A team at IBM recently developed what they call a High Concentration Photo Voltaic Thermal (HCPVT) system that is capable of concentrating the power of 2,000 suns, they are even claiming to be able to concentrate energy safely up to 5,000X, that’s huge. The process of trapping the sunlight produces water that can be used to produce filtered drinkable water, or used for other things like air conditioning etc. Scientists envision that the HCPVT system could provide sustainable energy and fresh water to communities all around the world. “Each 1cmX1cm chip can convert 200-250 watts, on average, over a typical eight-hour day in a sunny region. In the HCPVT system, instead of heating a building, the 90 degree Celsius water will pass through a porous membrane distillation system where it is then vaporized and desalinated. Such a system could provide 30-40 liters of drinkable water per square meter of receiver area per day, while still generating electricity with a more than 25 percent yield or two kilowatts hours per day. A large installation would provide enough water for a small town.” (2) The heat is absorbed into hundreds of tiny solar cells called photovoltaic chips. These gather the energy and are then cooled by microchannled water, which is why they are safely able to concentrate such large amounts of solar energy. According to Greenpeace, this technology can establish itself as the third largest player in the sustainable power generation industry. A study published in 2009 predicted that solar power could supply all the world’s energy needs, with minimal space. (1) Greenpeace estimates that it would take only two percent of the Sahara Desert’s land area to supply the entire planet’s electricity needs.(1) A common problem with modern-day solar collectors is that they can only take in a minimal amount of energy. This means that useful heat is wasted, cannot be harnessed and is thrown away. This technology eliminates that problem. Solar panels taking in too much energy run the risk of melting themselves due to mass amounts of heat. This is changing, as we continue to explore more efficient ways of energy generation, it’s becoming clear that it’s time to do away with the old, and usher in the new, clean, green technologies. This project is being funded by the Swiss Commission for Technology and Innovation. They are supplying a three-year $2.4 million grant to develop the technology. Prototypes have been developed and are being tested. This is another great technology that could provide power to the entire planet for free! Good reasons as to why we cannot implement this technology are non existent. At the end of the day, it seems that big oil corporations will do whatever they can to prevent change from happening, but the power of the people is greater. All we have to do is come together, create, and cooperate. Below is a video of IBM research scientist Bruno Michel giving an overview of the project.
Power storage innovation. Just hope that all this new tech doesn't end up in the Oil company vaults as it normally does. Stanford scientists have invented a flexible, high-performance aluminum battery that charges in about 1 minute. Credit: Mark Shwartz, Precourt Institute for Energy, Stanford University Stanford University scientists have invented the first high-performance aluminum battery that's fast-charging, long-lasting and inexpensive. Researchers say the new technology offers a safe alternative to many commercial batteries in wide use today. "We have developed a rechargeable aluminum battery that may replace existing storage devices, such as alkaline batteries, which are bad for the environment, and lithium-ion batteries, which occasionally burst into flames," said Hongjie Dai, a professor of chemistry at Stanford. "Our new battery won't catch fire, even if you drill through it." Dai and his colleagues describe their novel aluminum-ion battery in "An ultrafast rechargeable aluminum-ion battery," in the April 6 advance online edition of the journal Nature. Aluminum has long been an attractive material for batteries, mainly because of its low cost, low flammability and high-charge storage capacity. For decades, researchers have tried unsuccessfully to develop a commercially viable aluminum-ion battery. A key challenge has been finding materials capable of producing sufficient voltage after repeated cycles of charging and discharging. Graphite cathode An aluminum-ion battery consists of two electrodes: a negatively charged anode made of aluminum and a positively charged cathode. "People have tried different kinds of materials for the cathode," Dai said. "We accidentally discovered that a simple solution is to use graphite, which is basically carbon. In our study, we identified a few types of graphite material that give us very good performance." http://phys.org/news...lternative.html
And another possibility includes harnessing the suns rays on the moon and then beaming its energy down to earth at designated receptor points: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/wor...0-mile-wide-solar-panel-belt-around-Moon.html http://t.space.com/all/23810-moon-luna-belt-solar-power-idea#1 http://phys.org/news/2013-11-japanese-firm-luna-solar-energy.html
Here is an example where battery technology is the key to the future and the present: "The new Mugen Shinden San has an increased battery capacity and new control systems managing the immense torque of the motor which produces 162 ft.-lbs. of torque (220 Nm)." http://www.gizmag.com/2014-isle-of-man-tt-zero-race/32347/ These guys are seeking to emulate and surpass their petrol driven counterparts and they are getting there.....as ridden by John McGuinness....
Something that might not be immediately obvious is that the oil companies are already adapting to and are a part of the up and coming greener technologies. http://www.eon.com/en.htm http://www.eon.com/en/about-us/innovation/our-focus/future-energy.html http://www.eon.com/en/business-areas/renewable-energy-source/solar.html http://www.shell.com/kwt/future-energy/alternative-energy.html http://www.britishgas.co.uk/products-and-services/solar-panels/solar-pv/why-choose-us.html http://www.greentechmedia.com/articles/read/oil-industry-joins-hands-with-solar-in-new-annual-report
From the BBC. These batteries do not pack much of a punch, though. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-32204707
When I was on my way home tonight I was half listening to my daughter and half listening to the BBC news . They mentioned about a mobile phones battery being charged in 60 seconds. I'm guessing it the above mentioned aluminium type. http://www.itv.com/news/2015-04-07/...entists-invent-super-fast-smartphone-battery/
speaking of sun:- http://www.bworldonline.com/content...title=cebu-to-get-50-mw-solar-plant&id=105663
