162 Ecological Sustainability
to the donor/acceptor interface. The widely used acceptor molecules are elec-
tronegative, C
60
, buckminsterfullerene “soccer ball” molecules.
The major impact of large, solar panel “farms” on sustainability appears to
be the large areas of ground they shade, altering plant and animal ecology.
Since the major US installations are in the desert southwest, it appears that
this impact will be low (this is not arable land or forest). In order to inter-
face solar panels with the grid, their low-voltage DC power outputs must be
inverted (i.e., changed to 60 Hz AC power). Inversion can be accomplished
by having a DC motor drive an alternator or by a solid-state system. The
inversion process has power losses, decreasing ...