Posts Tagged Solar Power

Solar Powered Cement Production Technology Takes Off at George Washington University

Posted by Ovidiu Sandru in Solar Power on May 18, 2012

Right now, cement production accounts for 5 to 6 percent of total man-made greenhouse gases. Producing lime, its key ingredient, uses an energy-intensive process that needs temperatures as high as 1,500 degrees Celsius, and that can only be obtained with fossil fuels. A new, rudimentary contraption at George Washington University does all that with solar [...]

Organic Solar Cells Market to Skyrocket in 10 Years, Report Says

Posted by Ovidiu Sandru in Solar Power on May 16, 2012

If you are about to invest in silicon-based photovoltaics, please stop for a moment and read this. IDTechEx, a market research company, has published a report saying that the organic (not silicon) photovoltaic market is about to hit a value of $630 million in ten years. The growth will be stupendous: 1300% from today’s $4.6 [...]

Solar Power Doesn’t Get Subsidized More Than Coal, Study Reports

Posted by Boniface Ndirangu in Green Economics on May 2, 2012

Complaints that renewable solar energy has received special incentives advanced by the U.S. government different from its support for traditional energy sources may be unfounded, reports Reuters. The said report was derived from a solar-industry backed report. This was a published assessment by researching scientists from the University of Tennessee’s Baker Center for Public Policy [...]

47% Efficiency for Solar Cells With Microscopic Folds and Wrinkles

Posted by Mihai Sandru in Solar Power on April 30, 2012

Researchers have so far bent over backwards to find the best way to make solar cells as efficient as possible and just when you thought this is it – this one’s the best, here comes another one, claiming the exact same thing. So let’s hear the “microscopic folds” formula out, which reclaims an efficiency of [...]

Solar-Powered Clothing Researched at Colorado State University

Posted by Boniface Ndirangu in Solar Power on April 19, 2012

A very recent study at Colorado State University could bring a complete revolution to the traditional way solar panel charging systems are handled and utilized. Researchers and students affiliated to the university have shown that there is a possibility that natural clothing material could be incorporated with solar-powered chargers and be used to tap solar [...]

Family Business: Tesla Motors’ Batteries to Complete SolarCity’s Solar Power Products

Posted by Ovidiu Sandru in Solar Power on April 18, 2012

An interesting cohesion between Tesla Motors and SolarCity is seemingly getting bigger as of lately. The first are known for their trustworthy car batteries and the latter for their solar panels. The two of them could revolutionize how home-based solar power is sold throughout the United States. Tesla is known for importing lithium ion batteries [...]

World Tour Cyclist Helping Solar Power in Africa Gets Hit by Truck in Arkansas

Posted by Ovidiu Sandru in Solar Power on April 13, 2012

Sean Conway, the man who wants to circle the globe only on his bike, in an effort to gather money for SolarAid – the charity work destined to bring clean energy to East Africa, was hit by a truck while cycling near Little Rock, AK. Conway’s target is London, the place where he departed from, [...]

Natcore’s New Black Silicon Solar Cells Working Efficiently Regardless of Weather

Posted by Ovidiu Sandru in Solar Power on April 10, 2012

Imagine we could also harvest solar power while it’s cloudy outside, and those clouds won’t make much of a difference. That could be possible due to a new generation of perfectly-black solar cells, the blackest possible, which can actually trap 99.7 percent of the incoming light. Natcore Technology, the exclusive licensee of Rice University black [...]

John Mankins’ Space-Based Solar Power Array Closer to Reality

Posted by Ovidiu Sandru in Solar Power on April 10, 2012

A project involving satellites, solar panels and microwave power transmitters is in works in Santa Maria, CA, where John Mankins, from Artemis Innovation Management Solutions is studying how on earth we could capture solar power in space and transmit it to the ground safely and efficiently. The project has been codenamed SPS-ALPHA (Solar Power Satellite via [...]

EPFL’s Solar-Powered MicroThrust Ionic Motor Goes to Moon and Back With 3.38oz of Fuel

Posted by Ovidiu Sandru in Solar Power on March 29, 2012

A new technology developed by scientists at the EPFL in Switzerland (where organic solar cells were invented) that allows for a 1 small satellite weighing 1 kg to travel from the Earth to the Moon with 100 grams of fuel. Now that’s what I call “fuel efficiency!” Warning: This article is not about what’s averagely [...]

German Institute Integrates Highly-Efficient Solar Cells on Ski Helmets

Posted by Mihai Sandru in Green Electronics, Solar Power on March 7, 2012

Look at the picture. What do you see? A helmet, you’ll say. However, for the more experienced, this is not just any kind of helmet, but one that integrates solar cells as well. This application is one of the many solar cells are expected to endorse by the end of this year. The progress has [...]

UK Scientists One Step Closer to Artificial Leaves With New Discovery

Posted by Chris Bretto in Solar Power on February 23, 2012

As the world stands on grim perspectives, such as the doubling of energy consumption within the next 40 years and the imminent shortage of oil and gas, the attention shifts towards nature’s resorts. And photosynthesis, far-fetched as it may seem, is no exception. The principle of it is relatively simple: plants produce carbohydrates through what [...]

Bankrupt Kodak to Produce Thin-Film Solar Cells In Near Future

Posted by Mihai Sandru in Solar Power on January 23, 2012

Every end is a beginning. We all heard that before. I guess it’s not Kodak’s turn to test it for itself, as the company filed for bankruptcy just at the end of last week. The announcement is still fresh, but Kodak already has a back-up plan: going into the solar business by manufacturing flexible solar [...]

Military-Owned Lands in CA and NV Could Yield 7 GW of Solar Power

Posted by Ovidiu Sandru in Solar Power on January 17, 2012

The military has a few of the United States’ largest sun lit areas in its administration. A recent study, performed by ICF International and funded from military money, revealed that seven bases in California and two bases in Nevada could produce some 7 GW of electricity and could ease the load put on taxpayers’ pockets. [...]

SpaceX Dragon: The First Spacecraft Using Solar Panels (Video)

Posted by Mihai Sandru in Solar Power, Video on January 9, 2012

I wonder what it feels like to know that you’ve contributed to space expeditions and, indirectly, to the future of mankind? Very proud, I assume, as must feel the engineers from SpaceX, a private space transport company led by Elon Musk, also Tesla Motors’ CEO. During its first mission to the International Space Station, the [...]

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