Scientists at the USA’s Dept. of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory have created a three-dimensional solar cell which could boost photovoltaic (PV) light-to-energy conversion rates by 80 percent.
A new polymer-based solar-thermal device developed by the Center for Nanotechnology and Molecular Materials at Wake Forest University can generate power from both heat and visible sunlight. The concept could potentially slash the cost of home heating by as much as 40 percent.
French oil and gas giant, Total Group, has purchased 60 percent of US solar panel manufacturer and global exporter, SunPower Corp.
As the U.S. begins a major push to become the leading player in the global solar revolution, the topic of sprawling solar farms built away from communities vs. small and medium scale solar arrays utilising rooftops and smaller parcels of already developed or degraded land is becoming an increasingly important issue.
Taking a diplomatic sojourn in China this week alongside Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard was Democratic Senate House leader Harry Reid – a man who would appear to understand the importance of renewable energy to a country’s economy.
Even before the Fukushima nuclear crisis hammered what some hope is another nail in the nuclear power industry coffin; the sector was in decline – but renewables gained a great deal of traction.
NASA’s NanoSail-D solar-sail equipped satellite will soon begin its descent from an altitude of 640 kilometres above the Earth.
Through harnessing viruses as workers, MIT researchers have developed a method of improving the conversion efficiency of solar cells.
The city of New York, famous for triumphing over adversity, is putting that can-do attitude to work in the latest update to Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s “Greater, Greener” sustainability plan, which will see many of the city’s rubbish dumps and landfills converted into solar farms.
Last week, U.S. Department of Energy Secretary Steven Chu announced funding of USD$130 million for new program areas focusing on clean fuels, renewable energy and energy efficiency.
