For many decades, lead-acid batteries dominated the industry. They were the cheapest option, they were durable compared to other options, and they worked fairly well in most weather conditions. But they have some serious downsides. They’re heavy. Many of them release hydrogen gas that can burn or explode if not … [continued]
The commercial and industrial (C&I) solar sector is really starting to take off across several countries on the African continent. Initially the market was characterized by a few projects where customers would install grid-tied solar PV plants after making an upfront payment to an installer or engineering, procurement, and construction … [continued]
It sometimes happens that a symbolic event marking the end of one era neatly coincides with an event that ushers in the next, although no one notices the concurrence at the time. In late 2003, a brief renaissance of electric vehicles came to an ignominious end, as GM rounded up and smashed its EV1 electric cars. Just a few weeks later, three Silicon Valley entrepreneurs sat down for a fateful lunch.
ZAF Energy Systems Inc. (ZAF)*, a developer of next-generation battery technology, and Wirtz Manufacturing (Wirtz), a global leader in equipment design and technology for the lead-acid battery market, have announced that ZAF has issued Wirtz purchase orders to complete phase one of ZAF’s scaled-up manufacturing line.
Johnson Controls Power Solutions has sold off its automotive battery business to Brookfield Business Partners for $13.2 billion. That includes its more than 16,000 employees across 56 locations around the world. Brookfield Business Partners is rebranding the business unit as Clarios.
Originally published on Sustainnovate. Following up on my articles on the history of solar power science, history of solar power policy, history of solar power manufacturing, history of wind turbines, and history of trains, here’s a piece on the history of electric cars. Most people mean “electric car” when they … [continued]
Perovskite solar cells have been on the radar of many cleantech enthusiasts these days. Of course, they are not yet competitive with commercial solar cells, but they seem to have promise and many good qualities. One quality with lead-based perovskite solar cells that isn’t so hot is that raw lead ore production is pretty nasty … [continued]
Update –> This reader comment seemed very much worthy of more eyes: One flaw in their analysis — batteries can be recycled. The majority of the cost of making a battery is acquiring the raw materials, but once they are acquired, they can be recycled almost indefinitely as many times almost … [continued]
Here are some more cleantech and climate policy stories we wouldn’t want you all to miss: Clean Energy First Solar Becomes Desertec Investor Clean Power Finance Partners Comprise Up To 80 Percent Of Major U.S. Residential Solar Companies Helping Schools Finance Solar Webinar: How Racking And Mounting Make Perfect Cents … [continued]
This article has been reposted from RenewEconomy with permission. RenewEconomy passed around the hat this past week for a few ideas on what would be big in 2013 in clean energy in Australia. What emerged was a couple of key themes – the continued proliferation of solar PV and the growing interest … [continued]
