Solar Cells Info

On the surface of a new photovoltaic prototype, microscopic nanotube towers perform best when they catch light on their sides.

By David Talbot, April 17, 2007
Source: MIT Technology Review
http://www.technologyreview.com/Energy/18539/

Solar cells generally crank out the most power at noon, when the sun is at its highest point and can strike the cell at a 90-degree angle. Before and after noon, efficiencies drop off. But researchers Georgia Tech Research Institute have come up with a prototype that does the opposite. Their solar cell, whose surface consists of hundreds of thousands of 100-micrometer-high towers, catches light at many angles and actually works best in the morning and afternoon.
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Coors Field Celebrates First Utility-Scale Solar Power Electric System in a Major League Ballpark
DENVER, April 20, 2007
Source: sunpower corp. press release
http://investors.sunpowercorp.com/releasedetail.cfm?ReleaseID=238809

This weekend, the Colorado Rockies will take on the San Diego Padres at home under a solar-powered scoreboard. The new 9.9 kilowatt solar electric system, which was installed by Independent Power Systems as a result of a partnership between the Rockies and Xcel Energy, is being celebrated on Earth Day, April 22. Comprised of 46 solar panels from SunPower Corporation (Nasdaq: SPWR), it is the first commercial- scale solar electric power system to be installed in a Major League Baseball ballpark.
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by John Toon, Atlanta, Georgia, 17 April 2007
Source: RenewableEnergyAccess.com

Unique three-dimensional (3D) solar cells that capture nearly all of the light that strikes them could boost the efficiency of photovoltaic (PV) systems while reducing their size, weight and mechanical complexity.  “The efficiency of our cells increases as the sunlight goes away from perpendicular, so we may not need mechanical arrays to rotate our cells.” — Jud Ready, Georgia Tech Research Institute, a senior research engineer in the Electro-Optical Systems Laboratory
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source: Scientific American /April 22, 2007
http://www.sciam.com/article.cfm?chanID=sa002&articleID=1496CAD6-E7F2-99DF-34B95C45D49BA57C

Solar cells made from cheap, plastic polymer barely capture the energy in sunlight. Photons reflect off the plastic and it is too thin to absorb much, giving the polymers color. “The very fact that it has color is telling you this thing is not working as well as it should,” says David Carroll, a physicist at Wake Forest University. But plastic solar cells also offer flexibility, light weight and, theoretically, low cost, and could be incorporated into a range of products. “You can’t think of doing anything cheaper than making Saran Wrap and that’s basically what these are,” says Lawrence Kazmerski, director of the Department of Energy’s National Center for Photovoltaics in Colorado.
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Tapping the sun to power UAE homes

By Emmanuelle Landais, Staff Reporter /21 April 2007

source: Gulf News
http://www.gulfnews.com/nation/Technology/10119770.html

Dubai: Houses fully powered by solar energy will soon be available for home owners in the country.  Scandinavian renewable energy experts will be in Abu Dhabi and Dubai later this month to promote solar housing in the UAE after working on the idea in Saudi Arabia and Bahrain.
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By William M. Welch, USA TODAY
source: USA Today
http://www.usatoday.com/tech/science/2007-04-17-air-force-solar-power_N.htm?csp=34

The largest solar power plant in North America will soon be providing electricity to an Air Force base in the Nevada desert.  The military says the plant, scheduled to power up at Nellis Air Force Base by the end of the year, shows that solar energy can effectively meet part of the country’s energy needs.
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Apr 20 2007
source:
http://www.environmentalleader.com

Estee Lauder has installed a 600-kilowatt solar energy system at its manufacturing facility in Oakland, New Jersey. The project is one of New Jersey’s largest rooftop mounted solar installations as well the largest third-party solar energy supply contract in the state.

Designed and installed by DT Solar and owned by an investment partnership created by MMA Renewable Ventures, the system incorporates more than 3,000 solar panels installed atop a facility that houses manufacturing for Estee Lauder’s Aramis Brand. The project has the complete support of facility owner and operator Westminster Management. Expected to generate over 650,000 kilowatt-hours annually, the solar energy system will offset production of more than 10,000 tons of carbon dioxide over its expected 25-year lifetime.  Earlier this year, Ted Turner partnered with Dome-Tech Solar to create DT Solar, a Turner renewable energy company.

By Greg Bluestein, 11 April 2007
source: International Business Times
http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/20070411/techbit-better-solar-panel.htm

Sunlight has never really caught fire as a power source, mostly because generating electricity with solar cells is more expensive and less efficient than some conventional sources.   But a new solar panel unveiled this month by the Georgia Tech Research Institute hopes to brighten the future of the energy source.  The difference is in the design. Traditional solar panels are often flat and bulky. The new design features an array of nano-towers – like microscopic blades of grass – that add surface area and trap more sunlight. (more…)

By DAMON DARLIN, New York Times,  April 14, 2007
Source: The New York Times
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/04/14/business/14money.html?ref=science

With a $2,000 federal tax credit and generous rebates from states like New Jersey and California, it has never cost less to install a solar power system.  And it still makes no economic sense. You might want photovoltaic solar panels to generate your own electricity out of a belief that you will save the planet. But, as is the case with hybrid vehicles, you certainly should not do it to save money.  An online calculator (www.findsolar.com/index.php?page=rightforme) created by solar power advocates and the Department of Energy demonstrates just how hard it is to justify the switch.
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Press Association and Evening Standard  /19 April 2007
Source:  Thisismoney.co.uk
http://www.thisismoney.co.uk/consumer/caring/article.html?in_article_id=419527&in_page_id=511

Britain’s biggest household energy supplier said today it is launching a ‘New Energy’ service aimed at winning over customers worried about their carbon footprint or keen to save money by generating or saving their own power.  British Gas New Energy will sell and help install rooftop solar heating panels for customers to heat their own water, and will give people the chance to offset their CO2 emissions through schemes that buy credits from other firms or countries that have exceeded their own targets.

In addition, customers who buy the solar panelling in some areas will be able to earn a discount of up to £500 on their council tax bills through an agreement between British Gas and the local authorities. The solar panel scheme is currently running in Salford, Conwy in North Wales, South Cambridgeshire, Taunton Deane in Somerset, Runnymede in Middlesex and Braintree in Essex, but British Gas said it expected it to be adopted by more local authorities in time. Centrica’s hot water solar panels cost from £4,300.
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