Alternative & Renewable Energy News

Global growth in renewable energy output has accelerated in the last 20 years, but can these resources be exploited on the scale required to revolutionize world energy supply? The question is addressed in a Yale Environment 360 essay that considers the challenges inherent in such an energy transformation. Weaning the world off fossil fuels will require construction of over 15,000 wind turbines, 30 nuclear power stations, 55 solar thermal power plants, and more than 300 million sq m of photovoltaics annually through 2050. Increased emphasis on energy efficiency and waste heat recovery can help offset some of these supply needs.

POL Series Obstruction and Aviation Lighting provides highly reliable, cost-effective solutions for renewable energy. Lightweight aluminum construction, LED drivers with dimming capabilities, available Control and Monitoring Electronics, along with many other features make POL Series the industry leader in obstruction light technology.

SABIC Innovative Plastics' Noryl* and Lexan* EXL resins offer high flammability, weatherability, electrical, and thermal performance enabling design optimization, weight reduction, extended product life, and reduced system cost. Noryl* and Lexan* EXL resins meet stringent IEC and UL requirements for c-Si as well as thin film PV systems components.

Vecoplan, the technological leader in the production of alternative fuel from waste and biomass, designs, manufactures, installs, and provides start-up on complete systems to prepare and feed alternative fuel for the production of heat and power. In addition to MSW, Vecoplan is experienced with Wood and other Biomass and Ag Fuel Corps, Tires, Carpet, and other industrial waste feed-stocks.

Datatronics manufactures high-rel magnetic components for electronic equipment supporting Solar Power and Smart Grid systems. Applications include controls, meters, instruments, inverters, and network gear. Components meet UL, BABT, CSA, VDE, RoHS, and UL Labs tested to 200 C. Request our short form catalog; see our online custom design tools at datatronics.com.

Solutions containing copper, indium, gallium, and selenide nanocrystals are sprayed onto glass, plastic, and other thin substrates to form flexible solar cells. Video highlights the low-cost solar technology, in which top and bottom metal contacts encase the light-absorbing layer. University of Texas researchers are now focused on improving the solar paint's conversion efficiency.

A dual-action roof-mounted solar system is being field tested in the southern U.S. to supply daytime heating and nighttime cooling. The NightSolar system lowers incoming air temperature by 10 F below ambient. The greatest cooling benefits are expected when connected to rooftop air handlers and air conditioners in warm, dry climates.

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A New Zealand engineer is collaborating with Texas Tech University researchers to advance his ammonia fuel system, according to New Energy and Fuel. A compression/decompression unit combines hydrogen from water and nitrogen from air, producing automotive fuel for about $1 U.S./gal. Storage and distribution logistics are simplified by on-site production of hydrogen-carrying liquid fuel.

Hydrogen production was demonstrated by light harvesting complex II proteins that self-assemble with polymers into a synthetic membrane structure. Confirmed by U.S. Oak Ridge National Laboratory researchers via small-angle neutron scattering analysis, the study marks progress toward realization of biohybrid photoconversion systems. The spinach-sourced protein may be artificially produced in the future.

Fuel Cells and Advanced Battery Applications need materials with exacting mechanical and electrical properties that meet conductivity, weight and dimensional requirements. Our expanding process allows us the ability to provide superior expanded materials for alternative energy applications. All with ISO 9001:2008 certified quality.

NOMEX® Electrical Insulation is used in generators, motors, and transformers in wind energy assemblies. Nomex® provides excellent mechanical and thermal performance in a variety of climate conditions, including offshore installations. Nomex® delivers outstanding reliability, giving Wind Energy operators confidence that critical electrical equipment in their turbine assembly meets demanding performance standards.

Capital equipment is a major investment for consumer packaged goods manufacturers. Learn why Procter & Gamble relies on the Tecnomatix Plant Design and Optimization solution from Siemens PLM Software to plan and optimize their manufacturing investments.

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Parker's Wind Engineering expertise can cut your time-to-market by months; saving you design hours and money. Windpower Technology includes Pitch Control, Braking/Safety, Hose/Connector, Filter, and Inverter and Direct Drive.

Grid Tie and Power Management and Direct Drive Torque Motors Parker SSD Drives inverter systems deliver efficient, reliable performance with compact mechanical designs.

Video animation depicts deep ocean wave cancellation by a Cycloidal Wave Energy converter. U.S. Air Force Academy scientists and students designed the submerged device, which captured 99% of the energy in a simulated ocean wave. When scaled up, the free-floating system highlighted in Energy Boom will generate power from deep ocean waves.

Bringing renewable energy closer to home is the Strata SE1, the world's first building to include wind turbines within its structure. Three 9 m turbines supply 8% of the energy supply for the tallest residential building in London. An annual energy output of 50 MWh is expected from the roof-integrated power system.

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The search for more efficient cellulolytic enzymes for biofuels application leads to the bovine digestive tract. Genomic analysis of microbes attached to switchgrass left in cow rumen for 72 hours was followed by a cloning study. Of 90 proteins produced, 57% proved enzymatically active against cellulosic plant material.

The manganese-enriched cathode of Envia's lithium battery stores twice as much charge as available cathode materials. A Technology Review article notes that smaller battery packs can be made with low cost materials that translate into reduced costs of electric and plug-in vehicles. Development goals focus on raising demonstrated capacity from 300 to 400 watt-hours/kg.

Glenro provides heating systems designed to dry finishes on carbon fibers used to manufacture lightweight vehicle components, windmill blades and other products that decrease our dependence on fossil fuels. Our systems can be powered by renewable electricity or from heat recovered elsewhere in the process. Learn more.

The MEI Solar Evolution high throughput wet processing systems are in-line, configurable, automated, modular, linear batch immersion systems made for high throughput at a low-cost. They are designed to clean photovoltaic/solar wafers for many applications.

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A Photovoltaics World piece contends that cell and module suppliers, suffering from low prices and rising demand stimulated by generous feed-in tariffs, must be weaned from incentives addiction. A 12-step program offered for recovery and market stimulation stresses tailoring technologies and specific products for regions, customers, and applications. Moving toward standardized installation methods can reduce technology costs as well as cravings for incentives.

Two videos depict distinctly different routes for exiting wind turbines. The first demonstrates a moderated descent from a 300 ft-high tower by rope during an emergency training exercise. The second selection is most assuredly not the recommended way to get down from a wind turbine. Besides, one gets down from a duck, not a turbine.

Throwing Cold Water on Cold Fusion

Why doesn't the lack of experimental reproducibility and seeming implausibility of cold fusion deter research in this field?