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+9 +1
The metal that can store power for a small town
Hawaii has a problem, one that the whole world is likely to face in the next 10 years. And the solution could be a metal that you've probably never heard of - vanadium. Hawaii's problem is too much sunshine - or rather, too much solar power feeding into its electricity grid.
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+17 +1
Germany Now Produces Half Of Its Energy Using Solar
Germany has set a new record, with solar power providing 50.6% of its electricity in the middle of the day on Monday June 9th. Solar production peaked that day at 23.1GW. Three days earlier it was 24.2GW between 1 and 2pm, but on the 9th demand was down for a public holiday, allowing the breaking of the psychological 50% barrier.
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+17 +1
Scientists Swapped a Toxic Chemical in Solar Cells For a Tofu Ingredient
Thin-film solar cells promise to bring flexible, low-profile solar power to all kinds of surfaces. Unfortunately, constructing thin-film panels requires cadmium chloride, a finicky, expensive, and toxic material. Now, University of Liverpool scientists have figured out how to make solar cells using magnesium chloride, a compound so innocuous, it's actually used in the production of tofu.
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+5 +1
'Solar-powered donkeys' carry Internet for Turkish sheepherders
A solar panel producer in western Turkey has said recent international media coverage of their "plug-and-play donkey" project proved that they are on the right track. BBC News reported on June 24 that sheepherders in western Turkey have now equipped their donkeys to cart around solar panels that will enable them to be connected 24/7. The video shows a donkey equipped with a large panel strapped to its back walking across rocky, dry terrain.
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+15 +1
Solar-powered 'smart' benches coming to Boston
Solar-powered benches called Soofas will be appearing in Boston parks soon, the Boston Globe reports. Besides, you know, something to sit on, the bench will offer a charging station and a wireless internet connection to provide information such as air quality, using your location-based data.
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+16 +1
Solar has won. Even if coal were free to burn, power stations couldn't compete
Giles Parkinson: As early as 2018, solar could be economically viable to power big cities. By 2040 over half of all electricity may be generated in the same place it's used. Centralised, coal-fired power is over
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+16 +1
Ultra-thin spray-on solar cells to bring cheap green energy to the masses
Scientists have developed low-cost spray-on solar cells that could result in a dramatic drop in the price of solar electricity. Designed to be applied using a method similar to car paint, the cells could be easily mass produced, giving solar power the chance of ubiquity. The spray technique also results in very little waste, which helps to keep manufacturing costs low.
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+24 +1
Silicon: After the chip, another revolution?
The original silicon revolution was of course, glass. Man first began to explore its properties a million and a half years ago - that's when our ancient ancestors discovered that obsidian, the almost jet black glass which is sometimes formed when lava cools rapidly, was useful. Obsidian breaks leaving a very keen edge, so was good for weapons and tools including, in some ancient cultures, knives used for ritual circumcisions.
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+23 +1
Startup Demonstrates Ultra-efficient Stacked Solar Cells
A novel manufacturing method could make it practical to stack solar cells and convert more of the energy in sunlight into electricity.
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+23 +1
China Will Install More Solar This Year Than The U.S. Ever Has
According to new numbers released by the Chinese government, China added 3.3 gigawatts of solar capacity in the first six months of the year ending June 30, marking a 100 percent increase over the same period last year. That brings China’s total solar supply to 23 gigawatts — 13 shy of the country’s goal of installing 35 by the end of 2015.
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+21 +1
Rules prevent solar panels in many states with abundant sunlight
Few places in the country are so warm and bright as Mary Wilkerson's property on the beach near St. Petersburg , Fla., a city once noted in the Guinness Book of World Records for a 768-day stretch of sunny days.
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+18 +1
This car may soon be the world’s first street-legal vehicle powered by the sun
An Australian team just built the fastest solar-powered vehicle to cover 500 kilometers.
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+16 +1
Old car batteries could make cheaper, more efficient solar panels
Instead of heading to the landfill, the lead in outdated car batteries could power your home.
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+19 +1
Emerging solar plants scorch birds in mid-air
Workers at a state-of-the-art solar plant in the Mojave Desert have a name for birds that fly through the plant's concentrated sun rays — "streamers," for the smoke plume that comes from birds that ignite in midair.
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+20 +1
Africa Will Add More Renewable Energy In 2014 Than In The Last 14 Years Combined
Renewable energy is getting cheaper, and Africa is taking advantage of it.
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+17 +1
Solar Power Poses Lower Risk to Birds Than Cats or Cars
Solar-thermal power plants in the U.S. are less likely to kill birds than automobiles, cats or communication towers, despite reports that say the facilities pose a significant threat to avian life.
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+20 +1
A fully transparent solar cell that could make every window and screen a power source
Researchers at Michigan State University have created a fully transparent solar concentrator, which could turn any window or sheet of glass (like your smartphone's screen) into a photovoltaic solar cell. Unlike other 'transparent' solar cells that we've reported on in the past, which are actually quite colorful and opaque, this one really is transparen. The team are confident that the transparent solar panels can be efficiently deployed in a wide range of settings...
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+15 +1
Renewable energy capacity grows at fastest ever pace
Wind, solar and other renewable power capacity grew at its strongest ever pace last year and now produces 22% of the world's electricity, the International Energy Agency said on Thursday in a new report.
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+6 +1
Cheap Drinking Water From The Sun, Aided By A Pop Of Pencil Shavings
Piscine Molitor "Pi" Patel did it to survive on the Pacific Ocean. Robert Redford used the trick in All Is Lost. When you're trapped on a boat, you can easily make fresh water, right? Simply let the sun heat up and evaporate salt water. Then trap the steam, condense it on a plastic surface and collect the fresh water. The liquid even gets sterilized in the process. So why can't people around the world who lack clean drinking water do something similar?
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+21 +1
Honda's Experimental Smart Home With Solar Panels Creates Energy As Well As Saving It!
This AMAZING solar panels smart home will give you inspiration and a helping hand to save to save money on your Energy Bills. Read about it now!
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