Production head Prem Nath to retire from Ascent Solar
December 31, 2009 | Comments Off
One of the prime movers in Ascent Solar’s efforts to develop roll-to-roll commercial manufacturing of the company’s flexible CIGS thin-film PV modules is retiring. Prem Nath, Ascent’s senior VP of production operations, will leave the firm on Jan. 15, 2010. He will continue to work with the company as a consultant.
Solar rules! New list of proposed renewable energy projects in California has gigawatts of potential
December 31, 2009 | Comments Off
Ever wonder how many large-scale renewable energy projects might be on the drawing board in California? Thanks to the latest announcement from Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, we now have a round number—244. Although the “comprehensive list” of proposed projects does not include every solar, wind, geothermal, or other clean energy system planned for the Golden State, it does offer a peek at nearly 70GW of green-powered possibilities that would push toward meeting the Guv’s renewable portfolio standard goal of 33% by 2020. And guess what: the vast majority of those projects and gigawatts would rely on our favorite inexhaustible feedstock—the sun.
Project Focus: Switch flipped on enXco’s Belle Mead, NJ, 1.8MW CdTe solar PV power system
December 31, 2009 | Comments Off
Commercial operation of the 1.8MW (DC) Belle Mead solar project in New Jersey has begun. System owner-operator enXco said that the photovoltaic installation, located on the grounds of Carrier Clinic in the town of Belle Mead, will supply 50% of the health-care facility’s electrical needs under the terms of a 25-year power purchase agreement.
Free Electric Car With Tax Credit From Obama Administration
December 31, 2009 | Comments Off
William Kamkwamba inspires me to fix the toaster.
December 30, 2009 | Leave a Comment
I am a woman incapable of building or fixing things. I fear hammers as I fear Jenga towers, which I inevitably bring down upon first touch. My boyfriend often mocks my attempts to build coffee tables or fix toaster ovens, watching my futile attempts as one would watch a monkey with a plunger. “No! I can do this!” I shout back, hopelessly gripping a set of pliers that I have mistaken for a wrench. “But WHAT do these Ikea instructions MEAN??”
So imagine my shock when I stumbled upon the story of William Kamkwamba, who is affectionately called “the boy who harnessed the wind.” At the age of 14, William was forced to drop out of his school in Malawi because his parents could not afford the tuition. Frustrated, William visited the local library, where he found a book that described how windmills are used to harness energy. William wanted his family to have electricity so that he could read at night, so HE BUILT A WORKING WINDMILL OUT OF TRASH FROM THE LOCAL DUMP. He literally used items like bottle caps, broken bicycles, and hangers to create a structure that created enough electricity to power 4 lights in his house! UNBELIEVABLE! To read more about William, check out: http://gizmodo.com/5370752.
I study my broken toaster with shame and disbelief. What an incredible kid. I’m linking to a video of his interview with Jon Stewart. Highlight moment: when William describes using google for the first time and seeing that thousands of websites explain the construction of windmills. He says, “All I could think was, where was The Google when I was building my windmill?”
<table style=’font:11px arial; color:#333; background-color:#f5f5f5′ cellpadding=’0′ cellspacing=’0′ width=’360′ height=’353′><tbody><tr style=’background-color:#e5e5e5′ valign=’middle’><td style=’padding:2px 1px 0px 5px;’><a target=’_blank’ style=’color:#333; text-decoration:none; font-weight:bold;’ href=’http://www.thedailyshow.com’>The Daily Show With Jon Stewart</a></td><td style=’padding:2px 5px 0px 5px; text-align:right; font-weight:bold;’>Mon – Thurs 11p / 10c</td></tr><tr style=’height:14px;’ valign=’middle’><td style=’padding:2px 1px 0px 5px;’ colspan=’2′><a target=’_blank’ style=’color:#333; text-decoration:none; font-weight:bold;’ href=’http://www.thedailyshow.com/watch/wed-october-7-2009/william-kamkwamba’>William Kamkwamba</a></td></tr><tr style=’height:14px; background-color:#353535′ valign=’middle’><td colspan=’2′ style=’padding:2px 5px 0px 5px; width:360px; overflow:hidden; text-align:right’><a target=’_blank’ style=’color:#96deff; text-decoration:none; font-weight:bold;’ href=’http://www.thedailyshow.com/’>www.thedailyshow.com</a></td></tr><tr valign=’middle’><td style=’padding:0px;’ colspan=’2′><embed style=’display:block’ src=’http://media.mtvnservices.com/mgid:cms:item:comedycentral.com:251740′ width=’360′ height=’301′ type=’application/x-shockwave-flash’ wmode=’window’ allowFullscreen=’true’ flashvars=’autoPlay=false’ allowscriptaccess=’always’ allownetworking=’all’ bgcolor=’#000000′></embed></td></tr><tr style=’height:18px;’ valign=’middle’><td style=’padding:0px;’ colspan=’2′><table style=’margin:0px; text-align:center’ cellpadding=’0′ cellspacing=’0′ width=’100%’ height=’100%’><tr valign=’middle’><td style=’padding:3px; width:33%;’><a target=’_blank’ style=’font:10px arial; color:#333; text-decoration:none;’ href=’http://www.thedailyshow.com/full-episodes’>Daily Show<br/> Full Episodes</a></td><td style=’padding:3px; width:33%;’><a target=’_blank’ style=’font:10px arial; color:#333; text-decoration:none;’ href=’http://www.indecisionforever.com’>Political Humor</a></td><td style=’padding:3px; width:33%;’><a target=’_blank’ style=’font:10px arial; color:#333; text-decoration:none;’ href=’http://www.thedailyshow.com/videos/tag/health’>Health Care Crisis</a></td></tr></table></td></tr></tbody></table>
Project Focus: SunEdison to build, run five 10MW solar power plants for Xcel unit in New Mexico
December 30, 2009 | Comments Off
SunEdison will design and construct five ground-mounted solar photovoltaic power plants that will generate a total of 50MW (AC) in New Mexico for Southwestern Public Service, a regional operating company of Xcel Energy. The five 10MW sites will be located in Lea and Eddy counties in the southeastern part of the state and will be fully operational by the end of 2011, the companies said.
Tianwei New Energy takes majority stake in Hoku; construction resumes on Pocatello polysilicon plant
December 30, 2009 | Comments Off
Financially strapped polysilicon start-up Hoku Scientific and Tianwei New Energy Holdings have closed the deal giving Tianwei a majority investment in Hoku. As a result of the agreement, Hoku has issued orders to resume full-scale construction of its poly plant in Pocatello, ID, and authorize the shipment of equipment that had been placed on hold pending Hoku’s receipt of financing.
Motech to buy GE Energy solar module production plant in Delaware
December 30, 2009 | Comments Off
Motech has signed an agreement to buy GE Energy’s solar photovoltaic module assembly operation located in Newark, DE. The 34MW-capacity crystalline silicon PV panel plant, which GE bought from AstroPower in 2004 and planned to close down next year, employs 75 people.
Bharatbook.com : Thin Film Solar Cells Market Potential
December 30, 2009 | Comments Off
Thin Film Solar Cells Market Potential ( http://www.bharatbook.com/detail.asp?id=129625&rt=Thin-Film-Solar-Cells-Market-Potential.html ) takes a look at this industry through a theoretical analysis of the concept of thin film solar cells and a look at the basic technology involved as well.
Solar power is the technology of obtaining usable energy from the light of the Sun. Solar energy has been used in many traditional technologies for centuries and has come into widespread use where other power supplies are absent, such as in remote locations and in space.
Photovoltaics (PV) is the field of technology and research related to the application of solar cells for energy by converting sunlight directly into electricity. Due to the growing demand for clean sources of energy, the manufacture of solar cells and photovoltaic arrays has expanded dramatically in recent years.
While solar cells have been around for many years now, it is only recently that the advances made in technology have made it possible for researchers to make solar cells more efficient.
This report examines how the advent of thin film solar cells is changing the landscape of the solar photovoltaic industry.
To know more and to buy a copy of your report feel free to visit : http://www.bharatbook.com/detail.asp?id=129625&rt=Thin-Film-Solar-Cells-Market-Potential.html
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The Decade’s Greenest Moments
December 28, 2009 | Comments Off