USA's First Solar Tower Unveiled

 

eSolar, a U.S. solar thermal power company, last week unveiled its 5-megawatt (MW) Sierra SunTower solar power plant; heralding what it says is the beginning of a new era for solar energy in the nation. 
  
The solar farm is the first of its kind in the U.S. and produces enough electricity for over 4,000 homes in California's Antelope Valley.
  
eSolar's installation uses advanced software algorithms to precisely focus 24,000 mirror on a single point to efficiently harvest the sun's energy. The focused heat boils water within a thermal receiver and produces steam. The steam is then piped to a turbine, where it generates power. The steam then reverts back to water through cooling, and the process repeats.
  
Constructed in under a year, eSolar's Sierra SunTower power plant is the first of a number of similar installation planned for the Antelope Valley region. Three other plants will be constructed in California and New Mexico; generating up to 465 megawatts of electricity using eSolar technology. 
  
In March this year, eSolar licensed its technology to India-based ACME Group for approximately 1 gigawatt of eSolar solar thermal capacity.
  
Over the course of construction, the first Antelope Valley project created 300 jobs.
  
Another aspect of the environmentally friendly solar farms developed by eSolar are their locations - previously disturbed private lands, avoiding development on pristine desert lands. 
  
Founded in 2007 to develop, construct and deploy modular, scalable solar thermal power plants; eSolar has enjoyed solid backing from companies including search engine giant, Google, through its Google.org foundation. 
  
Google.org focuses its investment on efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by increasing the efficiency of energy use, and the use of cleaner and renewable energy sources. 

North Carolina Wind Power Controversy

 

The North Carolina State Senate has moved to ban large wind turbines from the western ridgelines throughout the state. If the bill becomes law, it would for all intents and purposes block the commercial viability of two-thirds of the onshore wind resource in North Carolina.
  
The 42-1 vote represents the strongest opposition to wind turbines by lawmakers in any state and the reasons for the resistance is apparently one based on aesthetics. 
  
The bill would allow only turbines that are 100 feet or less be installed on ridgelines above 3,000 feet, precluding industrial-sized turbines. The ridgelines are a major wind power resource for the state.
  
According to a report on New York Times' Green Inc, Ivan Urlaub, executive director of the North Carolina Sustainable Energy Association, acknowledged that the vote has had the effect of raising concerns about North Carolina’s commitment to clean energy.
  
North Carolina is one of the top nuclear power producers in the United States and its electricity consumption is among the highest in the USA, according to the Energy Information Administration. Coal-fired power plants typically account for more than three-fifths of North Carolina’s electricity generation, and nuclear power for about one-third. 
  
Adding to the carbon impact of North Carolina's electricity production is the fact that the state's coal-fired power plants burn coal shipped primarily by rail from West Virginia and Kentucky. The state consumes 33,606 thousand short tons of coal a year and while coal fired electricity generation accounts for 4,386 thousand MWh, renewable energy other than hydroelectric make up only 166 thousand MWh of the energy mix.
 

News for Monday 10 August, 2009

 

• Australian Push For Fully Solar Schools
  


• Solar Panel Industry Outlook
  

View all news for Monday 10 August, 2009 on one page

Recent News

 

• Friday 07 August, 2009
  


• Thursday 06 August, 2009
  


• Wednesday 05 August, 2009
  


• Tuesday 04 August, 2009
  


• Monday 03 August, 2009
  

News archive