29Dec

Tiny Solar Cell Could Make a Big Difference

Categories: Green Technology & Efficient Solutions
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How small can a solar cell be and still be a powerhouse? How about six hundred microns wide — about the diameter of a dot made by a ballpoint pen? The U.S. Department of Energy’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory recently validated greater than 41 percent efficiency at a concentration of 1,000 suns for tiny cells made by Semprius — one of the highest efficiencies recorded at this concentration. The energy conversion efficiency of a solar cell is the percentage of sunlight converted by the cell into electricity.

Seed money from DOE, together with the experts at the NREL-based SunShot Incubator Program, lifted Semprius from a small electronics start-up with a novel idea to a real difference-maker in the solar cell world.

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18Aug

Next-Gen Electronics Charge Themselves With Energy-Harvesting LCD Screens

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Next-Gen Electronics Charge Themselves With Energy-Harvesting LCD Screens

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Engineers at UCLA have developed technology that allows energy gobbling gadgets like smartphones and laptops to convert sunlight, ambient light, and their own backlight into energy. Equipping LCD-enhanced devices with so-called polarizing organic photovoltaics will recoup battery loads of lost power, and enable smartphone users to scour Yelp, scan Twitter, and update their Facebook page without fear of draining the charge before a real communication crisis arises.

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8Aug

New Energy Technology’s Spray-On Solar Cells Applied on Flexible Plastic Material

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New Energy Technology’s Spray-On Solar Cells Applied on Flexible Plastic Material

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Last year, a company called New Energy Technology announced that they had succeeded making a photovoltaic substance that, applied on clear glass, could generate electricity. Now, they are announcing the same innovation being available for flexible plastic materials.

The researchers at New Energy Technology have successfully applied the coating on PET plastics (the material used for plastic bottles) at room temperature and low pressure. This, they say, will reduce manufacturing costs if the materials would be mass-produced.

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8Aug

Hawaii Celebrates Alternative Energy Achievement

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Hawaii Celebrates Alternative Energy Achievement

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Hawaii’s commitment to alternative energy recently reached a milestone. According to Business Week, Hawaiian Electric Co. has reached 20 megawatts of solar photovoltaic energy on the island of Oahu. The utility said the mark was reached in July when they installed Easter Seals’ PV system. Easter Seals, a non-profit health agency, received $5,000 as a gift.

Nearly 4,000 Oahu customers benefit from solar power. They can also benefit from a feed-in tariff scheme whereby they can sell excess electricity back to the grid.

More solar power capacity is being added. This week, Forest City Hawaii and Hawaiian Electric Company announced they have reached a power purchase agreement for up to one megawatt of solar photovoltaic (PV) power to be generated at the Kapolei Sustainable Energy Park in Kapolei, also in Oahu.

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27Jul

DuPont expands in solar energy with acquisition of Innovalight, Technology to enhance solar cell efficiency

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DuPont (Wilmington, Del.) on July 25th, 2011 announced that it has acquired Innovalight Inc. (Sunnyvale, Calif.), a company specializing in advanced silicon inks and process technologies that increase the efficiency of crystalline silicon solar cells.

The acquisition further strengthens DuPont’s position as a leader in materials for the solar energy market, enabling a broader and more integrated photovoltaic materials and technology offering from DuPont. Financial terms of the acquisition were not disclosed.

“Innovalight has very exciting technology that improves cell efficiency and DuPont can help expedite its adoption,” said David B. Miller, president – DuPont Electronics & Communications.

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28Jun

Bristol self-powered car provides clean energy to other EV owners as well

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Bristol Car Concept by Amarpreet Gill

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Now, drive your car and sell energy too. I mean to say, enjoy selling free energy. It’s not useless or crazy talk as Amarpreet Gill has designed and conceptualized the Bristol car that can harvest energy from the environment and distribute it for free to the other car users. Now, the users can either sell the freely earned energy, use it for themselves, and also use it for sharing with a group of friends. So, Bristol is more than a car. It is a concept, that helps grow a meaningful relationship between the vehicle and its users.

Bristol Car Concept by Amarpreet Gill

So, how does the car do what it is claimed to do? Bristol concept combines the piezoelectric and photovoltaic ways. A special platform is thus created on which the technology of trapping energy from natural sources is developed. The vehicle provides a tool to the user, who can decide the amount of harvested energy on every journey by altering the piezoelectric threads to maximize the amount of clean energy harvested during every trip.

Would the user like to share his/her experiences gained on the last road trips? Perhaps yes. Why not induce friends to care for the earth and profit from it too just like they share the new ideas gained while gardening? That is precisely how social and group interactions prosper. As a gardening culture grows, so does an auto culture. The Bristol concept is there to water it.

 

 

 

Source: ecofriend
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