Tag: news

A new conversion efficiency record for 9 millimeter-squared solar cells made of gallium arsenide was recently achieved by engineering researchers at the University of Arkansas. The new record — 14% efficiency — was achieved via the utilization of a new approach using a thin layer of zinc oxide. With the new higher efficiency, a small array (9-12) of these cufflink-sized

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Yingli Solar — the biggest vertically integrated photovoltaic module manufacturer on the planet — recently announced that it’s wholly-owned subsidiary, Yingli Energy Company Limited, has entered into a framework agreement with United PV for the purchase of a number of solar PV plants that are to be developed and built by Yingli Green Energy. As per the agreement, United PV

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Just over a week ago we reported on the anticipated moves by network operators in Western Australia and Queensland to ditch their reliance on poles and wires in favour of new technologies that would supply and store energy locally. In Australia’s remote and distant outback, the development of micro and mini-grids – based around solar and battery storage – seems

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Mayors often say they’re “where the rubber meets the road” between government policy and actual action, and it looks like that saying’s especially true when it comes to emissions reductions and climate resilience across America. More than two-thirds of U.S. cities that have pledged to cut carbon dioxide emissions are reporting quantifiable reductions as a result of their action in

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Driven by an explosion in photovoltaics, the U.S. solar sector has emerged “from a relatively small contributor to the nation’s total electric capacity into a one of comparative significance,” the Energy Information Administration reported this week in its latest Electricity Monthly Update. Since 2010, EIA said, U.S. solar capacity increased 418 percent from 2,326 megawatts, accounting for 0.2 percent of

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I’ve written about UK solar schools initiatives for years (see some links on bottom of page). Some have made quite notable progress. However, there are still a lot more British schools without solar power than with it. Now, Abundance Generation has launched a project that allows people to not only donate to solar panels for their local schoolhouses but to

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I have to give my congratulations to new energy car maker Tesla (Nasdaq: TSLA) for creating the kind of buzz and excitement this week that only names like Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL) and smartphone sensation Xiaomi have typically been able to muster. In the last 2 days, the company and its charismatic founder Elon Musk were all over the Chinese headlines

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Under favourable atmospheric conditions any elevated structure can generate upward lightning flashes. Even aircraft can do so — in fact, height and movement are two of the factors that contribute to this phenomenon. The tips of wind turbine blades move at speeds of several tens of metres per second. However, no one had previously demonstrated the relationship between this movement

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The Big Island For the past five years, home for me has been on the northern end of the island of Hawaiʻi. For those unfamiliar with the Hawaiian islands, they consist of eight major islands. The biggest of these islands is the island of Hawaiʻi, also known as the “Big Island.” The Big Island has a land area of 4,028

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There is still a significant swath of the U.S. that will continue to run on coal and gas even as many states meet their renewable portfolio standards heading toward 2020. In January, renewable energy made up nearly 100 percent of new installed electricity capacity in the U.S., mostly driven by utility-scale solar. Last October, a study conducted by the Federal

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