Tag Archives: National Renewable Energy Laboratory

SolarWindow Achieves 12-Fold Increase in Rapid Prototyping of Electricity-Generating Glass & Plastics

solar windows

SolarWindow Technologies, Inc. (Symbol: WNDW) today reported a 500% increase in prototyping and testing speed; 12-fold increase in testing capacity and output; and 20-times reduction in material costs. Engineers attribute these record results to the Company’s new ‘high-output platform’ for lab-scale prototyping of SolarWindow electricity-generating plastics and glass for commercial building windows, transportation, greenhouses, and other applications.The SolarWindow breakthrough announced …

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Researchers Improve Safety of Lead-Based Perovskite Solar Cells

solar

Researchers at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) and Northern Illinois University (NIU) have developed a technique to sequester the lead used to make perovskite solar cells, a highly efficient emerging photovoltaic technology. The light-absorbing layer in a perovskite solar cell contains a minute amount of lead. The presence of this toxic material in the developing technology could turn some …

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Community Solar Project

solar energy

ForeFront Power Approved for First Community Solar Project for SDG&E’s EcoShare Program ForeFront Power is excited to announce that its community solar project in San Diego County is now the first to be approved for San Diego Gas and Electric’s (SDG&E) EcoShare program. The program allows SDG&E customers, including those who rent or cannot install on-site solar, the option of …

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Solar Farm Apiary

Honeybee Solar

PINE GATE RENEWABLES AND OLD SOL APIARIES PARTNER TO ESTABLISH THE LARGEST SOLAR FARM APIARY IN AMERICA Utility-scale solar developer Pine Gate Renewables, headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina, is pleased to announce that honey bees are now living on Eagle Point solar farm in Jackson County, Oregon, thanks to the company’s SolarCulture initiative. SolarCulture is a Pine Gate environmental stewardship …

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Solar Eclipse in Europe Shows Grid Operators Can Be Successful with Renewables

solar eclipse

by Alex Perera and Colin McCormick – March 31, 2015 As electric grids around the world rely more and more on solar and wind power, there are concerns about how they’ll handle renewable energy’s sometimes inconsistent generation. Unlike conventional power plants, which produce energy on a fixed schedule, renewables can’t be fully controlled because they rely on the available sunlight and wind speed. Grid operators’ response to Europe’s recent …

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Higher Wind and Solar Generation in the Eastern Power Grid

wind energy in texas

NREL opens data to help planners and regulators understand implications of higher wind and solar generation August 31, 2016 – A new study from the United States Department of Energy’s (DOE) National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) used high-performance computing capabilities and innovative visualization tools to model, in unprecedented detail, how the power grid of the eastern United States could operationally …

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New tool calculates emissions impacts, energy benefits from smart grid investments

Greenhouse and other emissions may vary Use of “Smart Grid” technologies can impact carbon emissions — but by how much? A new Emissions Quantification Tool can estimate the answer to that question. RICHLAND, Wash. – “Smart grid” technologies significantly reduce greenhouse gases and other emissions resulting from power production and usage. Taken together, smart grid and intelligent buildings mechanisms could …

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Innovative Energy Storage Technology

JuiceBox Energy’s Innovative Energy Storage Technology is Game Changer for Nevada’s Solar Economics Las Vegas, NV, USA, April 11, 2016 – Nevada residents continue to seek alternative energy solutions for their homes that increase their use of renewable energy, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, reduce their reliance on the centralized utility model, and provide daily economic returns on their investment. While recent …

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Radar-Activated Obstruction Lighting System for Wind Turbines

Laufer Wind’s Radar-Activated Obstruction Lighting System for Wind Turbines and Tall Towers Meets FAA Performance Standards – Follows Extensive Testing Aircraft Detection System mitigates the visual impact of tall structures’ blinking lights on neighbors—also beneficial to migratory wildlife Following Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) testing and introduction of new performance guidelines, Laufer Wind is now making its patented Aircraft Detection System …

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Accelerating hydrogen refueling stations

hydrogen refueling stations

Drivers are seeing more hydrogen fuel cell electric vehicles (FCEVs) on the road, but  hydrogen refueling stations for those vehicles are still few and far between. This is about to change, and one reason is a new testing device being validated at California refueling stations that will greatly accelerate station commissioning. Developed by U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Sandia National …

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Invisible Wires Start ‘Disappearing’ on Transparent Electricity-Generating SolarWindow

SolarWindow

Latest SolarWindow process breakthrough revolutionizes the transmission of electricity on glass with wires as thin as human hair.     Columbia, MD – November 3, 2015 – SolarWindow Technologies, Inc. (OTCQB: WNDW), a leading developer of first-of-their-kind transparent electricity-generating coatings for commercial windows on skyscrapers and tall towers, today announced that a process breakthrough has enabled the advanced development of …

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EnergySage Releases Inaugural U.S. Solar Marketplace Intel Report™

New analysis provides unprecedented view of consumer behavior, solar system and financing trends, and other dynamics of the residential and small-scale commercial solar market from July 2014 to June 2015   EnergySage published today its first Solar Marketplace Intel Report™, providing one-of-a-kind visibility into the residential and small-scale commercial solar market in the United States. Based on statistically valid transaction-level …

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State Celebrates National Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Day

 California Leads the Way for Advanced Transportation Vehicles   California celebrates National Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Day today on the cusp of a transportation revolution that will lead to cleaner air and fewer greenhouse gas emissions as more drivers turn to zero-emission vehicles. The U.S. Senate has declared Thursday, Oct. 8, 2015, National Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Day, referencing hydrogen’s …

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Solar Powered Microgrid on Alcatraz Island

The Alcatraz Microgrid: Life on ‘The Rock’ Not Easy, Even for a Microgrid The Alcatraz microgrid stands as a model for installing modern energy technology under difficult terms. Historical structures had to be kept intact, equipment protected from the elements, and no new buildings erected. Here’s how developer Princeton Power  Systems accomplished the task. The 22-acre island in San Francisco Bay is …

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Solar Windows – Close to Reality?

New Energy Unveils Company?s Largest and Highest-Performance See-Through SolarWindow? Capable of Generating Electricity on Glass New Energy Technologies Inc. (OTCQB: NENE), developer of see-through SolarWindow? coatings, capable of generating electricity on glass and flexible plastics, today made public never-before-seen images of the Company?s largest area, high-performance SolarWindow? arrays.  These SolarWindow? arrays measure over 232 cm2 ? a significant achievement for …

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Natural Gas System

 AMERICA’S NATURAL GAS SYSTEM IS LEAKY AND IN NEED OF A FIX   The first thorough comparison of evidence for natural gas system leaks confirms that organizations including the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) have underestimated U.S. methane emissions generally, as well as those from the natural gas industry specifically. Natural gas consists predominantly of methane. Even small leaks from the natural gas system are …

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Soligent Introduces Solar Engine

Project management, financing, installation and other services enable independent solar dealers to concentrate on growth, squeeze out soft costs Soligent, a leader in systems and technologies for making solar dealers more competitive, today unveiled Solar Engine, a modular suite of integrated services that allow independent solar dealers to drive out costs, reduce paperwork and grow their businesses.   With Solar …

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Turning Beetle-Killed Trees into Biofuel

USDA Grant Aims to Convert Beetle-Killed Trees into Biofuel The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced today that it has awarded nearly $10 million to an academic, industry, and government consortium led by Colorado State University to study the major challenges limiting the use of insect-killed trees in the Rockies as a sustainable feedstock for bioenergy. The award was made …

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US Solar Modules Endure Severe Testing Better

US-Made Silicon Energy Modules Outperform Top Photovoltaic Companies in Severe Environmental Testing Silicon Energy’s double-glass Cascade Series Photovoltaic (PV) Module outperformed standard PV modules for durability under extreme environmental conditions, in an experimental testing process by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL). Sustainably manufactured in the US, the company’s Cascade Series PV Modules are built to last using the highest …

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$7.5 Million In Grants To Lower The Cost Of Large-scale Solar Power

Solar power growth has depended on a variety of incentives to get the ball rolling in the consumer and utility scale markets. Subsidies, rebates, leasing, and so on have been needed to get funding for projects and R&D in this growing energy field. This item shows how a consortium set up to promote solar power is further stimulating the market …

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