Archive for the ‘solar power’ category: Page 96
Nov 20, 2019
New hybrid device can both capture and store solar energy
Posted by Saúl Morales Rodriguéz in categories: solar power, sustainability
Researchers from the University of Houston have reported a new device that can both efficiently capture solar energy and store it until it is needed, offering promise for applications ranging from power generation to distillation and desalination.
Unlike solar panels and solar cells, which rely on photovoltaic technology for the direct generation of electricity, the hybrid device captures heat from the sun and stores it as thermal energy. It addresses some of the issues that have stalled wider-scale adoption of solar power, suggesting an avenue for using solar energy around-the-clock, despite limited sunlight hours, cloudy days and other constraints.
The work, described in a paper published Wednesday in Joule, combines molecular energy storage and latent heat storage to produce an integrated harvesting and storage device for potential 24/7 operation. The researchers report a harvesting efficiency of 73% at small-scale operation and as high as 90% at large-scale operation.
Nov 19, 2019
Bill Gates-backed solar startup announces major breakthrough
Posted by Genevieve Klien in categories: solar power, sustainability
Heliogen is a startup that wants to “replace fuels with sunlight.” And the Bill Gates-backed solar startup, which has flown under the radar until today, has made a major green-energy breakthrough for heavy industry. Heliogen “has created the world’s first technology that can commercially replace fuels with carbon-free, ultra-high temperature heat from the sun.”
Nov 19, 2019
The Anti-Solar Panel — A Device That Generates Electricity From Darkness
Posted by Victoria Generao in categories: solar power, sustainability
There are different kinds of solar panels. The one most typically used is a type that generates electricity from the sun through a physical process called the photo-voltaic (PV) effect – when light exposure on certain materials generates an electric current. Another type generates electricity from heat through thermal processes – when the sun is hotter and Earth is cooler, and the difference in temperature can be converted into usable energy.
That second kind of solar panel is the one that inspired a team of researchers at Stanford University in Palo Alto, California to develop a new system that can harness energy in darkness. It’s based on the concept of using heat to generate energy but an inverse version of the solar panel. While the solar panel uses the heat difference between the sun and Earth with the Earth being the cooler side – their system makes use of the heat difference between the coolness of the night atmosphere and the Earth with the Earth being the hotter side. The study has been published in the scientific journal Joule.
Study author Shanhui Fan, Stanford electrical engineering professor, told Gizmodo:
Nov 14, 2019
An Energy Breakthrough Could Store Solar Power for Decades
Posted by Roderick Reilly in categories: solar power, sustainability
Researchers in Sweden have created a molecule that offers a way to trap heat from the sun.
Nov 13, 2019
24-Hour Solar Energy: Molten Salt Makes It Possible, and Prices Are Falling Fast
Posted by Quinn Sena in categories: solar power, sustainability
Molten salt storage in concentrated solar power plants could meet the electricity-on-demand role of coal and gas, allowing more old, fossil fuel plants to retire.
By Robert Dieterich
Nov 4, 2019
Building Solar Panels in Space Might be as Easy as Clicking Print
Posted by Klaus Baldauf in categories: habitats, solar power, space, sustainability
Scientists are testing a new, durable, recyclable and efficient material that could soon power habitats on the Moon.
Nov 2, 2019
Nanotechnology breakthrough enables conversion of infrared light to energy
Posted by Paul Battista in categories: nanotechnology, solar power, sustainability
Capturing infrared light for solar cell applications.
Invisible infrared light accounts for half of all solar radiation on the Earth’s surface, yet ordinary solar energy systems have limited ability in converting it to power. A breakthrough in research at KTH could change that.
A research team led by Hans Ågren, professor in theoretical chemistry at KTH Royal Institute of Technology, has developed a film that can be applied on top of ordinary solar cells, which would enable them to use infrared light in energy conversion and increase efficiency by 10 percent or more.
Continue reading “Nanotechnology breakthrough enables conversion of infrared light to energy” »
Oct 27, 2019
Scientists say solar technology may detect, attack cancer cells
Posted by Genevieve Klien in categories: biotech/medical, chemistry, solar power, sustainability
A study claims a new way to detect and attack cancer cells using technology traditionally reserved for solar power as the results showcased dramatic improvements.
The results published in Scientific Reports said that dramatic improvements were seen in light-activated fluorescent dyes for disease diagnosis, image-guided surgery and site-specific tumor treatment.
“We’ve tested this concept in breast, lung cancer and skin cancer cell lines and mouse models, and so far it’s all looking remarkably promising,” said Sophia, Michigan State University’s (MSU) biochemistry and molecular biologist.
Oct 13, 2019
Welcome indoors, solar cells
Posted by Genevieve Klien in categories: internet, particle physics, solar power, sustainability
Swedish and Chinese scientists have developed organic solar cells optimised to convert ambient indoor light to electricity. The power they produce is low, but is probably enough to feed the millions of products that the internet of things will bring online.
As the internet of things expands, it is expected that we will need to have millions of products online, both in public spaces and in homes. Many of these will be the multitude of sensors to detect and measure moisture, particle concentrations, temperature and other parameters. For this reason, the demand for small and cheap sources of renewable energy is increasing rapidly, in order to reduce the need for frequent and expensive battery replacements.
This is where organic solar cells come in. Not only are they flexible, cheap to manufacture and suitable for manufacture as large surfaces in a printing press, they have one further advantage: the light-absorbing layer consists of a mixture of donor and acceptor materials, which gives considerable flexibility in tuning the solar cells such that they are optimised for different spectra – for light of different wavelengths.