Batteries that Charge Themselves with Mechanical Energy
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MicroGen Systems has been working on electricity generating chips designed to power wireless sensors like those used to monitor tire pressure and environmental conditions.
Read MoreMonthly Archives: August 2011
New LED Lightbulb Under $15 Hits the Market, May Go Lower
The days of using lightbulbs as a political football may be drawing to a swift and un-melodramatic close, now that the company Lighting Science Group has announced the development of a new 60-watt equivalent LED lightbulb that will retail for under $15.00.
Read MoreChanging the Climate Conversation to Conservation
Polls show Americans are less concerned about climate change today, down 12 percent over the past 10 years, and in some parts of the country the term “global warming” is practically taboo. So why then are some of the states with the biggest populations of global-warming skeptics also some of the states making the biggest investments in renewable energy?
energyNOW! correspondent Lee Patrick Sullivan visited Kansas, where some clean energy advocates say they’ve figured out what it takes to convince climate-change skeptics to invest in renewables and energy efficiency. Their advice: stop talking about global warming and change the conversation to energy conservation.
Read MoreElectricity Home Rule Could Save D.C. Billions, Create Over 14,000 Jobs
For many years the citizens of Washington, DC, struggled for the basic right to elect their own leaders. In 2011, they should use their political home rule to maximize the economic benefits of local renewable energy with “electricity home rule.”
Read MoreAn Aeroponic Green Thumb: Click and Grow
If the complexity of your life has not admitted the capacity to grow a plant, and you long to, then Click and Grow aeroponics can be your secret green thumb.
Read MoreCoal Shortages Speed Up China’s Clean Power Plans
The Chinese government continues to expand its clean energy production plans, to replace increasingly expensive coal power that is shutting down coal plants and causing power shortages of at least 16 GW. China’s twelth five-year plan unveiled this week plans for 70 GW for wind, and 5 GW of solar by 2015.
Read MoreInnovative, New Approach to Low-Head, Low-Flow Water Power
Interest and investment in low-head (vertical drop), low-flow hydro power peaked a century ago. This corresponds to the rise of interest in hydro turbines. The improved power output of the larger units dictated their priority over traditional stream and water wheels.
Read MoreEnergy Impact of Light Bulbs (Infographic)
I recently received this Energy Impact of Light Bulbs infographic from Well Home Energy Audit. I thought it was a fun one, and a clear fit for CleanTechnica, so here it is:
Read MoreFalling Solar Panel Costs are Great for Buyers, Bad for Producers (sort of)
A recent industry analysis by Lux Research projects the amount of solar power installed is to grow 15.5 percent per year, but revenues are to stay flat, until 2016. A report from Navigant Consulting discovered that the price of solar panels is down almost 20 percent as of August 2011. The information derived from these two reports show that the consumer is poised to benefit from the price reduction, while manufacturers can expect an almost flat profit margin for the next few years.
Read MoreCheap, Portable Solar Light from LuminAID
We’ve been on a bit of a solar-powered lighting kick over the past year or so: from solar light bulbs to micro solar systems for lighting and power to 2 liter soda bottles as solar light collectors, we’ve seem many ways that inventors and designers have addressed the need for appropriate lighting technology in places where electric grids don’t exist.
So, when I discovered the LuminAID today, I had to toss it into the discussion.
