Solar power usage is growing in the United States, Europe, and Australia, but what about developing areas that don’t even have access to basic electricity? Now that University of NSW PhD student Nicole Kuepper has developed a cheap and simple way of producing solar cells in a pizza oven, these areas might get a chance to use solar power too.

Photovoltaic cells are generally expensive to produce and require large manufacturing plants. But Kuepper’s technology needs relatively low-cost items such as ovens, ink-jet printers, and nail polish. Her iJET solar cells also use a low-temperature process.
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Solar-powered clothing could be the next big trend for environmental enthusiasts. Researchers at North Carolina State University have designed a process called digital textile printing that makes it possible for solar panels to be fitted into jackets and ties.

The wearable solar panels act much like batteries when energized. With a consistency similar to paper, the panels shouldn’t weigh its wearers down too much.

However, the researchers did find problems with the neck tie: the solar panels make it extremely difficult to tie knots. They propose using a clip-on tie to remedy this problem.

The research team’s tie design contains a cell-phone pocket and 3.6V plug-in. And no, the solar clothing doesn’t create any dangerous electric shocks.
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The most efficient form of renewable energy may be right underneath us. Researchers at Worchester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) in Massachusetts announced today that they have discovered a method to use road surfaces for solar collection.

The key is using the plentiful heat absorbed by asphalt pavement. By experimenting with different asphalt compositions, the team discovered that heat absorption in pavement can be significantly increased with the addition of highly conductive aggregates such as quartzite. Heat exchangers could be placed a few centimeters under the pavement to collect and use solar energy.
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Solar air conditioning has so far been the holy grail of the solar energy world, but now SolCool seems ready to make the dream a reality. With air conditioning being the heaviest user of electricity in many parts of the world, the 600-watt maximum average usage level of SolCool units will significantly alleviate strains on the electric grid. And, SolCool units can run on wind, solar, generator, electric grid, or any combination of these.

SolCool has sought to create demand for its products by installing its direct current heat pump systems in critical care facilities, communication equipment rooms, schools and restaurants. Now it will begin larger-scale production of the units in Guangzhou, China, to serve anticipated growing demand worldwide.

“Clifford Sutton, Vice President of Sales and Marketing stated, ‘Over the next 45 days we will be shipping SolCool.net systems to various regional dealers in North America, the Pacific, the Caribbean, the Mediterranean, West Africa, Australia and Asia.’ Mr. Sutton added, ‘Our production capacity can expand to approximately 3,000 units a month by the end of 2008 with three and five ton systems available in May 2009.’” Renewable Energy World, 8/13/08

Traditional solar cells only use up to 20% of the visible light they collect, and more efficient solar cells are too expensive for mass production. Now researchers at the US Department of Energy’s Idaho Laboratory have figured out a way to capture solar energy on the cheap: plastic sheets filled with billions of nanoantennas.

The nanoantennas are made up of small gold squares or spirals set in polyethylene. Researchers believe that under the right conditions, the simulated nanoantennas could harvest up to 92% of energy at infrared wavelengths.
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Earlier today, I had the opportunity to visit Intersolar US, the United States’ premier exhibition for solar technology. I learned about a variety of products that are revolutionizing the solar industry, and one of the most interesting was Paradigma’s AquaSystem.

The Aqua solar heating system, first introduced in 2004, works like an additional boiler with a selectable temperature. It is the only solar heating product on the market that can be connected to an existing heating system without any modification. Additionally, the AquaSystem does not require frost protection agents in the winter, as it is protected with warm water if temperatures drop below a certain level.

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Last Friday Tim Hurst wrote an article entitled ‘Soaring Fuel Prices Spur Aviation Industry to Explore Alternatives’, wherein he focused our attention on Rolls-Royce and British Airways attempts to search for alternative fuels. Though probably not entirely humanitarian in nature, it is nice to see another industry getting in to the alternative fuel game.

With the start of a new week however, I get to bring to your attention the efforts of France’s LISA Airplanes and solar cell maker Trinia Solar Ltd.

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While adoption of solar energy steps up around the world, two key challenges remain: how to store the energy created during the day so it can be used through the night and how to dispatch the energy to where it is needed. Both of these problems may be solved by coupling molten salt with concentrating solar power (CSP), according to a June 26 article in Renewable Energy World.

You will recall from previous CleanTechnica postings that CSP technology concentrates the sun’s power to create steam, which turns a turbine to make electricity. But how did molten salt get into the picture?

“Terry Murphy, Chief Executive Officer for SolarReserve, who along with others helped develop the molten salt technology at Rocketdyne. ‘Molten salt is a heat storage medium that retains thermal energy very effectively over time and operates at temperatures greater than 1000°F, which matches well with the most efficient steam turbines. Second, it remains in a liquid state throughout the plant’s operating regime, which will improve long-term reliability and reduce operation and maintenance costs. And third, it’s totally ‘green,’ molten salt is a non-toxic, readily available material…..’”

Molten salt storage was a key component of the Solar Grand Plan, published in Scientific American in December 2007, which outlined a plan to supply 69% of U.S. electricity and 35% of its total energy by 2050. The Grand Plan, written by By Ken Zweibel, James Mason and Vasilis Fthenakis, proposes molten salt storage concentrating solar, among other proven technologies, and calls for an aggressive plan of government subsidies to allow solar energy to compete fairly with oil and other fossil fuels.

Related Posts on Solar Storage

Clean Energy Intro: Solar Thermal

Solar Power Goes to Extremes

Solar Thermal Electricity: Can It Replace Coal, Gas and Oil?

A couple weeks ago Apple filed a patent to explore the use of solar power in their next generation of mobile devices. With battery life being a long running issue for Apple’s laptops and mobile phones, solar power could help extend use time without having to plug in.

The patent filing discusses placing the solar technology behind the LCD screen of the devices so that the panels would absorb ambient light without adding additional width and bulk to the device. While the technology could be difficult to implement (Motorola filed a similar patent for their mobile devices in 2001 but is yet to be able to successfully integrate solar technology into their devices), having a company as large and influential as Apple roll it out could mean cross product integration with iPods and MacBooks in addition to the iPhone.

The company takes a lot of knocks for not being environmentally conscientious, but downloading tracks and movies instead of buying copies and using maps on mobile instead of printing directions does help limit impact. Making their products more energy efficient is a winning venture for the mega-brand.

Envision Solar is causing a lot of excitement in the beleaguered shopping mall world with its innovative use of solar energy: as Solar Trees™ in a Solar Grove™. Panels placed on retail parking lots — traditionally barren, heat-producing landscapes — can now provide shade for customers, while generating up to a half-megawatt of electricity. They can also block light pollution from nighttime parking lot lighting. I spoke to Pamela Stevens, EVP of Promotional Development for Envision Solar, who was visiting Las Vegas for the ICSC Recon show.

“In a competitive economic environment, shopping malls and big box stores are looking for a way to differentiate themselves. Our Solar Trees are not hidden away on the rooftop, and so they create visibility for the store, while providing comfortable shade for their customers, and generating clean energy.”

In addition, financing programs let retailers enjoy the benefits while avoiding initial capital outlays, making these clean energy generators even more appealing and easier for retailers to adopt. Down the road, Envision’s designers hope to make the solar parking lot the ideal place for recharging electric vehicles. I applaud Envision Solar, which was founded by architects seeking ways to design for sustainability, for seeing a problem and turning it into an asset.