Researchers at the University of California have developed a  smart phone chip that could spur a new generation of more efficient mobile electronic devices.  In turn, a more energy efficient device would enable the more widespread use of solar energy and other forms of renewable energy for battery recharging.

The new chip is based on the use of “dark silicon.” Dark silicon is shorthand for the growing portion of silicon on transistors that is underused because there is not enough power available to run them all of the transistors at once. The new chip, called GreenDroid, is designed to use about 11 times less energy than a typical processor.

Read more of this story »

read more from this topic.....

I just reported on new findings out by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory showing that feed-in tariffs (FITs) are responsible for 3/4 of total solar PV in the world. The UK is the latest country to implement a major FIT program and expectations for solar energy growth as a result of this program are big.

The UK’s leading solar energy firm, SolarCentury, reported yesterday that the number of people employed in its company and its partner network of 11 certified solar panel installers nearly doubled in the last 6 months due to the launching of this FIT program — from 200 at the start of the year to 350 today.

Furthermore, it expects this number to rise to 500 by the beginning of next year.

Read more of this story »

read more from this topic.....

A new report out by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) takes a close and deep look at feed-in tariff programs around the world.

Feed-in tariff programs exist in 75 countries, states and provinces around the world, and they are having a huge impact.

Read more of this story »

read more from this topic.....

Imagine the Starship Enterprise powered by safe, reliable solar energy and – well, okay so it’s a lot less dramatic than the dilithium crystal thing, but that’s the point: you get the speed without the risk because essentially, there’s no fuel.  According to a gathering of scientists at the Second International Symposium on Solar Sailing, ultra-thin solar sails that are less than one-fifth the thickness of plastic wrap are the way to go for powering certain types of future space flights. The solar cells work by collecting the pressure generated by sunlight, just like a regular sail collects wind pressure.

Solar sail technology is advancing quickly, and deep space tests have already confirmed its viability: Japan’s solar sail-powered IKAROS was launched on May 21 and is on the first leg of a six-month flight around Venus, after which it will head off for the far side of the sun.

Read more of this story »

read more from this topic.....

Luke Air Force Base in Glendale, Arizona is set to get a 15 megawatt solar power installation that will create 550 new green jobs during construction, which will take about a year.  It’s also going to take a huge bite out of the base’s carbon footprint, supplying almost half of the base’s peak electrical demand.  Luke currently spends more than $5 million per year on electricity and uses more than 60 million kilowatt hours annually in mission support.

Tea partiers, take note: the new solar installation will be the largest of its kind on federal property, but it won’t cost taxpayers money up front. It will be owned by local utility Arizona Public Service, which will sell the clean renewable electricity to Luke under a long term agreement. Luke anticipates saving millions over the course of the contract, which will not be subject to the same market-driven spikes that bedevil fossil fuel suppliers.

Read more of this story »

read more from this topic.....

Combining two technologies that can help us to address global warming, air pollution, and water pollution, the City of Corona recently took an innovative step forward by installing solar panels on a bus shelter.

Read more of this story »

read more from this topic.....

The U.S. Navy has been roaring into the sustainable future with test flights for a biofuel-powered fighter jet, and now it’s going to the opposite end of the speed scale with a fleet of solar powered vehicles in the “Slow Moving Vehicles” category, meaning they have a top speed of 25 mph.  The SMV’s, as they are affectionately known, are being deployed through the Naval Facilities Engineering Command Southeast in Jacksonville, Florida.

The motivation for adopting solar-charged electric vehicles comes from a Navy directive to have a fleet of more than 2,500 SMV’s, as part of a goal of achieving a 50% cut in petroleum use by 2015 (based on 2009 usage). Since the Southeast Command has one of the largest fleets in the Navy, it needs an alternative source of energy to offset the additional demand on the electric grid from charging hundreds of electric vehicles.

Read more of this story »

read more from this topic.....

This post contains additional media. Click here to view the full post.
.

What’s one way to make solar power production twice as efficient? Make power from both the sun’s light and its heat. Stanford scientists may have just nailed this one.

Read more of this story »

read more from this topic.....

Pennsylvania’s Pocono Raceway, known to NASCAR fans as the “Tricky Triangle” for its unusual layout, is now home to a gigantic 40,000 panel solar power installation.  The new solar array broke ground last year and just went online this week.  It is expected to generate about 72 million kilowatt hours of clean power over a 20-year lifespan, and it is believed to be the largest solar installation at a sports facility in the world.

The new solar array will offset more electricity than the raceway uses, leaving enough left over to power about 1,000 homes.  The track’s owner, Dr. Joseph Mattioli, sees the $18 million investment in solar energy as a potential profit center for the facility, and he foresees the potential for future expansion.  If he can make it work, don’t be surprised to see solar panels sprouting up at other points on the NASCAR circuit in the near future.

Read more of this story »

read more from this topic.....

For ages, people have been saying: “Solar is a great, clean, renewable energy source, but it is just too expensive. Other energy sources, like nuclear, may have some (or serious) environmental risks, but they are cheaper.”

Now, a new report out of Duke University says that solar energy and nuclear energy have passed a “historic crossover,” where decreasing solar energy costs and increasing nuclear energy costs have met, and then parted. Solar energy is now cheaper than nuclear energy and is getting increasingly cheaper every day.

Read more of this story »

read more from this topic.....