Author Topic: Solar News  (Read 23410 times)

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Offline WooferHound

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Solar News
« on: August 03, 2012, 08:22:55 am »
Diesel-dependent Tokelau is still on track to become the first entirely solar-powered places on Earth in a project led by a New Zealand solar company.
Once the project is complete, Tokelau will be the first country to meet 100 per cent of its climate change obligations and will only need fossil fuel to power its fleet of three cars.

http://www.stuff.co.nz/world/south-pacific/7408149/Tokelau-to-shed-diesel-dependence
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Offline tomw

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Re: Solar News
« Reply #1 on: August 03, 2012, 10:09:39 am »
Gotta love a country with a "fleet" of 3 cars! Not to mention going 100% RE otherwise.

Bravo, Tokalau.


Tom
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Offline DBCollen

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Re: Solar News
« Reply #2 on: August 03, 2012, 12:12:49 pm »
Gotta love a country with a "fleet" of 3 cars! Not to mention going 100% RE otherwise.

Bravo, Tokalau.


Tom

Probably all Govt cars with "exempt" plates   :)
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Offline WooferHound

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Re: Solar News
« Reply #3 on: August 03, 2012, 01:40:10 pm »
Berkeley lab develops technology to make photovoltaics out of any semiconductor
http://greenbuildingcanada.ca/2012/widespread-solar-berkeley-photovoltaics-semiconductor/

UCLA Develops Electricity-Generating, Transparent Solar Cell Windows
http://inhabitat.com/ucla-develop-electricity-generating-transparent-solar-cell-windows/
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Offline WooferHound

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Re: Solar News
« Reply #4 on: August 03, 2012, 01:55:29 pm »
For Up-To-Date information about Solar developments

http://www.solardaily.com/
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Offline WooferHound

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Re: Solar News
« Reply #5 on: September 14, 2012, 11:37:38 pm »
Triple junction Solar Cells achieving 50% efficiency
http://spectrum.ieee.org/green-tech/solar/tapping-the-power-of-100-suns
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Offline bj

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Re: Solar News
« Reply #6 on: September 15, 2012, 06:27:15 am »
   Interesting read Woof, thanks.
"Even a blind squirrel will find an acorn once in a while"
bj

Offline fuse99

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Re: Solar News
« Reply #7 on: November 01, 2012, 05:27:40 am »
That's damn impressive. How long do you think it would take an American state to fulfill that kind of criteria? I really wish renewable energy was more widely available for the general public. If it wasn't for these greedy energy companies I'm sure we'd be on the right track, faster. It's just a vicious cycle though, as energy bills continue to increase, it's going to be more difficult for households to buy the equipment to run their homes in a greener way. I've been spending the past couple months trying to be greener, growing my own vegetables and having a wormery, but I feel that solar panels would be the next step! I've been recommended this place for Links are disabled until your post count is higher. domestic solar panels, but just wanted to know if it might be more worth my while if I constructed my own? I've been doing a little bit of research and it's not actually as expensive as I'd thought, but which would be more effective?

Cheers!

Offline MadScientist267

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Re: Solar News
« Reply #8 on: November 02, 2012, 03:04:20 pm »
Certainly is. The technology to do all this and make it a reality is all there, just gotta get it to happen! ;)

I think the transparent and "50%" triple layer cells are probably the most intriguing to me personally. I'm sure neither is cheap, but with that kind of output and being able to even use the real estate of windows to produce power, the possibilities may very well be endless.

I figure there are 2 main reasons that solar hasn't really taken off... First, cost. ROI is dismal at best currently, but is improving. Second, power density. People want to live their lives the way they always have; Spongebob on the tube, while the kids could care less and are outside chasing each other around the yard, among many other equally power wasting "uses". Not remotely possible with the current technology, but high density production means more juice from the same light. 50% is what, about 4 or 5x the capability of even the most efficient panels available to the average Joe?  :o

I can't wait, personally.

Steve
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Offline ghurd

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Re: Solar News
« Reply #9 on: November 03, 2012, 10:20:28 am »
50% is what, about 4 or 5x the capability of even the most efficient panels available to the average Joe?  :o

About 3X.

What gets me is how "not quite good" some of the installations are done.

612KW of solar, placed flat and level, with almost 0 circulation?
Guessing they never heard of dust & bird doo-doo, heat, or snow in New Jersey.
A 300 pound guy up there with a bottle of windex and roll of paper towels walking on all those panels sound like a great idea to anyone?  :o


This next one is a serious contender for my "WTF! Award of the Year".

Anyone notice Stanford's solar powered elephant watching solar thing?
Powers a camera, laptop, and beer fridge.  Wow.
It is about 100 miles south of the Nambia / Angola line, about 15 degrees south of the equator.

The correct mounting angle there would be... oh crap that's too hard... lets just hang them vertical and keep hanging more until it works!

Guessing the Stanford School of Medicine people don't know about Stanford's Earth Sciences Dept, or Stanford's Engineering Dept.




Offline Norm

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Re: Solar News
« Reply #10 on: November 03, 2012, 05:58:54 pm »
Certainly is. The technology to do all this and make it a reality is all there, just gotta get it to happen! ;)

 

  Second, power density. People want to live their lives the way they always have; Spongebob on the tube, while the kids could care less and are outside chasing each other around the yard, among many other equally power wasting "uses". 
Steve

yep...got that right !
example ....
My teenage grand daughter....lap top running, listening to music thru the computer. with
earphones on typing the great american novel about some hero teenagers solving
crime mysterys, no evidence of parents to watch them usually their parents have either
died or divorced ...none of these kids have a job....but they are well off ....unlimited
income from their uncle/aunt willing them fabulous fortunes......
meanwhile grand daughter is also watching TV with closed captions as she can't hear
what's on TV as she watches "1000 and One Ways to Die ".....as she sits in a dark
corner of the whole couch ....sunlight streaming in the window glaring.....but you can't
turn off the energy saving 24 watt CFL ....she wouldn't be able to see the lit computer
screen.....besides " it's weird to have the light off".....somehow none of this makes
sense to me !

...but the wife says....."all the kids are like that"

.......Oh well ?
Norm.

Offline WooferHound

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Record 20.4% efficiency
« Reply #11 on: January 22, 2013, 07:50:36 pm »
Record Solar cell efficiency of 20.4% achieved
http://www.empa.ch/plugin/template/empa/3/131438/---/l=2
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Offline bj

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Re: Solar News
« Reply #12 on: January 23, 2013, 05:51:53 am »
   Hopefully it will make the jump to production.  Should be cheaper to produce, but time will tell.
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bj

Offline WooferHound

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Re: Solar News
« Reply #13 on: April 16, 2013, 08:58:06 pm »
Harvard's Clean Energy Project (CEP) plans to release to solar power developers a list of the top 20,000 organic compounds that could be used to make cheap, printable photovoltaic cells (PVCs).

The list, culled from about seven million organic molecules that a crowdsourcing-style project has been crunching over the past two-plus years, could lead to PVCs that cost about as much as paint to cover a one-meter square wall.


http://www.computerworld.com/s/article/9238429/Harvard_global_grid_computing_project_will_help_create_printable_solar_cells
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Offline tomw

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Re: Solar News
« Reply #14 on: April 16, 2013, 09:23:36 pm »
At least the technology & info is not hidden in some patent quagmire by an energy conglomerate [yet].


I imagine pole sheds with power panel siding. Who cares if the watts / area is low if you can paint a few thousand square feet cheap?

T
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I thought that they were angels, but much to my surprise, We climbed aboard their starship and headed for the skies