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A lot of people today have gone on and on about the positive aspects of solar energy. Even though theoretical arguments are constantly interesting, what about day-to-day applications?

Uses for Solar In Each day Life

Solar energy is an crucial advancement inside the effort to save the atmosphere. Maybe essentially the most effortlessly usable and most convenient with the renewable energy sources (which also consist of wind and water), solar energy has been made use of since the beginning of time as a heating source. In the 1830′s one of the other solar energy platforms was developed, as a solar energy cooker was made use of on a safari. Since then, a lot of other solar energy applications happen to be formulated, and practically every person can make the most of one of these.

One of the most prevalent with the solar energy application is to use it as a power source. Since the 1970′s, a lot of people today happen to be placing solar collectors on their roofs and applying the resulting collected power to run their households. Even though getting sufficient solar collectors to acquire power that can run a complete house may well not be common, it truly is becoming far more. Most of these types of solar powered properties run their appliances and also other requirements directly off the solar collectors’ power through the day, and use power that was stored from the solar cells in batteries at night. In this way, the homeowner can prevent ever getting to use power that was generated by a non-renewable resource.

Yet another with the prevalent solar energy applications is to use solar power to heat your hot water. These home solar power systems can either use passive solar energy (inside the case of heating a tank of water by leaving it out inside the sun) or by applying solar collectors with a heat transfer fluid. These systems demand the homeowner to install solar panels, behind which run tubes filled with fluid. These tubes collect the heat from the sun and transfer it into the fluid these tubes, filled with all the heated fluid, then run about a water storage technique, and also the heat from the fluid is transferred into the water. Yet another way is to have water running through the tubing and have it acquire the sun’s heat directly – this heated water is then pumped into swimming pools, so that pool owners do not should run a pool heater to keep their water warm.

In the last 10 to 15 years, solar manufacturers have started to create new, creative applications for solar power. One development could be the portable solar panel, a well-known product made use of on RVs by vacationers. On a smaller scale, there are actually solar panel packs that fold out like a small ledger and are made use of to power up anything from laptops to cell phones. As time passes, new goods along this line are expected to continue to come on the market.

It does not matter which with the solar energy applications you choose to implement in your personal residence or life even a small transform to solar power over traditional power sources can help the atmosphere. The more we can use solar energy, the much less dependent we develop into on non-renewable resources, and also the more we support the Earth.

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Greensmith now providing distributed energy storage systems to fourteen customers, including eight electric utilities

An innovative storage solution to integrate renewable energy generation and improve grid stability

Greensmith Energy Management Systems, a leader in distributed energy storage control systems continues its growth, now with fourteen customers, including eight electric utilities using the company’s field-tested suite of product offerings. By expanding its line-up of energy storage systems, Greensmith reached its largest scale yet in 2011, through the sale of its first MW-sized system. Specifically, a major California utility purchased a 1.5 MWh Greensmith distributed energy storage system (DESS) to address grid congestion issues and integrate utility-scale solar generation.

Greensmith’s proprietary control software and Battery Operating System (BOS3) technology enable distributed energy system deployments with centralized operations through an online user portal or via machine-to-machine integration. All of Greensmith’s turn-key DESS units include the latest BOS3 communication technology and software. In addition, each DESS unit is configurable, modular, and scalable from residential to commercial to utility scale deployments.

Greensmith units are configurable, modular, and scalable from residential to commercial to utility scale deployments

Greensmith units are often installed alongside distributed grid assets. For example, three Greensmith installations include both smart EV charging stations and rooftop solar photovoltaic load following. Their suite of control and communication software integrates with an entire network of ancillary devices for the smart grid, an evolving system that can change with the smart grid ecosystem.

Battery-agnostic architecture

Greensmith maintains a battery-agnostic architecture which allows the company to offer multiple battery options to its customers today, and new options in the future as battery technologies continue to advance. The company’s growth is due, in part, to its ability to design systems around applications, as opposed to competitor approaches which tend to develop capabilities around the functionality of one specific battery. This unique approach allows Greensmith to offer effective solutions to customers as well as a high level of flexibility, with solutions that typically rapidly install and take commands in an installation process of only 3 hours. Its battery-agnosticism also allows Greensmith to keep pace with the rapidly changing battery marketplace as technologies and cost structures change.

“Grid operators now understand that energy storage is more than just batteries and inverters. They realize that intelligent control systems and sophisticated software improve the performance of both new and existing grid assets. What’s more, maximizing the benefits of energy storage means having the technology to manage and optimize a distributed, data-rich network. Coupled with our battery-agnostic approach, these capabilities have led to our rapid growth and adoption thus far.”

– John Jung, Greensmith CEO

Rapid growth in 2012

Positive customer testimonials, including referrals and re-orders, underline Greensmith’s credibility as a trusted industry leader and technology innovator who understand how to solve complex, grid-congestion issues. The company plans to expand its customer base in 2012, and anticipates an eight-fold increase in sales. With recent orders from customers abroad, Greensmith expects to continue to grow internationally from its base in the US. Greensmith plans to seek additional growth capital to leverage its growing market leadership and fully capture a growing pipeline of exciting projects. The company’s existing relationships with multiple OEM battery and inverter manufacturers will ensure availability and selectivity of components throughout this period of expansion.

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President Obama confirmed his commitment to clean energy and to environmental and public health protections in his State of the Union Address last night. He celebrated the extraordinary growth of the clean energy economy, and he laid out a plan to create more clean energy jobs and more responsible energy development.

“We don’t have to choose between our environment and our economy,” the president said.

We know the president is correct because clean, low-pollution energy is already putting hundreds of thousands of Americans to work. More than 100,000 people currently work in the solar industry, according to the National Solar Jobs Census. The Bureau of Labor Statistics says the wind industry employs 85,000 Americans. And more than 150,000 Americans currently have jobs making parts for and assembling clean cars—hybrids, electric cars, and other advanced vehicles that hardly existed 10 years ago.

American innovators could achieve far more with the right incentives and market signals in place. Last night, the president said the time has come to create those.

We have subsidized oil companies for a century. That’s long enough. It’s time to end the taxpayer giveaways to an industry that’s rarely been more profitable, and double-down on a clean energy industry that’s never been more promising. Pass clean energy tax credits and create these jobs.

NRDC has been fighting to extend these clean energy tax credits, and we welcome the president’s support. We’ve also been calling on Congress to pass a clean energy standard with a laser focus on wind, solar, and other renewable power sources and create incentives for energy efficiency. We were pleased that last night the president once again backed measures to promote the use of clean energy and efficiency.

read more at NRDC

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Under Pressure: Startup Company Turns Water into Power

By David Ferris

When Frank Zammataro thinks about water pressure, he sees an opportunity to create electricity.

Zammataro, 53, is President and Co-Founder of Rentricity—a New York City energy company that has discovered a new way to tap into the excess pressure in water-treatment plants, reservoirs, and factories to help power our water infrastructure, which consumes four percent of America’s electricity.

THE LAUNCH OF RENTRICITY

Rentricity was born when Zammataro’s prior company was displaced in the chaos following the terrorist attacks of 9/11. Overnight, his office at 150 Broadway—two blocks from the World Trade Center—became uninhabitable.

The firm scrounged up replacement workspace in a conference room in midtown on the 40th floor. It was in that office where Zammataro noticed a neighboring water tower, the type of shingle-sided tank that is ubiquitous in New York and maintains water pressure in a tall building.

“We joked about it day after day, imagining it working every time someone uses the commode,” Zammataro said.

Generally we have generated more power than what the plant required. The power company will be owing us money.

Upon further consideration, Zammataro, a former information-technology specialist at Merrill Lynch, started to see water pressure as a business opportunity. Could all that compression be used to spin a turbine and create electricity?

Zammataro did some digging and quickly learned that the pressure in the pipes of a skyscraper isn’t all that great. But then a professor at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute introduced him to the pressure reduction valve, and the whole game changed.

I’D LIKE TO BUY A VALVE

When a massive quantity of water is transported from high elevation to low, the water builds up more pressure than its receiving station can handle, up to 150 or more pounds per square inch (psi). As a point of comparison, the pressure that supplies your morning shower—and those spectacular street gushers—is as low as 35 psi. That pressure is stepped down by a pressure reduction valve, diffusing the energy with the help of a coiled spring.

Rentricity was born when Zammataro realized he could replace the pressure reduction valve with an impeller, which runs a generator. The company figured out how to construct this relatively cheaply with off-the-shelf parts.

Rentricity’s signature project is the water treatment plant in Keene, New Hampshire. There, raw, untreated water arrives from a reservoir in the town of Roxbury, a few miles away and 90 feet higher in elevation. The water arrives at an unusable 150 psi and is reduced to 90 psi—formerly by pressure reduction valves, but now by two of Rentricity’s generators. Between them they create 62 kilowatts.

Kürt Blomquist, the Public Works Director of Keene, says the technology has cut the plant’s energy bill in half. “Generally we have generated more power than what the plant required,” he said. “The power company will be owing us money.”

A PROMISING FUTURE

The wattage they produce is tiny compared to a traditional hydroelectric dam, but still a valuable prospect for water utilities, where up to a third of operating costs go to paying the energy bill.

“I think it’s very promising and one of the best near term opportunities” for hydrokinetic power, said Peter Asmus, Energy Analyst at Pike Research. “The siting is fairly easy because they’ve already sited so much infrastructure there and in an industrial site people aren’t as concerned about aesthetics.”

More than a billion gallons of water flows through the pipes of New York City each day, pressurized in part by reservoirs upstate.

Rentricity is poised to build a far larger plant, capable of producing 350 kilowatts, in Palos Verdes, California.

Zammataro sees a $5.8 billion market for equipment and a $1.8 billion market for the electricity generated worldwide at water treatment plants, industrial facilities, power plants, and mining operations—basically anywhere where there is enough of a vertical drop and sufficient water flow.

The firm is targeting cities at the base of the Appalachians and the Rockies, where elevations provide the necessary water squeeze.

One such metropolis is New York City, where more than a billion gallons of water flows through the pipes each day, pressurized in part by reservoirs upstate.

Rentricity is participating in a study to see if its generators could work at the city’s wastewater outfall pipes. If successful, Rentricity will have a unique opportunity to create clean power in the city where the whole idea began.

Tune in live Wed, Jan. 25 at 12:30pm EST when we interview Micah Kotch of NYC ACRE, the cleantech incubator home to Rentricity.

David Ferris is editor of the Matter Network and author of Innovate, a column in Sierra magazine about cleantech and the people who make it. He lives in Washington D.C. and should figure out how to use his compost bin any day now.

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Grand Ridge, Illinois, population 550, is a small village in the Corn Belt flatlands stretching south and west of Chicago. The weather in Grand Ridge swings just outside the American average. Winters are windy and mostly overcast, while the summer months tend to be calmer and sunnier.

Sunny side up: High-efficiency thin film solar panels were developed at GE’s Global Research Center.

All this makes Grand Ridge the perfect place for a new energy project that aligns wind and solar farms to generate a more reliable source of renewable power. The idea is that when the long nights set in and the breeze kicks up, wind power will replace idled solar capacity. The reverse will occur during long and radiant summer days. “We’ve built 30 gigawatts of wind farms so adding solar is a good utilization of assets,” Vic Abate, vice president of GE’s Renewable Energy business told Forbes last week.

Read more at GEreports.com

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It doesn’t make a difference when you are building your residence or renovating, you can turn it into a solar energy home by doing a few quick alterations to your plan. If electrical power and gas grow to be difficult to handle you may need to take into account heating your home with the sun. Solar energy is generated from the sun’s heat that is routed to earth. Theoretically when heat actually reaches earth it descends and distributes evenly, but homeowners primarily need the heat for their home. How does one capture that much sunlight in order to heat a home? It’s easy to do and requires a few extra actions to help get it started.

Easy Setup of Solar Energy When Building or Remodeling Your Home.

If you are building your home you have several possibilities to choose from concerning your heating source. If solar energy is chosen the home ought to be constructed facing the direction the sun rise’s. This enables your house to get the most sunshine during the hottest part of the day. Buying solar powered glass windows allow the sun to come through and remain in the home without escaping back out. During the night time the home maintain warmth with the sunlight that came into the home during daytime. Additional measures to keep in heat would be to keep the door shut and the utilization of insulated curtains on windows so that heat will not get away at night as you sleep. Make certain the plan does not comprise of too many windows on the side of the house that faces the evening sun as this might produce a cooling effect for the home.

The sun as a natural heating supply can be incorporated pretty easily into a renovating plan. Although you can’t adjust the direction that your residence is constructed in to face the morning sun you can still capture the sunlight that shines through and reduce the amount of time that you use an additional source of heat. Another measure is to build a sun room (at side facing sun) that captures sunlight and naturally heat up the home and then roof fans that aid to circulate hot air throughout the home. This method might offer enough heat to maintain warmth indoors. When remodeling your home, it will help to install solar power windows that are specifically intended to attract the sunlight and allow it to come into the house but not let it escape. This is a natural way to heat your home.

Homeowners that employ the power of the sun can save big on their home heating bill and improve the environment while doing it. Efficient heating of a home can become difficult in areas where sunlight is limited, therefore property owners should include a backup heating source. Your back up system can be used to assist the solar energy which will also cut down on the use of electricity or gas. Solar energy can be likened to geothermal energy and the result would be that the two can effectively heat the home. Please continue reading more on geothermal energy pros and cons and how different sources can be potentially utilized.

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Researchers Note Gas Emissions From Marcellus Shale and Other Sites Linked to Significant Increased Risk of Near-Term Climate Change

Far from being a “solution” to climate change, natural gas extracted from shale is a huge contributor of greenhouse gases when both methane and carbon dioxide are considered, according to a major new study by three Cornell University researchers.

The natural gas industry already accounts for almost a fifth (17 percent) of the total U.S. greenhouse gas emissions inventory, when analyzed using recently available new evidence. This percentage is predicted to grow to almost one quarter (23 percent) as shale gas continues to replace conventional natural gas.

Methane, which is a far more powerful greenhouse gas than carbon dioxide, is the culprit, according to the new report.

Just accepted for publication in Climatic Change and available online now at http://216.250.243.12/shalegasghgreport.html, the study titled “Venting and Leaking of Methane from Shale Gas Development,” is the work of professor Robert Howarth and Renee Santoro, researchers in the Department of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology, Cornell University, and Anthony Ingraffea, a professor in the School of Civil and Environmental Engineering at Cornell.

The study follows up on the author’s groundbreaking April 2011 paper, which provided the first comprehensive analysis of greenhouse gas emissions from shale gas obtained by hydraulic fracturing, with a focus on methane emissions. Rather than understating the impact by looking only at shale gas used for electricity generation (just 30 percent of U.S. usage), the studies also look at heat generation (the largest use) over both a 20- and 100-year time frame. The new paper emphasizes this 20-year time frame, and analyzes the US national greenhouse gas inventory in that context.

The 20-year time frame is particularly important, the authors explain, because it may well be the timing for a “tipping point” for climate change if emissions are not brought under immediate control. The new paper builds on major new findings from the United Nations and from researchers at NASA published over the past six months, highlighting the urgent need to immediately reduce methane pollution globally.

Robert W. Howarth, David R. Atkinson professor, Department of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology, Cornell University, said: “We believe the preponderance of evidence indicates shale gas has a larger greenhouse gas footprint than conventional gas, considered over any time scale. The greenhouse gas footprint of shale gas also exceeds that of oil or coal when considered at decadal time scales, no matter how the gas is used. We stand by the conclusion of our 2011 research: ‘The large [greenhouse gas] footprint of shale gas undercuts the logic of its use as a bridging fuel over coming decades, if the goal is to reduce global warming.’”

Anthony Ingraffea, Dwight C. Baum professor, School of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Cornell University, said: “Can shale-gas methane emissions be reduced? Clearly yes, and proposed EPA regulations to require capture of gas at the time of well completions are an important step. Regulations are necessary to accomplish emission reductions, as economic considerations alone have not driven such reductions. And it may be extremely expensive to reduce leakage associated with aging infrastructure, particularly distribution pipelines in cities but also long-distance transmission pipelines, which are on average more than 50 years old in the U.S. Should society invest massive capital in such improvements for a bridge fuel that is to be used for only 20 to 30 years, or would the capital be better spent on constructing a smart electric grid and other technologies that move towards a truly green energy future?”

According to the report:

* The natural gas industry dominates methane emissions for the U.S., contributing 39 percent of the nation’s total methane emissions.

* On an overall basis, methane makes up 44 percent of all greenhouse gas emissions when considered on the 20-year time frame after emission, including all gases and all human activities.

* The methane emissions from natural gas systems make up 17 percent of the entire man-made greenhouse gas emission inventory of the U.S., when viewed through the lens of the 20-year time frame.

* When viewed on the time scale of 100 years following emission, the importance of methane is substantially reduced, but the shorter time frame is critical, given possible tipping points in the global climate system over the coming few decades.

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Ever since mankind originally came into being, sunlight was and definitely will continually be readily available. For decades many individuals have been worrying in regard to the escalating energy bills. On account of this, solar technology systems have grown to be an excellent alternate option over the years. Direct sunlight is readily at your disposal especially in regions near the equator. Aided by the yearly enhancements in today’s technology, solar powered energy for residences is becoming more available.

With only a small amount of direct sunlight, anyone may easily generate electricity. Using only a few solar panels, you can make the needed electricity for your household. Even if you reside in a small dwelling, you’re able to put in a solar panel.

The Problem

Most of today’s houses will not be effectively positioned to obtain a substantial amount of direct sunlight and this becomes a big problem. Emerging solar power systems are usually more proficient and will produce quality electricity with less direct sunlight. The modern solar energy panels are installed at steeper angles but will nonetheless handle sunlight. And so, in the event your house fails to provide an superb inclination, it would be possible to produce solar energy.
Solar alternative energy using solar panels are usually attached to the top of the roof coupled with an effective rail unit. Your solar panels could slide towards the most effective alignment to get direct sunlight. The equipment is also ideal if you happen to choose to expand in the future.

Prior to deciding to put up solar panels, you need to figure out your electricity needs of your residence. To estimate your regular monthly electric consumption, you will need to review your current electrical costs and determine the regular utilization. And then, it’s easy to select the best equipment size. Should this be your first time to take advantage of solar powered energy, it would easier to get started with the easiest task you can find. Allow space for enlargement in the process so you can expand the system bit by bit particularly if have reasonably limited assets. Although you may use solar powered energy as an alternative solution, you’ll surely have the ability to reduce your bills by 80% in the upcoming several months.

As an example, for quick designs, you could start working on exterior lights, backyard water fountains, and so on. At a later time, you could use solar powered energy for the indoor electrical power needs.

While putting in a solar powered energy application, one of the more critical things to consider is the inverter. Make certain that the inverter’s capacity is appropriately chosen; in reality, this will be given the task of transforming Direct current into AC. Choose the right capacity inverter so you can satisfy all of your electrical power needs.

It’s smart to invest in a bigger inverter despite the fact that you are only preparing to put in a smaller sized system. That way, once you finally decide to increase the size at some point, you’ll simply insert them in.

If you aren’t an electrician and you have limited know-how about electric power and electronic equipment, try to bring in help in order to connect the inverter. Your solar power system needs to be connected to your household electrical system. Unsafe voltages exist and you could possibly be electrocuted. Only an electrician can comply with the local codes so that your installation can pass the inspection.

Your state and national government also provides perks for property owners who choose to go with solar powered energy. You are able to avail of financial loans or grants to help you install your solar power installation very quickly. Reap the benefits of these exceptional programs to enable you to begin the process of benefiting from a cost effective and clean electrical installation.

What do you think of the solar panel installation website? Let us know your thoughts and comments by leaving a reply on our entries or by sending us an email. We would love to hear from you.

If you feel we missed an important update, let us know and we'll be happy to create a post!

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By Elisa Wood
January 18, 2012

This is the era of Big Oil. Could the next be the era of Big Efficiency?

A new report by the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy suggests the possibility. Re-invented with today’s smart energy technologies, energy efficiency could displace 40 to 60 percent of our total energy needs by the year 2050, according to The Long-Term Energy Efficiency Potential: What the Evidence Suggests.

Sound far-fetched? ACEEE says history backs its assertion. Over the last 40 years we tripled the US economy, “and three-quarters of the energy needed to fuel that growth came from an amazing variety of efficiency advances—not new energy supplies,” said the report. Energy forecasters at the time predicted we would be using far more energy than we do now. The advent of the computer, the Internet, energy savings appliances and other efficiencies saved us a lot of money and a lot of oil. In 1970, our economy required 15,900 British Thermal Units of energy to support $1 of economic activity; by 2010 we needed only 7,300 Btus.

But there is a problem in repeating this feat. Today’s energy policy begins with the premise that we need to build more power plants, more refineries and more delivery systems. We do not try to first achieve greater efficiency. In other words, we build more energy infrastructure before we try to wring more work out of each unit of energy we produce. If we instead pushed efficiency first, the US could save $400 billion per year in energy costs, amounting to about $2,600 per household, according to ACEEE.

“The U.S. would prosper more if investments in new energy were not crowding out needed investments in energy efficiency,” said John A. “Skip” Laitner, ACEEE director of economic and social analysis.

In short, we are thinking small about efficiency, when we should be thinking big.

ACEEE further warns that the deck contains at least three jokers, or unwelcome wild cards, that could threaten our hand if we fail to pursue energy efficiency. These include 1) diminishing supplies of cheap and available energy; 2) a slowing rate of energy productivity and 3) climate change.

How do we keep the jokers buried? The report says it requires “a different recipe of technology investments” than we are now making.

“The question is will we choose to make those more productive investments?” says ACEEE.

ACEEE’s full report is available here.

If you found the article useful, please pass on our information to your friends. Many of the issues discussed in the article are not widely known.

If you would like more articles like this, please take a few moments to give us your feedback. Though energy efficiency is often discussed, access to information about it can be hard to find. Please come back and visit us again, we will have more quality articles for your reading pleasure.

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Thanks to recent advances in solar technology, solar energy is rapidly gaining acceptance across the world. Today’s solar power is cheaper and easier than ever to install, and more efficient at converting the sun’s power into electricity. A careful analysis of both the pros and cons of solar energy shows just how far this technology has come.

Solar’s biggest advantage is that it has zero fuel cost, since all of its power comes from the sun. Solar power is also extremely clean, generating no emissions of any type at all. Photovoltaic panels are silent and reliable, having no moving parts to break or make noise. They also work all over the world, as long as they get an adequate number of sun hours per day. Finally, they carry a number of financial benefits. Installing solar panels brings generous federal tax credits, as well as local and state credits in many areas. For extremely efficient buildings, a solar installation can even spin the electric meter backwards, selling power back to the building’s electric provider and resulting in a negative utility bill.

On the other hand, the cons surrounding solar power are more limited. Even with its financial benefits, solar power is still relatively expensive to install. With the exception of some large-scale thermal solar plants that use heat storage technology, it only works when the panels are being directly hit by the sun. Solar power also has aesthetic and environmental challenges. On a home, some find solar panels to be unattractive and utility-scale installations use a great deal of land, potentially disrupting existing ecosystems. Finally, although the technology can work globally, snowy and dusty areas require additional maintenance to keep the panels unobstructed.

At the end of the day, solar power is an excellent way to generate clean energy. Due to this, more home builders are including solar panels or reinforced roofs to support future solar panels in their homes. Utility companies are also developing new solar-power plants throughout the world. If the current trend toward utilizing solar energy continues, it is inevitable that the negative aspects surrounding the use of solar energy will be diminished once and for all.

–By Jordan Allen on behalf of Richmond American Homes, which builds new homes in Denver

This blog started out as a simple repository of basic information, then it grew to be a place on the web that is dedicated to solar energy. We thank everyone who contributed to our blog and also the people who painstakingly take time to read and comment - to make our site the best that it could be.

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Solar power systems are also known as photovoltaic panels plus the atoms which are present in these panels are excited by the action with the sun’s power. These atoms are present in a silicon layer that lies among two panels known as protector panels.

A formation of electric current takes place consequently with the action with the electrons from the aforementioned, excited atoms, and these are then utilized by a myriad of external devices. The history of solar panels dates back by hundreds of years, when their sole purpose was to heat the water for use in houses. Many-a-times specially shaped mirror is utilized for the concentration of light onto a tube of oil. As a result of this action, there’s a heating up of oil and as these heated oil travels through a vat of water, it instantly results in the boiling of this water. The steam that’s a resultant of this process of boiling is utilized to turn a turbine for the generation of electrical energy.

The History of Solar Panels

It was in the year 1839 that the photovoltaic effect was discovered by Antoine – Cesar – Becquerel, a French physicist. His experiment in this regard involved the placement of an electrolyte cell in an electrolyte answer; two metal electrodes produced up the electrolyte cell.

When this device was exposed to sunlight, Becquerel found that the generation of electrical energy saw a marked improve. It was in 1883 that Charles Fritts coated sheets of selenium using a thin layer of gold and built the initial genuine solar cell. Over a period of time numerous experiment had been conducted and discoveries had been produced when it came to solar cells. Albert Einstein also published his thesis on the photoelectric effect, for the duration of this time and also won the Nobel Prize for his research.

It was space satellites that produced huge scale by using solar electrical power for the initial time. By 1980, the United States of America, made a solar cell which provided an efficiency of practically twenty percent, this efficiency was increased to around twenty four percent in the subsequent two decades and at the moment you can find a handful of businesses which are manufacturing solar cells that give efficiency levels of practically twenty eight percent

The Operating of Solar Panels

Pure silicon forms the fundamental aspect of all solar panels as its makes for an ideal platform that aids transmission of electrons. This material is utilized on the plates that form a solar panel. Solar panels are also made by combining silicon panels with other elements, with negative or positive charges.

The Silicon atoms are exposed towards the bombardment of photons when negative plates of solar cells are faced towards the sunlight. As soon as all free electrons are drawn away from the plates, adequate electrical energy is generated to power different electronic appliances that don’t need an excessive amount of electrical energy to power them.

Capabilities and Types of Solar Panels

Fundamentally you can find three varieties of solar panels, namely mono-crystalline solar panels, polycrystalline solar panels, and amorphous solar panels. The life expectancy of solar panels depends on the type of solar panels selected by you; usually it is around twenty years or so.

Solar power systems don’t need sustained maintenance for their upkeep though; if lead acid batteries are utilized then they has to be checked just about every six months and topped up with distilled water if necessary. For anyone who is trying to find a solar panel to generate electricity and other demands, and don’t know what size to go for, then the best way would be to calculate your average consumption of electrical energy on a day-to-day basis. This would give you a fair notion of what type of solar panel to go for. Inside the lengthy run, home solar power systems will minimize your electrical energy bill by a lengthy way, and therefore the choice of using solar power has to be explored in a positive manner.

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OriginOil and Department of Energy to Develop Direct Conversion of Algae into Renewable Crude Oil for Existing Oil Refineries

Company partners with Idaho National Laboratory to enable algae growers to enter the global crude oil market

OriginOil, Inc., the developer of a breakthrough technology to extract oil from algae and an emerging leader in the global algae oil services industry, today announced its plans to co-develop an integrated system with the U.S. Department of Energy’s Idaho National Laboratory (INL) for direct conversion of raw algae into a renewable crude oil that can be used by existing petroleum refineries.

“We believe this is a major breakthrough for OriginOil and a major step forward for the algae industry,” said Riggs Eckelberry, OriginOil CEO. “We already lead the industry with our chemical-free, low-energy, continuous high-flow harvesting system.

“From there it’s a natural step to helping algae growers make a direct crude oil replacement right on site, giving them direct access to the existing world market for transportation fuels, including jet fuel. That’s an instant upgrade from what is now a niche market, to the immediate 86 million barrel per day global crude oil market.”

OriginOil’s planned Biocrude System(TM) will integrate its own harvesting system with state-of-the-art biomass processing technology being developed under the recently-announced research agreement with INL, to convert raw algae into barrels of renewable crude oil.

This much cleaner replacement for conventional petroleum will be designed to be compatible with conventional petroleum refineries. Renewable algae crude could also be blended with other biomass sources to improve their performance.

Dr. Deborah T. Newby, Project Manager at DOE’s Idaho National Laboratory (INL), commented, “We are excited to work with OriginOil on its Biocrude System and leverage its algae processing expertise and technology. Algae is a high energy biomass and can function as a force multiplier to blend in other biomass waste such as from forestry and agriculture into a uniform renewable crude oil substitute. This may well support the U.S. military’s strategic fuels diversification program.”

In operation since 1949, the Idaho National Laboratory (www.inl.gov) is a science-based, applied engineering national laboratory dedicated to supporting the DOE on energy research and national defense. Its mission is to ensure the nation’s energy security with safe, clean, competitive, and sustainable energy systems and unique national and homeland security capabilities.

OriginOil Scales Up in Australia, 2011 from OriginOil, Inc. on Vimeo.

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Solar power generation in today’s world has taken all new meaning and market push as the major player’s developing the new and more efficient power generating cells have shifted from the US to overseas. China has taken on a critical role in the solar energy marketplace with their huge investment in solar power factories that are cranking out cheaper solar panels that now make installation of solar power more and more affordable. this shift however has also thrown a loop at countries where solar technology development had been at the forefront of the science. Here in the US government subsidies has helped push the solar industry forward to find a way to compete with normal power generation methods in a cost competitive way.

Now those very companies that have benefited from the push from these subsidies are facing huge market pressure from abroad. Of course our lawmakers and media have made a big field day of the whole Solyndra loan guarantee issue but as many wise analysts have shown that was an anomaly in the market and that company was making a product that was not going to compete any time soon and they just over spent.

The good news is that consumers are getting the message that solar is no longer just for “tree huggers” as it was often labeled in past years. They are discovering that the cheaper panels, large supply chain, and local and state government subsidies are making solar power for homes a reality. Many new companies have spring up to install solar power systems on homes and businesses. In California and other states the biggest of these companies are able to offer no money down lease arrangements for homeowners so the cost to get started is almost nothing.

In fact I am seeing many electrical contractors now expanding into solar power installations. Once such contractor is Quantum Electric as they provide a wide variety of services to consumers. In my area contractors are seeing this as an opportunity to expand their product line to new customers but also to go back to existing customers and provide solar power installations which can save them money and help out on the energy front in the new world we live in today.

This blog started out as a simple repository of basic information, then it grew to be a place on the web that is dedicated to solar power generation. We thank everyone who contributed to our blog and also the people who painstakingly take time to read and comment - to make our site the best that it could be.

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ClearEdge Power Signs Market-Defining $500 Million Multi-Phase Agreement to Deliver 50 Megawatts of Clean Energy to Güssing Renewable Energy

When completed, agreement will be one of the largest ever in the stationary fuel cell industry

HILLSBORO, Ore. – January 10, 2012 – ClearEdge Power, a manufacturer of scalable, continuous onsite power systems, today announced that Güssing Renewable Energy GmbH, a provider of carbon-neutral energy solutions, has selected ClearEdge systems to achieve its goal of producing 50 megawatts (MW) of clean distributed energy generation from fuel cells in the Republic of Austria by 2020. In the first phase of a multi-phase $500 million agreement, one of the largest ever signed in the stationary fuel cell industry, ClearEdge Power will deliver 8.5 MW of clean energy over the next 36 months.

“This is a very significant milestone for both ClearEdge Power and the stationary fuel cell market,” said ClearEdge Power President and CEO, Russell Ford. “Güssing Renewable Energy is at the cutting-edge of environmental sustainability and an agreement of this magnitude further validates the role that scalable, continuous onsite power systems will play in the transition to a carbon-neutral society. This contract also adds on to our strong growth in North America and provides the perfect platform for us to continue to expand our international operations.”

Headquartered in the Austrian town of Güssing, the first community in the European Union to produce 100 percent of its energy from renewable resources, Güssing Renewable Energy offers customizable and instantly usable carbon-neutral solutions that help communities produce clean, reliable energy. These solutions include proven anaerobic technology that can convert organic mass into high-purity biogas that can be used to cleanly and cost-effectively generate electric power and heat in fuel cells like the ClearEdge systems. Under the agreement with ClearEdge Power, Güssing Renewable Energy has agreed to sell, install and service ClearEdge systems in Austria and also has the opportunity to foster adoption within Western European markets. The agreement builds on Güssing Renewable Energy’s participation in the recent ClearEdge Power Series E financing round and is designed to support the installation of 8.5 MW of fuel cell systems in Austria over the next 36 months, which will then rise to 50 MW by 2020.

“With its flexible and modular power systems, ClearEdge Power has developed a distributed energy solution that will fundamentally change the way people receive power,” said Michael Dichand, Chairman, Güssing Renewable Energy. “We see these fuel cell systems as the perfect complement to our sustainably cultivated biomass facilities and are pleased to be able to partner with a forward-thinking company like ClearEdge Power as we aggressively move to achieve our clean energy goals.”

The record-setting agreement with Güssing Renewable Energy builds on ClearEdge Power’s forward momentum in 2011. Recent highlights include the expansion of its portfolio of continuous onsite power systems, including industry-first innovations in areas such as reliability, scalability and flexibility. The company also successfully completed a $73.5 million Series E financing round and secured a DOE grant to support the adoption of fuel cell technologies in different vertical markets. In addition, ClearEdge Power has seen strong customer adoption in a variety of industries, including multi-tenant housing, hospitality, education, utility, public sector and residential.

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Public Utilities Commission orders utilities to use renewable sources before electricity from fossil fuels

San Francisco – The California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) voted unanimously today to strengthen a key clean energy policy in California called the Loading Order.
The Loading Order sets a priority list for electricity sources. California’s utilities must first employ energy efficiency and conservation to meet customer demand; then energy from renewable sources such as wind, solar and geothermal. Only after all those supplies are exhausted may the utilities purchase power from fossil fuel plants.

The CPUC already requires the state’s three investor-owned utilities—Pacific Gas & Electric, San Diego Gas & Electric, and Southern California Edison–to obtain certain minimum amounts of electricity through energy efficiency, demand response resources and renewables. Before today, the big energy companies ignored the Loading Order once they had met these other state-required targets. The Commissioners ordered a halt to that practice, writing in their decision, “While hitting a target for energy efficiency or demand response may satisfy other obligations of the utility, that does not constitute a ceiling on those resources for purposes of procurement.”

“The Public Utilities Commission has confirmed what Californians have already come to understand; burning oil and gas to make electricity is bad for our health and bad for our environment,” said Earthjustice attorney Will Rostov. “It should be a last resort instead of business as usual.”

Environmental groups who made the case for this clarification applauded the decision. Rory Cox, Senior Energy Consultant for Pacific Environment said, “The Loading Order could be a powerful tool to put thousands of Californians to work building the power grid of the future while reducing pollution. This decision makes it crystal clear to the utilities that clean energy should always come first.”

Pacific Environment is represented at the CPUC by the Golden Gate University School of Law, Environmental Law and Justice Clinic. Sierra Club California is represented by the public interest law firm Earthjustice.

“Saving energy and using it efficiently is a priority for most of us, and it should be for the power companies as well,” said Jim Metropulos, Senior Advocate with Sierra Club California. “Common sense tells us that we should use all energy efficiency, wind and solar power we can get, and California is well-suited to provide these renewable resources.”

“Today’s decision should check the utilities’ routine response – to deploy massive new power plants and transmission,” said Shana Lazerow, an attorney for Communities for a Better Environment. “If correctly implemented, the loading order can help our efforts to bring about an energy system that looks first to the most sustainable, least harmful sources to power all of California’ communities.”

In spite of the orders to shift reliance to energy efficiency, renewable energy sources and other clean energy strategies, the utilities have built or are building numerous large, natural gas power plants while falling behind on their clean energy mandates. According to the California Energy Commission, the state has about 30 percent more power than needed on peak energy days, and the CPUC anticipates they will be 60 to 80 percent over-built by 2020, should current trends continue.

This clarification of the Loading Order was made as part of the CPUC’s Long Term Procurement Plan (Rulemaking 10-05-006). This proposed decision as adopted is here: http://docs.cpuc.ca.gov/PUBLISHED/AGENDA_DECISION/155719.htm

I hope this article has given you new insight on the subject and given you some things to think about. Although there is nothing new under the sun, the information that you have just finished reading is presented in a fresh and interesting way.

One thing is for sure, information on this subject is available all over the Internet and this article is one of many articles available on the subject. We love writing on this subject and have presented our point of view. Feel free to look around and explore our site for more clean energy policy information.

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ACEEE REPORT: U.S. BETTER OFF “THINKING BIG” ABOUT ENERGY EFFICIENCY INSTEAD OF FOCUSING FIRST ON DEVELOPMENT OF NEW ENERGY SOURCES

How Lack of Emphasis on Major Energy Efficiency Investments Leaves “3 Jokers in the U.S. Economic Deck”; Slashing Energy Use 60% Could Generate 2 Million Jobs & Save the Equivalent of $2600 Per Household Annually.

WASHINGTON, D.C.///January 12, 2012///America is thinking too small when it comes to energy efficiency, while also making the mistake of “crowding out” economically beneficial investments in energy efficiency by focusing on riskier and more expensive bids to develop new energy sources, according to a major new report from the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy (ACEEE).

Titled “The Long-Term Energy Efficiency Potential: What the Evidence Suggests,” the new ACEEE report outlines three scenarios under which the U.S. could either continue on its current path or cut energy consumption by the year 2050 almost 60 percent, add nearly two million net jobs in 2050, and save energy consumers as much as $400 billion per year (the equivalent of $2600 per household annually).

According to ACEEE, the secret to major economic gains from energy efficiency is a more productive investment pattern of increased investments in energy efficiency, which would allow lower investments in power plants and other supply infrastructure, thereby substantially lowering overall energy expenditures on an economy-wide basis in the residential, commercial, industrial, transportation, and electric power sectors.

ACEEE Director of Economic and Social Analysis John A. “Skip” Laitner said: “The U.S. would prosper more if investments in new energy were not crowding out needed investments in energy efficiency. The evidence suggests that without a greater emphasis on the more efficient use of energy resources, there may be as many as three jokers in the deck that will threaten the robustness of our nation’s future economy. These include the many uncertainties surrounding the availability of conventional and relatively inexpensive energy supplies, a slowing rate of energy productivity gains and therefore economic productivity, and a variety of potential climate constraints that may create further economic impacts of their own. Given all of this, large-scale energy efficiency advances are by far the smartest investment for America.”

ACEEE Executive Director Steven Nadel said: “Large-scale energy efficiency advances will require major investments. But the good news is that the investments will generate a significant return in the form of large energy bill savings. After paying for the program costs and making the necessary investments as we pay for them over time, the economy will benefit from a net energy bill savings that ranges from 12 to 16 trillion dollars cumulatively from 2012 through 2050. In other words, the energy efficiency scenarios outlined in our report will spur an annual net energy bill savings that might range up to about $2600 per household annually in constant 2009 dollars.”

Examples of potential large-scale energy efficiency savings identified by ACEEE include the following:

* Electric Power. Our current system of generating and delivering electricity to U.S. homes and businesses is an anemic 31 percent energy efficient. That is, for every three units of coal or other fuel we use to generate the power, we manage to deliver less than one unit of electricity to our homes and businesses. What the U.S. wastes in the generation of electricity is more than Japan needs to power its entire economy. What is even more astonishing is that our current level of (in)efficiency is essentially unchanged in the half century since 1960, when President Dwight D. Eisenhower spent his last year in the White House.

* Transportation. The fuel economy of conventional petroleum-fueled vehicles continues to grow while hybrid, electric, and fuel cell vehicles gain large shares, totaling nearly three-quarters of all new light-duty vehicles in 2050 in the report’s middle scenario. Aviation, rail, and shipping energy use declines substantially in this scenario through a combination of technological and operational improvements. In the most aggressive scenario, there is a shift toward more compact development patterns, and greater investment in alternative modes of travel and other measures that reduce both passenger and freight vehicle miles traveled. This scenario also phases out conventional light-duty gasoline vehicles entirely, increases hybrid and fuel cell penetration for heavy-duty vehicles, and reduces aviation energy use by 70 percent.

* Buildings. In residential and commercial buildings the evidence suggests potential reductions of space heating and cooling needs as the result of building shell improvements of up to 60 percent in existing buildings, and 70-90 percent in new buildings. The ACEEE scenarios also incorporate advanced heating and cooling systems (e.g., gas and ground-source air conditioners and heat pumps and condensing furnaces and boilers), decreased energy distribution losses, advanced solid-state lighting, and significantly more efficient appliances.

* Industry. In the industrial sector, energy efficiency opportunities reduce 2050 energy use by up to half, coming less from equipment efficiency and more from optimization of complex systems. The ACEEE analysis focuses on process optimization in the middle scenario, but also anticipates even greater optimization of entire supply chains in the most aggressive scenario, allowing for more efficient use of feedstocks and elimination of wasted production.

Are such advances in energy efficiency realistic?

As the ACEEE report points out, the U.S. already has achieved considerable advances in the energy efficiency context and is poised to do more: “The U.S. economy has tripled in size since 1970 and three-quarters of the energy needed to fuel that growth came from an amazing variety of efficiency advances—not new energy supplies. Indeed, the overwhelming emphasis in current policy debates on finding new energy supplies is such that emphasis on new supplies may be crowding out investments and innovations that can help to achieve greater levels of energy productivity. Going forward, the current economic recovery, and our future economic prosperity, will depend more on new energy efficiency behaviors and investments than we’ve seen in the last 40 years.”

For the full text of the ACEEE report, go to http://aceee.org/research-report/E121 on the Web.

If you want to suggest related things about energy efficiency that can be featured in this blog, you may contact us and we will happily look into it. Feel free to let us know, as we would like to make our site the top resource website for our readers who are interested in energy efficiency. We would love to know your thoughts as well as other feedback to make our blog better. Please feel free to leave a comment or a message. We would love to hear from you.

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Many are too young to remember the Arab oil embargo of October 1973 that resulted in lines for gasoline that snaked around the block. The embargo, which lasted through March 1974, was launched in response to the U.S. decision to re-supply the Israeli military during the Yom Kippur War. I was little affected because I was living in a state favored by a flawed gasoline allocation system that rewarded rural over urban areas. But the embargo severely affected most of the nation: the price of oil quadrupled, gas was rationed, speed limits were reduced and year-round daylight saving time was implemented. There was even a toilet paper panic as rumors spread about a shortage due to a lack of petroleum used in paper manufacturing. And that’s to say nothing of the general economic chaos: the American Automobile Association reported, for instance, that 20 percent of American gas stations had no fuel in the last week of February 1974.

The 1973 oil embargo was one factor influencing President Jimmy Carter to launch his MEOW initiative in 1977, in which he likened the need for energy security to the Moral Equivalent Of War, memorialized by the acronym MEOW. Carter proposed a 10-point plan to increase energy security in order to forestall the “national catastrophe” that he envisioned as a consequence of future interruptions to the oil supply.

Nearly 40 years later, very little has changed — in fact, we are now far more vulnerable than we were then. In 1973, we imported 35 percent of our oil, compared to more than 61 percent in 2010. In 1973 we spent $37 billion a year on foreign oil, compared to about that much per month today — money that is in large measure funding the arming of our enemies. And the Middle East is now more unstable than ever. The heightened tensions resulting from recent Iranian sabre-rattling in the Strait of Hormuz again raise the threat of a cut-off of oil supplies, the consequences of which would be far worse than in 1973. The strait is the only sea passage to the ocean for large areas of the Persian Gulf. About 14 tankers carrying 15.5 million barrels of oil pass through it on an average day. Unfortunately, memories are short, history is too quickly forgotten (the President was only a child at the time of the 1973 embargo, as is no doubt true of many members of Congress — if they were even born) and it is the seeming fate of initiative to be smothered by complacency.

The President has affirmed the administration’s commitment to increasing energy security in his “Blueprint for a Secure Energy Future,” which he unveiled in March 2011, as well as in various other addresses. While this commitment is to be commended, he needs to up the ante: we are more vulnerable than ever. The result, as Carter noted in his MEOW speech, could be catastrophic. Now that the troops are coming home from Iraq, it’s time to declare a war for energy security.

A serious, well-funded initiative to promote national energy security could have benefits far beyond those of releasing us from the grip of foreign oil: it could also stimulate the economy, create jobs and establish the United States as a world leader in alternative energy, just as an interruption of natural gas supplies from Russia prompted Germany to turn to solar.

The President is scheduled to deliver his State of the Union address later this month, in which he should highlight the importance of energy security. But this time, a MEOW won’t be enough — we need a roar.

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Utilities worry about a lot of things, such as keeping the lights on, earning a return for investors, and making regulators and customers happy with their service.

Now there is a new worry: How can they protect customers from what one utility refers to as “mental fatigue?”

By Elisa Wood
January 11, 2012

In this particular case, the utility raises the issue as it prepares to invite homeowners and small businesses to select from among new and possibly complicated rate options made available because of smart meters. The new rates should lead to greater energy efficiency. But that won’t happen if customers become overwhelmed by their complexity, throw the bill insert into the trash, and turn to the next thing demanding their attention.

Mental fatigue is a big problem not only when it comes to homeowners, but also businesses and organizations faced with technical decisions required to green their facilities. Start with the basics. Do you pursue energy efficiency or renewable energy or both? And then, do you choose to make actual physical changes, such as installing combined heat and power systems or solar panels, or do you buy from among the more virtual products such as energy efficiency certificates or renewable energy credits (RECs). And to make it even more difficult there are now a growing number of RECs to choose from: solar RECs, zero emissions RECs, low emissions RECs and more. (See my article on US RECs in the December issue of Platts Energy Economist.)

Analysts Patrick Costello and Roshni Rathi recently prepared a report for RealEnergyWriters.com that sorts through the many options presented to companies trying to go green. The detailed analysis attempts to give direction to organizations by using examples drawn, interestingly, from information technology and telecommunication companies. These industries are known for their progressive, game-changing strategies and many have led the way in reducing energy usage and emissions in their data centers, according to Costello.

The report, “Data Center Energy Efficiency, Renewable Energy, and Carbon Offset Investment Best Practices,” points out that seven of the top ten organizations in Newsweek’s Green Rankings were IT or telecom companies with IBM, HP and Sprint Nextel in the lead. IBM won further kudos this week from the European Union, which bestowed its code of conduct recognition on 27 IBM data centers for their energy efficiency. IBM met a 2007 goal to double the IT capacity of its data centers within three years without increasing its electricity usage.

But not all data centers are run by firms the size of IBM. Many are small and don’t have the kind of resources of a large IT firm, so don’t even know where to begin when installing or purchasing energy efficiency or renewable energy. REC purchases, in particular, can confound the uninitiated. Two markets exist for RECs, one voluntary and the other regulated by states, and each state has its own way of defining what constitutes a legitimate REC. “It is really important to be careful about what you purchase and where you purchase it. People often don’t have an understanding of what they are buying,” Costello said.

They don’t understand and sometimes they wish they didn’t have to. Mental fatigue may be a new occupational hazard for the energy-consuming public.

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Biodiesel is a renewable fuel for diesel engines derived from vegetable oils or animal fats. It is made from renewable sources, burns with less emissions than regular diesel and is biodegradable. Because we no longer need to mine fossil fuels this source ticks all the right environmental boxes.

Luckily for us, choosing biodiesel also ticks all the right financial boxes, too. The energy savings for the nation and for the consumer make this an alternative energy source which must be taken seriously.

Biodiesel brings energy savings for the nation:

*It is far cheaper to create biodiesel than it is to create regular diesel which is a product of crude oil, drilled for and pumped out of the earth.

*Reduces our reliance on fossil fuels

*Reduces our reliance on other countries for their oil supplies.

*Helps boost employment in the local economy.

*Releases no pollutants which need to be cleaned up or managed.

*Allows farmers to grow crops which will bring them in a regular income.

*The cost of mining fossil fuels continues to rise so switching to alternative energy sources will reduce costs.

Biodiesel brings energy savings for the consumer:

*An engine that runs on diesel can run on biodiesel without having to be modified.

*It needs no special storage facility or refineries.

*Reduces the cost of ongoing maintenance of your vehicle because it runs cleaner.

*Biodiesel is a fuel that can even be made by the end consumer.

*Some countries offer tax incentives to people/companies that create and use biodiesel.

Gas prices fluctuate depending on the whim of a foreign supplier but we can reduce our expenditure by using a clean, renewable energy source to power our vehicles and machinery. Choosing biodiesel as your fuel source is a responsible decision with benefits for the environment, the nation and your finances.

Compare gas and electricity suppliers in order to find the best green energy provider available. This allows you to save money on your utilities and provides customers to the gas and electricity companies trying to make a difference.

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If you would like more articles like this, please take a few moments to give us your feedback. Though biodiesel is often discussed, access to information about it can be hard to find. Please come back and visit us again, we will have more quality articles for your reading pleasure.

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Solar Cell Makers Benefited from Rush Orders; Polysilicon Contract Price Likely to Surge

January 5, 2012—Benefiting from the rush orders from clients in Europe and the United States, Taiwanese solar cell makers’ utilization rates increased evidently, which will affect the future development of contract and spot prices. According to TrendForce, EnergyTrend’s survey, the contract price of polysilicon is still in negotiation as the buyers and suppliers are yet to reach a consensus. On the other hand, due to the utilization rate surge of solar cell makers propelled by rush orders, polysilicon suppliers took this opportunity to jack up the contract price, which affected the spot market and caused the polysilicon spot price this week to remain on an uptrend.

Source: EnergyTrend

As for the contract price, according to EnergyTrend, Asian polysilicon suppliers are leaning towards raising the price while the European and the US suppliers are maintaining the current prices. The major manufacturers expect the contract price in January to fall between US$27/kg and US$30/kg, EnergyTrend has learned. However, the downstream companies are still suffering from deficits and are unlikely to burden their clients with increasing costs. Therefore, thus far little prospect is seen for a price surge; whether or not the contract price can be increased to US$30/kg remains to be seen.

Aside from polysilicon, this week’s Si wafer prices still underwent minor changes. Helped by rush orders, multi-Si wafer price increased moderately. As for the products with conversion efficiencies above 17%, the prices mainly ranged between US$1.18/piece and US$1.2/piece. Despite related manufacturers aggressively attempting to increase the product prices, it is hard to say if the price will surge above US$1.2/piece in January. EnergyTrend believes that if the rush orders continue to come in, there is a good chance for the aforementioned product’s price to remain US$1.2/piece. As for the mono-Si wafer prices, they experienced a small setback, which EnergyTrend refers to the price drop of 5-inch products. According to EnergyTrend, the persisting price downtrend of 5-inch products and the recent releases of 6-inch multi-Si high-efficiency products largely impact the price trend of 6-inch products.

As for this week’s spot prices, lowest polysilicon price remained at US$20/kg, while polysilicon ASP increased by 3.68% to US$25.1/kg. As for Si wafers, lowest multi-Si wafer price was US$1.0/piece, and lowest mono-Si wafer price was US$1.50/piece. This week’s multi-Si wafer ASP was US$1.142/piece, an increase of 0.18%, mainly due to the cease of large scale inventory digestion at low prices and the rush orders. Mono-Si wafer ASP dipped to US$1.568/piece, a 0.13% decrease. As for the solar cell price, this week’s ASP remained the same. However, looking at it in detail, high efficiency products were US$0.63/Watt, while standard product price was US$0.5/Watt, the price gap per Watt ranging between 10cent and 15cent. In terms of module, both PV module prices and thin film prices declined, with the latter experiencing bigger fall. PV module ASP fell by 1.16% to US$0.851/Watt; thin film’s ASP dipped to US$0.80/Watt, a 3.50% decrease.

It's great to read that someone at least knows the 'ins' and 'outs', isn't it? Amongst our readers, this article really turned the tide on the debate that was taking place.

Many readers have given us feedback to say they are going to tackle their solar cell in a very different way as a result. Will you?