Are you considering building an energy efficient high-tech home? Well perhaps you ought to think about some of the latest and greatest materials that are now coming available. Today we have solar cell panels that are one-third the cost and 5 times more efficient, thus your return on investment is that much faster and you need a lot less of it to solve your energy requirements, but solar power is just one of the latest fast moving innovation of an alternative energy home.

How about materials that clean themselves? Sure they exist thanks to the University of Pittsburgh and PPG Corporation. New Titanium Dioxide coatings do just that and not only will they clean bacteria on stainless steel, but you no longer have to clean the windows, can you say; Self Cleaning Glass. The Coating Industry thanks to advances in nano-technology and chemistry have come a long way. How about a Graphene Coating, which is only 1 atom thick or the ultra-strong Carbon Nano-Tubes; 250 times stronger than steel and you can see thru it or make it opaque? Want a new skylight to see the stars at night or watch movies lying in bed on the silver-ceiling screen?

Do not expect your future dream home in two-decades to be built out of wood frame construction, things are changing, and within a couple of decades, three at the most, our future homes (smart homes) will be made out of materials that are out of this world. In fact, these same materials for our humble dwellings on Earth will also be used to build the first space colonies. The world is going to change, no it will not be over night, but that future is coming and it is something to consider.

It is believed that nano-tubes with copper atoms inside might also be used for solar panels with a little extra engineering so that is even more increased Solar Performance and a faster ROI. Live in California or on the Madrid Fault in the Midwest? No worries build your foundation out of Flexible Concrete. If all this is not enough for you check out innovations in Ceramic Coatings, Oranic Thin Films or Translucent/Opaque Walls. Here is a bit of information for you:

http://construction.com/NewsCenter/TechnologyCenter/Headlines/archive/2006/ENR_1009b.asp

Again all this is only a small fraction of the new innovations in material. How about the awesome "Green Roof" innovations, they are getting really good at this stuff. Indeed if you are thinking of building an Alternative Energy home or high-tech habitat, you have a lot to consider and the future cometh, it is time to look it in the eye and go with it. Something to contemplate as the future approaches in 2008.