Archive for category Solar Power

Michael Grätzel Receives 800,000 Euros Millennium Technology Prize for Inventing Dye-Sensitized Solar Cells

Posted by Ovidiu Sandru in Solar Power on June 10, 2010

Michael Grätzel, one of the world’s most famous scientists and innovators in the field of solar power, has received the best prize any scientist could get in a lifetime, besides the Nobel: The Millennium Technology Prize, weighing 800,000 Euros. The most versatile and promising dye-sensitized solar cells bear his name today, after Grätzel, a respected [...]

Nano-Sized Solar Cells Inspired by Coaxial Cables Developed by Boston College Researchers

Posted by Ovidiu Sandru in New Inventions, Solar Power on June 9, 2010

To make thin film solar cells have a higher efficiency than any of the previously experimented models, some Boston College researchers propose using nano-scale solar cells inspired by the working principle of coaxial cables. There’s a so-called “thick & thin” issue in making thin solar cells, which states that a solar cell has to be thick enough to collect light in sufficient amounts, and at the same time it needs to be thin enough to extract current from it.

Orange Brags Having Installed More Than 3 GWh of Solar Power in Africa

Posted by Ovidiu Sandru in Solar Power on June 7, 2010

Mobile phones and devices are more and more present on the market, with a figure of 5.8 billion users expected by 2013. Thus, mobile telephony networks, through their corporate responsibility programs, have to plan their expansion taking into account the CO2 amounts their base stations emit, 24/7.

Shimizu's Master Plan For a 11,000 Km Long, 400 Km-Wide Lunar Solar Belt

Posted by Ovidiu Sandru in Solar Power on June 2, 2010

A Japanese company, Shimizu, dreams of turning the Moon’s ecuator into an 11,000 kilometers long solar collector, and bring that energy “down” to Earth via a 20-km wide dishes, through microwaves and lasers. The belt would have widths ranging from a few to 400 km. Now, how brilliant is that?

Transparent Copper Nanowires Proving Best for Solar Cells and Other Flexible Gadgets

Posted by Ovidiu Sandru in New Inventions, Solar Power on June 1, 2010

To make the best solar cells flexible, researchers have to find the best conductive materials. Such conductors are silver and indium tin oxide (ITO) nanowires, but they have several drawbacks. The copper nanowires made using a method invented by Duke University chemists, on the other hand, are cheaper than silver and better (read more conductive) than carbon nanotubes.

Cevital Planning to Build $8 Billion Solar Power Complex in Sunny Algeria

Posted by Mike Sandru in Solar Power on May 30, 2010

Cevital, one of Algeria’s largest private companies, is seeking foreign investors to help build an $8 billion solar power complex to export renewable energy to Europe.

Solar Panels Glare Could Create Negative Chain Effects for Surrounding Ecosystems, Researchers Say

Posted by Ovidiu Sandru in Solar Power on May 28, 2010

We have to realize that we’re not alone on Earth and that our actions compete with those of the (other) animals, and while we’re seeking to make our lives more and more unnaturally comfortable, we destroy the very ecosystems that sustain our growth. Such can be the case with the light that solar panels reflect, as Michigan State University scientists say.

Irish Company Proposes Alternative Energy Backup Systems for Mobile Telephony Operators

Posted by Ovidiu Sandru in Solar Power, Wind Power on May 28, 2010

Cinergy, an Irish company, wants to equip cell phone companies in developing countries with alternative energy sources, such as wind turbines and solar panels. Because in countries like Africa, Asia and Latin America mobile networks are expanding quickly, the local power grids often don’t keep up with the loads and the operators need diesel backup generators.

New Layering Technology Makes Ultra-Efficient Solar Cells Available Not Only for Satellites

Posted by Ovidiu Sandru in Solar Power on May 27, 2010

Silicon is hardly the most efficient material for use in solar cells, but it is used because it’s cheaper to make silicon solar cells. Gallium arsenide, for example, is a much more efficient semiconductor than silicon, but has a high manufacturing cost. Now, a team of scientists from the University of Illionis, devised a technology that builds gallium arsenide solar cells in a much cheaper fashion, making them more cost-efficient.

Close Competition for Most Efficient Concentrator Solar Cells from U.S.-Based Spire Corporation

Posted by Ovidiu Sandru in Solar Power on May 26, 2010

Spire Semiconductor, a subsidiary of Spire Corporation based in Massachusetts, has announced that they have matched world’s record 41.1 efficiency for a concentrator solar cell (the sources don’t mention it, but that’s probably the one achieved by Fraunhofer researchers we talked about a week ago).

HP Developing Flexible Solar-Powered Wristwatch For The U.S. Army

Posted by Mike Sandru in Green Electronics, Solar Power on May 24, 2010

HP has started the development of a next-generation wristwatch for the U.S. Military. The wristwatch called ÃƒÂ¢€Ã…â€œDick TracyÃƒÂ¢€ may eliminate the need for soldiers to carry backup batteries and cumbersome technological gear.

Fraunhofer Researchers Developing 41.1% Efficient Solar Panels

Posted by Ovidiu Sandru in Solar Power on May 20, 2010

They used Fresnel lenses situated 10 cm apart from stacked layers of solar cells. The metamorphic triple-junction solar cells consist of gallium indium phosphide, gallium indium arsenide and germanium semiconductors. The efficiency of these cells is dazzling: 41.1 percent – higher than ever before. The two scientists even for the 2010 Joseph von Fraunhofer Prize.

Solar Powered Windows From Pythagoras Solar Both Transparent and Productive

Posted by Ovidiu Sandru in Solar Power on May 19, 2010

Some solar energy adopters wish to use their solar panels in the classic manner – installed on a roof or in their backyard. Still, there are situations where installing a flat solar panel is near to impossible, due to space limitations in places like corporate buildings or where aesthetics matters.

Optical Fibers Mounted Upright on Organic Solar Cells Doubling Their Efficiency

Posted by Ovidiu Sandru in New Inventions, Solar Power on May 14, 2010

Right now organic solar cells, although cheap, are too inefficient to compete with silicon-based ones. A team of researchers from Wake Forest University in North Carolina have developed a practical method of doubling the efficiency of organic (or dye-sensitized) solar cells by adding a layer of upright optical fibers acting as sunlight traps.

By Increasing Transmittance to 99%, New Anti-Glare Treatment Makes Glass Perfect for Solar Cells

Posted by Ovidiu Sandru in Solar Power on May 12, 2010

Their newly-invented treated glass features a transmittance of at least 97 percent, which could be good for using in solar panels. The company says that the use of their glass could enhance the efficiency of solar cells by 2 to 3 percent.