No matter how efficient we make our solar panels, powerful our wind farms, or effective our geo thermal – we need batteries to get the most out of these systems. In fact, to this day electric companies and co-ops have to tell power generation groups to halt production because we get too much power on …
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A New Wave of Tidal Energy
I’ve always been intrigued with harnessing power from waves. There’s something extremely powerful when imagining the raw energy behind the massive gravitational force the moon provides. Our very oceans bulge daily at its beck and call. But harnessing this power has proved challenging – until now. Recent technological breakthroughs and applications of old concepts to …
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Africa: A New Frontier for Renewable Energy Development
The potential for exploiting massive solar and wind resources in many regions throughout the continent of Africa have attracted Independent Power Producers (IPP’s) eyeing the potential for renewable energy in the cradle of civilization. Current projected road blocks include problems posed by unstable and dangerous regions, minimal financial resources and the lack of infrastructure. According …
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Mexico Gets Wind Energy Boost
THE BAD A plethora of problems in the past have made it difficult for the Mexican Government to move in to the clean energy industry. Officials from the Energy Regulatory Commission (CRE) and the Ministry of Energy (SENER), provided a list a reasons why this was the case. Some of these include the lack of …
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If LENR Works What Happens to Solar Power?
(Image Credit: Inhabitat) Co-written by Justyn Hornor and Jamie Odom A burning question has been slowly simmering to the surface in alternative energy forums: If LENR (a low-energy nuclear reaction device) works, what’s going to happen to solar power or other energy sources? As organizations like Defkalion, Brillouine, Andrea Rossi, and others try to bring …
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Biofuels Lighting Paths, Powering Planes, and Changing China
A French Biochemist, Pierre Calleja, recently created an algae powered street lamp. The algae feeds off CO2 emissions. Pierre hopes that the CO2 reducing street lamps will become a household commodity, vicariously reducing CO2 emissions on a major scale. The lamps could be used in houses, parking garages, on the street, or especially in dense …
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Defkalion Announces LENR Date, Mitsubishi Enters LENR Market
(Image Credit: QueryOnline.it) Grecian company Defkalion has reported that they plan to launch their new Low Energy Nuclear Reaction (LENR) system in July/August of 2012. Through their various tests, Defkalion’s design has been shown to produce as much as twenty times the amount of heat more than non-cold fusion systems. Their system, which contains nine …
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Google Announces Self-Driving Race Car to Enter Professional Nascar Races
(Image Credit: ExtremeTech) On April 1, Google announced their partnership with Nascar and eventual self-driven car’s inclusion in professional stock car races. Of course this was an April fools joke that was later debunked by Nascar. Incredibly though, the technological capability behind their claims are very much real. A recent Google patent was for a …
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Big Wind Farm Plans on the Horizon
(Image Credit: Tory Aardvark) In spite of the recent negativity surrounding sustainable energies, one specific group seems to be getting a lot of positive press. Wind farms are creating jobs, getting funding, and finding their way onto just about every contintent. Major plans are being rolled out and acted on from India to Europe, China …
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Thermata: New Face of Solar Power?
(Image Credit: Thermata) Solar Power is quickly becoming the hottest new resource for energy, but it can be pretty expensive to harness and install. Luckily, a company named Thermata has come up with a fantastic new product that will seriously slash the cost of solar energy. This California based company has created a product that …
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April is Water Conservation Month!
It’s Water Conservation Month and lots of wonderful ideas are being floated for saving water. In some areas of the U.S., April is one of the highest water demand months while also being the driest, such as in South Florida and other southern regions. It’s easy to implement several water-saving activities into daily living that …
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LENR Finally Getting Traction
March of 2012 has proven to be a special month for LENR advocates with the release of a number of presentations, research, and products. As such, the technology has seen a bit of a shake up and new leaders are emerging. This piece focuses on recent contributions of major players in the LENR field and …
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Solar Panel Competition Picks Up
China has allegedly been subsidizing the cost of solar panel manufacturing to the tune of around 2-4%, according to the U.S. Department of Commerce. If that is the case, this is a violation of World Trade Organization rules and gives the U.S. the opportunity to impose tarrifs to make up for the damage done to …
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See-Thru Solar Panels Promise Big Advances
Over the last year the solar panel industry has seen a number of major changes ranging from the materials used to capture solar energy to the fundamental physics of how solar energy is captured. One of the major game-changers of late has been the introduction of see-through solar panel. The implication is that your normal, …
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Hydroponics Gardens to the Rescue
(Image Credit: Gotham Greens) I’m a realist when it comes to green technology – I tend to be a bit skeptical, but also very optimistic in the coming years we will see a lot of new technology build on itself to create completely sustainable systems. One industry that got my attention recently is that of …
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Solar at 50 Cents Per Watt Coming Soon
(Image Credit: NREL) Recent breakthroughs in manufacturing processes and some new approaches to development are driving the cost per watt of solar down far faster than anyone imagined. The cost per watt is a general measure of just how expensive a technology is when it comes to electricity production. Solar has been prohibitively expensive for …
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A Light(bulb) in the Darkness – Demystifying Lightbulb Rumors
(Image Credit: Fresh Energy) The lightbulb industry has been all astir in recent months as they geared up to meet the EPA standards requiring a phase out lightbulbs over 100W. Even though the ruling was put on hold back in December of 2011, the industry is feeling the pressure and working to create alternatives. Some …
Low-Energy Nuclear Reaction-based technologies, otherwise known as cold-fusion technologies, continue to hold promise as the next big break-through to help our globe get away from dependency on fossil fuels. The major issue is that the two companies who claim to have produced working LENR devices - Leonardo Corporation and Defkalion – will not allow outside …
While we all hold our breath waiting for green technologies like solar and wind to completely replace our need for coal-powered electricity, there’s a strong argument for upgrading our current infrastructure in the meantime. Smart grid technologies do two things very well: (1) improve energy distribution for (2) a low cost when compared to purchasing …
(Image Credit: LMC) Geothermal energy continues to be a primary focal point for renewable energy sources and recent developments by the likes of Lockheed Martin and others are showing potential for oceans to be another viable option for geothermal technologies. The concept is not new, but the application is. The general field is referred to …
