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First it was companies poking around and looking for places to stake their claim on the possible use of [tag-tec]ocean waves[/tag-tec] to create energy. Now it is a whole county in CA that wants to lock up its shoreline and ocean territory for miles out to sea in order to protect its right to develop wave energy technology.

Yes it seems that the technology must be coming to near term if it has come to this. The Sonoma County Water Agency (just north of SF) has plans this week to ask federal regulators for exclusive rights to study and develop wave-energy technology along the entire 41-mile county coastline, extending 12 miles out to sea, an expanse of about 490 square miles.

Now there are some interesting issues in this plan. Who has the final say over these ocean energies? What impact will it have on ocean ecology, can they even develop a technology capable of standing up to salt water, huge waves, and cold temps over many years?

"Most of the prospective areas for wave arrays are right in the middle of gray whale migratory pathways," said Richard Charter, a representative of the nonprofit Defenders of Wildlife.

Will these wave energy technologies get in the way of commercial and public fisheries, damage fish habitat, prevent cleanup in the case of a spill and so on. These are the questions being asked.

But the tantalizing question is can it work and how much energy can it supply? Is it another version of wind power, capable of helping out as an energy source but not yet a big player? Or is it much bigger than that?

Some of the wave science Wave power DOE on wave power

Energy Tags: energy, wave energy

Would you like to listen to the keynote speech by General Motors’ Larry Burns in which he makes a call for a vast expansion of hydrogen stations to fuel the current and future generations of fuel cell vehicles? As a result of recent studies completed with Shell Hydrogen, he stated with confidence that a hydrogen fueling infrastructure is less challenging and less costly than many people think.

Last month, the National Hydrogen Association wrapped up its Annual Conference and Hydrogen Expo, held this year in Sacramento, California.

H2Gen’s Sandy Thomas presented the findings of a comprehensive, life cycle analysis of hybrid, plug-in, ethanol and hydrogen vehicles showing that while all of these fuel and technology pathways should be pursued for near-term benefits.

And finally:

SMUD opens hydrogen vehicle fueling station powered by the sun

Will be used to fuel SMUD hydrogen fuel-cell vehicles as well as others in the region The Sacramento Municipal Utility District (SMUD) is taking a bold step into the future of automotive technology. Earlier this month SMUD formally opened a solar-powered hydrogen fueling station for fuel-cell electric vehicles (FCEV).

The station is part of a joint SMUD, BP, Ford and U.S. Department of Energy project to demonstrate FCEVs and generation of hydrogen from renewable sources. The station produces hydrogen onsite using power from the sun produced by a large solar panel array. The hydrogen will be used to fuel SMUD FCEVs and other hydrogen-powered vehicles in the region. The project is the next step in a nearly two-decade-long effort by SMUD to improve local air quality by advancing alternative-fuel clean transportation, as well as cleaner power sources.

Energy Tags: solar power, battery technology

DOE Secretary Samuel W. Bodman Names Selected Solar Technology Projects During Visit to Konarka Headquarters, Lowell, Massachusetts

Lowell, Mass. – March 8, 2007 – Konarka Technologies, Inc., an innovator in development and commercialization of Power Plastic™, a material that converts light to energy, today announced the company is one of 13 selected industry-led solar technology projects to be awarded funding by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) as part of President Bush’s Solar America Initiative (SAI), a component of his Advanced Energy Initiative (AEI), announced in his 2006 State of the Union Address. In the photo - Nobel Lauriat Dr. Alan Heeger; Dr, Samual Bodman, US Secretary of Energy; Howard Berke, Chairman and CEO In the photo (L to R) – Konarka Chief Scientist & Cofounder and Nobel Laureate Dr. Alan Heeger; Dr. Samuel Bodman, US Secretary of Energy; Howard Berke, Chairman and CEO

The SAI project sponsors, to receive up to $168 million (FY’07-’09) in funding, subject to appropriation from Congress, were announced today by U.S. Department of Energy Secretary Samuel W. Bodman while visiting Konarka Global Headquarters in Lowell, Massachusetts.

“Solar technology can play a crucial role in moving toward affordable net zero energy homes and businesses – which combine energy efficiency and renewable energy produced on-site,” commented Secretary Bodman. “Efficient buildings with solar power generation can help reduce peak demand and ease the need for expensive new generating capacity, transmission and distributions lines as our economy grows.”

Konarka’s project will focus on manufacturing research and product reliability assurance for extremely low-cost photovoltaic cells using organic dyes that convert sunlight to electricity. Partners for this project include NREL and the University of Delaware. Subject to negotiations, DOE funding for the first year of the project is expected to be $1,200,000, with approximately $3,600,000, available over three years if the team meets its goals.

These projects will help significantly reduce the cost of producing and distributing solar energy. As part of the cost-shared agreements, the industry-led teams will contribute more than 50 percent of the funding for these projects for a total value of up to $357 million over three years. These cooperative agreements, to be negotiated, will be the first made available as part of President Bush’s Solar America Initiative.

President Bush’s AEI challenges Americans to change the way we power our nation. As an integral part of the AEI, the Solar America Initiative aims to bring down the cost of solar energy to make it competitive with conventional electricity sources in the U.S. by 2015. The SAI is also part of the President’s commitment to diversify our energy resources through grants, incentives and tax credits and aims to spur widespread commercialization and deployment of clean solar energy technologies across America, which would provide long-term economic, environmental and security benefits to the nation.

Solar energy is a clean, abundant, widespread, and renewable energy source that can be used to increase electricity generating capacity while decreasing greenhouse gas emissions as compared to other energy conversion pathways. Photovoltaic-based solar cells convert sunlight directly into electricity. They are made of semiconductor materials similar to those used in computer chips. When sunlight is absorbed by these materials, the solar energy knocks electrons loose from their atoms, allowing the electrons to flow through the material to produce electricity. The process of converting light to electricity is called the photovoltaic effect.

Craig Cornelius, the technology manager of the Department of Energy Solar Energies Program, “Because of its potential to deliver very low cost solutions to the existing grid-tied markets, the DoE considers organic photovoltaics to be a vital element of our research and development portfolio. As well, with its manufacturability, high volume potential and desired material attributes, it can open up new applications for the market.”

For more information on the solicitation and facts about the Solar America Initiative, visit: www.eere.energy.gov/solar/solar_america. About Konarka Technologies, Inc. Konarka builds products that convert light to energy – anywhere. As the leading developer of polymer photovoltaic technology that provide a source of renewable power in a variety of form factors for commercial, industrial, government and consumer applications, Konarka has a broad portfolio of patents, technology licenses and an accomplished technical team. The Company's technology is focused on delivering lightweight, flexible, scalable and manufacturable products. Konarka Technologies is headquartered in Lowell, Mass., U.S.A., with European headquarters in Nuremberg, Germany, and research and development facility in Austria. For additional information, visit http://www.konarka.com.

Energy Tags: energy, alternative