Archive for the 'solar power' Category
SOLAR TODAY’s January/February issue launches the magazine’s first major redesign since its launch in 1987 with a free online digital edition.
Issue highlights include –
- WAR ON CLIMATE CHANGE coverage, featuring “Charting a Bold Course” by Denis Hayes, president of the Bullitt Foundation.
- ASES Policy Committee recommendations for the new administration.
- New sections such as What’s New at SolarToday.org, Howzit Work?, Advances and New Energy.
— American Solar Energy Society [ASES]
This Is Reality
the This Is Reality – Come Clean on Clean Coal Campaign: There is no such thing as “clean”coal
This Is Reality|these are The Facts
Continue reading ‘This Is Reality’
This technology, using organic dye coated windows to concentrate solar energy on photovoltaic cells at glass edges, has been released for like 4 months but is still pretty fascinating stuff and the company is now online.
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- High-Efficiency Organic Solar Concentrators for Photovoltaics
Science 11 July 2008: 226-228 DOI: 10.1126/science. 1158342
MIT Research May Bring Down Cost of Solar Energy from Renewable Energy World
solar light + H2O = fuel
For solar to become a primary source of electricity, vast amounts of affordable storage will be needed. And today’s options for storing electricity just aren’t practical on a large enough scale.
Enter MIT chemist Daniel Nocera, who has mimicked the step in photosynthesis in which green plants split water into hydrogen and oxygen using sunlight and an inexpensive liquid catalyst. read article in Technology Review
Click on map through to your state to find out which organizations offer green power in your state. The results will include utility green pricing programs, retail green power products offered in competitive electricity markets, and renewable energy certificate (REC) products sold separate from electricity. For additional information about these distinct products, see the EERE Overview of Green Power Markets.
AK AL AR AZ CA CO CT DC DE FL GA HI IA ID IL IN KS KY LA MA MD ME MI MN MO MS MT NC ND NE NH NJ NM NV NY OH OK OR PA RI SC SD TN TX UT VA VT WA WI WV WY
from The U.S. DOE – Energy Effieciency and Renewable Energy
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AND… don’t forget to check the DSIRE resource:
Federal Incentives
Please support The Institute for 21st Century Energy’s Blueprint for Securing America’s Energy Future (PDF full – 4.43Mb) at Colorado State University in Fort Collins, CO. With more than 75 energy policy recommendations (PDF summary) for the next President and Congress, the Institute’s bold energy blueprint is worth your attention.
The blueprint puts specific recommendations behind the 13 fundamental pillars for a comprehensive energy strategy outlined in the Institute’s Open Letter to the next President and Congress.
Aggressively Promote Energy Efficiency
Reduce the Environmental Impact of Energy Consumption and Production
Invest in Climate Science to Guide Energy, Economic, and Environmental Policy
Significantly Increase the Funding for Research, Development, and Demonstration of Advanced Clean Energy Technologies
Immediately Expand Domestic Oil and Gas Exploration and Production
Commit to and Expand Nuclear Energy Use
Commit to the Use of Clean Coal
Increase Renewable Sources of Electricity
Transform our Transportation Sector
Modernize and Protect U.S. Energy Infrastructure
Address Critical Shortages of Qualified Energy Professionals
Reduce Overly Burdensome Regulations and Opportunities for Frivolous Litigation
Demonstrate Global Leadership on Energy Security and Climate Change
more Google Earth Eco-Activism
from celcias.com
The Mountain View company announced Tuesday that it will open its deep pockets to foster innovation in solar, wind and geothermal technology in the hopes of making green energy cheaper than power produced by burning coal. The plan is to generate one gigawatt of renewable energy -and do it soon- enough to power a city the size of San Francisco.
In general, Google said it will make investments and give grants to projects that show promise in developing energy at a cost below coal-fired power plants. Companies, universities and research and development labs will be eligible.
Last year the company said it would become carbon-neutral by the end of this year, meaning that it will be responsible for zero carbon emissions. Already, Google has built a solar panel installation at its headquarters that generates 1.6 megawatts, making it among the biggest corporate arrays in the country. In addition, the company has put out a request for proposals to fund up to $10 million in research and development of electric and hybrid cars.
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Current Solar Electricity Generated at the Googleplex
Last 7 days: 7,394 kilowatt-hours
Last 24 Hours: 1,067 kilowatt-hours
Since Jun 18, 2007: 606,229 kilowatt-hours
3rd or 4th Generation PV?
Traditional photovoltaic solar cells use the sun’s energy to knock electrons away from the positive charges (holes) in doped silicon. In this manner, the two cannot recombine until the electrons have traveled the entirety of the circuit with an applied load. The University of Delaware have devised solar cells being far more efficient, as they could implement up to some six different material substrates to generate power from different parts of the solar spectrum. The solar light coming into the cell is concentrated 20 times and passes through a high-energy absorbing material (purple) to a reflective splitter that directs medium (green) and low (red) energy light to the other appropriate absorption materials.
