLP for Spatio-Temporal Traffic Volume Forecasting, presented at 2021 IEEE International IOT, Electronics and Mechatronics Conference (IEMTRONICS), Toronto, Canada
• DSSCs for indoor environments: from lab scale experiments to real life applications, published at SVOA Materials Science &Technology 3 (2020) 1-5

Additional information

For more information, please visit https://selas-project.gr