Lifeboat Foundation: Safeguarding Humanity
Toggle light / dark theme

Blog

Category: solar power – Page 62

The ESA aims to make 24/7 space-based solar energy harvesting a reality

The Solaris program will study space-based solar power amid rising energy concerns.

The European Space Agency (ESA) is set to approve a three-year study to determine whether sending huge solar farms into space could effectively meet the world’s energy demands, a report from the BBC reveals.

So, if all goes to plan, the technology could one day harvest massive amounts of energy from space — enough to power millions of homes.

ESA / A. Treuer.

A space-based solar power plant would be launched into a geostationary orbit, meaning it would orbit in a fixed location over the Earth that would be hit by the Sun 24/7.

A Portuguese company’s innovative floating solar panels stalk the Sun’s movements

Currently floating on a lake in the Netherlands, the solar island comprises 180 movable solar panels that provide an increase in energy production by up to 40 percent.

A Portuguese company’s sustainable solution is following the Sun, almost like a stalker, in a bid to get the most out of its energy.

SOLARISFLOAT

SolarisFloat has developed an innovative floating solar solution that is unlike the many being installed in water bodies around the world. With single-or dual-axis tracking, the floating island is powered by electric engines that consume less than 0.5 percent of the total energy produced. As the BBC explained, the installation, named PROTEVS, is the first to merge floating solar panels with Sun-tracking technology.

New technique accurately measures how 2D materials expand when heated

Two-dimensional materials, which consist of just a single layer of atoms, can be packed together more densely than conventional materials, so they could be used to make transistors, solar cells, LEDs, and other devices that run faster and perform better.

One issue holding back these next-generation electronics is the heat they generate when in use. Conventional electronics typically reach about 80 degrees Celsius, but the in 2D devices are packed so densely in such a small area that the devices can become twice as hot. This can damage the device.

This problem is compounded by the fact that scientists don’t have a good understanding of how 2D materials expand when temperatures rise. Because the materials are so thin and optically transparent, their thermal expansion coefficient (TEC)—the tendency for the material to expand when temperatures increase—is nearly impossible to measure using standard approaches.

ESA SOLARIS: Wireless Power Beamed Down From Space

Solar power could be gathered far away in space and transmitted wirelessly down to Earth to wherever it is needed. The European Space Agency (ESA) plans to investigate key technologies needed to make Space-Based Solar Power a working reality through its SOLARIS initiative. Recently in Germany, one of these technologies, wireless power transmission, was demonstrated to an audience of decision-makers from business and government.

The demonstration took place at Airbus’ X-Works Innovation Factory in Munich. Microwave beaming was used to transmit green energy between two points representing ‘Space’ and ‘Earth’ over a distance of 36 meters.

The received power was used to light up a model city and produce green hydrogen by splitting water. It even served to produce the world’s first wirelessly cooled 0% alcohol beer in a fridge before being served to the watching audience.

Artificial Photosynthesis Advance: Standalone Device Converts Sunlight, CO2 and Water Into Clean Fuel

Researchers have developed a standalone device that converts sunlight, carbon dioxide, and water into a carbon-neutral fuel, without requiring any additional components or electricity.

The device, developed by a team from the University of Cambridge, is a significant step toward achieving artificial photosynthesis.

Photosynthesis is how plants and some microorganisms use sunlight to synthesize carbohydrates from carbon dioxide and water.

Reservations for new community of 3D homes in Georgetown to open in 2023

The community will offer eight different floor plans, ranging from three to four bedrooms and two to three bathrooms. Homes will be powered by rooftop solar panels, include a Ring Video Doorbell Pro, Schlage Encode Smart WiFi deadbolt, a Honeywell Home T6 Pro WiFi smart thermostat and a Wolf Ranch security package.

RELATED: The Georgetown gem that gleams rich with history: Southwestern University

Prices are expected to start from the mid-$400,000s.

World’s largest floating wind farm is now powering gas and oil production

It will be used to power oil and gas production.

Hywind Tampen, the world’s largest floating wind farm, located off the coast of Norway, has become operational, a company press release said. Of the 11 turbines involved in the project, the first turbine began power production on November 13, with another six scheduled to go online this year.

With the impending doom of climate change and the recent upshoot of fuel prices, countries around the world are looking to switch aggressively to renewable energy. While those in the tropics are looking at solar power, others that can access winds over the seas are looking to build offshore wind farms.

Although increasing the size of wind turbines is a straightforward way to increase the energy output of these facilities, it also comes with increased costs for constructing these structures. Floating wind farms are being looked at as a possible solution to this problem, and Hywind Tampen is the first real-world test of this kind.

New discoveries made about a promising solar cell material, thanks to new microscope

A team of scientists from the Department of Energy’s Ames National Laboratory has developed a new characterization tool that allowed them to gain unique insight into a possible alternative material for solar cells. Under the leadership of Jigang Wang, senior scientist from Ames Lab, the team developed a microscope that uses terahertz waves to collect data on material samples. The team then used their microscope to explore methylammonium lead iodide (MAPbI3) perovskite, a material that could potentially replace silicon in solar cells.

Richard Kim, a scientist from Ames Lab, explained the two features that make the new scanning probe microscope unique. First, the microscope uses the terahertz range of electromagnetic frequencies to collect data on materials. This range is far below the , falling between the infrared and microwave frequencies. Secondly, the terahertz light is shined through a sharp metallic tip that enhances the microscope’s capabilities toward nanometer length scales.

“Normally if you have a light wave, you cannot see things smaller than the wavelength of the light you’re using. And for this terahertz light, the wavelength is about a millimeter, so it’s quite large,” explained Kim. “But here we used this sharp metallic tip with an apex that is sharpened to a 20-nanometer radius curvature, and this acts as our antenna to see things smaller than the that we were using.”

/* */