World's First See-Through Glass SolarWindow Capable to Generate Electricity
Measuring less than ¼ the size of a grain of rice, the see-through glass could be coated with SolarWindow's coatings at room temperatures using commercially available technologies.
9 Electric Car Battery Factories Opened in Michigan: Experts Say Too Many
Michigan, once a prosperous area for the auto industry, saw a decline once the economy collapsed. Now, because of government incentives through grants under the Recovery Act, nine electric car battery factories have reborn there, creating new jobs and putting things on track again.
Google Signs 20 Year Contract With Major U.S. Wind Power Provider
The next time you do a search on Google after July 30, remember that they are buying energy from North America's largest wind power provider, NextEra Energy Resources, LLC. The search magnate will purchase 114 MW of clean energy within a 20-year contract.
Specially Shaped Nanopillars Make Solar Cells Absorb 99% of Light and Use 99% Less...
To increase the light absorption of solar cells, researchers from the University of California, Berkeley have perfected a nanostructure that could make up cheaper and more efficient solar cells and light detectors. Their structures absorb 99 percent of visible light and use 1 percent of the silicon semiconductor needed for flat crystalline silicon solar cells.
Dutch & Norvegian Researchers Say Osmosis Power Plants Could Suffice World's Electricity Needs
A new approach to generate electricity comes from engineers from Europe's northern countries of the Netherlands and Norway. They want to use the difference between salty and fresh water through osmosis in two different manners and say that their solutions could suffice the entire world's energy needs. The New Scientist joined them both in an interesting case study.
Shanghai Railway Station Benefits 6.8 MW Solar Power Plant Since Sunday
Germany and Spain may be the leaders in solar photovoltaics, but China comes from behind and amazes everyone with an enormous power station just above the Beijing-Shanghai railway station. The plant is able to produce 6.3 MWh (megawatt-hours) of electricity and can provide the needs of 12,000 households in Shanghai.
Planar Energy's New Printing Process to Improve Solid-State Batteries
Orlando-based startup Planar Energy, a spin-off from the National Renewable Energy Laboratories (NREL), found a new method that could improve the lifetime and stability of batteries used in electric vehicles. The company has created a new printing process of solid-state lithium-ion batteries. Unlike liquid lithium-ion batteries, this process can be used to print solid-state batteries that offer three times more storage.
Zephyr Solar Powered Airplane: Aloft For Two Weeks, Landing on Friday
Prototypes are always good if they can prove the weakest link between theory and practice. Then, the heavy industry can have the cake and make it ten times bigger, but the start and beauty of things is in the trial-and-error phase. Such is the case of Zephyr, a solar powered aircraft that took off more than seven days ago and is still aloft.
New Manufacturing Technology Promises to Improve CIGS Solar Cells' Efficiency
When it comes to power, everybody thinks about money and how we should make power-generating devices like solar cells become more efficient (read: more stuff for the same money and size). Thin film solar cells are yet another competitor to classic ones, and attract customers through the fact that they're thin, flexible and cheap. And they're also pretty inefficient (20% at most).
Batteries That Recharge When Shaken Unveiled by Brother Industries
Brother Industries Ltd recently developed a small generator that allows you to recharge it simply by shaking it. According to the company, the "vibration-powered generating battery" can replace AA and AAA batteries for devices like remote control or flashlights, that have an energy consumption of about 100 mW.
