Principles and applications of selective solar coatings

Several ways that selective coatings can be used to enhance the performance of solar energy collection systems are reviewed. Coatings discussed include vacuum-deposited, electroplated, and paint-type selective solar absorber coatings and vacuum-deposited and chemically etched antireflection and infrared reflecting coatings for glass. The optical and physical requirements for the coatings, as well as their effectiveness at increasing solar collector performance, are discussed.