Published on November 3rd, 2009
SolarReserve; a California start-up spin-out from United Technologies’ Rocketdyne has filed an application with the CPUC to build a 150-megawatt heliostat solar farm with seven hours of after-sunset energy stored in molten salt. These are the rocket scientists responsible for our solar-powered space exploration.
Theirs would be the first heliostat type of solar array to produce grid power in California. Abengoa has several in Spain, and plans one in Arizona. United Technologies has licensed the original technology to the new company SolarReserve and its wholly owned subsidiary Rice Solar Energy, LLC, (RSE).
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Published on November 3rd, 2009
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Pittsburgh has been laying the groundwork for a high tech green jobs renaissance ever since its mighty steel mills shut their doors 30 years ago. Now the payoff is coming. FLABEG, the global specialty glass manufacturer, has just opened a solar mirror factory by Pittsburgh International Airport that will bring an estimated 200 jobs to the region, and perhaps as many as 300.
The new $30 million facility will initially focus on its core production line of parabolic curved solar mirrors. Months before the plant opened it already received 700,000 orders, and FLABEG expects to reach a capacity of 1 million mirrors annually.
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Published on November 3rd, 2009
Researchers at the Georgia Institute of Technology have made a three-dimensional photovoltaic solar cell around an optical fibre, a revolutionary new approach that could pave the way for a new generation of hyper-flexible solar systems.
According to team-leader Professor Zhong Lin Wang, “Using this technology, we can make photovoltaic generators that are foldable, concealed and mobile. Optical fibre could conduct sunlight into a building’s walls where the nanostructures would convert it to electricity. This is truly a three dimensional solar cell.”
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Published on November 2nd, 2009
The huge project to build a $555 billion renewable energy “belt” in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, funded largely by German companies, moved another step forward a few days ago.
The articles of association for the DESERTEC Industrial Initiative (DII) were signed by the joint venture group of 12 companies and the DESERTEC Foundation in Munich on October 30.
Additionally, a CEO for DII was appointed — Paul van Son.
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Published on October 31st, 2009
SOLARIG, a company based in Spain that incorporated about four years ago, just began construction of eight photovoltaic parks in Italy this month. The parks will provide 8 MW of energy in total. Over the next few months, it plans to construct photovoltaic projects producing 30 MW throughout different regions of Italy.
But this is just the beginning. SOLARIG has a more global vision.
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Published on October 31st, 2009
A partnership between two companies will develop a home energy monitoring device for residential solar power installations.
Two startups – Tendril Networks, known for its home energy monitoring technology and Fat Spaniel technologies, a solar panel monitoring company – make up the partnership. The purpose of the partnership is to develop a monitoring device for homes that can gauge the sun’s intensity for any particular time and automatically adjust, or even shut down, home appliances as needed.
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Published on October 30th, 2009
Earlier this month, Governor Schwarzenegger signed legislation to buy solar power from relatively small private generators for rates above market value. Hawaii is next in line with this European-style tariff — the Hawaii Public Utilities Commission and Governor Lingle just recently set a similar initiative for Hawaii.
Hawaii’s initiative will make it possible for homeowners and businesses to sell power they generate from small to medium-scale renewable energy projects (i.e. solar panels) to Hawaii’s main power producers at higher than market-value rates.
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Published on October 28th, 2009
The National Renewable Energy Laboratory has released The Open PV Mapping Project showing the progress of solar installations on private roofs from 2000 to (currently) now, beginning with a flurry of activity in California, then moving to Wyoming, of all places, and WIsconsin. Gradually the states turn yellow and then orange over time as they add more solar power.
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Published on October 27th, 2009
Dell has been a trend-setter when it comes to the incorporation of greener technologies to reduce their corporate carbon footprint and they’re doing it again! Although this time they are following the lead of Google, by installing solar trees in the parking lot of their head office in Round Rock, Texas.
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Published on October 27th, 2009
San Diego Gas & Electric has embarked on a demonstration project to test the commercial viability of a new concentrated solar power system that uses shallow pools of water as a passive cooling system for high-efficiency solar cells. The unique proprietary technology was developed by Pyron Solar of Sorrento Valley, California.
The new technology could be attractive in land-rich areas, and it may also have some application for introducing sustainable energy to more densely developed areas, since its use of high efficiency solar cells enables it to pack more generating capacity into less space. It also may prompt some new exploration of the opportunity to double up solar energy generation with other operations, such as fish farming.
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