Solar Energy – Page 6

cutting edge, Record Breaker, Science & Technology News, Solar Energy, Solar Power

These hyper-efficient solar panels could actually live on your roof soon

February 28, 2019

The clean energy boffins in their labs are always upping the theoretical limit on how much power you can get out of sunshine, but us plebes actually installing solar cells are stuck with years-old tech that’s not half as good as what they’re seeing. This new design from Insolight could be the one that changes all that.

Insolight is a spin-off from the École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, where they’ve been working on this new approach for a few years — and it’s almost ready to hit your roof.

Usually solar cells collect sunlight on their entire surface, converting it to electricity at perhaps 15-19 percent efficiency — meaning about 85 percent of the energy is lost in the process. There are more efficient cells out there, but they’re generally expensive and special-purpose, or use some exotic material.

Continue reading… “These hyper-efficient solar panels could actually live on your roof soon”

China, Science & Technology News, Solar Energy, Solar Power, Space

How China’s space-bound solar installation will beam power down to earth

February 24, 2019

Solar panels in space

Researchers are exploring new means of providing power.

Researchers in China are planning a solar farm in space, an ambitious project that could deliver energy at six times the intensity of installations on Earth. The project, which made the front page of China’s Science and Technology Daily last week, would orbit in space and beam down energy to a receiver.

The station would reportedly orbit 22,000 miles above the Earth and benefit from harvesting energy without any complications from seasonal changes or atmospheric conditions, providing energy 99 percent of the time. It’s expected to weigh a staggering 1,000 tons, around 600 tons more than the International Space Station, so the researchers are exploring alternatives like using robots and 3D printers to build the construction in space. The idea is nothing new: NASA started researching the idea in the mid-1970s during the Arab oil embargo, and even devised bold concepts like the SunTower:

Continue reading… “How China’s space-bound solar installation will beam power down to earth”

Energy, Great New Product, Green Friendly, Science & Technology News, Solar Energy, Solar Power

Transparent solar panels will turn windows into green energy collectors

February 19, 2019

A team of researchers from Michigan State University managed to develop a fully transparent solar panels – a breakthrough that could lead to countless applications in architecture, as well as other fields such as mobile electronics or the automotive industry. Previous attempts to create such a device have been made, but results were never satisfying enough, with low efficiency and poor material quality.

Continue reading… “Transparent solar panels will turn windows into green energy collectors”

Energy, Solar Energy, Solar Power

These Origami solar panels generate electricity for apartments

February 16, 2019

Solgami wants to help people living in cities.

A new design of solar panel could help apartment dwellers harvest electricity from their windows without prohibitive installation costs. Solgami, designed by Australian architect Ben Berwick, is a window blind that generates power while bouncing more light into the room using a folded origami design.

“It’s a bit of a reconnection to the natural setting,” Berwick, who founded architecture firm Prevalent, told Fast Company* this weekend. “It’s making your apartment a better place to be.”

Continue reading… “These Origami solar panels generate electricity for apartments”

Batteries, Elon Musk, Science & Technology News, Solar Energy, Solar Power, Tesla

Tesla proposes microgrids with solar and batteries to power Greek islands

January 25, 2019

Tesla has met with the Greek government to propose ways to modernize the electric grid of the country’s many islands in the Mediterranean sea with microgrids and renewable energy to reduce their dependence on fossil fuels.

Several Greek islands are relatively remote and rely heavily on fossil fuels to power their electric grid.

Over the years, Tesla has acquired some experience in building microgrids to power remote islands using solar panels and its energy storage systems, like the Powerpack.

Continue reading… “Tesla proposes microgrids with solar and batteries to power Greek islands”

China, Science & Technology News, Solar Energy, Solar Power

The world’s largest floating solar plant is finally online

November 26, 2018

This massive power plant is taking energy to a whole new level.

The world’s largest floating solar power plant is now online in China. Built by Sungrow, a supplier of PV inverter systems, the 40MW plant is now afloat in water four to 10 meters deep, and successfully linked to Huainan, China’s grid. The placement was chosen in large part because the area was previously the location of coal mining operations; and, as a result, the water there is now mineralized and mostly useless. The lake itself was only formed after years of mining operations, the surrounding land collapsed and created a cavity that was filled with rainwater.

Continue reading… “The world’s largest floating solar plant is finally online”

Battery, Energy, Solar Energy, Solar Power

Scientists develop liquid fuel that can store the Sun’s energy for up to 18 years

November 13, 2018

No matter how abundant or renewable, solar power has a thorn in its side. There is still no cheap and efficient long-term storage for the energy that it generates.

The solar industry has been snagged on this branch for a while, but in the past year alone, a series of four papers has ushered in an intriguing new solution.

Scientists in Sweden have developed a specialised fluid, called a solar thermal fuel, that can store energy from the sun for well over a decade.

“A solar thermal fuel is like a rechargeable battery, but instead of electricity, you put sunlight in and get heat out, triggered on demand,” Jeffrey Grossman, an engineer works with these materials at MIT explained to NBC News.

Continue reading… “Scientists develop liquid fuel that can store the Sun’s energy for up to 18 years”

Energy, Home Technology, Housing, Solar Energy, Solar Power

The future of construction may be concrete that generates its own electricity

November 8, 2018

We need buildings in which to live, but crafting those buildings is making it harder to live on this planet. As much as 10% of global carbon emissions come from the production of concrete. One ton of CO2 is generated by making one ton of cement, which is made from limestone and a few other things heated to an extremely high temperature.

But what if concrete could generate its own energy? The era of photovoltaic concrete may be getting closer. Photovoltaics, which work by converting light to energy via semiconducting, are starting to migrate from solar panels into the building materials themselves.

Continue reading… “The future of construction may be concrete that generates its own electricity”

Energy, Hot Issues, Science & Technology News, Solar Energy, Wind Power

Utilities have a problem: the public wants 100% renewable energy, and quick

September 18, 2018

The industry is groping for ways to talk the public down.

Renewable energy is hot. It has incredible momentum, not only in terms of deployment and costs but in terms of public opinion and cultural cachet. To put it simply: Everyone loves renewable energy. It’s cleaner, it’s high-tech, it’s new jobs, it’s the future.

And so more and more big energy customers are demanding the full meal deal: 100 percent renewable energy.

Continue reading… “Utilities have a problem: the public wants 100% renewable energy, and quick”

Energy, Latest Trend, Solar Energy, Solar Power

Power worth less than zero spreads as green energy floods the grid

August 7, 2018

Wind and solar farms are glutting networks more frequently, prompting a market signal for coal plants to shut off.

Bright and breezy days are becoming a deeper nightmare for utilities struggling to earn a return on traditional power plants.

With wind and solar farms sprouting up in more areas — and their power getting priority to feed into the grid in many places — the amount of electricity being generated is outstripping demand during certain hours of the day.

The result: power prices are slipping to zero or even below more often in more jurisdictions. That’s adding to headaches for generators from NRG Energy Inc. in California to RWE AG in Germany and Origin Energy Ltd. in Australia. Once confined to a curiosity for a few hours over windy Christmas holidays, sub-zero cost of electricity is becoming a reality for hundreds of hours in many markets, upending the economics of the business in the process.

Continue reading… “Power worth less than zero spreads as green energy floods the grid”

Environment, Great New Product, People Making a Difference, Science & Technology News, Solar Energy, Solar Power

Amazing solar panel device is now open source

July 27, 2018

Anyone who has wanted to generate their own energy and filter their own water can now do so with an amazing open source device.

Speaking on stage at Inspirefest 2018, Chinese-Canadian mechanical and electrical engineer Eden Full Goh described what inspired her to develop a cheap, easy-to-build solar panel device called the SunSaluter.

Continue reading… “Amazing solar panel device is now open source”

Breakthrough Thinking, cutting edge, Energy, Solar Energy, Solar Power

These living solar cells make energy, even in bad weather

July 24, 2018

When it comes to generating energy from sunlight, unusual solutions have been shown to make the process more efficient.

Now, a team of researchers from the University of British Columbia (UBC) has demonstrated how solar cells made of living organisms can generate energy even with limited sunlight. Known as “biogenic” solar cells, these cells could offer an alternative to synthetic cells currently used in conventional solar panels, providing an energy source despite bad weather. A paper detailing the research was published this month in the journal Small.

Continue reading… “These living solar cells make energy, even in bad weather”