Stanford University researchers say they have developed a “peel-and-stick” solar cell that can be attached to a variety of hard surfaces, an innovation they say could vastly expand the potential for solar energy technology.
Normally, thin-film solar cells are attached to rigid,
Who ever thought that every home in America would have a radio, a television, a phone, a computer, and now a solar rooftop? If it can be imagined, then it can be done.
As crude oil price fluctuates between $70 and $110 a barrel in the past year, and nuclear power plant
Mitsubishi and Nippon Fruehauf, a light metals manufacturer, have developed an “idling-stop” solar-powered air conditioning unit that cools the truck cabin when the engine is not running.
Called the “i-Cool Solar,” the solar–
During Solar Power International 2010 (SPI 10), each afternoon there were more than eight concurrent conference sessions. It was not possible to attend them all, but the “The Next Great Solar Cell Material: What Technology Will Emerge Dominant on the Market?” session was particularly interesting. I briefly attended two other sessions. It was more than a little ironic that
LG Electronics announced the company’s entry into the United States PV market at the Solar Power International conference in Los Angeles on Tuesday. Geoff Slevin, recently appointed Vice President of the Solar Division at LG Electronics North America, said that “The U.S. is one of the fastest growing solar markets in the world and is expected to grow significantly over
Physicists at Rutgers University in New Jersey have discovered new properties in a material that could result in efficient and inexpensive plastic solar cells for electricity production. The discovery, posted online and slated for publication in an upcoming issue of the journal Nature Materials, reveals that energy carrying particles generated by packets of light can travel on
Advances in solar energy efficiencies have so far been made with irregular surfaces, thinner tabbing between cells, more optically perfect glass and even special coatings, but now Stanford engineers say the best efficiency is via ultra-thin polymer films inside solar cells that allow more “bounce room.”
Add to that a slightly rougher surface, such
Retail giant Wal-Mart will nearly double the number of stores where it uses solar energy technology, including numerous locations where it will deploy next-generation thin-film panels. Wal-Mart has also begun installing wind turbines at some of its stores and is experimenting with geothermal energy systems to reduce heating and air conditioning use, the
The National Renewable Energy Laboratory has confirmed results for a record-breaking conversion efficiency in solar cell technology. Oerlikon Solar and Corning Incorporated have combined technologies to produce a tandem solar cell using thin-film silicon. Oerlikon’s proprietary Micromorph® solar cells and Corning’s specialty, advanced light-capturing glass
President Obama took the occasion of Independence Day to announce that the federal government will authorize $2 billion of Recovery Act funding to support the solar industry. Administered by the Department of Energy, the funds will target two companies: Abengoa Solar and Abound Solar Manufacturing.
Abengoa – an international solar firm with its roots in Spain—plans to build the world’s largest concentrating solar power plant in Arizona. The company says the facility, dubbed the Solana Project, will produce enough energy to power 70,000 households. The plant will use thermal storage equipment to parabolically recover energy for a 280 MW output capacity. The administration says the project will create 1,600 construction jobs.
Ted Turner is out once again, ready to lead the world. The media mogul sat down in an exclusive one-on-one with CNN’s Wolf Blitzer earlier this month and spoke about his ongoing interests in renewable energy and green jobs.
Since stepping back from his role in the wheelhouse at Time Warner in 2003, the cable news pioneer has devoted himself to projects he believes in, investing as though the future of the world depended on it – and it just might.
Imagine a lightweight, flexible solar cell that could be built into your clothing, allowing you to charge the batteries on gadgets from iPods to smart phones with a little help from the sun.
A team of researchers at the California University Institute of Technology (Caltech) has developed a new, super bendy solar cell made from silicon wire arrays grown on a silicon base.
The new cells enhance the absorption of sunlight and converts photons into electrons using less than half of the amount of expensive crystalline silicon used by conventional solar cells.
Harry Atwater, Howard Hughes Professor, professor of applied physics and materials science, and director of Caltech’s Resnick Institute focusing on sustainability research , led the team in the development of the new solar cells. Atwater said the flexible cells are so rugged they can be rolled up as opposed to traditional solar cells that are made from thin, brittle wafers.
Dow Chemical has developed a roof shingle that contains thin-film solar power cells and can be integrated into asphalt roofs, which are used in 90 percent of American homes.
Dow executives said the solar shingles can be handled like a regular asphalt shingle and can be nailed right onto a roof and walked on by roofers.
The company will begin test-marketing the shingles in mid-2010 and the company will initially target new home construction.
U.S.-based First Solar has signed an agreement with the Chinese government to build the world’s largest photovoltaic power plant in Inner Mongolia. By 2019, the plant is expected to produce 2,000 megawatts of electricity, which the company said would be sufficient to power three million Chinese homes.
The deal for the 16,000-acre plant, to be located in Ordos City, solidifies China’s position as the global leader in developing renewable energy, and further boosts the prospects of First Solar, the world’s largest photovoltaic cell manufacturer.