Scientists in the US claim to have extended the operating life of plastic solar cells --from mere hours to eight months. A team from the University of Alberta and the National Institute for Nanotechnology has developed a longer lasting, polymer coating for the electrode which are key to the goal of a solar energy technology, extracting electricity from cell.

Prior to the polymer coating breakthrough, the plastic solar cells could operate at high capacity for about ten hours only, according to the scientists, led by David Rider.

When Rider and his team members presented their paper to the 'Advanced Functional Materials' journal, their plastic solar cell had performed at high capacity for 500 hours. But, it kept on working for another seven months.

The scientists claim that the unit eventually stopped working when it's damaged during transit between laboratories.