Solar panels are typically dark, opaque, unsightly slabs blanketing the roofs of buildings. But they've got a brighter, more colorful future if the panels lining a Dutch highway is any indication. They could come in multiple hues—and even do double duty as noise-cancelling barriers.

These panels, installed on A2 Highway near Den Bosch, use a new kind of renewable energy technology called luminescent solar concentrators (LSC). Unlike typically metallic solar panels, these are red, yellow, and translucent. They are also cheaper than standard silicon-based panels—one of the reasons they’re be tested in a real-world context.

Dr. Michael Debije is the Eindhoven University of Technology professor spearheading the experiment. He’s spent years researching solar energy in the built environment and says that we still don’t have enough options for harnessing all the light that hits the earth. Standard solar panels live on rooftops, need to tilt at a certain angle, and, most problematically, are an eyesore. “People don’t find them attractive, so it’s hard for a building designer to integrate them in a way people will accept,” he says.

Eindhoven University of Technology

His solution is a new kind of panel that looks more like a stained-glass window pane than a sleeping computer screen. Each LSC panel is essentially sheets of plastic that, depending on the dye, captures a certain wavelength of sunlight, and then funnels that light toward solar cells on the panel’s edges. The transparent panels aren't as efficient as traditional models—Debije estimates that his panels will have a four to eight percent efficiency rating, compared to the 13 to 15 percent you get with silicon panels—but they're vastly more attractive, and therefore, Debije believes, they have wider applications.

Debije imagines LSC panels dotting all kinds of public spaces. Bus stops, typically made from three to four walls of transparent glass, could easily harvest energy. Park benches could be transformed into colored pieces of furniture and double as charging stations. Outdoor concert stages could catch enough light to then power the restroom and dining facilities.

Researchers first started publishing reports on the potential of luminescent solar concentrators in the 1970s. But Debije says interest in the technology declined along with falling oil prices started. Now, a number of groups are scrambling to perfect the transparent solar panel. A Silicon Valley startup called Ubiquitous Energy is developing a clear solar cell, as is a team at Michigan State University.

As for Debije, he says the two sets of panels alongside the A2 Highway will remain there until early summer of 2016. Getting a full year of testing is crucial, so his team can assess the design's durability and performance under all weather conditions. If the panels generate a substantial amount of energy, Debije says, he might make a convincing case for further investment.