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Category Archives: solar energy
Wind turbine ROV climbs new heights at Blyth
At the EWEA 2014, GE announced the introduction of a new 2.75 MW wind energy system. Compared to the predecessor model 2.5-120, the 2.75-120 will generate a 5% higher energy yield. The 2.75-120 is optionally available with different tower technologies, hub heights between 85 and 139 m as well as an energy storage system.
Your own energy ‘island’? Microgrid could standardize small, self-sustaining electric grids
«If the microgrid is always connected to the main grid, what’s the point?» Xu said. «If something goes wrong with the main grid, like a dramatic drop in voltage, for example, you may want to disconnect.»
Microgrids are designed to not only continue power to local units such as neighborhoods, hospitals or industrial parks but also improve energy efficiency and reduce cost when connected to the main grid. Researchers predict an energy future more like a marketplace in which utility customers with access to solar panels, battery packs, plug-in vehicles and other sources of distributed energy can compare energy prices, switch on the best deals and even sell back unused power to utility companies.
However, before interested consumers can plug into their own energy islands, researchers at facilities such as ORNL’s Distributed Energy Control and Communication (DECC) lab need to develop tools for controlling a reliable, safe and efficient microgrid.
To simulate real scenarios where energy would be used on a microgrid, DECC houses a functional microgrid with a total generation capacity of approximately 250 kilowatts (kW) that seamlessly switches on and off the main grid.
This grid includes an energy storage system that generates 25kW of power and uses 50kW•hours of energy built from second-use electric vehicle batteries, a 50kW- and a 13.5 kW-solar system and two smart inverters that serve as the grid interfaces for the distributed energy emulators. Programmable load banks that mimic equipment consuming energy on the grid can provide sudden large load changes and second-by-second energy profiles.
«A microgrid should run an automated optimization frequently, about every five to 10 minutes,» Xu said.
To optimize grid operations, microgrid generators, power flow controllers, switches and loads must be outfitted with sensors and communication links that can provide real-time information to a central communications control.
«Microgrids are not widely deployed yet. Today, functional microgrids are in the RD phase, and their communications are not standardized,» Xu said. «We want to standardize microgrid communications and systems so they are compatible with the main grid and each other.»
Now two years into the inception of ORNL’s microgrid project — «Complete System-Level Efficient and Interoperable Solution for Microgrid Integrated Controls,» or CSEISMIC — the microgrid test bed at DECC is functional and employs an algorithm developed at ORNL that directs automatic transition on and off ORNL’s main grid.
Xu said the next year will focus on getting the energy management system (EMS) running. The EMS will drive optimization by allowing microgrid components to fluctuate operation based on parameters such as demand and cost.
«The EMS may, for instance, tell the PVs [solar cells] how much power to generate for the next five to 10 minutes based on the time of day and energy demand,» Xu said.
The CSEISMIC team has long-term goals of partnering with industries to conduct field demonstrations of standardized grid prototypes.
«As soon as microgrids are standardized and easy to integrate into the main grid,» Xu said, «we’ll start seeing them in areas with a high penetration of renewables and high energy prices.»
This project is funded by DOE’s Office of Electricity Delivery and Energy Reliability Smart Grid Program. — Katie Elyce Jones
Revolutionary White Solar Panels Cool Down Buildings While Generating Electricity
Swiss non-profit tech company CSEM has developed a new type of solar panel that can be seamlessly integrated into the walls of buildings. The photovoltaic panels are available in different colors and have no visible connections. This allows architects to subtly incorporate solar panels into their projects, and the panels keep buildings cooler to boot.
The new panels can be used in large sections and installed onto the roofs of buildings. This will help the panels stay cooler and improve their efficiency and lower the energy demand of buildings. The panels consist of colored plastic layers set over the solar cells. This layer reflects all visible light but allows infrared rays through. The panels can be put over any type of crystalline silicon solar cells.
Related: Multijunction Solar Cells Break Efficiency Records by Harvesting the Full Spectrum of Light
The company claims that the colored solar panel technology can be applied on top of an existing solar panel or integrated into a new module during assembly. This applies to both flat and curved surfaces. This means that modules can be made from scratch to customize existing panels.
+ CSEM
Via Treehugger
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SolaRoad: The Netherlands Unveils World’s First Solar Cell-Paved Bike Path
The Netherlands has an international reputation as a bike-friendly nation; it’s home to some 18 million bicycles and 21,748 miles of bike lanes. Now, an innovative project—SolaRoad—aims to make even greater use of all that green infrastructure by paving the bike paths with solar cells. On November 12, 2014, the first such path will open: a 70-meter (230 feet) stretch of Krommenie’s bike path will become the first solar-paved right of way in the world.
SolaRoad has been in the works since 2009, and is the brainchild of Dutch research institute TNO. The power-generating pavers are created by embedding crystalline silicon solar cells in 8.2 x 11.5 ft concrete slabs, before covering them in a one-centimeter layer of tempered glass. Then, reports the Guardian, a “non-adhesive finish and a slight tilt are [added] to help the rain wash off dirt and thus keep the surface clean, guaranteeing maximum exposure to sunlight.”
RELATED: Dutch City Boasts Three Times as Many Bikes as Cars
These extra steps are pretty important—the flat surface required for transit isn’t exactly ideal for capturing sunlight for power generation. In bike path form the cells are 30 percent less efficient than they would be placed within a standard solar installation. As a result, when this first test strip is extended to its full 100 meters (328 feet) in 2016, it will provide about enough electricity to power three households.
But it does make practical use of an untapped surface area, and there’s plenty of roads available for transformation. Indeed, TNO is not limiting their ambitions to bike paths; the institute estimates that up to 20 percent of the Netherlands’ 140,000km of road could potentially be adapted into SolaRoads, which would amount to an additional 400 to 500 km sq (154 to 193 mi sq) of energy-generating PV which could be fed into the grid, or used to power signage and traffic lights.
+ SolaRoad
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The Netherlands Unveils the World’s First Solar Bike Path
The Netherlands has an international reputation as a bike-friendly nation; it’s home to some 18 million bicycles and 21,748 miles of bike lanes. Now, an innovative project—SolaRoad—aims to make even greater use of all that green infrastructure by paving the bike paths with solar cells. On November 12, 2014, the first such path will open: a 70-meter (230 feet) stretch of Krommenie’s bike path will become the first solar-paved right of way in the world.
SolaRoad has been in the works since 2009, and is the brainchild of Dutch research institute TNO. The power-generating pavers are created by embedding crystalline silicon solar cells in 8.2 x 11.5 ft concrete slabs, before covering them in a one-centimeter layer of tempered glass. Then, reports the Guardian, a “non-adhesive finish and a slight tilt are [added] to help the rain wash off dirt and thus keep the surface clean, guaranteeing maximum exposure to sunlight.”
RELATED: Dutch City Boasts Three Times as Many Bikes as Cars
These extra steps are pretty important—the flat surface required for transit isn’t exactly ideal for capturing sunlight for power generation. In bike path form the cells are 30 percent less efficient than they would be placed within a standard solar installation. As a result, when this first test strip is extended to its full 100 meters (328 feet) in 2016, it will provide about enough electricity to power three households.
But it does make practical use of an untapped surface area, and there’s plenty of roads available for transformation. Indeed, TNO is not limiting their ambitions to bike paths; the institute estimates that up to 20 percent of the Netherlands’ 140,000km of road could potentially be adapted into SolaRoads, which would amount to an additional 400 to 500 km sq (154 to 193 mi sq) of energy-generating PV which could be fed into the grid, or used to power signage and traffic lights.
+ SolaRoad
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Wind Power Generated 126% of Scotland’s Household Energy Needs Last Month
According to new statistics released by the World Wildlife Fund Scotland, Scottish renewable energy had a “bumper month” in October, 2014, with wind power alone generating an estimated 982,842 MWh of electricity. This is enough clean energy to power around 3,045,000 homes, and equates to 126 percent of the electricity needs of Scottish households. Solar power and hot water generation also performed well, despite the country’s reputation for grey and misty weather.
WWF Scotland sourced its figures from WeatherEnergy. In addition to the astounding statistics for Scottish wind power, they found that across the U.K. as a whole, wind provided 2,496,842 MWh of electricity, or enough to meet the needs of 7,736,000 U.K. households, or 28 percent. On a city-by-city basis in Scotland, solar PV produced between 30 and 46 percent of household energy needs, depending upon the location. For example, Glasgow produced 121.6 kWh of electricity, or 37 percent of household electricity needs, while Edinburgh produced 150.9 kWh, or 46 percent of its needs.
Related: Wind is the World’s Cheapest Source of Energy According to EU Report
Solar hot water production also scored remarkably well, and the WWF reports: “For those homes fitted with solar hot water panels, there was enough sunshine to meet an estimated 41% of the hot water needs of an average home in Edinburgh, 31% in Inverness, 30% in Glasgow, and 27% in Aberdeen.” WWF Scotland’s director Lang Banks noted, “Summer may be a distant memory, but for the tens of thousands of Scottish households that have installed solar panels to generate electricity or heat water, a third or more of their needs were met from the sun this October, helping reduce their reliance on coal, gas, or even oil.”
Scotland’s renewable energy capacity is increasing rapidly and currently provides around 46 percent of the country’s energy needs. Government statistics report that in March, 2014, the country had 6.8 gigawatts of installed renewable electricity generation capacity, with a further 6.5 gigawatts of capacity either under construction or approved. Most of the pending capacity is expected to come from onshore wind generation. With a further 7.2 gigawatts’ worth of projects in the planning stages, future renewable energy generation capacity is expected to be 20.5 gigawatts. The Scottish government is aiming for renewables to supply 100 percent of gross annual energy consumption by 2020, with an interim target of 50 percent by 2015.
+ WWF Scotland
Via Think Progress
Photos by John Allan via Geograph.org, and Vincent van Zeijst via Wikimedia Commons
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REC Silicon Mulls Solar Panel Polysilicon Plant in Saudi Arabia
REC Silicon, which last year spun off its wafer, cell and panel units to focus on polysilicon, is starting negotiations with the Saudi government to build the plant, Chief Executive Officer Tore Torvund said today in a presentation to investors.
The head of Saudi Arabia’s state-owned oil company said in May that the country is looking at investing in the renewable energy source.
REC Silicon reported today earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization and excluding special items of $44.9 million, or 5 cents a share, compared with a loss of 7 cents a share in the same quarter last year.
The company is building a 18,000 metric-ton polysilicon and silane gas plant in Yulin in China’s Shaanxi province through a joint venture to take advantage of thriving demand for renewable energy in the world’s largest energy consumer.
With the new plant, REC Silicon will be able to avoid Chinese import fees as high as 57 percent levied in response to a U.S. decision in 2012 to impose tariffs on Chinese solar cells. The company’s two operational plants are in the U.S.
REC Silicon fell 2 percent to 2.71 kroner in Oslo.
Copyright 2014 Bloomberg
Lead image: Saudi Arabia map via Shutterstock
Boosting Solar Photovoltaic Efficiency with ‘Tinkertoy’ Materials
The work builds on Sandia’s recent successes with metal-organic framework (MOF) materials by combining them with dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSC). «A lot of people are working with DSSCs, but we think our expertise with MOFs gives us a tool that others don’t have,» said Sandia’s Erik Spoerke, a materials scientist with a long history of solar cell exploration at the labs.
Sandia’s project is funded through SunShot’s Next Generation Photovoltaic Technologies III program, which sponsors projects that apply promising basic materials science that has been proven at the materials properties level to demonstrate photovoltaic conversion improvements to address or exceed SunShot goals.
The SunShot Initiative is a collaborative national effort that aggressively drives innovation with the aim of making solar energy fully cost-competitive with traditional energy sources before the end of the decade. Through SunShot, the Energy Department supports efforts by private companies, universities and national laboratories to drive down the cost of solar electricity to 6 cents per kilowatt-hour.
Image right: Sandia National Laboratories researcher Vitalie Stavila inserts a substrate patterned with electrodes into a temperature-controlled liquid-phase reactor for depositing MOF thin films. Sandia’s research team plans to combine MOFs with dye-sensitized solar cells, a technique it believes will lead to advancements in photovoltaic technology. Credit: Dino Vournas, Sandia National Laboratories
A Baseline for Solar Production Advancements
Dye-sensitized solar cells, invented in the 1980s, use dyes designed to efficiently absorb light in the solar spectrum. The dye is mated with a semiconductor, typically titanium dioxide, that facilitates conversion of the energy in the optically excited dye into usable electrical current.
DSSCs are considered a significant advancement in photovoltaic technology since they separate the various processes of generating current from a solar cell. Michael Grätzel, a professor at the École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne in Switzerland, was awarded the 2010 Millennium Technology Prize for inventing the first high-efficiency DSSC.
«If you don’t have everything in the DSSC dependent on everything else, it’s a lot easier to optimize your photovoltaic device in the most flexible and effective way,» explained Sandia senior scientist Mark Allendorf. DSSCs, for example, can capture more of the sun’s energy than silicon-based solar cells by using varied or multiple dyes and also can use different molecular systems, Allendorf said.
«It becomes almost modular in terms of the cell’s components, all of which contribute to making electricity out of sunlight more efficiently,» said Spoerke.
MOFs’ Traits Helps Overcome Limitations
Though a source of optimism for the solar research community, DSSCs possess certain challenges that the Sandia research team thinks can be overcome by combining them with MOFs.
This is the key for this image — M: metal ions; L1,L2: linkers; yellow sphere: guest molecule. The modular, multifunctional structure provides three possible light harvesting mechanisms in MOFs: A) one or more organic linker types within a framework B) light-absorbing guest molecules in the pores; C) charge transfer interactions between guest molecules and MOF linkers that produce new absorption to the red of the isolated guest and linker. Credit: Sandia National Laboratories
Allendorf said researchers hope to use the ordered structure and versatile chemistry of MOFs to help the dyes in DSSCs absorb more solar light, which he says is a fundamental limit on their efficiency.
«Our hypothesis is that we can put a thin layer of MOF on top of the titanium dioxide, thus enabling us to order the dye in exactly the way we want it,» Allendorf explained. That, he said, should avoid the efficiency-decreasing problem of dye aggregation, since the dye would then be locked into the MOF’s crystalline structure.
MOFs are highly-ordered materials that also offer high levels of porosity, said Allendorf, a MOF expert and 29-year veteran of Sandia. He calls the materials «Tinkertoys for chemists» because of the ease with which new structures can be envisioned and assembled.
Allendorf said the unique porosity of MOFs will allow researchers to add a second dye, placed into the pores of the MOF, that will cover additional parts of the solar spectrum that weren’t covered with the initial dye. Finally, he and Spoerke are convinced that MOFs can help improve the overall electron charge and flow of the solar cell, which currently faces instability issues.
«Essentially, we believe MOFs can help to more effectively organize the electronic and nano-structure of the molecules in the solar cell,» said Spoerke. «This can go a long way toward improving the efficiency and stability of these assembled devices.»
In addition to the Sandia team, the project includes researchers at the University of Colorado-Boulder, particularly Steve George, an expert in a thin film technology known as atomic layer deposition.
The technique, said Spoerke, is important in that it offers a pathway for highly controlled materials chemistry with potentially low-cost manufacturing of the DSSC/MOF process.
«With the combination of MOFs, dye-sensitized solar cells and atomic layer deposition, we think we can figure out how to control all of the key cell interfaces and material elements in a way that’s never been done before,» said Spoerke. «That’s what makes this project exciting.»
SunShot Awards Rain on Storage Innovators
“The SHINES (Sustainable and Holistic Integration of Energy Storage and Solar PV) goal is to enable the integration of hundreds of gigawatts of solar onto the electric grid in a dispatchable way that interoperates with utility systems and building energy management systems. Solutions developed under SHINES are expected to be flexible and scalable to support solar penetrations of up to 100% of peak load,” Ranga Pitchumani, chief scientist of the SunShot initiative and program manager for systems integration said.
Among the quantitative goals of these awards, “The 2020 levelized cost of electricity target for solutions developed under SHINES, when manufactured and installed at scale, is less than or equal to 14 cents per kWh fully installed, interconnected to the grid, and approved for operation by the utility,” Pitchumani said.
“Other goals include a 25-year lifetime, less than $1,000 long-term target interconnection, and less than 1 week interconnection time from application to full approval for operations by the utility and other relevant approving agencies,” Pitchumani said.
Eligible projects include solutions that will help “revolutionize” distributed PV and energy storage through:
· Advanced operation in conjunction with smart loads and demand response,
· Incorporation of solar and load forecasting,
· Innovative uses of smart components and functionalities, and
· Easily interoperable hardware, software and firmware technologies.
“With more solar power installed in the United States in the last 18 months than in 30 years prior, solar is shattering records,” the DOE reckons. “Since President Obama took office, the amount of solar power installed in the U.S. has increased more than thirteen fold – from 1.2 gigawatts (GW) in 2008 to an estimated 15.9 GW today — enough to power the equivalent of 3.2 million average American homes,” it elaborates.
DOE’s Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) accelerates development and deployment of energy efficiency and renewable energy technologies and market-based solutions that strengthen U.S. energy security, environmental quality and economic vitality. EERE’s SunShot Initiative works to make solar energy fully cost-competitive with traditional energy sources by the end of the decade. This funding builds on SunShot’s work to advance solar energy technologies to drive innovations in systems integration technologies that support the deployment of solar energy technologies and the reliability and efficiency of electricity generation, delivery, and use.
Image: Solar Panels and Sky via Shutterstock
SunPower Announces 160-Megawatt Solar Panel Manufacturing Facility in South Africa
SAN JOSE, CA and CAPE TOWN, SOUTH AFRICA—(eSolarEnergyNews)— SunPower, a leading solar technology and energy services provider, today announced plans to own and operate a solar panel manufacturing facility in Cape Town, South Africa, to meet the growing demand for solar in that region.
At this new plant, SunPower will manufacture its high efficiency SunPower E20/440 Solar Panels and expects to produce up to 160-megawatts (MW) annually. The company estimates that it will create up to 150 local jobs and will begin recruitment efforts in the first quarter of 2015. This facility will also house SunPower’s Engineering, Procurement and Construction (EPC) and Operations Management (OM) offices, consolidating its South African business into one building.
«SunPower has a significant presence in the South African solar market, including two large power plants built this year and another one that will begin construction soon. By manufacturing our high efficiency solar panels at this new facility, we will not only help the local economy, but continue to deliver clean, renewable energy to this region,» said Marty Neese, SunPower COO. «Our investment in this new plant is part of our commitment to the local South African PV market, and meets our objective to build a sustainable business through local investment and create jobs in the medium and long-term.»
Earlier this year, SunPower completed construction of two ground-mounted solar projects totaling 33-MW located near Douglas in the Northern Cape Town province. Additionally, SunPower has been appointed as the preferred EPC and OM contractor for an 86-MWdc project in the round three Renewable Energy Independent Power Producer Procurement program by the MULILO-TOTAL consortium.
SunPower, an affiliate of Total, operates solar panel manufacturing plants in North America, Europe and Asia, and plans to open its factory in South Africa in 2015. These facilities bring solar panels to local projects worldwide, minimizing expensive transportation costs while reducing environmental impact.