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DocWatch alternative energy Twitterit? News stories about "alternative energy," with punchlines: http://apocadocs.com/d.pl?alternative+energy Related Scary Tags: technological innovation  ~ efficiency increase  ~ smart policy  ~ sustainability  ~ renewable energy  ~ technical cleverness  ~ carbon emissions  ~ economic myopia  ~ climate impacts  ~ low-energy future  ~ unintended consequences   Wed, Jan 27, 2016 from IEEE Spectrum: NOAA Model Finds Renewable Energy Could be Deployed in the U.S. Without Storage The majority of the United States's electricity needs could be met with renewable energy by 2030--without new advances in energy storage or cost increases. That's the finding of a new study conducted by researchers from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). The key will be having sufficient transmission lines spanning the contiguous U.S., so that energy can be deployed from where it's generated to the places where its needed. Reporting their results today in Nature Climate Change, the researchers found that a combination of solar and wind energy, plus high-voltage direct current transmission lines that travel across the country, would reduce the electric sector's carbon dioxide emissions by up to 80 percent compared to 1990 levels. ... Alas, only rational humans will listen to the fruitless bleatings of scientists and engineers. ApocaDoc permalink Sun, Nov 15, 2015 from DesdemonaDespair: Sao Paulo on emergency reserve water; drought means Brazilian hydropower falls short ... The main water supply in Săo Paulo has been running on emergency reserves, and the system is only able to deliver about 40 percent of its usual capacity. Before 2014, it was able to supply approximately 8,700 gallons of water per second, but now, it only delivers around 3,500 gallons per second. Because two-thirds of Brazil's power comes from hydroelectric power plants, electricity has also been in short supply. Widespread blackouts have hit the country's largest cities, and increased energy rationing is a possibility, which could stunt the economy.... ... The Free Market (™) will solve this problem for sure. ApocaDoc permalink Wed, Jun 10, 2015 from Climate Progress: New Report Shows EPA'S Proposed Carbon Regulations Will Create Tens Of Thousands Of Jobs By 2020, the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) proposed Clean Power Plan will create nearly 100,000 more jobs than are lost, according to a new report from the Economic Policy Institute, a non-partisan think tank. The report's initial estimates are higher than some similar studies; however, the institute found that the job impacts of the Clean Power Plan, which limits carbon emissions from power plants, would not last, and would become "almost completely insignificant by 2030." ... Theoretically, no job is permanent unless you can do it while you're dead. ApocaDoc permalink Thu, Jun 4, 2015 from KCRG.com: Iowa's first fully solar-powered school district should happen this summer Students in one small southern Iowa district will return to see big technology changes this fall. Workers over the summer will transform the school buildings into Iowa's first district completely powered by the sun... WACO's solar conversation became a teachable moment this spring as 5th and 6th graders eagerly took daily measurements and computed the power output. Teacher Chad McClanahan said students began rooting for sunny days so the system would produce more power. ... Readin' writin' and renewables. ApocaDoc permalink Thu, Apr 2, 2015 from Guardian: Syracuse University to divest $1.18bn endowment from fossil fuels Syracuse University will remove its $1.18bn endowment from direct investments in fossil fuel companies, it announced on Tuesday. Syracuse is the biggest university in the world to have committed to remove its endowment from direct investments in coal, oil and gas companies. It aims to make additional investments in clean energy technologies such as solar, biofuels and advanced recycling. In a statement, the university said it will "not directly invest in publicly traded companies whose primary business is extraction of fossil fuels and will direct its external investment managers to take every step possible to prohibit investments in these public companies as well". ... Orange is the new green! ApocaDoc permalink Fri, Feb 20, 2015 from Fast Company: Portland's New Pipes Harvest Power From Drinking Water If you live in Portland, your lights may now be partly powered by your drinking water. An ingenious new system captures energy as water flows through the city's pipes, creating hydropower without the negative environmental effects of something like a dam. Small turbines in the pipes spin in the flowing water, and send that energy into a generator. ... Sometimes, you suddenly realize you're wearing the ruby slippers. ApocaDoc permalink Fri, Jan 9, 2015 from Globe & Mail: Oil sands must remain largely unexploited to meet climate target, study finds The study, published Wednesday in the journal Nature, does not single out the Alberta oil sands for special scrutiny, but rather considers the geographic distribution of the world's total fossil fuel supply, including oil, coal and natural gas reserves, and their potential impact on international efforts to curb global warming.... As previous studies have already shown, roughly two-thirds of fossil fuels that can already be extracted at a competitive price will need to remain unburned before 2050 to achieve this goal. The new analysis shows that in order to optimize costs and benefits, that two-thirds cannot be evenly distributed around the world, but must be skewed toward more carbon-intense fuels situated far from potential markets. The computer model suggests that it will be next to impossible to meet climate targets if those fuels are tapped to a significant degree, even as producers continue to develop these reserves.... The study uses a more conservative estimate of 48 billion barrels as the current reserve and then finds that only 7.5 billion barrels of that, or about 15 per cent, can be used by 2050 as part of the global allotment of fossil-fuel use in a two-degree scenario. The figure assumes that new technologies will make possible a reduction in the carbon intensity of oil sands production. If this does not happen, the authors say, then even less of the oil-sands reserve should be extracted. ... Tell ya what, oil sands: take your 15 cents on the dollar, and we won't sue you for environmental reparations. ApocaDoc permalink Wed, Sep 17, 2014 from Reuters: Slowing climate change makes economic sense; cities to lead-study Investments to help fight climate change can also spur economic growth, rather than slow it as widely feared, but time is running short for a trillion-dollar shift to transform cities and energy use, an international report said on Tuesday. The study, by former heads of government, business leaders, economists and other experts, said the next 15 years were critical for a bigger shift to clean energies from fossil fuels to combat global warming and cut health bills from pollution... Unlike past climate change studies which have focused on the risks of inaction, the report seeks to show economic benefits of investments which could also help the environment... ... Every once in awhile something that feels a little like hope wells up inside me. ApocaDoc permalink Wed, Jan 8, 2014 from Midwest Energy News: Midwest might be prime real estate for airborne wind power A weather phenomenon that's feared by conventional wind farm operators could make the Great Plains an ideal location to tether airborne wind turbines. Airborne wind turbines are a relatively new concept in which devices resembling blimps or gliders generate electricity as they are flown like kites in the lower atmosphere.... University of Delaware wind power researcher Cristina Archer ... recently mapped the presence of something called "wind speed maxima," strong currents of wind that resemble the jet stream but occur at much lower altitudes. "They are much more common than we thought before. We were so suprised," Archer said. Wind speed maxima exist above about a third of the planet, mostly in the tropics and largely over water. Archer's maps also show a large thumb extending over the Great Plains. ... Some call it the Sky-O-Matic Slicer Dicer. ApocaDoc permalink Fri, Jan 3, 2014 from North Carolina State, via EurekAlert: Researchers find simple, cheap way to increase solar cell efficiency Researchers from North Carolina State University and the Chinese Academy of Sciences have found an easy way to modify the molecular structure of a polymer commonly used in solar cells. Their modification can increase solar cell efficiency by more than 30 percent. Polymer-based solar cells have two domains, consisting of an electron acceptor and an electron donor material. Excitons are the energy particles created by solar cells when light is absorbed. In order to be harnessed effectively as an energy source, excitons must be able to travel quickly to the interface of the donor and acceptor domains and retain as much of the light's energy as possible.... PBT-OP was not only easier to make than other commonly used polymers, but a simple manipulation of its chemical structure gave it a lower HOMO level than had been seen in other polymers with the same molecular backbone. PBT-OP showed an open circuit voltage (the voltage available from a solar cell) value of 0.78 volts, a 36 percent increase over the ~ 0.6 volt average from similar polymers. ... I chalk it up to the smart branding of Exciton™! ApocaDoc permalink Tue, Nov 26, 2013 from GreenTech Media: Wind Picks Up as Coal Declines in the Midwest ... About a decade ago, coal supplied nearly 80 percent of electricity in the central United States. The figure is now dipping closer to 60 percent. That is still far higher than the national average, where coal accounts for slightly less than half of all generation. Like other regions of the U.S., cheap natural gas generation is mostly taking the place of coal. But non-hydro renewables, primarily wind, are also making a significant dent. The low cost of wind and natural gas has begun to make a dent in coal's dominance and driven down wholesale power prices in the middle of the country, according to the EIA [Energy Information Administration]. ... Coal slips from King to Archduke! ApocaDoc permalink Thu, Nov 7, 2013 from Stanford University: The world can be powered by alternative energy, using today's technology, in 20-40 years, says Stanford researcher Mark Z. Jacobson A new study - co-authored by Stanford researcher Mark Z. Jacobson and UC-Davis researcher Mark A. Delucchi - analyzing what is needed to convert the world's energy supplies to clean and sustainable sources says that it can be done with today's technology at costs roughly comparable to conventional energy. But converting will be a massive undertaking on the scale of the moon landings. What is needed most is the societal and political will to make it happen.... The world they envision would run largely on electricity. Their plan calls for using wind, water and solar energy to generate power, with wind and solar power contributing 90 percent of the needed energy. Geothermal and hydroelectric sources would each contribute about 4 percent in their plan (70 percent of the hydroelectric is already in place), with the remaining 2 percent from wave and tidal power. ... But if Exxon loses market share, won't that mean we won't have jobs or an economy ever again? ApocaDoc permalink Thu, Oct 31, 2013 from BBC: Report suggests slowdown in CO2 emissions rise Global emissions of carbon dioxide may be showing the first signs of a "permanent slowdown" in the rate of increase. According to a new report, emissions in 2012 increased at less than half the average over the past decade.... But the rate of increase in CO2 was 1.4 percent, despite the global economy growing by 3.5 percent.... The report was welcomed by green activist Bill McKibben, who is campaigning for a divestment from fossil fuel stocks and shares. "It is good news but nowhere near good enough," he told BBC News. "The solution we need here is dictated by physics, and at the moment the physics is busy melting the Arctic and acidifying the ocean. "We can't just plateau or go up less, we have to very quickly try and get the planet off fossil fuels." ... Ah -- we're accellerating slightly less toward the cliff. ApocaDoc permalink Want more context? Try reading our book FREE online: Humoring the Horror of the Converging Emergencies! More fun than a barrel of jellyfish! Sat, Oct 5, 2013 from University of Alberta: An important step toward cheap spray-on solar cells University of Alberta researchers have found that abundant materials in the Earth's crust can be used to make inexpensive and easily manufactured nanoparticle-based solar cells. The discovery, several years in the making, is an important step forward in making solar power more accessible to parts of the world that are off the traditional electricity grid or face high power costs, such as the Canadian North, said researcher Jillian Buriak, a chemistry professor and senior research officer of the National Institute for Nanotechnology based on the U of A campus. Buriak and her team have designed nanoparticles that absorb light and conduct electricity from two very common elements: phosphorus and zinc. Both materials are more plentiful than scarce materials such as cadmium and are free from manufacturing restrictions imposed on lead-based nanoparticles. ... Hey! You! Get off my status quo! ApocaDoc permalink Thu, Sep 26, 2013 from Treehugger: Dutch wind turbine crowdfunded in just 13 hours In what is being claimed as a "new world record for crowdfunding", all 6,648 shares of electricity from a Vestas wind turbine were sold to 1700 Dutch householders at €200 per share, raising about 1.3 million Euros in just 13 hours. Windcentrale, a Dutch company specializing in cooperative wind turbine purchases, put together the deal, which will net each share about 500 kWh of clean electricity per year.... ... I think I'll try that crowdfunding thang for my next frackin' rig. ApocaDoc permalink Sat, Jul 27, 2013 from New York Times: Power companies wake to 'existential threat' For years, power companies have watched warily as solar panels have sprouted across the nation's rooftops. Now, in almost panicked tones, they are fighting hard to slow the spread. Alarmed by what they say has become an existential threat to their business, utility companies are moving to roll back government incentives aimed at promoting solar energy and other renewable sources of power. At stake, the companies say, is nothing less than the future of the American electricity industry. ... Beware any entity fighting for its very life. ApocaDoc permalink Sun, Jun 30, 2013 from The National: Renewable power to eclipse natural gas within 3 years, says IEA Clean power is set to eclipse gas-generated electricity by 2016, the International Energy Agency (IEA) has forecast in a report that challenges conventional knowledge about economic hurdles to renewables.... The number of gigawatts generated by hydro, solar, wind and other renewables is set to increase by 40 per cent in the coming five years, making them the fastest-growing segment in the global energy mix. "As their costs continue to fall, renewable power sources are increasingly standing on their own merits versus new fossil-fuel generation," Maria van der Hoeven, the executive director of the IEA, said at a presentation in New York.... “And worldwide subsidies for fossil fuels remain six times higher than economic incentives for renewables.” ... That's why I say "let's frack this afternoon whatever we can sell to investors this morning." Time's a-wastin'! ApocaDoc permalink Mon, Apr 8, 2013 from American Chemical Society (ACS): Engineering Algae to Make the 'Wonder Material' Nanocellulose for Biofuels and More Genes from the family of bacteria that produce vinegar, Kombucha tea and nata de coco have become stars in a project -- which scientists today said has reached an advanced stage -- that would turn algae into solar-powered factories for producing the "wonder material" nanocellulose. Their report on advances in getting those genes to produce fully functional nanocellulose was part of the 245th National Meeting & Exposition of the American Chemical Society (ACS), the world's largest scientific society, being held here this week. ... Algae whiz! ApocaDoc permalink Tue, Mar 26, 2013 from University of Georgia: Discovery May Allow Scientists to Make Fuel from Carbon Dioxide in the Atmosphere ...researchers at the University of Georgia have found a way to transform the carbon dioxide trapped in the atmosphere into useful industrial products. Their discovery may soon lead to the creation of biofuels made directly from the carbon dioxide in the air that is responsible for trapping the sun's rays and raising global temperatures... The process is made possible by a unique microorganism called Pyrococcus furiosus, or "rushing fireball," which thrives by feeding on carbohydrates in the super-heated ocean waters near geothermal vents. By manipulating the organism's genetic material, Adams and his colleagues created a kind of P. furiosus that is capable of feeding at much lower temperatures on carbon dioxide. ... Rushing Fireball is the name of my punk band! ApocaDoc permalink Tue, Mar 26, 2013 from Midwest Energy News: In Iowa, another view on how to solve wind's variability A groundbreaking renewable energy study is on the agenda this week at an annual gathering of the wind power industry in Iowa. The analysis, which was published in the Journal of Power Sources, challenges the common notion that wind and solar power need to be paired with fossil fuel or nuclear generators, so utilities can meet electricity demand when it's not windy or sunny. The paper instead proposes building out a "seemingly excessive” amount of wind and solar generation capacity -- two to three times the grid's actual peak load. By spreading that generation across a wide enough geographic area, Rust Belt utilities could get virtually all of their electricity from renewables in 2030, at a cost comparable to today's prices, it says. ... This is starting to sound disturbingly plausible. ApocaDoc permalink Mon, Mar 4, 2013 from Associated Press: Climate-change activists jeer as U.S. report says Keystone XL pipeline would have no major environmental impacts A new U.S. State Department report is the latest evidence that the long-delayed Keystone XL oil pipeline from Canada should be approved, supporters say. The draft report, issued Friday, finds there would be no significant environmental impact to most resources along the proposed route from western Canada to refineries in Texas. The report also said other options to get the oil from Canada to Gulf Coast refineries are worse for climate change.... The State Department analysis for the first time evaluated two options using rail: shipping the oil on trains to existing pipelines or to oil tankers. The report shows that those other methods would release more greenhouse gases that contribute to global warming than the pipeline. The Keystone XL pipeline, according to the report, would release annually the same amount of global warming pollution as 626,000 passenger cars. ... Pity the antiquated thinking of our so-called leaders. ApocaDoc permalink Mon, Dec 31, 2012 from DeSmog Blog: Why Climate Deniers Have No Scientific Credibility - In One Pie Chart Polls show that many members of the public believe that scientists substantially disagree about human-caused global warming. The gold standard of science is the peer-reviewed literature. If there is disagreement among scientists, based not on opinion but on hard evidence, it will be found in the peer-reviewed literature. I searched the Web of Science for peer-reviewed scientific articles published between 1 January 1991 and 9 November 2012 that have the keyword phrases "global warming" or "global climate change." The search produced 13,950 articles.... By my definition, 24 of the 13,950 articles, 0.17 percent or 1 in 581, clearly reject global warming or endorse a cause other than CO2 emissions for observed warming. ... There are probably more than 24 articles disputing gravity. ApocaDoc permalink Fri, Jul 27, 2012 from DOE/Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, via EurekAlert: Photovoltaics from any semiconductor A technology that would enable low-cost, high efficiency solar cells to be made from virtually any semiconductor material has been developed by researchers.... This technology opens the door to the use of plentiful, relatively inexpensive semiconductors, such as the promising metal oxides, sulfides and phosphides, that have been considered unsuitable for solar cells because it is so difficult to taylor their properties by chemical means.... "Our technology requires only electrode and gate deposition, without the need for high-temperature chemical doping, ion implantation, or other expensive or damaging processes," says lead author William Regan.... This makes it possible for electrical contact to and carrier modulation of the semiconductor to be performed simultaneously."... In one configuration, working with copper oxide, the Berkeley researchers shaped the electrode contact into narrow fingers; in another configuration, working with silicon, they made the top contact ultra-thin (single layer graphene) across the surface. With sufficiently narrow fingers, the gate field creates a low electrical resistance inversion layer between the fingers and a potential barrier beneath them. A uniformly thin top contact allows gate fields to penetrate and deplete/invert the underlying semiconductor. The results in both configurations are high quality p-n junctions. ... Ubiquitous p-n junctions give me the Palpably Next-era Jazz! ApocaDoc permalink Wed, May 9, 2012 from London Guardian: Conservative thinktanks step up attacks against Obama's clean energy strategy A network of ultra-conservative groups is ramping up an offensive on multiple fronts to turn the American public against wind farms and Barack Obama's energy agenda. A number of rightwing organisations, including Americans for Prosperity, which is funded by the billionaire Koch brothers, are attacking Obama for his support for solar and wind power. The American Legislative Exchange Council (Alec), which also has financial links to the Kochs, has drafted bills to overturn state laws promoting wind energy. Now a confidential strategy memo seen by the Guardian advises using "subversion" to build a national movement of wind farm protesters. ... These thinktanks are sure full of gas. ApocaDoc permalink Wed, Apr 25, 2012 from Michigan Technical University, via EurekAlert: Graphene boosts efficiency of next-gen solar cells The coolest new nanomaterial of the 21st century could boost the efficiency of the next generation of solar panels, a team of Michigan Technological University materials scientists has discovered. Graphene, a two-dimensional honeycomb of carbon atoms, is a rising star in the materials community for its radical properties.... In dye-sensitized solar cells, photons knock electrons from the dye into a thin layer of titanium dioxide, which relays them to the anode. Hu's group found that adding graphene to the titanium dioxide increased its conductivity, bringing 52.4 percent more current into the circuit.... The team also developed a comparably foolproof method for creating sheets of titanium dioxide embedded with graphene. It first made graphite oxide powder, then mixed it with titanium dioxide to form a paste, spread it on a substrate (such as glass) and then baked it a high temperatures. "It's low-cost and very easy to prepare," said Hu. ... What say we start ramping up solar, while we still have a civilization to do it? ApocaDoc permalink Mon, Apr 2, 2012 from The Daily Climate: Military sees threats, worry in climate change ...Making the SEALs into a leaner, greener tactical force is one of many such steps being taken by all branches as the U.S. military reduces its environmental footprint. The Army is targeting net-zero energy use at several bases, and the Navy and Air Force are experimenting with running jets on biofuels that use wood waste and algae and less petroleum. In Afghanistan, patrols now carry eco-friendly solar blankets and LED lamps. Connecting the military's fossil-fuel and overall energy use with risks to our national security hasn't been easy in this political environment, especially with the presidential election looming. Congressional Republicans have repeatedly questioned and criticized the Armed Forces' new-energy strategies, portraying initiatives as political favors to clean-energy businesses. But current and retired military leaders insist the policies are essential. The efforts protect soldiers and help them carry out missions. They also help curb climate change and its potential to intensify military conflicts. ... I have an idea. Let's stop fighting other countries and start fighting Republicans. ApocaDoc permalink You're still reading! Good for you! You really should read our short, funny, frightening book FREE online (or buy a print copy): Humoring the Horror of the Converging Emergencies! We've been quipping this stuff for more than 30 months! Every day! Which might explain why we don't get invited to parties anymore. Thu, Mar 29, 2012 from RTCC: SEI: Scarcity of metals could hamper low-carbon development The world's transition to a low-carbon economy could be seriously hampered by a scarcity of key metals, a new report from the Stockholm Environment Institute (SEI) has warned. The study, produced in partnership with the business leaders' initiative 3C (Combat Climate Change), analysed known resources and locations of five metals -- indium, tellurium, neodymium, lithium and cobalt. These are vital raw materials for wind turbines, solar panels and hybrid and electric cars. The SEI says production could be affected in the future if business and policy-makers fail to create a framework for their use now. Demand for thees resources is huge. Globally installed wind capacity soared from 24,322 megawatts in 2001 to nearly 240,000 megawatts in 2011. Last year was a record year with 42,000 megawatts installed. ... All we need to do is... plan ahead! ApocaDoc permalink Tue, Mar 20, 2012 from Bloomberg: Solar's 15 Percent Returns Lure Investments From Google to Buffett Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway Inc. (BRK/A) together with the biggest Internet search company, the private equity company and insurers MetLife Inc. (MET) and John Hancock Life Insurance Co. poured more than $500 million into renewable energy in the last year. That's the most ever for companies outside the club of banks and specialist lenders that traditionally back solar energy, according to Bloomberg New Energy Finance data.... Once so risky that only government backing could draw private capital, solar projects now are making returns of about 15 percent, according to Stanford University's center for energy policy and finance. That has attracted a wider community of investors eager to cash in on earnings stronger than those for infrastructure projects from toll roads to pipelines. "A solar power project with a long-term sales agreement could be viewed as a machine that generates revenue," said Marty Klepper, an attorney at Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom LLP, which helped arrange a solar deal for Buffett. "It's an attractive investment for any firm, not just those in energy." ... Don't be evil (and build money machines). ApocaDoc permalink Mon, Mar 19, 2012 from Washington Post: Solar industry faces subsidy cuts in Europe Hanover, Germany -- Shiny black solar panels are as common a sight as baroque church spires in this industrial hub, thanks to government subsidies that have helped make Germany a world leader in solar technology. Now, sudden subsidy cuts here and elsewhere in Europe have thrown the industry into crisis just short of its ultimate goal: a price to generate solar energy that is no higher than fossil-fuel counterparts. Across Europe, governments are slashing public spending to cut their deficits, and green-energy subsidies are a target, too... ... Apparently, these people have never heard of the future. ApocaDoc permalink Sat, Mar 3, 2012 from Guardian: General Motors halts production of hybrid Volt as sales flatline General Motors will suspend production of the Chevrolet Volt for five weeks this spring, a spokesman said on Friday. Disappointing sales of the award-winning plug-in hybrid electric car have left the car firm with too many Volts. Production of the US car and its European version, the Opel Ampera, will be on hold starting 19 March and 1,300 workers will be temporarily laid off. They are expected to return to work on 23 April. ... Too many volts hertz? Watt's amp with that? ApocaDoc permalink Mon, Feb 6, 2012 from Stanford, via ScienceDaily: Engineers Weld Nanowires With Light In a paper just published in the journal Nature Materials, a team of engineers at Stanford has demonstrated a promising new nanowire welding technique that harnesses plasmonics to fuse the wires with a simple blast of light.... The beauty is that the hot spots exist only when the nanowires touch, not after they have fused. The welding stops itself. It's self-limiting," explained Mark Brongersma, an associate professor of materials science engineering at Stanford and an expert in plasmonics. Brongersma is one of the study's senior authors.... To demonstrate the possibilities, they applied their mesh on Saran wrap. They sprayed a solution containing silver nanowires in suspension on the plastic and dried it. After illumination, what was left was an ultrathin layer of welded nanowires. "Then we balled it up like a piece of paper. When we unfurled the wrap, it maintained its electrical properties," said co-author Yi Cui, an associate professor materials science and engineering. "And when you hold it up, it's virtually transparent."... "This opens some interesting, simple and large-area processing schemes for electronic devices -- solar, LEDs and touch-screen displays, especially." ... Please, please don't fund the touchscreen displays first. ApocaDoc permalink Thu, Jan 5, 2012 from AP: China cuts 2012 rare earths export quota China accounts for 97 percent of rare earth output and its 2009 decision to curb exports while it builds up an industry to create products made with them alarmed foreign companies that depend on Chinese supplies. In its latest quota, the Commerce Ministry said exporters will be allowed to sell 10,546 tons of rare earths in the first half of 2012. That is a 27 percent reduction from the quota for the first half of 2011.... Rare earths are 17 elements including cerium, dysprosium and lanthanum that are used in manufacturing flat-screen TVs, batteries for electric cars and wind turbines. They also used in some high-tech weapons.... Prices in China have fallen sharply since August, declining by 45 percent for neodymium oxide, by 33 percent for terbium oxide and by 31 percent for lanthanum oxide, according to Lynas Corp., an Australian rare earths producer. Its figures showed an equally striking gap between prices in China and abroad, with lanthanum oxide costing triple the Chinese level on global markets, neodymium more than twice as much and terbium oxide near twice as much. ... Sounds like the unobtainium cartel at work. ApocaDoc permalink Sun, Nov 20, 2011 from The Market Oracle: The Electric Car Paradox: Can We Switch To Electric Cars ? Not now and... not nearly The simple answer is no - and the complicated answer is also no.... What we find is a reality wall for EVs so high that "The Switch" (to a fully motorised all electric car future) is such pure fantasy it is avoided - even by its most blustering shills. These, like Renault's Carlos Ghosn talk loudly about attaining production rates of 1 million EVs per year "by about 2016". The quantum leap they would need to match the world's current output of OVs, about 75 million per year, and then replace the existing stock of around 950 - 975 million OVs, growing at about 55 million a year (after the scrapping of about 20 million a year), is so far beyond their admittedly world class ability to lie, boast and brag - that only fantasy will suffice. As we know from the first table, for every ton of global oil production, we produce 5 kilograms of aluminium, less than 2 kgs of copper, a half kilo of lead, and so on down the scale - to lithium. Like we also know, lithium is the Holy Grail for EV boomers, who can present this light metal as relatively "eco friendly', or relatively non-toxic, but this does nothing to change its rarity. To be sure, it is fun to know the world's oceans contain an estimated 230 billion tons of lithium - dissolved in about 1450 billion cubic kilometres of water - which means there is about 140 kgs of lithium in every cubic kilometre of seawater ! More seriously, we need to know the world's mineable and extractible reserves of lithium. These are mainly located in Bolivia, Argentina, Portugal and Russia and their exact extent is most certainly a controversial subject, but the US Geological Survey in 2007 estimated these may be as little as 13.75 million tons. The most optimistic estimates, assuming a large increase in lithium prices, extend this to about 29 Mt. ... But surely, the invisible hand of the marketplace will become visible under duress, right? ApocaDoc permalink Tue, Nov 15, 2011 from BBC: Scientists boost battery strength with small holes Batteries for phones and laptops could soon recharge ten times faster and hold a charge ten times larger than current technology allows. Scientists at Northwestern University in the US have changed the materials in lithium-ion batteries to boost their abilities. One change involves poking millions of minuscule holes in the battery. Batteries built using the novel technique could be in the shops within five years, estimate the scientists. ... The holey grail! ApocaDoc permalink Thu, Sep 8, 2011 from Climate Cha nge Letters, via UCAR: Switching from coal to natural gas would do little for global climate, study indicates Although the burning of natural gas emits far less carbon dioxide than coal, a new study concludes that a greater reliance on natural gas would fail to significantly slow down climate change.... While coal use causes warming through emission of heat-trapping carbon dioxide, it also releases comparatively large amounts of sulfates and other particles that, although detrimental to the environment, cool the planet by blocking incoming sunlight. The situation is further complicated by uncertainty over the amount of methane that leaks from natural gas operations. Methane is an especially potent greenhouse gas. Wigley's computer simulations indicate that a worldwide, partial shift from coal to natural gas would slightly accelerate climate change through at least 2050, even if no methane leaked from natural gas operations, and through as late as 2140 if there were substantial leaks. After that, the greater reliance on natural gas would begin to slow down the increase in global average temperature, but only by a few tenths of a degree. ... On the one hand, burning 100 million years of carbon has serious consequences. On the other hand, um. ApocaDoc permalink Sun, Aug 28, 2011 from ACS, via EurekAlert: 150 reports on sustainability and green chemistry at American Chemical Society Meeting Here are the National Meeting's sustainability-related symposia, with the program area in parentheses for use in searching the online Technical Program for times and locations of individual presentations: * Future Agricultural Consumer Safety Demands for the Global Market (AGFD) * Advances in Protection of Agricultural Productivity, Public Health, and the Environment (AGRO) * Endangered Species Act and Pesticide Regulation: Scientific and Process Improvements (AGRO) * Managed Ecosystems, Pesticides, and Biodiversity (AGRO) * Modern Agriculture and Biotechnology: Tools for Sustainability (AGRO) * * Sustainability and Innovation for a Cleaner Environment (BMGT) * * Nitrogen and the Human Endeavor: Chemistry, Effects, and Solutions (CASW) * * Green and Advanced Technologies: Protection and Regulation (CHAL) * * Creating Innovation by Collaboration in Green Chemistry Between Industry University Centers and Students (CHED) * * Greening Undergraduate Education: Lecture and Laboratory Innovations (CHED) * * A Sustainable Future: Interface of Energy, Food, Water, and Climate Sustainability (COMSCI) * * Effects of Wildfire on Watersheds and Water Supply (ENVR) * Emerging Issues and Solutions for Sustainable Water and Wastewater Systems (ENVR) * Heterogeneous Catalysis for Sustainable Energy Applications (ENVR) * Novel Solutions to Water Pollution (ENVR) * Urban Greenhouse Gas Emissions, Climate Change, and Mitigating Impacts (ENVR) * Advances in Membranes and Separation Science and Technology for Fuels and Energy Production (FUEL) * Emerging Energy and Fuel Technologies: Batteries, Solar Cells, and Alternative Fuels (FUEL) * * Emerging Energy and Fuel Technologies: Solar Hydrogen Production (FUEL) *.... ... The theory of "chemistry" has not been fully proven, y'know. ApocaDoc permalink Thu, Aug 4, 2011 from MITnews: The too-smart-for-its-own-good grid In the last few years, electrical utilities have begun equipping their customers' homes with new meters that have Internet connections and increased computational capacity. One envisioned application of these "smart meters" is to give customers real-time information about fluctuations in the price of electricity, which might encourage them to defer some energy-intensive tasks until supply is high or demand is low. Less of the energy produced from erratic renewable sources such as wind and solar would thus be wasted, and utilities would less frequently fire up backup generators, which are not only more expensive to operate but tend to be more polluting, too.... in MIT's Laboratory for Information and Decision Systems, however, shows that this policy could backfire. If too many people set appliances to turn on, or devices to recharge, when the price of electricity crosses the same threshold, it could cause a huge spike in demand; in the worst case, that could bring down the power grid. Fortunately, in a paper presented at the last IEEE Conference on Decision and Control, the researchers also show that some relatively simple types of price controls could prevent huge swings in demand. But that stability would come at the cost of some of the efficiencies that real-time pricing is intended to provide.... But, Litvinov adds, an accurate model of the dynamics of energy consumption would have to factor in consumers' responses, not only to changing electricity prices, but also to each other's responses. "It's like a game," Litvinov says. "People will have to start adopting more sophisticated strategies. That whole dynamic is itself a subject for study." ... The invisible hand of the smartgridplace may give us the back of it. ApocaDoc permalink Tue, Aug 2, 2011 from EnvironmentalResearchWeb: Carbon nanotube 'solar fuel' could store solar energy Researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of technology (MIT) have designed a new solar thermal fuel that could store up to 10,000 times more energy than previous systems. The fuel, which has been studied using computational chemistry but not yet fully tested in the lab, consists of carbon nanotubes (CNTs) modified with azobenzene. It is expected to provide the same energy storage per volume as lithium-ion batteries and can store solar energy almost indefinitely. It can also be recharged by simply exposing it to sunlight - no electricity required.... What is more, the volumetric energy density of this fuel is very low in contrast to that of azobenzene/CNT, which has a value that is 10,000 greater. "This value is comparable to that of lithium-ion batteries, and high enough for us to realistically envisage our solar thermal fuel in real-world applications," Kolpak told physicsworld.com. "The fuel also has many other advantages, such as being emission-free and easily rechargeable - you don't need to be near an electricity source to recharge."... The researchers admit that there are still many challenges to overcome before they can even consider commercializing such a technology. ... See? I told you that technology would solve the problem. Er, sometime in the future. ApocaDoc permalink Fri, Jul 15, 2011 from Bloomberg: Clean Energy Investment Up 22 Percent on Solar Boom, New Energy Says New investment in clean energy rose 22 percent from a year ago to $41.7 billion in the second quarter following a jump in funding for solar thermal power plants, Bloomberg New Energy Finance said. The figure was 27 percent higher than in the first quarter and the third-highest on record, the London-based researcher said. BrightSource Energy Inc. raised $2.2 billion for its 392- megawatt project in the U.S. while funds also flowed to Nextera Energy Resources LLC and Eskom Holdings Ltd. The findings contrast with a 13 percent slump during the quarter for the WilderHill New Energy Global Innovation Index, which tracks 93 clean energy companies. The Standard & Poor's 500 index of leading U.S. shares was little changed in the period. "The explanation is partly to do with ongoing investor worries, perhaps overdone, about future policy support, and partly to do with the fact that this is a highly competitive sector, in which costs are falling and high manufacturer margins are hard to sustain," said Michael Liebreich, chief executive officer of New Energy Finance, said in a statement released today. ... That may track with rising ice loss, weather disruptions, resource wars, and other energy-sector indicators. ApocaDoc permalink Sun, Jul 10, 2011 from DesdemonaDespair: Fracking fluids poison a national forest A new study has found that wastewater from natural gas hydrofracturing in a West Virginia national forest quickly wiped out all ground plants, killed more than half of the trees and caused radical changes in soil chemistry. These results argue for much tighter control over disposal of these "fracking fluids," contends Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER). The new study by Mary Beth Adams, a U.S. Forest Service researcher, appears in the July-August issue of the peer-reviewed Journal of Environmental Quality. She looked at the effects of land application of fracking fluids on a quarter-acre section of the Fernow Experimental Forest within the Monongahela National Forest. More than 75,000 gallons of fracking fluids, which are injected deep underground to free shale gas and then return to the surface, were applied to the assigned plot over a two day period during June 2008. The following effects were reported in the study: * Within two days all ground plants were dead; * Within 10 days, leaves of trees began to turn brown. * Within two years more than half of the approximately 150 trees were dead; and * "Surface soil concentrations of sodium and chloride increased 50-fold as a result of the land application of hydrofracturing fluids..." These elevated levels eventually declined as chemical leached off-site. The exact chemical composition of these fluids is not known because the chemical formula is classified as confidential proprietary information. "The explosion of shale gas drilling in the East has the potential to turn large stretches of public lands into lifeless moonscapes," stated PEER Executive Director Jeff Ruch, noting that land disposal of fracking fluids is common and in the case of the Fernow was done pursuant to a state permit. "This study suggests that these fluids should be treated as toxic waste." ... If the chemicals were applied where they belonged, a mile underground, they'd be no trouble at all! ApocaDoc permalink Wed, Jun 29, 2011 from Oregon State University, via EurekAlert: Inkjet printing could change the face of solar energy industry Engineers at Oregon State University have discovered a way for the first time to create successful "CIGS" solar devices with inkjet printing, in work that reduces raw material waste by 90 percent and will significantly lower the cost of producing solar energy cells with some very promising compounds. High performing, rapidly produced, ultra-low cost, thin film solar electronics should be possible, scientists said.... Part of the advantage of this approach, Chang said, is a dramatic reduction in wasted material. Instead of depositing chemical compounds on a substrate with a more expensive vapor phase deposition - wasting most of the material in the process - inkjet technology could be used to create precise patterning with very low waste. "Some of the materials we want to work with for the most advanced solar cells, such as indium, are relatively expensive," Chang said. "If that's what you're using you can't really afford to waste it, and the inkjet approach almost eliminates the waste." ... Guess I'll stop investing in traditional solar, since a revolution is just around the corner. ApocaDoc permalink Tue, Jun 28, 2011 from TomDispatch: Michael Klare, The Energy Landscape of 2041 Let's see: today, it's a story about rising sea levels. Now, close your eyes, take a few seconds, and try to imagine what word or words could possibly go with such a story. Time's up, and if "faster," "far faster," "fastest," or "unprecedented" didn't come to mind, then the odds are that you're not actually living on planet Earth in the year 2011. Yes, a new study came out in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences that measures sea-level rise over the last 2,000 years and -- don't be shocked -- it's never risen faster than now. Earlier in the week, there was that report on the state of the oceans produced by a panel of leading marine scientists. Now, close your eyes and try again. Really, this should be easy. Just look at the previous paragraph and choose "unprecedented," and this time pair it with "loss of species comparable to the great mass extinctions of prehistory," or pick "far faster" (as in "the seas are degenerating far faster than anyone has predicted"), or for a change of pace, how about "more quickly" as in "more quickly than had been predicted" as the "world's oceans move into 'extinction' phase."... This will be a war because the future profitability, or even survival, of many of the world's most powerful and wealthy corporations will be at risk, and because every nation has a potentially life-or-death stake in the contest. For giant oil companies like BP, Chevron, ExxonMobil, and Royal Dutch Shell, an eventual shift away from petroleum will have massive economic consequences.... In the meantime, the struggle for energy resources is guaranteed to grow ever more intense for a simple reason: there is no way the existing energy system can satisfy the world's future requirements. It must be replaced or supplemented in a major way by a renewable alternative system or, forget Westphalia, the planet will be subject to environmental disaster of a sort hard to imagine today. ... Surely we would have woken up to what we were doing by then and changed our entire way of doing things... wouldn't we? ApocaDoc permalink Wed, Jun 22, 2011 from ClimateProgress: Another U.S. Coal Plant to Shutter. Will Renewables and Efficiency Fill the Gap? A municipal utility in Texas said this week that it plans to shut down an 871-MW coal plant within the next 7 years to avoid spending $3 billion for pollution controls. The Deely plant, operated by CPS Energy, has been running for more than 30 years - making it a candidate for environmental upgrades to comply with pending federal standards for mercury and air toxics. Rather than invest in a new coal plant, however, the company plans on making up for the production loss by investing in 780 MW of energy efficiency capacity and 1,500 MW of renewable energy, including 44 MW of contracts from solar PV plants. Sierra Club issued a statement this week celebrating the planned closure, saying that solar "will replace that dirty electricity and bring clean energy jobs to Texas."... What will fill in the gap? The contracts from CPS Energy are likely a good indicator of how that gap will be filled: Some efficiency, a mix of renewables, a good amount of natural gas, and, potentially, some cleaner coal electricity from new plants (if they get built.) According to data from the solar industry, the dropping costs of solar PV make the resource competitive with new coal plants that will be built over the next 8 years. These are solar PV plants in areas with high solar resources, not everywhere in the country. If that's the case, solar and other renewables will likely make up a larger portion of new contracts. ... Seven years? No problem. We can wait. ApocaDoc permalink Fri, Jun 17, 2011 from iSupply: Historic $1-Per-Watt Solar Modules Just Months Away The photovoltaic (PV) industry appears set to achieve a major milestone with the selling prices of crystalline silicon (c-Si) modules projected to drop to $1 per watt by the first quarter of 2012, a significant benchmark level that could forestall a widely feared dip for solar installations next year and stimulate demand instead, according to new IHS iSuppli (NYSE: IHS) research.... "The recent price decline was quickened by top-tier module brands dropping prices to aggressively position themselves, in the face of fears that the industry could be headed toward a down market next year," said Henning Wicht, senior director and principal analyst, photovoltaics, at IHS. The drops in pricing were spurred by the recent price slide in cells and wafers, with wafers being quoted in the $2.30 per-piece range, down from $3.50 in March.... ... This makes 100 percent cents. ApocaDoc permalink Thu, Jun 16, 2011 from Reuters: IEA: Nuclear retreat to increase CO2 growth 30 percent A halving of a global nuclear power expansion after Japan's Fukushima disaster would increase global growth in carbon dioxide emissions by 30 percent through 2035, the IEA said on Wednesday. The International Energy Agency warned last month that a political goal to limit climate change to safer levels was barely achievable after global emissions rose by near 6 percent in 2010.... A halving of nuclear power growth would make the task even more difficult, said IEA chief economist Fatih Birol. "We believe this huge emissions increase plus the rather bleaker perspective for nuclear power put together make the 2 degrees target very, very difficult to achieve." ... Some days it almost seems as if we've hit the limits to endless growth. Crazy, hunh? ApocaDoc permalink Mon, Apr 4, 2011 from Guardian: What Japan's disaster tells us about peak oil While the thermal power stations may restart operations soon, the overall shortfall will become even more difficult to manage over the summer period when air conditioning is utilized. The reality is that these power cuts could continue for years, especially since the one of the two Fukushima nuclear plants has effectively become a pile of radioactive scrap.... It has been difficult for Japan's notoriously efficient industries to maintain production, given that they rely on just-in-time systems and which have supply plants (for needed parts) that are located in the zone impacted by these combined disasters. One example is in car production, where major firms have had to suspend work at their factories when key parts are no longer available from the affected region. The fragility of this system of industrial production is glaringly obvious and it is something that peak oil commentators have warned of multiple times.... Under a peak oil scenario, the entire world (not just one country) would be affected by a continuous decline in global oil production.... For a country like Japan that relies heavily on the import of food, having only 40 percent self-sufficiency, the real peak oil scenario would have dire impacts. ... Peak oil is so yesterday. ApocaDoc permalink Mon, Mar 21, 2011 from ScienceDaily: Batteries Charge Quickly and Retain Capacity, Thanks to New Structure Braun's group developed a three-dimensional nanostructure for battery cathodes that allows for dramatically faster charging and discharging without sacrificing energy storage capacity. The researchers' findings will be published in the March 20 advance online edition of the journal Nature Nanotechnology. Aside from quick-charge consumer electronics, batteries that can store a lot of energy, release it fast and recharge quickly are desirable for electric vehicles, medical devices, lasers and military applications. "This system that we have gives you capacitor-like power with battery-like energy," said Braun, a professor of materials science and engineering. "Most capacitors store very little energy. They can release it very fast, but they can't hold much. Most batteries store a reasonably large amount of energy, but they can't provide or receive energy rapidly. This does both."... They have demonstrated battery electrodes that can charge or discharge in a few seconds, 10 to 100 times faster than equivalent bulk electrodes, yet can perform normally in existing devices.... "If you had five-minute charge capability, you would think of this the same way you do an internal combustion engine. You would just pull up to a charging station and fill up." All of the processes the group used are also used at large scales in industry so the technique could be scaled up for manufacturing. ... It's Three! Three! Three wins in one! ApocaDoc permalink Fri, Mar 18, 2011 from Huffington Post: Battle-proof Wind Farms Survive Japan's Trial by Fire As the world collectively holds its breath to see how the Fukushima crisis plays out (the quote of the day has got to be: "The worst-case scenario doesn't bear mentioning and the best-case scenario keeps getting worse...") there's a positive story which is not yet being reported. Despite assertions by its detractors that wind energy would not survive an earthquake or tsunami the Japanese wind industry is still functioning and helping to keep the lights on during the Fuksuhima crisis. Colleagues and I have been directly corresponding with Yoshinori Ueda leader of the International Committee of the Japan Wind Power Association & Japan Wind Energy Association, and according to Ueda there has been no wind facility damage reported by any association members, from either the earthquake or the tsunami. Even the Kamisu semi-offshore wind farm, located about 300km from the epicenter of the quake, survived. Its anti-earthquake "battle proof design" came through with flying colors. Mr. Ueda confirms that most Japanese wind turbines are fully operational. Indeed, he says that electric companies have asked wind farm owners to step up operations as much as possible in order to make up for shortages in the eastern part of the country. ... Yeah, but can wind power generate radiation? I don't think so. ApocaDoc permalink Wed, Mar 16, 2011 from EnvironmentalResearchWeb: Isobutanol directly from cellulose Using consolidated bioprocessing, a team led by James Liao of the University of California at Los Angeles for the first time produced isobutanol directly from cellulose. The team's work, published online in Applied and Environmental Microbiology, represents across-the-board savings in processing costs and time, plus isobutanol is a higher grade of alcohol than ethanol. "Unlike ethanol, isobutanol can be blended at any ratio with gasoline and should eliminate the need for dedicated infrastructure in tanks or vehicles," said Liao.... "Plus, it may be possible to use isobutanol directly in current engines without modification."... While cellulosic biomass like corn stover and switchgrass is abundant and cheap, it is much more difficult to utilize than corn and sugar cane. This is due in large part because of recalcitrance, or a plant's natural defenses to being chemically dismantled.... The researchers noted that their strategy exploits the host's natural cellulolytic activity and the amino acid biosynthetic pathway and diverts its intermediates to produce higher alcohol than ethanol. ... These guys are really smart. How come they're not in banking, or something productive like that? ApocaDoc permalink Tue, Mar 15, 2011 from New York Times: Wind and Solar Stocks Surge on Nuclear Fears Stocks for wind and solar energy producers jump as investors speculate that demand for renewable power will surge in response to the unfolding Japanese nuclear catastrophe. The German solar-panel maker Solarworld AG leads the pack, surging 32 percent. [Bloomberg]... Plans for a $10 billion expansion of a South Texas nuclear plant could be shelved because of repercussions from the growing disaster in Japan, analysts say. "We think the potential added pressure could be the end of its nuclear loan guarantee award," Barclays tells clients, referring to the project by NRG Energy. [Reuters] ... So maybe that radioactive cloud has a silver lining? ApocaDoc permalink Sun, Feb 13, 2011 from slashdot: Science Programs Hit Hard By Proposed Budget "The House of Representatives Committee on Appropriations has released a list of proposed spending cuts for the US Federal Government. The proposed cuts include reductions in spending on many science organizations and funds such as NASA, NOAA, nuclear energy research, fossil fuel energy research, clean coal research, the CDC, the NIH, and numerous EPA programs. There are also quite a few cuts proposed on domestic services, such as Americorps and high speed rail research. The House Appropriations Chairman, Hal Rogers, acknowledges that the cuts go deep, and would hurt every district across the country. But they are still deemed necessary to rein in Congressional spending. Notoriously absent from the proposed budget cuts are two of the largest spending sinks in the federal budget: the Department of Defense and Social Security." ... I'm not feelin' that cut in "clean coal research." ApocaDoc permalink Sun, Feb 6, 2011 from Huffington Post: The Jobs Project: Unemployed Coal Miners Install Solar Panels In West Virginia A group devoted to creating alternative energy jobs in Central Appalachia is building a first for West Virginia's southern coalfields region this week - a set of rooftop solar panels, assembled by unemployed and underemployed coal miners and contractors. The 40- by 15-foot solar array going up on a doctor's office in Williamson is significant not for its size but for its location: It signals to an area long reliant on mining that there can be life beyond coal.... The Jobs Project teamed up about a year ago with a solar energy company from the Eastern Panhandle, Mountain View Solar & Wind of Berkeley Springs, to develop a privately funded job-training program. The 12 trainees are earning $45 an hour for three days of work, while some local laborers are earning $10 an hour helping out. Mountain View owner Mike McKechnie is also buying all his electrical supplies from a local business. "We are not funded by any state organization. We're doing this as a business because we want to grow the solar infrastructure and industry," McKechnie says. "We're West Virginians, and we think it's important. There's a need here that's not being met." ... "there can be life beyond coal" has a bell-like tone, doesn't it? ApocaDoc permalink Thu, Feb 3, 2011 from Yale360: Intel the Biggest Buyer Of Green Energy in the U.S., Report Says Intel Corporation remains the top purchaser of renewable energy in the U.S., nearly doubling the amount of green energy credits it will buy in 2011 to more than 2.5 billion kilowatt-hours -- the equivalent of powering 218,000 American homes -- according to a new ranking by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). With that increase, the California-based chipmaker -- which has also built nine solar plants at its facilities in the U.S. and Israel -- now gets about 88 percent of its electricity from renewable sources. The retail chain, Kohl's, which ranked second on the EPA's list of the top 50 green energy buyers, now gets 100 pecent of its electricity from green sources, purchasing more than 1.4 million kilowatt-hours annually. ... That computes. ApocaDoc permalink Wed, Jan 19, 2011 from PhysOrg: Study claims 100 percent renewable energy possible by 2030 New research has shown that it is possible and affordable for the world to achieve 100 percent renewable energy by 2030, if there is the political will to strive for this goal.... Achieving 100 percent renewable energy would mean the building of about four million 5 MW wind turbines, 1.7 billion 3 kW roof-mounted solar photovoltaic systems, and around 90,000 300 MW solar power plants.... Jacobson said the major challenge would be in the interconnection of variable supplies such as wind and solar to enable the different renewable sources to work together to match supply with demands. The more consistent renewable sources of wave and tidal power and geothermal systems would supply less of the energy but their consistency would make the whole system more reliable. ... "Political will?" Didn't that go extinct in the 70's? ApocaDoc permalink Mon, Jan 10, 2011 from UT Dallas, via ScienceDaily: Spinning the Unspinnable: Superconducting, Energy Storing and Catalytic Yarns Based on Ancient Types of Spirals Nanotechnologists at The University of Texas at Dallas have invented a broadly deployable technology for producing weavable, knittable, sewable, and knottable yarns containing up to 95 weight percent of otherwise unspinnable guest powders and nanofibers. A minute amount of host carbon nanotube web, which can be lighter than air and stronger pound-per-pound than steel, confines guest particulates in the corridors of highly conducting scrolls without interfering with guest functionality for such applications as energy storage, energy conversion, and energy harvesting.... Biscrolled yarns get their name from the way they are produced: a uniform layer of guest material is deposited on top of a web of carbon nanotubes, which is called the host. This bilayer guest/host stack is then twisted to form a biscrolled yarn.... The carbon nanotube webs that the inventors used for biscrolling are not ordinary carbon nanotube sheets -- they can be drawn at up to two yards/second from forests of carbon nanotubes.... Using as guest up to 95 weight percent LiFePO4, a remarkable material for lithium-ion batteries, high performance lithium ion battery electrodes were demonstrated by UT Dallas researchers, and shown to have the battery performance, flexibility and mechanical robustness needed for incorporation in energy storing and energy generating clothing. Biscrolling nitrogen-doped carbon nanotube guest provided highly catalytic fuel cell cathodes for chemical generation of electrical energy, which avoid the need for expensive platinum catalyst. By biscrolling a mixture of magnesium and boron powders and thermal treatment, superconducting MgB2 yarns were produced, which eliminated the thirty or more draw steps used for conventional production of superconducting wires. Using photocatalytic titanium dioxide guest, biscrolled yarns for self-cleaning fabrics were obtained. ... My recommendation for a colloquial name for any nanofibre-encased substance: "nanwich." ApocaDoc permalink Sun, Jan 9, 2011 from Chemical and Engineering News: Scrubbing Carbon Dioxide From The Air And Ocean New research points toward a solution that could kill two birds with one stone: Remove CO2 from a natural-gas-powered plant's waste gas stream using seawater and mineral calcium carbonate, and then pump the resulting calcium bicarbonate into the sea to neutralize it.... Roughly one-third of anthropogenic CO2 emissions come from burning fossil fuel in electricity plants.... Rau built a lab-scale scrubber that used seawater and mineral carbonate to remove CO2 from a simulated flue gas stream. The scrubber worked by pumping CO2 over or through a porous bed of limestone particles sprayed with a continuous flow of water. He found that the process removed up to 97 percent of the CO2 in the gas. Water hydrated the waste CO2 to produce carbonic acid, which then reacted with, and was neutralized by the limestone. As a result, the CO2 gas transformed into dissolved calcium bicarbonate. Dumping the dissolved calcium bicarbonate into the ocean would provide a second benefit: The calcium bicarbonate can increase seawater alkalinity, Rau says, by speeding up a natural but very slow process known as carbonate weathering, which captures carbon in the ocean. The world's oceans would benefit from increasing alkalinity because they absorb as much as one-third of man-made CO2 emissions and are becoming more acidic. Ocean acidity in turn threatens the health of coral reefs, calcareous plankton, and other sea life. "We might be able to safely modify ocean chemistry to help mitigate both CO2 and ocean acidification," Rau says. ... Y'know, lab-scale solar works really well too! ApocaDoc permalink Fri, Dec 31, 2010 from The Oil Drum: Charts of the Year from The Oil Drum, 2010 A picture says a thousand words. In this post you will find only charts and graphs conveying important points from the world of energy 2010. Readers are invited to post their favorite charts from 2010 in the comments. Instructions are given at the end of this post. This is a charts only thread, no text at all (though posting links is OK), noncompliant posts will be deleted. An energy theme is preferred though other related themes such as economy, population, sustainability are acceptable. Climate charts that do not link directly to energy will be deleted. ... I cut my energy use by 25 percent this year -- and it doesn't even show up! ApocaDoc permalink Wed, Dec 29, 2010 from CBC: China cuts 'rare earth' quota 11 percent China said Tuesday it is reducing the amount of rare earths it will export next year by more than 10 per cent -- likely to be an unpopular move worldwide since the minerals are vital to the manufacture of high-tech products. China accounts for 97 per cent of the global production of rare earth minerals, which are essential to devices as varied as cellphones, computer drives and hybrid cars. Countries were alarmed when Beijing blocked shipments of the minerals to Japan earlier this year amid a debate over disputed islands.... The United States last week threatened to go to the World Trade Organization with its concerns over China and rare earths. When asked for comment during a regular press briefing Tuesday, China Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Jiang Yu declined to answer. But China has had to address the global concerns numerous times since the spat with Japan. "China is not using rare earth as a bargaining chip," Wen Jiabao, China's top economic official, told a China-European Union business summit in Brussels in October. ... Hold your head up, Woah!, hold your head high! ApocaDoc permalink Tue, Dec 28, 2010 from University of Illinois, via PhysOrg: Scientists overcome major obstacles to cellulosic biofuel production A newly engineered yeast strain can simultaneously consume two types of sugar from plants to produce ethanol, researchers report. The sugars are glucose, a six-carbon sugar that is relatively easy to ferment; and xylose, a five-carbon sugar that has been much more difficult to utilize in ethanol production. The new strain, made by combining, optimizing and adding to earlier advances, reduces or eliminates several major inefficiencies associated with current biofuel production methods.... Most yeast strains that are engineered to metabolize xylose do so very slowly. "Xylose is a wood sugar, a five-carbon sugar that is very abundant in lignocellulosic biomass but not in our food," said Yong-Su Jin, a professor of food science and human nutrition at Illinois.... "Most yeast cannot ferment xylose."... The new yeast strain is at least 20 percent more efficient at converting xylose to ethanol than other strains, making it "the best xylose-fermenting strain" reported in any study, Jin said.... The cost benefits of this advance in co-fermentation are very significant, Jin said. "We don't have to do two separate fermentations," he said. "We can do it all in one pot. And the yield is even higher than the industry standard. We are pretty sure that this research can be commercialized very soon." ... "Co-fermentation" sounds like socialism to me. ApocaDoc permalink Sun, Nov 14, 2010 from New York Times: As Glaciers Melt, Scientists Seek New Data on Rising Seas ...As a result of recent calculations that take the changes into account, many scientists now say that sea level is likely to rise perhaps three feet by 2100 -- an increase that, should it come to pass, would pose a threat to coastal regions the world over. And the calculations suggest that the rise could conceivably exceed six feet, which would put thousands of square miles of the American coastline under water and would probably displace tens of millions of people in Asia... A large majority of climate scientists argue that heat-trapping gases are almost certainly playing a role in what is happening to the world's land ice. They add that the lack of policies to limit emissions is raising the risk that the ice will go into an irreversible decline before this century is out, a development that would eventually make a three-foot rise in the sea look trivial. ... This will be remembered, my friends, as the Age of Fiddling Around. ApocaDoc permalink Thu, Nov 4, 2010 from Telegraph.co.uk: Wind farms could be forced out by oil rigs and 'obscure law.' Plans to build massive wind farms off the coast of Britain are in doubt due to an obscure piece of legislation that means oil companies can force turbines to be moved if fossil fuels are discovered in the area. The Government want to build up to 7,000 turbines offshore over the next decade. However the rules laid down for leasing the sea bed currently state that wind turbines have to be moved if a licence to drill for oil is given in the area. Environmentalists fear the little-known clause will deter energy companies from building turbines in case oil is discovered and are lobbying the Government to change the law. There are already tensions between the powerful fossil fuel lobby and the growing green industry over the future of the seas around Britain. Oil companies are complaining that wind farms disrupt mobile drilling rigs and helicopter flights and there are fears they may be ready to bring legal action. ... No more manifested metaphors!!! ApocaDoc permalink Sun, Oct 31, 2010 from Reuters, via Yahoo: World Bank launches scheme to green government accounts The World Bank on Thursday launched a program to help nations put a value on nature just like GDP in a bid to stop the destruction of forests, wetlands and reefs that underpin businesses and economies. The five-year pilot project backed by India, Mexico and other nations aims to embed nature into national accounts to draw in the full benefits of services such as coastal protection from mangroves or watersheds for rivers that feed cities and crops. "We're here today to create something that no one has tried before: a global partnership that can fundamentally change the way governments value their ecosystems," World Bank President Robert Zoellick told reporters in the Japanese city of Nagoya.... "For economic ministries in particular, it's important to have an accounting measure that they can use to evaluate not only the economic value but the natural wealth of nations," Zoellick told Reuters in an interview. "It's not a silver bullet. It's a way of trying to help people understand better in economic terms the value of natural wealth." While economists try to get a handle on the value of nature, scientists are struggling to get a full picture of the variety of wildlife species around the globe as climate change, exploitation and pollution threaten "mass extinctions," a series of studies published on Wednesday showed. ... OMG! The foundations of consumer society are being threatened, with the support of the World Bank! ApocaDoc permalink Tue, Oct 19, 2010 from National Geographic: Winds Slowing Around the World, Study Suggests Around the world, surface winds are slowing down, a new study says. Strangely enough, the alleged culprits aren't new buildings but new trees. The easing breezes--if also detected higher up--could affect movements of air pollution but may not necessarily give the wind power industry a case of the doldrums, experts say. For the new study, published Sunday by the journal Nature Geoscience, scientists analyzed nearly 30 years' worth of wind speed data collected from more than 800 land-based weather stations, mostly in the Northern Hemisphere, where long-term wind-data collection has been most reliable. The average annual surface wind speed in countries in mid-northern latitudes--including the United States, China, and Russia--had dropped by as much as 15 percent, from about 10.3 miles (17 kilometers) an hour to about 9 miles (14 kilometers) an hour, the study found.... But reforestation can explain only about 60 percent of the wind speed reductions, the study says. Changes in air circulation due to global warming may be responsible for the rest, but more studies are needed to be sure, according to Vautard. ... That's not what the hurricanes are sayin'. ApocaDoc permalink Wed, Oct 6, 2010 from SMU, via EurekAlert: SMU geothermal mapping project reveals large geothermal energy source in coal country West Virginia is capable of producing 75 percent more energy from geothermal heat than currently produced by the state's mostly coal-fired power plants.... The SMU Geothermal Laboratory has increased its estimate of West Virginia's geothermal generation potential to 18,890 megawatts (assuming a conservative two percent thermal recovery rate). The new estimate represents a 75 percent increase over estimates in MIT's 2006 "The Future of Geothermal Energy" report and exceeds the state's total current generating capacity, primarily coal based, of 16,350 megawatts.... "By adding 1,455 new thermal data points from oil, gas, and water wells to our geologic model of West Virginia, we've discovered significantly more heat than previously thought," Blackwell said. "The existing oil and gas fields in West Virginia provide a geological guide that could help reduce uncertainties associated with geothermal exploration and also present an opportunity for co-producing geothermal electricity from hot waste fluids generated by existing oil and gas wells." The high temperature zones beneath West Virginia revealed by the new mapping are concentrated in the eastern portion of the state (Figure 1). Starting at depths of 4.5 km (greater than 15,000 feet), temperatures reach over 150°C (300°F), which is hot enough for commercial geothermal power production. ... It's just so much easier to simply turn the valleys and mountains of West Virginia into a plain. ApocaDoc permalink Tue, Oct 5, 2010 from New Scientist: White House to install solar panels after all After a month of stalling, US president Barack Obama has finally agreed to install some solar panels on the White House's living quarters. The Associated Press reports that the solar panels are to be installed by spring 2011, and will heat water for the first family and supply some electricity. Campaigners from the climate action group 350.org travelled to Washington DC early in September to push for this, bringing with them a set of solar panels that were installed on the roof of the West Wing between 1979 and 1986. At the time they didn't manage to extract any promises, but Obama seems to have changed his mind. ... Oh no! This may alienate the Tea Party voters! ApocaDoc permalink Fri, Sep 24, 2010 from North Carolina State University, via EurekAlert: Mimicking nature, water-based 'artificial leaf' produces electricity A team led by a North Carolina State University researcher has shown that water-gel-based solar devices - "artificial leaves" - can act like solar cells to produce electricity. The findings prove the concept for making solar cells that more closely mimic nature. They also have the potential to be less expensive and more environmentally friendly than the current standard-bearer: silicon-based solar cells. The bendable devices are composed of water-based gel infused with light-sensitive molecules - the researchers used plant chlorophyll in one of the experiments - coupled with electrodes coated by carbon materials, such as carbon nanotubes or graphite.... "We do not want to overpromise at this stage, as the devices are still of relatively low efficiency and there is a long way to go before this can become a practical technology," Velev says. "However, we believe that the concept of biologically inspired 'soft' devices for generating electricity may in the future provide an alternative for the present-day solid-state technologies." ... If we do this right, we can have R40 spray-on insulation that powers our homes! ApocaDoc permalink Fri, Sep 17, 2010 from Low Tech Magazine: Low-Tech Magazine Low-tech Magazine refuses to assume that every problem has a high-tech solution. A simple, sensible, but nevertheless controversial message; high-tech has become the idol of our society.... The Museum of Old Techniques: For almost every electronic device or oil driven machine there used to be a low-tech alternative that was powered by human muscles, water or wind..... Wind powered factories: The Netherlands had 5 times more windmills in 1850 than it has wind turbines today. One of the most spectacular developments of industrial wind power technology occurred in the Zaan district, a region situated just above Amsterdam in the Netherlands. ... Isn't it more efficient to burn coal to make steam to turn turbines to power my electric scissors? ApocaDoc permalink Mon, Sep 13, 2010 from Guardian: Solar panels you can install with a clear conscience Toxic pollution and links to the arms trade - not all solar panel suppliers are ethically sound. Simon Birch offers some consumer guidance. With the government offering to pay you - and some companies even offering to fit them for free - you may be considering installing solar photovoltaic panels on your roof. But if you are, would you really want to buy one from a company that's been responsible for one of the biggest recent environmental cock-ups on the planet or one that's up to its neck in the arms trade? No of course you wouldn't. To help shoppers navigate this particular ethical-minefield in its latest buyers' guide, Ethical Consumer magazine has identified those solar-power panels that you can stick on your roof with a clean conscience and those that you may just want to leave on the shelf. The best buys are GB-Sol, Solarcentury, SolarWorld and Yingli Solar. ... I just go with whatever's cheapest. ApocaDoc permalink Thu, Aug 26, 2010 from ScienceDaily: Electricity Collected from the Air Could Become the Newest Alternative Energy Source But new evidence suggested that water in the atmosphere really does pick up an electrical charge. Galembeck and colleagues confirmed that idea, using laboratory experiments that simulated water's contact with dust particles in the air. They used tiny particles of silica and aluminum phosphate, both common airborne substances, showing that silica became more negatively charged in the presence of high humidity and aluminum phosphate became more positively charged. High humidity means high levels of water vapor in the air ― the vapor that condenses and becomes visible as "fog" on windows of air-conditioned cars and buildings on steamy summer days. "This was clear evidence that water in the atmosphere can accumulate electrical charges and transfer them to other materials it comes into contact with," Galembeck explained. "We are calling this 'hygroelectricity,' meaning 'humidity electricity'."... These are fascinating ideas that new studies by ourselves and by other scientific teams suggest are now possible," Galembeck said. "We certainly have a long way to go. But the benefits in the long range of harnessing hygroelectricity could be substantial." ... Hygro big and strong, little science. ApocaDoc permalink Wed, Aug 25, 2010 from Guardian: British Gas launches solar panels scheme with '1000 pounds a year profit' claim More than 12 million homeowners would be in line to save up to 1,000 pounds a year, should they install solar panels, says British Gas. The utility firm is the latest in a host of companies offering to install electricity-generating systems on homes to take advantage of a government scheme that pays the owners of solar panels for the 'renewable' electricity they generate. The sudden allure of solar power is less to do with planet-saving and more to do with companies or individuals banking the lucrative feed-in-tariffs (Fits) for every unit of electricity generated - currently 41.3p per KWh, irrespective of whether you consume the power at the time or not. British Gas says the Fits payments can be worth 1,000 pounds per annum, though with export tariffs (for power not used) added, they can be worth even more. They are guaranteed by the government for 25 years, are payable via the utility company, and will rise in line with inflation. British Gas has entered the market with the launch of two schemes. If you opt for its "rent-a-roof" scheme, it will install solar panels on your roof for free and you will benefit from the electricity you generate during the day. The installation is free but you will not own the panels and so British Gas will pocket the Fits cash for the length of the scheme - 25 years. The rent-a-roof deal is limited to the first 1,500 British Gas customers who apply. Alternatively, you can install your own solar panels and British Gas will offer you a two-year interest-free loan, supplied by Hitachi Capital, with which to borrow the upfront costs. You will receive the feed-in-tariffs as well as benefit from the generation of cheaper power. BG says the upfront cost generally ranges from 10,000 pounds to 15,000 pounds depending on the size of the roof. ... Socialist energy? Not in America! ApocaDoc permalink Mon, Aug 23, 2010 from ACS, via EurekAlert: Self-cleaning technology from Mars can keep terrestrial solar panels dust free Imagine keeping dust and grime off objects spread out over an area of 25 to 50 football fields. That's the problem facing companies that deploy large-scale solar power installations, and scientists today presented the development of one solution -- self-dusting solar panels ― based on technology developed for space missions to Mars. In a report at the 240th National Meeting of the American Chemical Society (ACS), they described how a self-cleaning coating on the surface of solar cells could increase the efficiency of producing electricity from sunlight and reduce maintenance costs for large-scale solar installations.... The self-cleaning technology involves deposition of a transparent, electrically sensitive material deposited on glass or a transparent plastic sheet covering the panels. Sensors monitor dust levels on the surface of the panel and energize the material when dust concentration reaches a critical level. The electric charge sends a dust-repelling wave cascading over the surface of the material, lifting away the dust and transporting it off of the screen's edges. Mazumder said that within two minutes, the process removes about 90 percent of the dust deposited on a solar panel and requires only a small amount of the electricity generated by the panel for cleaning operations. ... That's even better than Space Food Stix! ApocaDoc permalink Sat, Aug 21, 2010 from Guardian: Rwanda harnesses volcanic gases from depths of Lake Kivu In a world first, the barge is extracting gases that are trapped deep in Lake Kivu's waters like the fizz in a champagne bottle. Methane, the main constituent of natural gas used for household cooking and heating, is then separated out and piped back to the rugged shore where it fires three large generators. The state-owned Kibuye Power plant is already producing 3.6MW of electricity, more than 4 percent of the country's entire supply. But the success of the pilot project, and the huge unmet demand for power in Rwanda -- only one in 14 homes have access to electricity -- has encouraged local and foreign investors to commit hundreds of millions of dollars to new methane plants along the lakeshore. Within two years, the government hopes to be getting a third of its power from Lake Kivu, and eventually aims to produce so much energy from methane to be able to export it to neighbouring countries. "Our grandfathers knew there was gas in this lake but now have we proved that it can be exploited," said Alexis Kabuto, the Rwandan engineer who runs the $20m Kibuye project. "It's a cheap, clean resource that could last us 100 years." ... Isn't that methane supposed to be used to warm the planet? ApocaDoc permalink Thu, Aug 19, 2010 from BusinessGreen: Scientists brew up powerful whisky biofuel Biofuels made from whisky by-products could be available on Scottish roads within a few years after a team of researchers at Edinburgh Napier's Biofuel Research Centre this week filed for a patent for the new fuel. The team, which is now planning to form a spin-off company to commercialise the fuel, used pot ale waste liquid and spent grains known as draff from Diageo's Glenkinchie Distillery to develop a method of producing butanol. The researchers said the resulting biobutanol produces 30 per cent more output power than ethanol and can be used by conventional cars without any changes to the engine. They also predicted that the fuel will have minimal impact on the environment compared to first generation biofuels made from energy crops as it will draw on the 1,600 million litres of pot ale and 187,000 tonnes of draff produced by the Scottish malt whisky industry each year. ... Fill it up with single malt, please. ApocaDoc permalink Wed, Aug 18, 2010 from AFP, via PhysOrg: Vestas cuts 2010 forecasts, shares plunge Shares in Vestas slumped on Wednesday after the Danish wind power group cut this year's earnings and sales targets following a second quarter loss. The company, the world leader in the wind turbine industry, a key component in efforts to combat carbon emissions, said 2010 sales would now come in at six billion euros (7.7 billion dollars), rather than seven billion euros. The operating profit margin would be in a range of five to six percent, down from the 10-11 percent given previously, it said. The news sent Vestas shares tumbling more than 17 percent in Copenhagen where the broader market was down nearly two percent. ... The smart money's on coal. ApocaDoc permalink Tue, Aug 17, 2010 from Reuters: World 2009 CO2 emissions down 1.3 percent Global carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions in 2009 fell 1.3 percent to 31.3 billion tonnes in the first year-on-year decline in this decade, German renewable energy institute IWR said on Friday. The Muenster-based institute, which advises German ministries, cited the global economic crisis and rising investments in renewable energies for the fall in emissions.... China in 2009 was in top position with 7.43 billion tonnes after 6.81 billion in 2008, followed by the U.S. with 5.95 billion (6.37 billion 2008). Russia was in third position, just before India, and followed by Japan. Global investments in solar and wind power were helped by lower equipment costs as the crisis led to price cuts, IWR said. But it reiterated its earlier suggestions that, in order to put brakes on the rising fossil fuels usage and to stabilize global CO2, it recommends that global annual spending on renewables be quadrupled to 500 billion euros ($644.2 billion). Global CO2 emissions are still 37 percent above those in 1990, the basis year for the Kyoto Climate Protocol. ... The margin of error was ± fried. ApocaDoc permalink Tue, Aug 17, 2010 from Yale360: Low-Cost Solar Array Developed for Residential Installation A Seattle-based company says that it has developed an inexpensive do-it-yourself solar power technology that will enable homeowners to install solar panels on their roofs and then connect them to their power supply by simply plugging a cord into a regular electrical outlet. The company, Clarian Power, is touting its Sunfish system -- with prices beginning at $799 -- as a major advance in reducing the high cost of installing home solar power systems, which typically start at $10,000. Clarian says its Sunfish system does not require a dedicated control panel and has built-in circuit protection, and thus does not require an electrician for installation. Users would mount up to five solar panels anywhere on the house, and plug the device into any outlet. The system is Wi-Fi enabled, enabling users to monitor the performance with online software such as the Google PowerMeter. The largest module will be able to generate 150 kilowatt hours per month, company officials say, so it would take five to six modules to produce the roughly 900 kilowatts used by an average American home. ... Stop right there! I just invested in a new coal-burning plant! ApocaDoc permalink Mon, Aug 16, 2010 from New York Times: Portugal on track for 45 percent renewable energy this year Five years ago, the leaders of this sun-scorched, wind-swept nation made a bet: To reduce Portugal's dependence on imported fossil fuels, they embarked on an array of ambitious renewable energy projects -- primarily harnessing the country's wind and hydropower, but also its sunlight and ocean waves. Today, Lisbon's trendy bars, Porto's factories and the Algarve's glamorous resorts are powered substantially by clean energy. Nearly 45 percent of the electricity in Portugal's grid will come from renewable sources this year, up from 17 percent just five years ago. Land-based wind power -- this year deemed "potentially competitive" with fossil fuels by the International Energy Agency in Paris -- has expanded sevenfold in that time. And Portugal expects in 2011 to become the first country to inaugurate a national network of charging stations for electric cars. ... Gosh. I wonder if that could be done in America. ApocaDoc permalink Sun, Aug 8, 2010 from Daily Mail: Billions of pieces of rubbish clogging Three Gorges ... But China's Three Gorges superstructure is now under threat from vast floating islands of rubbish and debris which have been swept into the Yangtze River by torrential rain and flooding. The debris has clogged a large swathe of the river and the locks of the hydroelectric dam - which cost $25billion to build and claimed more than 100 lives - are now at risk. The crust of rubbish is jammed so thick in places that people can stand on it. The Three Gorges rubbish jam is not an isolated occurrence. Another island covering 15,000 square metres - more than 150,000 square feet - had lodged under a bridge in the north-eastern city of Baishan in Jilin province and was blocking water flow. Officials in Baishan are racing against time to clear the debris as they fear a fresh wave of flooding could bring down the bridge. If the island is washed downstream, it could block floodgates at the Yunfeng dam, now operating at full capacity.... 'We have collected 40 trucks of the trash, but the remaining trash might fill another 200 trucks,' police officer Wang Yong said. More rain is forecast in the coming days. ... Thank goodness this is an isolated occurrence! ApocaDoc permalink Thu, Aug 5, 2010 from Guardian: UN incineration plans rejected by world's rubbish-dump workers The waste-pickers who scour the world's rubbish dumps and daily recycle thousands of tonnes of metal, paper and plastics are up in arms against the UN, which they claim is forcing them out of work and increasing climate change emissions. Their complaint, heard yesterday in Bonn where UN global climate change talks have resumed, is that the clean development mechanism (CDM), an ambitious climate finance scheme designed to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in developing countries, has led to dozens of giant waste-to-energy incinerators being built to burn municipal rubbish, as well as hundreds of new landfill schemes designed to collect methane gas. "Waste-pickers, who are some of the poorest people on earth, recover recyclable materials. They are invisible entrepreneurs on the frontline of climate change, earning a living from recovery and recycling, reducing demand for natural resources," says Neil Tangri, director of Gaia, an alliance of 500 anti-incinerator groups in 80 countries. "But they are being undermined by CDM projects, which deny them entry to dumps. This is leading to further stress and hardship for some of the poorest people in the world and is increasing emissions," he said.... Nearly 60 percent of all Delhi's waste, for example, is recycled by an army of tens of thousands of pickers who scavenge for recyclable materials on the city's dumps.... But she said that the CDM would welcome groups of waste-pickers who wanted to apply for UN climate credits. "If they can show, with the correct methodology, that they are saving emissions, they would be eligible, too," she said. ... Apply for UN climate credits, you wastepickers climbing through garbage piles. ApocaDoc permalink Sat, Jul 31, 2010 from Technology Review: Fossil Fuel Subsidies Dwarf Support for Renewables A new report from Bloomberg New Energy Finance says altogether governments spent between $43 and $46 billion on renewable energy and biofuels last year, not including indirect support, such as subsidies to corn farmers that help ethanol production. Direct subsidies of fossil fuels came to $557 billion, the report says. This disparity raises the question--if the report is right and fossil fuels require so much backing, can they compete with renewables without government support? After all, some renewables--such as sugarcane based biofuels and some wind farms--can already compete with fossil fuels. Without the huge government subsidies for fossil fuels, wouldn't they be eclipsed by renewables? The answer, for now, is no. So far renewables just can't provide enough fuel and power to displace fossil fuels. ... Quit subsidizing the most profitable industry on earth? But who knows what chaos might ensue? ApocaDoc permalink Sat, Jul 24, 2010 from Science Daily: Graphene Organic Photovoltaics: Flexible Material Only a Few Atoms Thick May Offer Cheap Solar Power A University of Southern California team has produced flexible transparent carbon atom films that the researchers say have great potential for a new breed of solar cells. "Organic photovoltaic (OPV) cells have been proposed as a means to achieve low cost energy due to their ease of manufacture, light weight, and compatibility with flexible substrates," wrote Chongwu Zhou, a professor of electrical engineering in the USC Viterbi School of Engineering, in a paper recently published in the journal ACS Nano.... But what graphene OPVs lack in efficiency, they can potentially more than make [up] for in lower price and, greater physical flexibility. Gomez De Arco thinks that it may eventually be possible to run printing presses laying extensive areas covered with inexpensive solar cells, much like newspaper presses print newspapers. "They could be hung as curtains in homes or even made into fabric and be worn as power generating clothing. I can imagine people powering their cellular phone or music/video device while jogging in the sun," he said. ... Another plot by those enviro-nazis. ApocaDoc permalink Wed, Jun 30, 2010 from AIP, via EurekAlert: Study shows stability and utility of floating wind turbines Wind turbines may be one of the best renewable energy solutions, but as turbines get larger they also get noisier, become more of an eyesore, and require increasingly larger expanses of land. One solution: ocean-based wind turbines. While offshore turbines already have been constructed, they've traditionally been situated in shallow waters, where the tower extends directly into the seabed. That restricts the turbines to near-shore waters with depths no greater than 50 meters -- and precludes their use in deeper waters, where winds generally gust at higher speeds. An alternative is placing turbines on floating platforms, says naval architect Dominique Roddier of Berkeley, California-based Marine Innovation & Technology. He and his and colleagues have published a feasibility study of one platform design -- dubbed "WindFloat" -- in the latest issue of the Journal of Renewable and Sustainable Energy... By testing a 1:65 scale model in a wave tank, the researchers show that the three-legged floating platform, which is based on existing gas and oil offshore platform designs, is stable enough to support a 5-megawatt wind turbine, the largest turbine that currently exists. These mammoth turbines are 70 meters tall and have rotors the size of a football field. Just one, Roddier says, produces enough energy "to support a small town." ... But I heard that small towns were dying. ApocaDoc permalink Mon, Jun 28, 2010 from SciDev.net: Potato battery could help meet rural energy needs The holy grail of renewable energy research may lie in the cooking pot, according to scientists. The search for a cheap source of electricity for remote, off-grid communities, has led to batteries that work on freshly boiled potatoes. One slice of potato can generate 20 hours of light, and several slices could provide enough energy to power simple medical equipment and even a low-power computer, said a research team from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Israel. "The technology is ready to go," co-researcher Haim Rabinowitch told SciDev.Net. "It should take an interested body only a short while, and very little investment, to make this available to communities in need." ... The device had the same basic components as conventional batteries, consisting of two electrodes separated by an electrolyte (the potato). Each battery powered a small light for 20 hours, after which a new slice could be inserted.... Potato batteries are estimated to generate energy at a cost of approximately US$9 per kilowatt hour (kW/h), which compares favourably with the best performing 1.5 volt (AA) alkaline cells -- or D cells -- which generate energy at US$50/kWh. ... I'm not seein' the percentage in it. ApocaDoc permalink Tue, Jun 22, 2010 from University of Alberta, via EurekAlert: Life of plastic solar cell jumps from hours to 8 months The research groups' development of an inexpensive, readily available plastic solar cell technology hit a wall because of a chemical leeching problem within the body of the prototype. A chemical coating on an electrode was unstable and migrated through the circuitry of the cell. The team led by U of A and NINT chemistry researcher David Rider, developed a longer lasting, polymer coating for the electrode. Electrodes are key to the goal of a solar energy technology, extracting electricity from the cell. Prior to the polymer coating breakthrough the research team's plastic solar cell could only operate at high capacity for about ten hours. When Rider and his research co authors presented their paper to the journal, Advanced Functional Materials, their plastic solar cell had performed at high capacity for 500 hours. But it kept on working for another seven months. The team says the unit eventually stopped working when it was damaged during transit between laboratories. ... Now this is plastic I can get behind! ApocaDoc permalink Mon, Jun 14, 2010 from SciDev.net: Low-cost solar solution could empower off-grid poor A low-cost, plastic solar lamp could provide affordable lighting for millions living in rural off-grid areas across Africa. The lamp is made from polymer solar cells and although it is not as efficient as similar technologies, it could prove more affordable, according to its developers.... Several versions of the lamp are under development, following trials on a prototype in Zambia in 2009. One, a pocket-sized torch that could be used for night-time navigation, is ready to be rolled out commercially and Krebs is confident that it could be produced for as little as 3 Euros (around US$4). He suggested that 'microfinance' schemes, where people collaborate to buy a lamp which they can share, would be useful for people who cannot afford this initial outlay.... Solar lighting is an important alternative to the kerosene lamps currently used in off-grid developing areas, said David Battley from charity SolarAid, based in the United Kingdom, which promotes the use of solar energy to help reduce global poverty and climate change. ... This is dangerous. Before you know it, Africans are going to think "solar is the answer." ApocaDoc permalink Mon, Jun 14, 2010 from New York Times: Twilight of the Coal Era? On Monday, Siemens is announcing [pdf] that it has won contracts to supply five new high-efficiency gas plants to Progress Energy at two sites in North Carolina that have old coal-fired generators. The H.F. Lee Energy Complex, near Goldsboro, has three coal-fired generators that began operating in 1951, 1952 and 1962. The three coal-fired generators at the Sutton plant, near Wilmington, went into service in 1954, 1955 and 1972. The six plants are among 11 that Progress owns in North Carolina that do not have sulfur scrubbers. The company has said it will eventually close all 11. "I think they came to the conclusion with all the uncertainty, and the likelihood that the rules for pollutants like mercury, sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides will be further tightened, it's not worth spending hundreds of millions of dollars on the back end" of an old power plant, Mr. Zwirn said. What is more, he said, in the decades that a new plant would run, there is a possibility that restrictions will be imposed on carbon dioxide emissions. Per kilowatt-hour generated, the new gas-fired generators will reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 60 percent and nitrogen oxides by 95 percent from levels produced by their coal-fired predecessors. Nearly 100 percent of sulfur dioxides will be eliminated, and all of the mercury, Siemens said. ... Don't forget that Twilight is a story about undead vampires. ApocaDoc permalink Thu, Jun 10, 2010 from PhysOrg: Professor to present vision for zero-carbon future for UK Professor Seamus Garvey, of the University's Department of Mechanical, Materials and Manufacturing Engineering, will speak on the potential of vast floating offshore 'energy farms' off the UK coastline, which could produce 'green' electricity at a fraction of the cost of its nearest competitors. Professor Garvey said: "Imagine for a moment that renewable energy was the cheapest way to source power and that this power could be dispatched on demand. Imagine further that the landscape did not have to be blighted by man-made structures to gather that power. "The impact on the world would be profound: secure low-cost energy supplies for most countries, reduction in the environmental assault that is most mining and oil/gas extraction and some hope of curtailing climate change not dependant on politics."... The technology is centred on a simple premise -- using giant wind turbines to compress and pump air into huge undersea Energy Bags™ anchored to the seabed -- or geological formations where deep water is not available. The high pressure air would be expanded in special turbo-generator sets to provide electricity as required -- not just when the wind is blowing. ... What a gasbag! ApocaDoc permalink Thu, Jun 10, 2010 from Nature Conservancy: New Research Finds 472 Million People Worldwide Have Potentially Been Negatively Affected by Dams Published in a special issue of the Water Alternatives journal recognizing the 10th anniversary of the World Commission on Dams, the findings reveal that at least 472 million people have potentially experienced negative consequences to their incomes and livelihoods. "There are many places where dams have undeniably provided economic benefits such as flood protection, irrigation, and hydropower, but as this report shows they have also caused serious consequences for some of the world's most vulnerable people," said Brian Richter, The Nature Conservancy's Global Freshwater Program Director and lead author of the report. "At a time when global dam-building is rampant, we need to be smarter about planning for and operating dams in ways that alleviate harmful human and ecological impacts."... On the Kafue River in Zambia, 50 percent of the fish catch once consisted of the commercially-important three spotted tilapia, but after the Kafue Gorge and Itezhitezhi Dams were built, this figure was reduced to only 3 percent.... In the Mun River in Thailand, the Pak Mun Dam has caused a 60-80 percent decrease in fish catch, and 50 fish species have disappeared entirely.... The paper’s authors point out that pragmatic, scientifically-sound and well-demonstrated approaches and solutions are already available and can be utilized today, not only at the dam planning phase but also retroactively, to adjust the operations of an existing dam. "It is unacceptable that half a billion people have been essentially ignored".... ... That's only 472 million poor people, right? ApocaDoc permalink Mon, Jun 7, 2010 from BusinessGreen: Clean tech patents enjoy record quarter The number of clean tech-related patents granted in the US hit record levels during the first quarter of the year, according to new figures released last week, further fuelling optimism that the sector is recovering strongly from the recession. The Clean Energy Patent Growth Index report from intellectual property law firm Heslin Rothenberg Farley & Mesiti found that 379 clean tech patents were granted in the US during the first three months of the year, representing the highest quarterly value since the index began. The performance marked an improvement of more than 50 per cent year on year and a 12 per cent increase in patents compared to the fourth quarter of 2009. According to the report, fuel cell technologies dominated the list, with 208 patents granted during the first quarter, while the number of patents granted to solar and hybrid and electric vehicle technologies also rose. ... All I want are technologies that don't suck. ApocaDoc permalink Sun, Jun 6, 2010 from Guardian, via Amy H: The dark side of cloud computing: soaring carbon emissions The advent of web services that allow users to upload files has made it possible to leave behind (most likely in landfills) tapes and discs and instead throw all of our recorded information into one big digital cloud of computers. Cloud computing refers to today's predominant infrastructure and business model whereby information, software and other resources are delivered on-demand to users via the Internet. An ever-scalable collection of energy sucking data centres and server farms is required to deliver these services.... According to a recent Greenpeace report, Make IT Green: Cloud Computing and its Contribution to Climate Change, the electricity consumed by cloud computing globally will increase from 632 billion kilowatt hours in 2007 to 1,963 billion kWh by 2020 and the associated CO2 equivalent emissions would reach 1,034 megatonnes. ... Stop reading this! Now! ApocaDoc permalink Sun, Jun 6, 2010 from Guardian: Solar panels could be a threat to aquatic insects, new research shows Solar panels could wipe out fragile populations of insects, according to a new study that raises fresh doubts about the ecological impact of some forms of renewable energy. Scientists have discovered that aquatic insects such as the mayfly can mistake shiny photovoltaic panels for pools of water, which they rely on to reproduce. They urge caution on the increasing use of panels until experts work out how they could affect insects and other creatures that feed on them.... "It is clear that the worst place to put a solar installation would be in proximity to natural lakes and rivers, where aquatic insects could easily become attracted to them." The insects mistake the panels for water because both reflect horizontally polarised light - an optical trick in which light waves vibrate in the same direction. Many insects have evolved to detect such polarised light as a sure way to find water, particularly in arid environments. ... Solar, solar everywhere / and not a drop to drink. ApocaDoc permalink Fri, May 14, 2010 from MIT, via PhysOrg.com: New water-splitting catalyst found, for feeding H to fuel cells He has focused his research on the development of less-expensive, more-durable materials to use as the electrodes in devices that use electricity to separate the hydrogen and oxygen atoms in water molecules. By doing so, he aims to imitate the process of photosynthesis, by which plants harvest sunlight and convert the energy into chemical form. Nocera pictures small-scale systems in which rooftop solar panels would provide electricity to a home, and any excess would go to an electrolyzer -- a device for splitting water molecules -- to produce hydrogen, which would be stored in tanks. When more energy was needed, the hydrogen would be fed to a fuel cell, where it would combine with oxygen from the air to form water, and generate electricity at the same time.... This time the material is nickel borate, made from materials that are even more abundant and inexpensive than the earlier find. Even more significantly, Nocera says, the new finding shows that the original compound was not a unique, anomalous material, and suggests that there may be a whole family of such compounds that researchers can study in search of one that has the best combination of characteristics to provide a widespread, long-term energy-storage technology.... The original discovery has already led to the creation of a company, called Sun Catalytix, that aims to commercialize the system in the next two years. ... Are you kidding? I prefer good ol' coal-fired plants and high monthly bills. At least that's dependable. ApocaDoc permalink Mon, May 10, 2010 from SciDev.net: Biofuels from algae plagued with problems, says review Hopes that algae could become a source of biodiesel that is friendly both to the environment and the poor may be premature, according to a review. When early sources of biofuels -- mostly derived from food crops -- incurred widespread criticism for being harmful to the environment, undermining food security, and being unlikely to reduce overall carbon emissions, algae emerged as a potential biofuel source that could sidestep these problems. But they have serious drawbacks that may mean they can never compete with other fuels, according to Gerhard Knothe, a research chemist with the US Department of Agriculture's Agricultural Research Service.... Knothe found that "many, if not most" of the biodiesel fuels derived from algae have "significant problems" when it comes to their ability to flow well at lower temperatures ('cold flow') and they also degrade more easily than other biofuels.... Luiz Pereira Ramos, chemist at the Federal University of Parana, Brazil, said Knothe was "absolutely correct. Most of the algae-derived biodiesel investigated to date are not suitable for fuel use." ... Not to worry! There won't be any "cold flow" temperatures anyway! ApocaDoc permalink Fri, May 7, 2010 from Popular Science: Cheap New Metal Catalyst Can Split Hydrogen Gas From Water at a Fraction of the Cost But researchers at the DOE's Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory have made a substantial leap toward a hydrogen-based future by devising a cheap, metal catalyst that can split hydrogen gas from water. The ability to pull apart H2O molecules into their constituent atoms is, of course, the key to creating a hydrogen-based energy economy. If we can do so in a cheap and energy efficient manner, we could potentially turn Earth's vast supply of water into our own vast supply of cheap, clean power.... What it can't be is cheap; electrolysis requires a catalyst to split water into oxygen and hydrogen gas, the most common of which is platinum, which retails at some $2,000 per ounce.... The catalyst requires no additional organic additives or solvents, can operate in neutral water (even if it's dirty) and works with sea water -- meaning we could literally be looking at oceans of cheap energy. Best of all: Mo-oxo is about 70 times cheaper than platinum.... Don't expect to see Mo-oxo splitting seawater into large volumes of hydrogen gas right away. The research is still preliminary and the Berkeley team is just getting into some of the more exciting chemistry. They're looking for additional similar metals that might generate hydrogen gas at even higher efficiency, so by the time this kind of tech is commercialized we may have found an even better catalyst. ... No hurry. We have all the time in the world. ApocaDoc permalink Tue, Apr 13, 2010 from New Scientist: Skip the hard cell: Flexible solar power is on its way So, the sceptics say, solar cells are only ever likely to be a small, disproportionately expensive part of our future energy mix. In the temperate, oft-cloudy climes of much of Europe and North America, satisfying the population's electricity needs with photovoltaics alone would mean plastering something like 5 to 15 per cent of the land surface with them. Such criticisms might be tempered by a new generation of solar cells about to flop off the production line. Slim, bendy and versatile, they consume just a fraction of the materials - and costs - of a traditional photovoltaic device. They could be just the fillip solar power needs, opening the way to a host of new applications: solar-charged cellphones and laptops, say, or slimline generators that sit almost invisibly on a building's curved surfaces or even its windows.... So why the fuss, if these devices are no more efficient than what went before? The key is that although these cells are merely as efficient as conventional devices, they use only about a hundredth of the material. What's more, they are highly flexible: grown on a bed of silicon, Atwater's microrod arrays can simply be peeled off and stuck pretty much wherever you want. "They could even be integrated into buildings, as components that match the shape of roof tiles," says Atwater. ... I'd even pay ten times a hundredth of the price. ApocaDoc permalink Tue, Mar 30, 2010 from Bloomberg: BP's Solar Retreat Signals Exodus of U.S. Renewable-Energy Jobs BP Plc's decision to halt U.S. output of solar panels may help short-circuit President Barack Obama's plan to create thousands of jobs in renewable energy. BP, Europe's second-largest oil company, said March 26 that it's stopping manufacturing at its Frederick, Maryland, solar plant and cutting 320 jobs because of high costs and declining panel prices. The announcement came seven weeks after London- based BP said the division that includes solar and wind power was losing almost $183,000 an hour.... "We're creating green jobs, for sure, but they're in China or Malaysia or India," Maryland State Senator Alex Mooney, a Republican whose district includes the shuttered BP factory, said today in a telephone interview. "We're losing these valuable manufacturing jobs, and that's a concern." ... Where's all the Bullshit Propaganda? ApocaDoc permalink Fri, Mar 26, 2010 from Science Daily: World Oil Reserves at 'Tipping Point' The world's capacity to meet projected future oil demand is at a tipping point, according to research by the Smith School of Enterprise and the Environment at Oxford University. The age of cheap oil has now ended as demand starts to outstrip supply as we head towards the middle of the decade, says the report. It goes on to suggest that the current oil reserve estimates should be downgraded from between 1150-1350 billion barrels to between 850-900 billion barrels, based on recent research. ... The report also raises the worrying issue that additional demand for oil could be met by non-conventional methods, such as the extraction of oil from Canada's tar sands. However, these methods have a far higher carbon output than conventional drilling, and have been described as having a double impact on emissions owing to the emissions produced during extraction as well as during usage. ... Reserves downgraded? But I thought growth could continue forever! ApocaDoc permalink Thu, Mar 11, 2010 from SolveClimate: New Approach to Farming Could Help Solve Climate, Economic Crises Discussions of climate change keep running head-long into a barrier: China, India, Brazil and the other countries of the global South need to develop. No leader of an underdeveloped country will ever agree to a climate change proposal that will take away that country's right to develop.... Meanwhile, first-world leaders, mired in economic crisis, can't make the long-run infrastructural investments that would enable them to take the technological lead in a low-carbon transformation -- let alone make the technology transfers or capital grants that are a moral and political imperative. But there's a partial way out of the crisis, or what the New Economics Foundation (NEF) has christened the "triple crunch," the intertwined crisis of climate crisis, systemic economic malaise, and oil depletion. The NEF argues that we need a new Green New Deal, culminating in a "great transition" to a new way of structuring production and consumption so as to re-create an ecology in homeostasis -- a sustainable economy, one that doesn't draw down impossible-to-renew natural resources. Food and agriculture will be central to such a transition... ... As long as I don't have to get my hands dirty. ApocaDoc permalink Wed, Mar 10, 2010 from DOE, via EurekAlert: 'The Rosenfeld' unit of savings named after California's godfather of energy efficiency "In keeping with the tradition among scientists of naming units in honor of the person most responsible for the discovery and widespread adoption of the underlying scientific principle in question," a group of scientists propose today in a refereed article in Environmental Research Letters to define the Rosenfeld as electricity savings of 3 billion kilowatt-hours per year, the amount needed to replace the annual generation of a 500 megawatt coal-fired power plant. That definition, explains lead author Jonathan Koomey, a Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) scientist and consulting professor at Stanford University who was once a graduate student of Rosenfeld's, is classic Rosenfeld. "Power plants are what Art uses most often to explain to policy makers how much electricity can be saved by efficiency investments," Koomey said. ... Take a few hundred Rosenfelds and you might be able to call me in the morning. ApocaDoc permalink Mon, Mar 8, 2010 from City of Edinburgh Council: Edinburgh is first UK city to launch BT carbon club initiative to tackle climate change A network of carbon clubs could be launched across Edinburgh to enlist citizens in the battle to save energy and tackle climate change. The City of Edinburgh Council is the first local authority in the UK to adopt an innovative carbon club scheme pioneered by BT.... BT has created a web site where council employees can form their own clubs and will manage the site during the pilot. Club members can access a library of information and energy savings tips, build their own micro-sites and pledge to undertake actions that will reduce their impact on the environment.... BT's carbon club initiative was launched in June 2007 as a way to bring people together to work on carbon reduction initiatives. The company now has more than 130 clubs in operation and more than 14,000 pledges have been made. The clubs are involved in an array of initiatives, from recycling and saving money through greener living to running a light bulb library and smart meter lending service, working with wildlife and community groups and providing electric scooters for use at one of its larger sites. ... And just how does neighbors helping neighbors save energy grow the economy? ApocaDoc permalink Mon, Mar 8, 2010 from MIT, via EurekAlert: MIT researchers discover new way of producing electricity A team of scientists at MIT have discovered a previously unknown phenomenon that can cause powerful waves of energy to shoot through minuscule wires known as carbon nanotubes. The discovery could lead to a new way of producing electricity, the researchers say.... Like a collection of flotsam propelled along the surface by waves traveling across the ocean, it turns out that a thermal wave -- a moving pulse of heat -- traveling along a microscopic wire can drive electrons along, creating an electrical current.... After further development, the system now puts out energy, in proportion to its weight, about 100 times greater than an equivalent weight of lithium-ion battery. ... The race between human ingenuity and global limits just got a bit more interesting. ApocaDoc permalink Tue, Mar 2, 2010 from CalTech, via Technology Review: Material Traps Light on the Cheap A new photovoltaic material performs as well as the one found in today's best solar cells, but promises to be significantly cheaper. The material, created by researchers at Caltech, consists of a flexible array of light-absorbing silicon microwires and light-reflecting metal nanoparticles embedded in a polymer. Computational models suggest that the material could be used to make solar cells that would convert 15 to 20 percent of the energy in sunlight into electricity -- on par with existing high-performance silicon cells. But the material would require just 1 percent of the materials used today, potentially leading to a dramatic decrease in costs.... But the wires are treated with an antireflective coating and coated in a rubbery polymer mixed with highly reflective alumina nanoparticles. Once the polymer sets, the entire thing can be peeled off like a sticker. Over 90 percent of the resulting material is composed of the cheap polymer, and the template can be used again and again. "These materials are pliable, but they have the properties of a silicon wafer," says Atwater. When light hits the composite solar mats, it bounces around, reflecting off the alumina particles until it can be absorbed by a microwire. ... Can we start pumping these out like paper, please? ApocaDoc permalink Tue, Feb 23, 2010 from SolveClimate: Australia Group Rolls Out Plan for 100 percent Renewable Energy by 2020 A report to be released in the first half of this year finds that Australia can use solar and wind power to produce 100 percent of its electricity in 10 years using technologies that are available now.... "We have concluded that there are no technological impediments to transforming Australia’s stationary energy sector to zero emissions over the next 10 years," said Matthew Wright, executive director of Beyond Zero Emissions. Australia now gets nearly 80 percent of its power from coal plants. Only 1 percent comes from wind power; less than half of 1 percent comes from solar energy.... Wright concedes that the plan is ambitious. At the same time, he says, it is "totally feasible," despite the price tag. The cost of quitting carbon entirely is estimated at around $36 billion per year, or up to 3.5 percent of Australia's annual GDP. ... But what if we have no advancements in the next five years? ApocaDoc permalink Sun, Feb 21, 2010 from Stanford, via PhysOrg: Nanotechnology sparks energy storage on paper and cloth By dipping ordinary paper or fabric in a special ink infused with nanoparticles, Stanford engineer Yi Cui has found a way to cheaply and efficiently manufacture lightweight paper batteries and supercapacitors (which, like batteries, store energy, but by electrostatic rather than chemical means), as well as stretchable, conductive textiles known as "eTextiles" -- capable of storing energy while retaining the mechanical properties of ordinary paper or fabric.... While electrical energy storage devices have come a long way since Alessandro Volta debuted the world's first electrical cell in 1800, the technology is facing yet another revolution. Current methods of manufacturing energy storage devices can be capital intensive and environmentally hazardous, and the end products have noticeable performance constraints -- conventional lithium ion batteries have a limited storage capacity and are costly to manufacture, while traditional capacitors provide high power but at the expense of energy storage capacity. ... Let's be sure they can be nanorecycled, without nanoreleases of maxitoxins, k? ApocaDoc permalink Wed, Feb 17, 2010 from SolveClimate: IBM Breakthrough Could Deliver Low-Cost Efficient Solar The process is based on a slurry (or ink) made of Cu2ZnSn(S,Se)4 in hydrazine, which can then be coated on any PV device. The final solution is comprised of both solid particles and liquid, both of which contain metal and chalcogen elements, which are the key to higher efficiencies. Getting these elements into both particle and liquid forms helps integrate them further into the final film, which boosts efficiency. The other benefit is that the solution can be applied via ultra high throughput printing or coating techniques, which means high-efficiency devices could be produced for low costs at a large scale: the holy grail for solar energy. ... Then, let's build a million specialized inkjet printers and produce a paper-sized PV substrate, and then sell us the cartridges! Slap-on solar! ApocaDoc permalink Tue, Feb 16, 2010 from PhysOrg.com: Researchers create highly absorbing, flexible solar cells with silicon wire arrays Using arrays of long, thin silicon wires embedded in a polymer substrate, a team of scientists from the California Institute of Technology has created a new type of flexible solar cell that enhances the absorption of sunlight and efficiently converts its photons into electrons. The solar cell does all this using only a fraction of the expensive semiconductor materials required by conventional solar cells.... The silicon wire arrays created by Atwater and his colleagues are able to convert between 90 and 100 percent of the photons they absorb into electrons -- in technical terms, the wires have a near-perfect internal quantum efficiency. "High absorption plus good conversion makes for a high-quality solar cell," says Atwater. "It's an important advance."... The next steps, Atwater says, are to increase the operating voltage and the overall size of the solar cell. "The structures we've made are square centimeters in size," he explains. "We're now scaling up to make cells that will be hundreds of square centimeters—the size of a normal cell." ... Make it quickly mass-producable, at $25 a square meter, and you just might save the world. ApocaDoc permalink Mon, Feb 15, 2010 from PhysOrg.com: Nanoscale carbon fibre flat batteries A nanoscale material developed in Britain could one day yield wafer-thin cellphones and light-weight, long-range electric cars powered by the roof, boot and doors, researchers have reported.... For now, the new technology -- a patented mix of carbon fibre and polymer resin that can charge and release electricity just like a regular battery -- has not gone beyond a successful laboratory experiment.... The new material -- while expensive to make -- is entirely synthetic, which means production would not be limited by availability of natural resources. Another plus: conventional batteries need chemical reactions to generate juice, a process which causes them to degrade over time and gradually lose the capacity to hold a charge. The carbon-polymer composite does not depend on chemistry, which not only means a longer life but a quicker charge as well. ... A wee, sleekit, tim'rous batt'ry. However, the best laid plans gang aft agley. ApocaDoc permalink Sat, Feb 13, 2010 from TED, via Mongabay: Bill Gates: ban coal and invest in clean energy technology The planet needs "energy miracles" to overcome the dual challenges of meeting energy demand and addressing climate change, said Microsoft founder Bill Gates during a speech Friday at the TED Conference in Long Beach, California. "What we're going to have to do at a global scale is create a new system," Gates said. "So we need energy miracles."... Gates said the world needs to reduce carbon emissions to zero by 2050 and suggested researchers spent the next 20 years developing new technologies and the following 20 years implementing them. He said coal and natural gas should be phased out by 2050 and touted carbon capture and storage technology and wind, solar photovoltaic and solar thermal, and nuclear power. According to CNN Gates focused on reprocessing reactor waste into clean energy. ... Let's make that "10 and 10," and zero by 2020, shall we? ApocaDoc permalink Sat, Feb 13, 2010 from New York Times: Arizona Quits Western Cap-and-Trade Program Citing financial worries, the State of Arizona has backed out of a broad regional effort to limit greenhouse gas emissions in the West through a cap-and-trade system. In an executive order issued last week, Gov. Jan Brewer, a Republican, said a cap-and-trade system -- which would impose mandatory caps on emissions and allow pollution credits to be traded among companies -- would cripple Arizona's economy.... Instead, the state will support initiatives to expand the use of solar power, nuclear power and other renewable energy sources, said Benjamin Grumbles, the head of the state's environmental agency. ... It's the eco-economy, stupid. You can do both. ApocaDoc permalink Thu, Feb 11, 2010 from New Scientist: Sun-powered water splitter makes hydrogen tirelessly The inorganic materials used in the University of East Anglia's system are more resilient. Their first generation proof of concept is "a major breakthrough" in the field, they say, thanks to its efficiency of over 60 per cent and ability to survive sunlight for two weeks without any degradation of performance. "In fact the 60 per cent figure is probably a worst-case scenario," says Nann. "This is still a preliminary study."... By the standard measure of the probability that a material will absorb a photon that hits it, each cluster is 400 times better at netting photons than organic molecules used in previous systems. "That's why it works so well," says Nann. ... Let's throw money and minds willy-nilly at this! ApocaDoc permalink Tue, Feb 2, 2010 from WWF: New Pentagon report declares climate change and energy as key issues "shaping the future security environment" The Pentagon released (1 February 2010), its Quadrennial Defense Review (QDR) for 2010, stating that crafting a strategic approach to climate and energy are a priority. The QDR states, "Climate change and energy are two key issues that will play a significant role in shaping the future security environment. Although they produce distinct types of challenges, climate change, energy security, and economic stability are inextricably linked." The close relationship between conflict and environmental security has been acknowledged by scholars for decades but has attracted little attention from the security community. This QDR along with recent reports, Congressional testimony by admirals and generals alike, and the Central Intelligence Agency's launching of The Center on Climate Change and National Security signals recognition and a changing approach. ... Let's just declare a "war on climaticide" and get cracking. ApocaDoc permalink Sun, Jan 24, 2010 from MIT: Levitating magnet may yield new approach to clean fusion energy A new experiment that reproduces the magnetic fields of the Earth and other planets has yielded its first significant results. The findings confirm that its unique approach has some potential to be developed as a new way of creating a power-producing plant based on nuclear fusion -- the process that generates the sun's prodigious output of energy.... Called the Levitated Dipole Experiment, or LDX, a joint project of MIT and Columbia University, it uses a half-ton donut-shaped magnet about the size and shape of a large truck tire, made of superconducting wire coiled inside a stainless steel vessel. This magnet is suspended by a powerful electromagnetic field, and is used to control the motion of the 10-million-degree-hot electrically charged gas, or plasma, contained within its 16-foot-diameter outer chamber.... Kesner cautions that the kind of fuel cycle planned for other types of fusion reactors such as tokamaks, which use a mixture of two forms of "heavy" hydrogen called deuterium and tritium, should be easier to achieve and will likely be the first to go into operation. The deuterium-deuterium fusion planned for devices based on the LDX design, if they ever become practical, would likely make this "a second-generation approach," he says. ... Alas, "second generation" means "just around the corner after next." ApocaDoc permalink Fri, Jan 22, 2010 from UVA, via ScienceBlog: UVa engineers find significant environmental impacts with algae-based biofuel [R]esearchers from the University of Virginia's Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering have found there are significant environmental hurdles to overcome before fuel production ramps up. They propose using wastewater as a solution to some of these challenges. These findings come after ExxonMobil invested $600 million last summer and the U.S. Department of Energy announced last week that it is awarding $78 million in stimulus money for research and development of the biofuel. The U.Va. research, just published in the journal Environmental Science & Technology, demonstrates that algae production consumes more energy, has higher greenhouse gas emissions and uses more water than other biofuel sources, such as switchgrass, canola and corn.... "Before we make major investments in algae production, we should really know the environmental impact of this technology," Clarens said. "If we do decide to move forward with algae as a fuel source, it's important we understand the ways we can produce it with the least impact, and that's where combining production with wastewater treatment operations comes in." ... Waitaminnit: we have to think about what we're doing? ApocaDoc permalink Wed, Jan 20, 2010 from Times Online (UK): Roof-mounted wind turbines 'no help in reducing carbon' Roof-mounted wind turbines and solar panels are "eco-bling" that allow their owners to flaunt their green credentials but contribute very little towards meeting Britain's carbon reduction targets, according to the Royal Academy of Engineering.... Field trials carried out last year by the government-funded Energy Saving Trust found that the most productive building-mounted wind turbines in urban or suburban areas generated only £26 of electricity a year. Many of these turbines, which cost about £1,500, were net consumers of electricity because their controls drew power from the grid when the wind was low.... Professor King said that for wind turbines on urban homes to be effective, they would have to be so big that their vibration would damage the building. He said that installing microgeneration devices could cost £10,000 to £12,000 per home and reduce its emissions by only a few per cent. He proposed an alternative policy under which developers would offset the entire emissions of new homes by contributing £3,000 per dwelling towards a wind farm on a hilltop. ... Eco-bling? I gotta wear shades for the sparkle. ApocaDoc permalink Wed, Dec 16, 2009 from ACS, via EurekAlert: Toward home-brewed electricity with 'personalized' solar energy The report describes development of a practical, inexpensive storage system for achieving personalized solar energy. At its heart is an innovative catalyst that splits water molecules into oxygen and hydrogen that become fuel for producing electricity in a fuel cell. The new oxygen-evolving catalyst works like photosynthesis, the method plants use to make energy, producing clean energy from sunlight and water. "Because energy use scales with wealth, point-of-use solar energy will put individuals, in the smallest village in the nonlegacy world and in the largest city of the legacy world, on a more level playing field," the report states. ... That "level playing field" doesn't sound very lucrative. ApocaDoc permalink Tue, Dec 15, 2009 from George Monbiot, Guardian: This is bigger than climate change. It is a battle to redefine humanity The meeting at Copenhagen confronts us with our primal tragedy. We are the universal ape, equipped with the ingenuity and aggression to bring down prey much larger than itself, break into new lands, roar its defiance of natural constraints. Now we find ourselves hedged in by the consequences of our nature, living meekly on this crowded planet for fear of provoking or damaging others. We have the hearts of lions and live the lives of clerks. The summit's premise is that the age of heroism is over. We have entered the age of accommodation. No longer may we live without restraint. No longer may we swing our fists regardless of whose nose might be in the way. In everything we do we must now be mindful of the lives of others, cautious, constrained, meticulous. We may no longer live in the moment, as if there were no tomorrow.... A new movement, most visible in North America and Australia, but now apparent everywhere, demands to trample on the lives of others as if this were a human right. It will not be constrained by taxes, gun laws, regulations, health and safety, especially by environmental restraints. It knows that fossil fuels have granted the universal ape amplification beyond its Palaeolithic dreams. For a moment, a marvellous, frontier moment, they allowed us to live in blissful mindlessness. The angry men know that this golden age has gone; but they cannot find the words for the constraints they hate. Clutching their copies of Atlas Shrugged, they flail around, accusing those who would impede them of communism, fascism, religiosity, misanthropy, but knowing at heart that these restrictions are driven by something far more repulsive to the unrestrained man: the decencies we owe to other human beings. ... Nobody listens to you, George: you're an environmentalist. ApocaDoc permalink Thu, Dec 10, 2009 from UCLA, via EurekAlert: UCLA researchers engineer bacteria to turn carbon dioxide into liquid fuel In a new approach, researchers from the UCLA Henry Samueli School of Engineering and Applied Science have genetically modified a cyanobacterium to consume carbon dioxide and produce the liquid fuel isobutanol, which holds great potential as a gasoline alternative. The reaction is powered directly by energy from sunlight, through photosynthesis.... This new method has two advantages for the long-term, global-scale goal of achieving a cleaner and greener energy economy, the researchers say. First, it recycles carbon dioxide, reducing greenhouse gas emissions resulting from the burning of fossil fuels. Second, it uses solar energy to convert the carbon dioxide into a liquid fuel that can be used in the existing energy infrastructure, including in most automobiles. ... Recycling -- with attitude! ApocaDoc permalink Sat, Dec 5, 2009 from Mother Jones: Blowing In The Wind Cape Wind, the bitterly contested proposed offshore wind farm in Massachusetts' Nantucket Sound, is approaching a critical juncture. After eight years of delays, the project will likely be approved or denied before the end of 2009. If it proceeds, the 24-square-mile, 130-turbine wind farm could generate enough electricity to power 420,000 homes -- and kick-start an offshore wind industry in the United States. But opposition to the project has been fierce, and Cape Wind needs all the help it can get. So where is the state's senior senator? John Kerry is among Capitol Hill's most ardent advocates of addressing climate change, but he has refused to weigh in on one of the most significant debates over the future of alternative energy -- and one that's occurring in his own backyard. ... Our backyard now is ALL of earth. ApocaDoc permalink Wed, Dec 2, 2009 from BusinessGreen: Organic solar firm enjoys growing financial support German solar cell start-up Heliatek GmbH has announced that it has secured... a second round of financing that will allow it to begin work on a manufacturing facility near its Dresden headquarters. The company, which was founded in 2006 as a spin-off from the Universities of Dresden and Ulm, specialises in the development of so-called organic solar cells that use carbon and other organic materials to create dyes that convert sunlight to electricity. Advocates of the technology predict that the use of organic materials means it will ultimately prove more cost effective than both traditional silicon-based photovoltaic cells and emerging thin-film technologies. Organic solar cells are also extremely lightweight, with Heliatek claiming that its cells weigh just 500 grams per square metre, compared to about 20 kilograms per square metre for typical PV solar cells. The company predicts that as a result, the technology will prove well suited to building integrated and even mobile applications such as vehicles. ... Now there's an example of "growing our way out of a problem." ApocaDoc permalink Sun, Nov 22, 2009 from Science Daily: Toward Home-Brewed Electricity With 'Personalized Solar Energy' New scientific discoveries are moving society toward the era of "personalized solar energy," in which the focus of electricity production shifts from huge central generating stations to individuals in their own homes and communities.... The report describes development of a practical, inexpensive storage system for achieving personalized solar energy. At its heart is an innovative catalyst that splits water molecules into oxygen and hydrogen that become fuel for producing electricity in a fuel cell. The new oxygen-evolving catalyst works like photosynthesis, the method plants use to make energy, producing clean energy from sunlight and water. "Because energy use scales with wealth, point-of-use solar energy will put individuals, in the smallest village in the nonlegacy world and in the largest city of the legacy world, on a more level playing field," the report states. ... And just how has the developing world earned energy freedom? ApocaDoc permalink Fri, Oct 9, 2009 from BusinessGreen: Norway First Rich Nation to Pledge 40 percent Reductions Norway yesterday became the first country to pledge to cut carbon emissions in line with climate scientists' most demanding recommendations, committing to cut emissions of greenhouse gases by 40 per cent on their 1990 level by 2020. Prime minister Jens Stoltenberg, who was re-elected last month, said the government was prepared to meet demands from developing nations for the rich world to take the lead in tackling climate change and would upgrade its existing 30 per cent target to 40 per cent.... The row continued to bubble away for a second day after the US yesterday said it would not sign up to any deal based on the Kyoto Protocol and called for a complete reworking of the draft Copenhagen Treaty based on countries setting their own emissions targets. ... Showoffs. ApocaDoc permalink Tue, Sep 29, 2009 from Brigham Young University, via EurekAlert: Sugar plus weed killer equals potential clean energy source Researchers at Brigham Young University have developed a fuel cell -- basically a battery with a gas tank -- that harvests electricity from glucose and other sugars known as carbohydrates.... The effectiveness of this cheap and abundant herbicide is a boon to carbohydrate-based fuel cells. By contrast, hydrogen-based fuel cells like those developed by General Motors require costly platinum as a catalyst.... "We showed you can get a lot more out of glucose than other people have done before," said Dean Wheeler, lead faculty author of the paper and a chemical engineering professor in BYU's Fulton College of Engineering and Technology. "Now we're trying to get the power density higher so the technology will be more commercially attractive." Since they wrote the paper, the researchers' prototype has achieved a doubling of power performance. ... Finally we have a use for all that corn syrup we've been producing! ApocaDoc permalink Tue, Sep 22, 2009 from Times Online (UK): President Hu Jintao commits China to carbon-cutting deal China pledged yesterday to slow the growth of its emissions despite the rapid expansion of its economy. President Hu Jintao told nearly 100 leaders at a UN summit on climate change that China would cut carbon dioxide emissions by a notable margin by 2020. "We have taken and will continue to take determined and practical steps to tackle this challenge," he said. China, the world's largest emitter of greenhouse gases, is overwhelmingly dependent on coal. Mr Hu said that it would "vigorously develop" renewable and nuclear energy, try to increase the share of non-fossil fuels to 15 per cent by 2020 and plant 40 million hectares of forest to absorb carbon emissions. The speech is the clearest indication yet that Mr Hu would be prepared to sign a binding international agreement on emissions. China previously rejected carbon emissions caps or cuts. ... OMG! 1/6 of humanity, distilled to one person, commits to change! ApocaDoc permalink Tue, Sep 22, 2009 from CNN Money: PG&E Corp Quits US Chamber Of Commerce Over Climate Views PG&E Corp. (PCG) said Tuesday it is leaving the U.S. Chamber of Commerce over objections to what its top executive called the chamber's "extreme position on climate change." In a letter to the U.S. Chamber published on PG&E's blog, www next100.com, PG& E Chairman and Chief Executive Peter Darbee wrote that company employees "find it dismaying that the Chamber neglects the indisputable fact that a decisive majority of experts have said the data on global warming are compelling and point to a threat that cannot be ignored." The U.S. Chamber has been a vocal critic of climate legislation pending in the Senate, most recently suggesting that the U.S. hold a "Scopes-like" trial to debate evidence that climate change is man-made. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has demurred on the request, saying that its proposed finding that global warming poses a danger to public health is based on sound science. ... Is the "sanity lobby" somehow taking hold? ApocaDoc permalink Mon, Sep 14, 2009 from Treehugger.com: Nanosolar Reaches Solar Cell Efficiency of 16.4 percent, Starts Mass Production of 'Printed' Solar Panels The first piece of news from Nanosolar concerns a solar panel factory in Germany with a capacity of 640MW/year. The fully-automated facility is located in Luckenwalde near Berlin, and its inauguration was attended by Germany's Minister of the Environment and the Governor of the State of Brandenburg, among others. The 640 megawatts per year number if reached when the factory is operated 24/7 at the rate of 1 solar panel every 10 seconds (!). Nanosolar has also announced that serial production in its San Jose, California, cell production factory commenced earlier this year and that production would be ramping up to meet the $4.1 billion in contracts that they already have.... ... There might be a big market for inkjet cartridges that could print solar panels. Will you get on that? ApocaDoc permalink Sun, Sep 13, 2009 from CleanTechnica: US Must Socialize Grid to Add Renewable Energy, Study Finds We need to build a supergrid like the national highway system we built in the 1930's. But a new study finds that this might be almost impossible to do in this country. A historical legacy of Balkanized ownership of multiple tiny grids and ineffective regulatory structure has hindered upgrades to and expansion of the U.S. transmission network. In these political times of political hysteria against any kind of national common good, it will be hard to overcome a legacy that grew out of our rugged individualism. By contrast, China and Europe have easily added more renewable power, by socializing the grid. ... You're not putting socialist "death panels" in my fusebox!! ApocaDoc permalink Wed, Sep 9, 2009 from Daily Mail, via Slashdot: Teenager invents [$38] solar panel that could be solution to developing world's energy needs ... made from human hair A new type of solar panel using human hair could provide the world with cheap, green electricity, believes its teenage inventor. Milan Karki, 18, who comes from a village in rural Nepal, believes he has found the solution to the developing world's energy needs. The young inventor says hair is easy to use as a conductor in solar panels and could revolutionise renewable energy. The hair replaces silicon, a pricey component typically used in solar panels, and means the panels can be produced at a low cost for those with no access to power, he explained.... Melanin, a pigment that gives hair its colour, is light sensitive and also acts as a type of conductor. Because hair is far cheaper than silicon the appliance is less costly.... The solar panel can charge a mobile phone or a pack of batteries capable of providing light all evening. ... So maybe those hippies were right! ApocaDoc permalink Mon, Sep 7, 2009 from BusinessGreen: Solar panel maker to create 4,000 green jobs US solar specialist Solyndra has begun construction of a second fabrication plant, which it claims could result in 3,000 temporary jobs and 1,000 or more long-term positions in the new plant.... The company said that the new site will allow it to address its $2bn order backlog and could create enough solar panels, along with the existing facility, to cut more than 350 million metric tons of C02 or 850 million barrels of oil.... Solyndra, which gets its name from its cylindrical solar modules, also announced that it has become the first company to receive a loan -- of around $535m -- guaranteed by the US Department of Energy under Title XVII of the Energy Policy Act of 2005. ... Leeeeet the sun shine, leeeet the sun shine in! ApocaDoc permalink Sun, Sep 6, 2009 from Foreign Policy: Oil Spin Last week, four of the world's most outspoken oil aficionados waded into the controversy of peak oil, publishing articles packed with myth and distortion. This "Gang of Four" all claimed the issue was silly, moot, or simply a myth.... Thus, these four global oil authorities mused that oil, celebrating its 150th birthday last week, has never been in better shape. How terrific the world's outlook would be if these four myths had even a touch of reality! Sadly, if one ignores opinion and simply adheres to a body of well-documented -- if ugly -- facts, it quickly becomes clear that these four assertions are utterly without substance.... The facts speak for themselves: Oil flows have peaked, technology is now mature, the people running the industry are far too old, and few top-notch graduates are interested in embarking on a career in such a volatile field. ... And the writer has been an oil-service investment banker for decades. Gulp. ApocaDoc permalink Thu, Aug 27, 2009 from New York Times: Solar Panels Drop in Price ...[T]he cost of solar panels has plunged lately, changing the economics for many homeowners. Mr. Hare ended up paying $77,000 for a large solar setup that he figures might have cost him $100,000 a year ago. "I just thought, 'Wow, this is an opportunity to do the most for the least,'" Mr. Hare said. For solar shoppers these days, the price is right. Panel prices have fallen about 40 percent since the middle of last year, driven down partly by an increase in the supply of a crucial ingredient for panels, according to analysts at the investment bank Piper Jaffray.... The price drops -- coupled with recently expanded federal incentives -- could shrink the time it takes solar panels to pay for themselves to 16 years, from 22 years, in places with high electricity costs, according to Glenn Harris, chief executive of SunCentric, a solar consulting group. ... I know! Let's turn all the credit default swaps into solar mortgages! ApocaDoc permalink Tue, Aug 25, 2009 from University of Texas-Austin, via ScienceDaily: Lower-cost Solar Cells To Be Printed Like Newspaper, Painted On Rooftops Solar cells could soon be produced more cheaply using nanoparticle "inks" that allow them to be printed like newspaper or painted onto the sides of buildings or rooftops to absorb electricity-producing sunlight.... Brian Korgel, a University of Texas at Austin chemical engineer, is hoping to cut costs to one-tenth of their current price by replacing the standard manufacturing process for solar cells -- gas-phase deposition in a vacuum chamber, which requires high temperatures and is relatively expensive. "That's essentially what's needed to make solar-cell technology and photovoltaics widely adopted," Korgel said. "The sun provides a nearly unlimited energy resource, but existing solar energy harvesting technologies are prohibitively expensive and cannot compete with fossil fuels."... His team has developed solar-cell prototypes with efficiencies at one percent; however, they need to be about 10 percent. "If we get to 10 percent, then there's real potential for commercialization," Korgel said. "If it works, I think you could see it being used in three to five years." ... Why are so many tantalizing technologies always three to five years away? ApocaDoc permalink Mon, Aug 17, 2009 from Guardian (UK): Developed countries' demand for biofuels has been 'disastrous' The production of biofuels is fuelling poverty, human rights abuses and damage to the environment, Christian Aid warned today. The charity said huge subsidies and targets in developed countries for boosting the production of fuels from plants such as maize and palm oil are exacerbating environmental and social problems in poor nations. And rather than being a "silver bullet" to tackle climate change, the carbon emissions of some of the fuels are higher than fossil fuels because of deforestation driven by the need for land for them to grow.... [I]ndustrial scale production of biofuels is worsening problems such as food price hikes in central America, forced displacement of small farmers for plantations and pollution of local water sources.... Developed countries have poured subsidies into biofuel production -- for example in the US where between 9.2 billion dollars and 11 billion dollars went to supporting maize-based ethanol in 2008 -- when there are cheaper and more effective ways to cut emissions from transport, the report said.... "[T]he best approach to biofuels is to grow them on a small scale and process them locally to provide energy for people in the surrounding countryside." ... Small-scale production for local needs? What economy are they from? ApocaDoc permalink Mon, Aug 10, 2009 from Gas 2.0: Hybrid Vehicles Failing to Produce Environmental Benefits The study finds that hybrid sales have not replaced gas guzzling SUVS, but rather have replaced small, relatively fuel-efficient, conventional cars. Too bad, considering SUVS, trucks and vans produce substantially greater carbon emissions.... "Our estimates indicate that two-thirds of people who buy hybrids were going to buy them anyway," said Chandra. "So for the majority, rebates are not changing behavior -- they are subsidizing planned purchases."... The study finds that Canadian provinces that offer rebates have spent an average of $195 per tonne of carbon saved or, equivalently, $0.43 for every litre of gasoline that a vehicle consumes over its 15 year average life expectancy.... Chandra claims that governments could garner greater environmental benefits by purchasing carbon offsets (currently priced between $3 and $40 per tonne on carbon markets) or investing in green jobs and technologies. ... Rational policy is just too hard to explain. We like happy policy. ApocaDoc permalink Fri, Aug 7, 2009 from BusinessGreen: Obama hands out $2.4bn to jump-start US electric car development The Obama Administration this week pledged $2.4bn (Ł1.4bn) in stimulus money in its bid to make America a global leader in electric and hybrid car development. "For too long we failed to invest in this kind of work, even as countries such as China and Japan were racing ahead," Obama said as he and his colleagues travelled the US this week doling out economic stimulus funds to programmes in 20 states. Michigan, the state that is the traditional home of the US car industry and in the fallout from the recession has the nation's highest unemployment rate at 15.2 per cent, received 11 grants worth $1.36bn to develop new kinds of batteries and electric car technologies, as well as build new factories to manufacture them. General Motors received more than $241m to make battery packs for its imminent Chevrolet Volt electric car and build a rear-wheel electric-drive system. ... That's almost 0.3 percent of the cost of the Iraq war! ApocaDoc permalink Thu, Aug 6, 2009 from Guardian (UK): Occupiers of Vestas wind turbine factory face eviction tomorrow Vestas obtained a repossession order from Newport county court on Tuesday, more than a fortnight after 25 employees began a sit-in to try to save the factory from closure with the loss of more than 600 jobs. Their action has seen trade unionists and climate change campaigners join forces to maintain a vigil outside the plant, where many protesters have set up a permanent camp.... The men remaining in the factory called on supporters to gather tomorrow morning in advance of the arrival of the bailiffs.... "The government has spent billions bailing out the banks, and 2.3bn pounds in loan guarantees to support the UK car industry. They can and should step in to save the infrastructure we are really going to need to prevent a climate catastrophe." ... Vestas: Vapid Economic Senselessness Toward Anthropoid Survival. ApocaDoc permalink Sat, Jul 25, 2009 from TED talk, 2009: Ray Kurzweil: Exponential solar Our favorite part of this TED talk (which is worth watching in its entirety), is the exponential photovoltaic efficiency increase (starting around 5:43), "eight doublings away from providing 100 percent of our energy needs." Currently PV is doubling in efficiency:price every two years; now that nanotechnology is being applied, doubling could increase dramatically, he implies. Would it not be fabulous if this is true? We could then have the energy to de-carbonize and de-methanize our atmosphere and possibly de-acidify the ocean with floating solar-powered smartboats. Eight to sixteen years? If, as Kurzweil posits, the other developments in computing, nanotechnology, information interpretation, and general progress grows exponentially..., then in eight years, a radically different world awaits. And how will we make it? ... And what will be left? ApocaDoc permalink Fri, Jul 24, 2009 from New York Times: Slow, Costly and Often Dangerous Road to Wind Power As demand for clean energy grows, towns around the country are finding their traffic patterns roiled as convoys carrying disassembled towers that will reach more than 250 feet in height, as well as motors, blades and other parts roll through. Escorted by patrol cars and gawked at by pedestrians, the equipment must often travel hundreds of miles from ports or factories to the remote, windy destinations where the turbines are erected. In Belfast, officials have worked hard to keep the nuisance to a minimum, but about 200 trucks are passing through this year on their way to western Maine, carrying parts that have been shipped from Denmark and Vietnam. Plenty can go wrong despite months of planning. In Idaho and Texas, trucks laden with tall turbine parts have slammed into interstate overpasses, requiring hundreds of thousands of dollars in repairs. In Minnesota last year, a truck carrying a tubular tower section got stuck at a railroad crossing; an approaching train stopped just in time. Also in Minnesota, a woman was killed last September when her car, driven by her husband, collided at an intersection with a truck carrying a wind turbine. (After a police investigation, local officials found that the truck driver was not at fault.) ... I'm not sure we can get there from here. ApocaDoc permalink Thu, Jul 23, 2009 from CleanTechnica: Giant Solar-Powered Flowers Sprout in U.S. Cities, Provide Wi-Fi Solar-powered "flower stations" are appearing across major U.S. cities providing free Wi-Fi and electricity for charging laptops, cell phones and other devices. The flowers are part of Toyota's national marketing campaign for the third generation Prius launch in 2010. Aside from providing clean electricity and a dandy place to rest, the flowers are also adorned with "leaves" which showcase advertisements and short informationals about the new Prius. They are designed to represent the Prius theme of "Harmony between Man, Nature, and Machine." Standing at a height of 18 feet, solar panels on the backs of the petals power 110-volt outlets found on the benches, which can seat up to 10 people.... Currently, the flower-power stations can be found in Boston, but they will also be making rounds in New York, Chicago, Seattle, San Francisco and Los Angeles. ... Now that's marketing I can plug into! ApocaDoc permalink Thu, Jul 23, 2009 from Times Online (UK): Wind turbine protesters continue sit in as police accused of blocking food A handful of men -- tired, hungry and soon to be unemployed -- stood cheering on the balcony of a wind turbine factory on the Isle of Wight, in what has become an unlikely front line of a clash over the future of Britain's green economy. About 25 workers were last night still inside the Vestas plant outside Newport, three days into a sit-in which has grown increasingly bitter. The occupiers of Britain's only significant wind farm factory have accused managers of trying to starve them out and yesterday three people were arrested as protesters outside tried to deliver food supplies. Last week The Times revealed that the factory was closing down its production line within hours of the Government pledging a five-fold increase in the number of wind turbines in Britain. More than 600 people are due to be made redundant on July 30 -- 525 in Newport and 100 at a related facility in Southampton. ... Workers of the Wind -- UNITE! ApocaDoc permalink Wed, Jul 22, 2009 from Socialist Worker Online: Windpower Manufacturer Vestas workers occupy: 'A fight for jobs and the planet' Workers at Vestas, the UK's only wind turbine manufacturer, occupied their factory in Newport, Isle of Wight on Monday evening against plans to close it. Dave is one of the ­occupying workers: "We’ve occupied our factory to save our jobs -- and to save the planet. Six hundred people work here. That many jobs going will have a devastating effect. But there's even more to it than that. We need renewable energy if we're going to stop global warming. When the government says it wants green energy and green jobs, it's criminal that it's closing Vestas. I've worked here for a year and a half but some people have worked here for eight or nine years. We had a meeting on Monday where we talked about what to do. We decided we were going to go for it. People thought, "It's now or never". We went in as two teams, from both sides of the factory. All of the doors were locked -- apart from the front door! ... ... Someone's closing? A wind power plant? What planet is this? ApocaDoc permalink Wed, Jul 22, 2009 from EnergyBoom.com, via HuffPost: New Technology Produces Hydrogen from Urine Until now, producing, storing and transporting hydrogen has been a costly process. Urea, a major component of urine, contains four hydrogen atoms per molecule, which are bonded to two atoms of nitrogen. The new technology uses electrolysis to break down the molecule using 0.37 volts which is applied across the cell. In comparison, extracting hydrogen from water uses large amounts of electricity; specifically, 1.23V is needed to split H20 molecules. Botte's method uses less energy than it takes to extract hydrogen from water. Simply put: by placing the inexpensive electrode into urine and applying current, hydrogen is released. Tests were performed using both synthetic urine, made from dissolved urea, and human urine. The device is also small enough to be used in vehicles. Botte estimates a fuel cell urine-powered vehicle could potentially travel up to 90 miles per gallon. The current prototype, which measures about 3 x 3 x 1 inches, can produce up to 500 milliwatts of power. The team is working on creating larger scale versions of the electrolyzer. The report was published in the Royal Society of Chemistry Chemical Communications. ... I'd love to pee-power my Prius! ApocaDoc permalink Fri, Jul 17, 2009 from DOE, via EurekAlert: New geothermal heat extraction process to deliver clean power generation A new method for capturing significantly more heat from low-temperature geothermal resources holds promise for generating virtually pollution-free electrical energy. Scientists at the Department of Energy's Pacific Northwest National Laboratory will determine if their innovative approach can safely and economically extract and convert heat from vast untapped geothermal resources.... "By the end of the calendar year, we plan to have a functioning bench-top prototype generating electricity," predicts PNNL Laboratory Fellow Pete McGrail. "If successful, enhanced geothermal systems like this could become an important energy source."... "Some novel research on nanomaterials used to capture carbon dioxide from burning fossil fuels actually led us to this discovery," said McGrail. "Scientific breakthroughs can come from some very unintuitive connections." ... Another transparent ploy to acquire more funding for basic research. ApocaDoc permalink Thu, Jul 16, 2009 from Federation of American Scientists, via EurekAlert: 34 US Nobel Laureates urge inclusion of $150 billion in climate legislation "The stable support this Fund would provide is essential to pay for the research and development needed if the U.S., as well as the developing world, are to achieve their goals in reducing greenhouse gases at an affordable cost," they wrote. "This stable R&D spending is not a luxury," they added. "[I]t is in fact necessary because rapid scientific and technical progress is crucial to achieving" U.S. goals in energy and climate and making the cost affordable. The letter notes that the House-passed climate bill, H.R. 2454, "provides less than one fifteenth of the amount" the president proposed "for federal energy research, development, and demonstration programs." The Senate is expected to consider its version of the climate legislation later this month. ... Only 34? I bet I could find one laureate who disagrees. Then we could have a one-on-one, fair and balanced debate on television! ApocaDoc permalink Thu, Jul 9, 2009 from BusinessGreen: New reports debunk wind energy myths Several of the most long-standing arguments against the expansion of wind power in the UK were comprehensively debunked today, with the release of two new reports arguing that wind intermittency will not undermine grid reliability and that small scale turbines have the potential to power over 800,000 homes.... [The first report] argues that the National Grid is already designed to manage variable inputs from wind farms and will be able to cope even as the amount of wind capacity increases to around 40 per cent of the UK's energy mix. It also states that far from reducing grid reliability an increase in wind capacity will improve grid resilience, noting that "thermal plant breakdowns generally pose more of a threat to the stability of electricity networks than the relatively benign variations in the output of wind plant."... The second report from the Energy Saving Trust is based on its trial of 57 small scale and micro wind turbines installed at different locations around the UK. It concludes that while turbines located in urban locations perform poorly there are significantly more suitable locations available for domestic turbines than has been previously thought. The study identifies 450,000 suitable domestic locations and calculates that well positioned small scale turbines with outputs of between 500W to 6kW could provide over three per cent of the UK's energy requirements, resulting in around two million tonnes in carbon emission savings. ... Yeah, but what about all those coals in Newcastle? ApocaDoc permalink Wed, Jul 8, 2009 from London Guardian: Texas tycoon Pickens scraps $10bn windfarm plan The billionaire energy tycoon T Boone Pickens has scrapped a $10bn plan to build the world's largest windfarm in the panhandle of Texas, dealing a setback to a broader effort to wean the US off its dependence on foreign oil. Pickens blamed technical problems in transporting power between the proposed site of the system, which was to be in agricultural land hundreds of miles north-west of Dallas, and major population centres... Pickens, who built his fortune in the oil and gas industry, has spent the last year vigorously promoting a self-proclaimed "Pickens plan" which aims to make the US independent of foreign sources of oil by switching to domestic natural gas and wind generation. ... Call it the Slim Pickens Plan! ApocaDoc permalink Mon, Jul 6, 2009 from BusinessGreen: Report warns reliance on wind will drive power price volatility The expansion in wind energy capacity across the British Isles will result in huge electricity price volatility unless major reforms are undertaken to grid management in the UK and Ireland. That is the conclusion of a study released last week by research firm Poyry Energy Consulting, which warns that significant investment in grid technologies will be required to ensure that the intermittent nature of wind energy does not undermine the reliability of electricity supplies. The study is based on more than 2.5 million pieces of data taken from 36 locations in the UK and Ireland between 2000 and 2007.... The study found that even at an annual level, wind generation output varied by almost 25 per cent in the Irish market and 13 per cent in the British market. It also warned that both markets were affected by the fact that electricity demand is high on frosty nights when there is virtually no wind and low energy output. In contrast, electricity demand tends to fall when strong south westerlies blow across the British Isles, bringing with them warmer air. ... Y'know, decreasing life volatility may be worth increasing price volatility. ApocaDoc permalink Sat, Jul 4, 2009 from CBC (Canada): Backyard wind turbine rejected by Ontario Municipal Board An Ottawa resident who has been lobbying to put a wind turbine in his backyard in the city's Westboro neighbourhood has been told that his project is grinding to a halt. Graham Findlay had applied for a variance to install what's known as an "energy ball" on his property near Island Park Drive. Findlay is a commercial wind arm developer with Ottawa-based 3G Energy Corporation and has said that he wants to mount that "energy ball" on a pole in his backyard to make it 10 metres high so he can produce his own energy at home. In October, the city refused to approve his application to mount the turbine in his backyard, so he appealed through the Ontario Municipal Board. His neighbours, however, testified at the OMB hearings that they felt the turbine would be invasive and could be dangerous if the tall pole with a turbine on top fell over. Even though the turbine has been designed specifically for residential areas, the OMB said in its June ruling that it supported Findlay's neighbour's concerns. ... Not in your backyard. ApocaDoc permalink Fri, Jul 3, 2009 from BusinessGreen: China plans dramatic increase in solar capacity to 2GW by 2011 China is set to raise its target for installed solar capacity to 2GW by 2011, a fifteen-fold increase on the 140MW goal it set only last year. The state-run China Daily newspaper reported today that the National Energy Administration, the government office responsible for energy development plans, has decided to increase capacity over the next two years by providing increased subsidies for solar generators worth $0.16 (10p) per kWh. Chinese solar panel makers, including Suntech Power Holdings, Yingli Green Energy and LDK Solar, are expected to enjoy significant increases in sales as a result of the revised goal, said the newspaper. ... The Commies are more committed to solar than we are? Time for an EnergyRace™! ApocaDoc permalink Fri, Jul 3, 2009 from New Scientist: Money flows into green transport despite recession A new generation of mean, green electric machines is shifting attitudes to the electric car. Most large automobile companies are pouring money into electric vehicle programmes, and a new report shows venture capitalists are hot on their heels. Despite the financial recession, venture capital investment in green technology rose, for the first time in six months, during the second quarter of 2009 -- and the biggest winner was transport-related technology, according to the report, issued this week by the Cleantech Group and Deloitte. The problems faced by the traditional automobile industry, particularly companies in the US, are well documented. But for many investors, now is an "historic opportunity" to take a chunk of the market themselves by supporting new clean transportation options, says Brian Fan, senior director of research at Cleantech. ... Self-interest, greed, and the profit motive got us into this mess. Can it get us out? ApocaDoc permalink Thu, Jun 25, 2009 from Inhabitat: 15 Year Old Invents Algae-Powered Energy System The high school student developed a fully featured algae-powered energy system that combines a dozen new and existing technologies to treat waste, produce methane and bio-oil for fuel, produce food for humans and livestock, sequester greenhouse gases, and produce oxygen. Dubbed the VERSATILE system, the project is this year's winner of the annual Invent Your World Challenge $20,000 scholarship.... According to Fernandez-Han, the modular system is targeted at developing countries that need self-contained sources of power and waste disposal. The budding inventor envisions African villages lit up by the Playpump's LEDs, with excess methane to sell for income, reduced air pollution -- thanks to methane burning stoves, and increased affordability of goats, pigs, and fish due to the availability of algae as feed. A scaled-down version of the system for a small house or apartment could cost as little as $200. ... Why isn't this kid doing something useful, like buying iTunes? ApocaDoc permalink Tue, Jun 23, 2009 from SolveClimate: Surprise: Nissan's Electric Cars to Be Made in the USA Japanese motor giant Nissan will begin building electric vehicles and batteries in the United States as soon as 2010, thanks to U.S. government incentives announced today. The news carries a promise of green jobs for a struggling section of Tennessee. It also means that a cut of the $25 billion auto stimulus package that Congress passed last September will be going to a foreign company. Nissan won approval from the Department of Energy (DOE) for $1.6 billion in special low-interest loans earmarked for making American vehicles greener. Ford and electric car start-up Tesla Motors were the other recipients, landing loans of $5.9 billion and $465 million, respectively. The decision by the DOE to include the Tokyo-based automaker is yet another sign of Japan's rising clout in the world's nascent EV market. Under the plan, Nissan will invest its loan dollars in building electric car assembly lines at its Smyrna, Tenn. plant. The factory will be capable of churning out 50,000 to 100,000 electric vehicles a year by 2012. ... Now that's stimulus I can believe in! ApocaDoc permalink Tue, Jun 23, 2009 from Mongabay: Wind could power the entire world Wind power may be the key to a clean energy revolution: a new study in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Science finds that wind power could provide for the entire world's current and future energy needs.... They imagined 2.5 megawatt turbines crisscrossing the terrestrial globe, excluding "areas classified as forested, areas occupied by permanent snow or ice, areas covered by water, and areas identified as either developed or urban," according to the paper. They also included the possibility of 3.6 megawatt offshore wind turbines, but restricted them to 50 nautical miles off the coast and to oceans depths less than 200 meters. Using this criteria the researchers found that wind energy could not only supply all of the world's energy requirements, but it could provide over forty times the world's current electrical consumption and over five times the global use of total energy needs. Turning to the world's two largest carbon emitters, China and the United States, the researchers found that wind power has the potential to easily supply both nations. ... The answer, my friend, is blowin' in the wind. ApocaDoc permalink Mon, Jun 22, 2009 from EarthTronics: Introducing the Honeywell Wind Turbine The Honeywell Wind Turbine eliminates traditional wind turbine gear box, shaft and generators. The Honeywell Wind Turbine is a gearless, “free wheeling’’ turbine that generates power from the blade tips (where the speed lies) rather than through a complex slow center shaft. By practically eliminating mechanical resistance and drag, the Honeywell Wind Turbine creates significant power (2000 kWh/yr) operating in a greater range of wind speeds (2-45 mph) than traditional wind turbines. The highest output, lowest cost per kWh installed turbine ever made. ... A chicken in every pot! A turbine on every roof! ApocaDoc permalink Sat, Jun 20, 2009 from RealClimate: Winds of change There was an interesting AP story this week about possible changes in wind speed over the continental US. The study (by Pryor et al (sub.)), put together a lot of observational data, reanalyses (from the weather forecasting models) and regional models, and concluded that there was some evidence for a decrease in wind speeds, particularly in the Eastern US. However, although this trend appeared in the observational data, it isn't seen in all the reanalyses or regional models, leaving open a possibility that the trend is an artifact of some sort (instrumental changes, urbanization etc.).... Regardless of the cause of the indicated decline, is this likely to have a direct impact on wind power generation? There is a study by Archer and Jacobson that explores the potential for wind power over the US, and the results can be seen in this graph... Wind speed class 3 (usable for power generation) and above (dark blue, green, yellow, red and black dots) are not that widespread, and are concentrated over the plains and offshore. Comparison to the trend map in the Pryor et al study (figure 1 above) shows only a limited overlap, so even if all these sites were being used, it's not clear the trends would hamper wind-power generation much. ... The demon doomer in me so wanted the "dying wind" meme to be true. ApocaDoc permalink Sun, Jun 14, 2009 from Economist: Flying for ever ...Solar-powered aircraft have flown before. The pioneer was Paul MacCready, whose Gossamer Penguin made the first manned flight in 1980 in California, with his then 13-year-old son at the controls. A derivative, Solar Challenger, crossed the English Channel in 1981. But nothing like HB-SIA, as the Swiss aircraft is known, has ever taken to the air. If it works as expected, another version will be built and this will take off, climb to 10,000 metres and, by storing some of the electricity generated during the day, continue flying through the night. Its pilots, Bertrand Piccard and Andre Borschberg, plan to cross the Atlantic in it and later to fly it around the world.... The wings of this aircraft are almost as big as those of an airliner, but they are covered in a film of solar cells that convert sunlight into electricity to drive its engines. ... Just so the cells aren't affixed with wax! ApocaDoc permalink Mon, Jun 8, 2009 from Technology Review: Roll-Up Solar Panels Xunlight, a startup in Toledo, Ohio, has developed a way to make large, flexible solar panels. It has developed a roll-to-roll manufacturing technique that forms thin-film amorphous silicon solar cells on thin sheets of stainless steel. Each solar module is about one meter wide and five and a half meters long. As opposed to conventional silicon solar panels, which are bulky and rigid, these lightweight, flexible sheets could easily be integrated into roofs and building facades or on vehicles. Such systems could be more attractive than conventional solar panels and be incorporated more easily into irregular roof designs. They could also be rolled up and carried in a backpack, says the company's cofounder and president, Xunming Deng. "You could take it with you and charge your laptop battery," he says. ... Better efficiency than asphalt shingles, at least! ApocaDoc permalink Mon, Jun 8, 2009 from BusinessGreen: Texas sets back solar by at least two years The Texas legislature disappointed environmental groups this week as it failed to pass the bulk of legislation designed to promote solar energy in the state. The state killed a bill that would have provided $500m in rebates for solar panels. The rebates would have been raised with money from increased electricity bills. The bill, which had strong support from both political parties, failed on a procedural point. The legislature also failed to vote on a bill that would have mandated the development of 1,500MW of electricity from renewables by 2020. ... What "procedural point" would justify stupidity? ApocaDoc permalink Sun, Jun 7, 2009 from Dallas Morning News: Algae could become reliable jet fuel source Seawater algae -- a cousin to pond scum -- may someday become a significant source of fuel for military jets and airliners, and at the same time rejuvenate farmlands where tumbleweeds fill old irrigation ditches and abandoned cotton gins bake in the Texas sun. Algae farmers conceivably could become the newest breed of Texas oilmen. For now, that's still a very big "if." Several scientific and technical obstacles must be overcome before the tiny plantlike organisms, which create unsightly rings on boat hulls and slime on fish tanks, can be turned into a viable fuel.... Producing a lot of oil from the algae, cheaply and quickly, is the goal – basically creating, in a matter of days, what took nature millions of years. ... Has anybody considered tumbleweeds as an alternative, renewable energy source? ApocaDoc permalink Thu, Jun 4, 2009 from Guardian (UK): Green energy overtakes fossil fuel investment, says UN Green energy overtook fossil fuels in attracting investment for power generation for the first time last year, according to figures released today by the United Nations. Wind, solar and other clean technologies attracted $140bn (Ł85bn) compared with $110bn for gas and coal for electrical power generation, with more than a third of the green cash destined for Britain and the rest of Europe. The biggest growth for renewable investment came from China, India and other developing countries, which are fast catching up on the West in switching out of fossil fuels to improve energy security and tackle climate change. "There have been many milestones reached in recent years, but this report suggests renewable energy has now reached a tipping point where it is as important -- if not more important -- in the global energy mix than fossil fuels," said Achim Steiner, executive director of the UN's Environment Programme. ... That's a tipping point worth tipping! ApocaDoc permalink Wed, Jun 3, 2009 from BusinessGreen: Report: solar panel prices to plummet The average price of solar panels will drop by over a quarter this year, as falling demand and increased supplies of polysilicon combine to drive down prices. That is the conclusion of a new study from research firm IC Insights, which predicts that despite the reduction in upfront prices, global solar photovoltaic installations will fall by 22 per cent this year as a result of the recession and the scaling back of some European incentives. However, the report also forecasts that the expansion of new incentive schemes in the US, China and Europe combined with the fact that the polysilicon supply shortages that dogged the industry in recent years have been largely resolved means that the sector will "come charging back in 2010". ... Maybe now's the time to say "charge it!" ApocaDoc permalink Tue, Jun 2, 2009 from CNET: Nobel laureate: Wind is not the future While the Obama administration has expressed increasing hopes that wind power will play a key role in America's future energy system, one of the world's leading scientists is ruling out the technology. Jack Steinberger, the 1968 Nobel Prize winner in physics and director of CERN's particle-physics laboratory, spoke at a conference of Nobel laureates at the 350-year-old Royal Society in London last week.... The reason? Wind power still requires backup power when the wind isn't blowing, and that decreases its contribution to emissions reductions.... On the other hand, solar thermal power--where collectors concentrate sunlight using mirrors and lenses to produce electric power and heat--is already economical and can handle the storage problem, he said. The heat produced can be stored, enabling solar thermal plants to produce electricity during hours without sunlight. Steinberger now wants funding for a big pilot project. The idea is to link solar thermal power from Northern Africa to Europe via high-voltage undersea cables. The proposed 3- to 3.5-gigawatt power plant would cost an estimated $32 billion to build. ... $32 billion would buy a lot of small home wind generators. ApocaDoc permalink Tue, Jun 2, 2009 from Bloomberg News: Wood Is New Coal as Polluters Use Carbon-Eating Trees Power companies are burning more trees because the renewable fuel can be cheaper than coal and ignited without needing permits to release carbon dioxide, the main greenhouse gas blamed for global warming.... Industrialized nations drew 4 percent of their energy from biomass in 2006, the most recent data available from the IEA. That was the equivalent of about 1.1 billion barrels of oil. Chips of wood stumps and branches, heated to 400 degrees Celsius (750 degrees Fahrenheit) at the Novus furnace, are as efficient as coal and cheaper: European Union rules don’t require carbon-dioxide permits because the trees absorbed a like amount of the gas before harvest, making them carbon-neutral.... Trees like pine retain an advantage over wind and solar energy as being readily convertible into power, heat and transportation fuel. "We're really only at the beginning of using biomass efficiently," German Green Party member Juergen Trittin, a former environment minister and parliamentarian, said in an interview. ... Carbon neutral is better than coal's carbon horrendous... but can we get "carbon positive"? ApocaDoc permalink Wed, May 27, 2009 from Guardian (UK): China puts its faith in solar power with huge renewable energy investment China is the world's leading ­manufacturer of photovoltaic (PV) panels, which turn sunlight into electricity. But 95 percent of these are exported. While solar thermal power, in which sunlight heats water, is in widespread use, the central government and the five major utilities have deemed PV power too ­expensive, particularly compared with coal, which generates ­electricity for between an eighth and a tenth of the cost. But the global economic crisis and ­increasing concerns about climate change and energy security have prompted a change in attitudes. Since last year, a glut in supply of PV panels has pushed prices down by more than 30 percent, cutting ­profits of domestic manufacturers such as Suntech. To support them and widen the ­country's energy base, the plan is expected to include the biggest ever boost for solar power, along with extra spending and ­policy support for nuclear, wind and ­biomass power. By 2020, the government is committed to raising the share of ­renewable energy ­(excluding hydroelectric power) in the energy mix to 6 percent, from the current 1.5 percent. ... Can they make photovoltaics as cheap as their crappy microwaves? ApocaDoc permalink Tue, May 26, 2009 from BusinessWeek: The Great Ethanol Scam First, the primary job of the Environmental Protection Agency is, dare it be said, to protect our environment. Yet using ethanol actually creates more smog than using regular gas, and the EPA's own attorneys had to admit that fact in front of the justices presiding over the Third Circuit Court of Appeals in 1995 (API v. EPA). Second, truly independent studies on ethanol, such as those written by Tad Patzek of Berkeley and David Pimentel of Cornell, show that ethanol is a net energy loser. Other studies suggest there is a small net energy gain from it. Third, all fuels laced with ethanol reduce the vehicle's fuel efficiency, and the E85 blend drops gas mileage between 30 percent and 40 percent, depending on whether you use the EPA's fuel mileage standards (fueleconomy.gov) or those of the Dept. of Energy. ... I just want to forget ethanol's sorrows. ApocaDoc permalink Wed, May 20, 2009 from BusinessGreen: Energy industry blocking grid connection for wind projects The established energy industry is deliberately blocking reforms to the process that would allow more renewable energy to be connected to the National Grid, according to the chief executive of Ofgem.... "What we have to stop going forward is vested interests within the sector blocking reform," said Buchanan.... Wind developers argue the current system, where enough connection requests must be made in a certain area to justify upgrades to the grid, is weighted in favour of large-scale power plants. ... We can't let the upstarts innovate willy-nilly, now can we? ApocaDoc permalink Mon, May 18, 2009 from CBC (Canada): Canadian scientists create powerful new lithium battery material Lithium batteries could deliver more than three times their usual power if they contained a new composite material invented by scientists at the University of Waterloo, a study suggests. The material created by chemistry professor Linda Nazar and her research team contains sulphur, a cheap substance that scientists have been trying to incorporate into rechargeable lithium batteries for a long time, said a news release Monday. The challenge had been to find a way to keep the electrically active sulphur in intimate contact with a conductor such as carbon, Nazar said in a statement.... "This composite material can supply up to nearly 80 per cent of the theoretical capacity of sulphur, which is three times the energy density of lithium [traditional] transition metal oxide cathodes," Nazar said in a statement. In addition, the material remained stable when recharged multiple times. ... Doesn't it all come down to intimate contact, in the end? ApocaDoc permalink Wed, May 6, 2009 from BBC: 'Anaconda' harnesses wave power A new wave energy device known as "Anaconda" is the latest idea to harness the power of the seas. Its inventors claim the key to its success lies in its simplicity: Anaconda is little more than a length of rubber tubing filled with water. Waves in the water create bulges along the tubing that travel along its length gathering energy. At the end of the tube, the surge of energy drives a turbine and generates electricity.... [T]he problem holding back wave energy machines is that devices tend to deteriorate over time in the harsh marine environment. "Anaconda is non-mechanical. It is mainly rubber, a natural material with a natural resilience, and so has very few moving parts to maintain."... It is claimed that a group of 50 full-size Anacondas -- each 200m long -- could provide electricity for 50,000 homes. ... That's a thousand homes per Anaconda... Snakes on the Waves! ApocaDoc permalink Wed, May 6, 2009 from University of Montreal, via EurekAlert: Battery-powered vehicles to be revolutionized by Universite de Montreal technology "It's a revolutionary battery because it is made from non-toxic materials abundant in the Earth's crust. Plus, it's not expensive,'" says Michel Gauthier, an invited professor at the Université de Montréal Department of Chemistry and co-founder of Phostech Lithium, the company that makes the battery material. "This [LiFePO4] battery could eventually make the electric car very profitable."... "It is a battery that is much more stable and much safer," says Dean MacNeil, a professor at the Universite de Montreal's Department of Chemistry and new NSERC-Phostech Lithium Industrial Research Chair in Energy Storage and Conversion. "In addition, it recharges much faster than previous batteries." ... And what a great acronym! ApocaDoc permalink Thu, Apr 30, 2009 from BBC (UK): 'Safe' climate means 'no to coal' About three-quarters of the world's fossil fuel reserves must be left unused if society is to avoid dangerous climate change, scientists warn.... [T]his group of scientists says that the cumulative total provides a better measure of the likely temperature rise, and may present an easier target for policymakers. "To avoid dangerous climate change, we will have to limit the total amount of carbon we inject into the atmosphere, not just the emission rate in any given year," said Myles Allen from the physics department at Oxford University. "Climate policy needs an exit strategy; as well as reducing carbon emissions now, we need a plan for phasing out net emissions entirely." ... But what about "clean coal"? What about carbon-sequestering unicorns? ApocaDoc permalink Wed, Apr 29, 2009 from New Scientist: Geothermal explosion rocks green energy hopes The bid to produce green power on a commercial scale using heat mined from subterranean rocks -- or "hot rocks" -- has suffered a major setback, with the breach of a four-kilometre-deep well on Friday in the Cooper Basin in South Australia.... The company was in the final stages of commissioning a demonstration one-megawatt power plant for Innamincka when the rupture occurred, and steam started to escape from the well. Drilling deep wells into hot rocks and circulating water to mine heat is technically challenging, and the cause of the breach is still unknown. ... Who said it'd be easy? ApocaDoc permalink Tue, Apr 28, 2009 from New Scientist: How to turn greenhouse gas into a clean fuel Converting a greenhouse gas into a clean-burning fuel offers two benefits for the price of one. That's the thinking behind a novel process for converting carbon dioxide into methanol at room temperature.... "Our catalyst isn't toxic, and the reaction happens rapidly at room temperature," says team leader Jackie Ying. The catalyst used by Ying's team is a type of chemical called an N-heterocyclic carbene (NHC). The mechanism by which the NHC speeds up the conversion is uncertain, but it appears to change the shape of the CO2 molecule, "activating" it in a way that makes it easier for hydrogen to bond with its carbon atom, says team member Yugen Zhang. ... A converter in every home? That would suck... carbon dioxide. ApocaDoc permalink Mon, Mar 30, 2009 from Forbes: Hottest Electric Cars Soon To Hit The Roads America's roads could get a whole lot quieter in the not-too-distant future. Thanks to unprecedented tax incentives included in Obama's $787 billion stimulus package, plug-in electric vehicles are getting closer to the road than you might expect. Tax credits ranging from $2,500 to $7,500 for buyers of electric cars, the largest of which start in 2010, mean the race is on for automakers to produce moderately priced plug-ins for eager, eco-conscious consumers. "There is a lot of interest currently with the Obama administration making it very attractive for electric vehicle manufacturers to come into the U.S. to produce vehicles," says Brendan Prebo, a spokesman for Th!nk, a Norway-based maker of electric cars. "And that's very much what we'd like to do." ... Plus, we can pray gas prices go up, too! ApocaDoc permalink Sun, Mar 29, 2009 from Times Online (UK): Consumers beware the costly spin of wind turbines The view from the top could not be clearer: Ed Miliband, the minister for energy and climate change, said last week that opposing the onward march of wind turbines -- on which the government is pinning its hopes of meeting its targets on renewable energy -- should be as "socially unacceptable" as not wearing a seatbelt or failing to stop at a zebra crossing. Hmm. Tell that to the people who believe the view over Britain's last remaining wildernesses is about to be destroyed for ever -- and for a very dubious set of returns. Will wind farms turn out to be a truly revolutionary source of energy for the future or an expensive folly? Whatever the final answer, there's no doubt about the expense. Over the past decade developers have grown rich on lavish -- and, critics would say, misdirected -- government subsidies. Wind farming is the new gold rush. ... Long-term survival? Not folly. ApocaDoc permalink Sun, Mar 29, 2009 from Times Online (UK): British eco-migrants flee to New Zealand New Zealand is seeing its first influx of British eco-migrants, environmental refugees who have quit the UK because they fear the long-term impacts of climate change. The country's islands, renowned for their temperate climate, clean environment and low population, have often been put forward by greens as potential "lifeboats" for a world suffering serious warming.... Scientists agree that New Zealand is likely to be more resilient to any global warming than many other countries -- but that could lead to problems with immigration. Dr Vicky Pope, head of climate change advice at Britain’s Met Office, said: "A lot of countries in temperate zones could come under pressure to take eco-migrants." ... I wonder what would happen if we thought of the earth as a lifeboat? ApocaDoc permalink Sat, Mar 28, 2009 from AFP: Scientists in possible cold fusion breakthrough Researchers at a US Navy laboratory have unveiled what they say is "significant" evidence of cold fusion, a potential energy source that has many skeptics in the scientific community.... "To our knowledge, this is the first scientific report of the production of highly energetic neutrons from a LENR device," added the study's co-author in a statement... Paul Padley, a physicist at Rice University who reviewed Mosier-Boss's published work, said the study did not provide a plausible explanation of how cold fusion could take place in the conditions described.... "It fails to provide a theoretical rationale to explain how fusion could occur at room temperatures. And in its analysis, the research paper fails to exclude other sources for the production of neutrons," he told the Houston Chronicle. ... Dang. I hate it when hope's bubble is popped by science. ApocaDoc permalink Tue, Mar 17, 2009 from SciDev.net: Renewable energy's possible role 'underestimated' Renewable energy could play a much larger role in supplying the world's energy needs than previously estimated — but it won't come cheap, according to a new study. The research, presented at the International Scientific Congress on Climate Change in Copenhagen, Denmark, this week (11 March) says that renewable energy could supply 40 per cent of the world's energy needs by 2050.... If renewable technologies were given the same government attention and financial backing as nuclear energy was in the 1970s and 80s wind energy and solar power would cost the same as traditional electricity generation by 2020–2025 and 2030 respectively, said Lund. But such ambitious targets require substantial financial investment, Lund warned. The technologies would require global support of US$12.8 billion to US$25.5 billion per year and without this backing wind and solar energy would contribute less than 15 per cent of the world's energy output. ... Compared to the GWOT, that's peanuts. ApocaDoc permalink Mon, Mar 16, 2009 from CBC (Canada): Nova Scotia Power to invest in wind energy The Nova Scotia government plans to revise rules that bar Nova Scotia Power from investing in wind power companies, in hopes of helping the utility reach its green energy goals. Currently, Nova Scotia Power is forbidden from investing in wind turbine companies, but Energy Minister Barry Barnet said the province wants that to change. "I think there was kind of a mutual coming-of-the-minds that this is the way we can meet each other's objectives," Barnet said. "It's imbedded within the regulation and I'm not sure why it was put in there in the first place. The idea was to have the independent producers have the ability to operate separately from Nova Scotia Power." ... Can we figure out how to identify stupidity and pre-emergency self-defeating regulations within bureaucracies? ApocaDoc permalink Fri, Mar 13, 2009 from BusinessGreen: US commits to renewable development The US Department of the Interior (DOI) has announced plans to make the development of renewable energy a central priority of the organisation. In a statement issued this week, secretary of the interior Ken Salazar said he had issued a secretarial order to promote the creation of solar, geothermal and wind energy projects on the one fifth of the country's landmass managed by the department.... According to the DOI, it... has identified about 21 million acres of public land with wind energy potential in western states, and about 29 million acres with solar energy potential in southwestern states. The organisation added that there are also about 140 million acres of public land in western states and Alaska that could be used for geothermal energy. ... Sing it: that land is your land, that land is my land... ApocaDoc permalink Mon, Mar 9, 2009 from Forbes: Small-scale, cheap solar BURLINGAME, CALIF.--Imagine a solar panel as affordable as a fancy new bicycle. A panel designed so simply that you can install one (or more) yourself, just outside your windows, in the course of an afternoon. That's the concept behind Oakland, Calif.-based Veranda Solar, a start-up founded last year by Capra J'neva and Emilie Fetscher, recent graduates of the product design program at Stanford University. J'neva and Fetscher dreamed up attractive, flower-shaped solar panels as part of their master's project at the design school. "We created a starter solar system that expands as your budget does," J'neva says. Their plan is to sell Veranda panels at roughly $600 each later this year, provided it raises more funding. The panels snap together, so people will be able to buy just one to start and add more later on if they like. The solar inverter, which converts the direct current (DC) electricity from the panels to alternating current (AC) electricity that can be used in the electric grid, plugs right into a wall socket. ... Every house a generator -- every human a king. ApocaDoc permalink Sun, Mar 8, 2009 from BusinessGreen: Energy secretary promises "transformational" green research US energy secretary, Steven Chu, yesterday called on a Senate committee to authorise far greater levels of government support for energy research, arguing that the onus is on the federal government to help incubate cutting edge low carbon technologies before they become commercially viable. Chu was testifying at a hearing held by the US Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources to review the future direction of energy research and development. He argued there was an urgent need for greater funding, and a renewed focus on how to spend that money more wisely.... Chu also called for greater government support for cutting edge " transformational" energy research, arguing there was a need for "game changing, rather than incremental" science.... These include the creation of fuel from non-food crops and bio-waste, automotive batteries with greater longevity, reducing the cost of photovoltaic by 80 per cent, and computer design tools to increase energy efficiency in buildings. Finally, the Government could help to develop energy storage technology that could turn renewable power sources into base load generators, he said. ... If we change the game, how will we know who wins? ApocaDoc permalink Wed, Mar 4, 2009 from New Energy Finance, via EurekAlert: Clean energy investment not on track to avoid climate change The world economic crisis has hit investment in clean energy and means its growth is no longer on track for the world to avert the worst impact of climate change, according to leading clean energy and carbon market analysts, New Energy Finance.... Investment in clean energy -- renewables, energy efficiency and carbon capture and storage -- increased from $34bn in 2004 to around $150bn in each of 2007 and 2008. New Energy Finance's latest Global Futures report demonstrates that investment needs to reach $500bn per annum by 2020 if CO2 emissions from the world's energy system are to peak before 2020. ... Hey man, my portfolio is down -- why should I invest in the future? ApocaDoc permalink Sat, Feb 28, 2009 from University of Alberta, via ScienceDaily: Solar Energy Performance With Plastic Solar Cells Improved With New Method The University of Alberta and the National Research Council's National Institute (NINT) for Nanotechnology have engineered an approach that is leading to improved performance of plastic solar cells (hybrid organic solar cells). The development of inexpensive, mass-produced plastic solar panels is a goal of intense interest for many of the world's scientists and engineers because of the high cost and shortage of the ultra-high purity silicon and other materials normally required.... "[A metaphor might be] a clubhouse sandwich, with many different layers. One layer absorbs the light, another helps to generate the electricity, and others help to draw the electricity out of the device. Normally, the layers don't stick well, and so the electricity ends up stuck and never gets out, leading to inefficient devices. We are working on the mayonnaise, the mustard, the butter and other 'special sauces' that bring the sandwich together, and make each of the layers work together. That makes a better sandwich, and makes a better solar cell, in our case".... After two years of research, these U of A and NINT scientists have, by only working on one part of the sandwich, seen improvements of about 30 per cent in the efficiency of the working model.... The team estimates it will be five to seven years before plastic solar panels will be mass produced but Buriak adds that when it happens solar energy will be available to everyone. She says the next generation of solar technology belongs to plastic. "Plastic solar cell material will be made cheaply and quickly and in massive quantities by ink jet-like printers." ... For some reason this story is making me hungry for mass-produced plastic. ApocaDoc permalink Sat, Feb 28, 2009 from BusinessGreen: Aquamarine Power touts 'biggest deal in the history of marine energy' Fresh from securing "the biggest deal in the history of marine energy" with Scottish and Southern Energy (SSE), wave and tidal power specialist Aquamarine Power is in talks to agree similar supply deals with utilities in Ireland and Portugal. Earlier this week, the company signed a major alliance with SSE's renewables division Airtricity that could see the developer of tidal and wave energy systems provide the company with up to one gigawatt of marine energy by 2020. Under the terms of the deal, the two companies will launch a 50:50 joint venture that will work to gain consent for wave and tidal energy sites in the UK and Ireland. ... Can a rising tide lift all floats? ApocaDoc permalink Wed, Feb 25, 2009 from BusinessGreen: First Solar reaches 'dollar per watt milestone' The company said that during the fourth quarter of last year, the manufacturing cost for its solar modules stood at 98 cents per watt, taking it below the $1 per watt mark for the first time.... First Solar said it was confident that plans to more than double its production capacity through 2009 to more than one gigawatt would allow it to reduce costs further to a point where energy from solar panels can undercut that from natural gas and coal. According to the company, it has already reduced costs from more than $3 a watt in 2004 to less than $1 a watt now and there is every indication that the trend will continue as production capacity increases. ... Hey, governments? Pre-order a few dozen gigawatts to prime the pump. ApocaDoc permalink Mon, Feb 23, 2009 from Reuters: U.S. renewable energy faces weak economy, old grid People in the industries say the stimulus will help speed the process, but it still may not be fast enough to meet the Obama administration's goal of ramping up renewable energy production and related investments to revive the economy. The stimulus extends tax breaks for generating electricity from renewable sources. The government also will provide incentives for homeowners and businesses to buy solar power equipment, and will help fund other energy-saving measures.... Even if demand for renewable energy surges, moving those power supplies will pose problems. The electricity grid is little changed from the one that powered the radios that carried President Roosevelt's fireside chats in the 1930s. ... Good evening, friends [crackle] -- we must [crackle] remake our energy infrastructure if [crackle] we are to remake our nation. ApocaDoc permalink Fri, Feb 20, 2009 from Times Online (UK): Windmills flap helplessly as coal remains king If you flick a switch today, the light goes on because of coal. Almost half the power generated in Britain on Tuesday came from coal and a bit more than a third from natural gas. Nuclear power stations were contributing 17 per cent and windmills provided 0.6 per cent.... After all the politics, we are breathless as our bright new whirligigs stand motionless on a beach horizon. The wind has failed, as it does during periods of intense heat and cold, and although we have built, with enormous subsidy, enough wind turbines to generate 5 per cent of our electricity, no more than 1 per cent is operational when we need it.... The reason why we are still stuffing black lumps of carbon into furnaces is simple: it makes economic sense and the financial markets are shouting this message louder than ever before. ... And if the financial markets say it makes sense, then it must be so! ApocaDoc permalink Wed, Feb 18, 2009 from Telegraph.co.uk: Manure could power two million homes According to Defra, the UK produces more than 100 million tonnes of organic material per year that could be used to produce biogas, 90 million tonnes of which comes from manure and slurry. The National Farmers' Union has a target to have 1,000 on-farm anaerobic digestion (AD) plants by 2020, which will power farms and produce fertilisers as a by-product of the process. Speaking at the NFU conference in Birmingham today, Farming and Environment Minister Jane Kennedy is expected to say: "We're producing more organic waste in this country than we can handle, over 12 million tonnes of food waste a year -- and farmers know too well the challenges of managing manure and slurry. ... That's 90,000,000 tonnes of shit! ApocaDoc permalink Mon, Feb 16, 2009 from New York Times: Bringing Wind Turbines to Ordinary Rooftops WIND turbines typically spin from tall towers on hills and plains. But in these green times, some companies hope smaller turbines will soon rise above a more domestic spot: homes and garages. The rooftop turbines send the electricity they generate straight on to the home's circuit box. Then owners in a suitably wind-swept location can watch the needle on their electricity meter turn backward instead of forward, reducing their utility bills while using a renewable resource. ... Let's get this down to the price of a used car, can we? ApocaDoc permalink Fri, Feb 6, 2009 from New Scientist: Why sustainable power is unsustainable Renewable energy needs to become a lot more renewable -- a theme that emerged at the Financial Times Energy Conference in London this week. Although scientists are agreed that we must cut carbon emissions from transport and electricity generation to prevent the globe's climate becoming hotter, and more unpredictable, the most advanced "renewable" technologies are too often based upon non-renewable resources, attendees heard. ... You mean we may have to confront Peak Renewables? ApocaDoc permalink Wed, Feb 4, 2009 from New York Times: Dark Days for Green Energy Wind and solar power have been growing at a blistering pace in recent years, and that growth seemed likely to accelerate under the green-minded Obama administration. But because of the credit crisis and the broader economic downturn, the opposite is happening: installation of wind and solar power is plummeting. Factories building parts for these industries have announced a wave of layoffs in recent weeks, and trade groups are projecting 30 to 50 percent declines this year in installation of new equipment, barring more help from the government. Prices for turbines and solar panels, which soared when the boom began a few years ago, are falling. Communities that were patting themselves on the back just last year for attracting a wind or solar plant are now coping with cutbacks. ... They're laying off people working in renewable energy? Is this the "invisible hand of the market" picking the pocket of my future? ApocaDoc permalink Fri, Jan 23, 2009 from Reuters: Scotch Whisky Goes "Green" LONDON - Scotch drinkers who care for the climate will soon relish their tipple in the knowledge it is providing clean renewable power in the home of whisky. Scottish authorities have given planning permission for a consortium of distillers to build a biomass-fueled combined heat and power plant near the heart of the whisky industry in Speyside. Helius Energy Plc said on Wednesday it and the Combination of Rothes Distillers Ltd would build the plant, which would use distillery by-products and wood chips to generate 7.2 megawatts of electricity, enough for about 9,000 homes, and heat. "Not only will it generate renewable heat and power, but it secures additional markets for our distillery co-products," Frank Burns, general manager of the Combination of Rothes, said. ... I'll drink to that! ApocaDoc permalink Sun, Jan 11, 2009 from Guardian (UK): 20 big green ideas as Emma Howard Boyd, head of socially responsible investing at Jupiter Asset Management – sponsors of the Big Idea award, makes clear: "The urgency of what is required to combat issues such as climate change has not diminished as a result of the current financial crisis. We need big ideas -- and it is at times like these, when there is widespread disruption, that we see innovation and new thinking." Big ideas need not necessarily be a whistle-and-bells hi-tech response. At least one of our Big 20 can be described as an "ancient technique" on loan from the Aztecs. The modern genius lies in its rediscovery and deployment because, while it would be foolish to believe blindly in a silver bullet for all environmental problems, now is absolutely the time for faith in contemporary ingenuity. ... This story makes me feel like, y'know, Yes We Can. ApocaDoc permalink Thu, Dec 18, 2008 from USA Today: Cooperation helped Louisville clean up air LOUISVILLE — For years, Louisville has been known for fast horses, fine bourbon, a love of college basketball — and lousy air. People who lived near a complex of chemical plants, called Rubbertown, put up with odors, burning eyes and fears that their every breath might contribute to asthma, cancer or other illnesses. But that began to change about a decade ago, after a minister from the predominantly African-American neighborhoods around Rubbertown organized protests, demanding aggressive government action to clean up the toxic air and reduce the chemical emissions from factories. The campaign soon ranged beyond those neighborhoods, attracting the help of university scientists, industry representatives and government officials. It has led to an ambitious and successful anti-pollution effort that has gained national attention. ... Way to go, sluggers! ApocaDoc permalink Tue, Dec 9, 2008 from Scientific American: Chicago's Plans to Go Green ...In September, Chicago unveiled an action plan to reduce carbon dioxide emissions to one quarter below 1990 levels by 2020, followed by reductions through 2050 that would slash emissions by 80 percent. Up to 400,000 homes and 9,200 skyscrapers and factories would require energy-efficient retrofits in the next 12 years. All 21 coal-burning power plants throughout Illinois would need to be refurbished, too, requiring statewide cooperation. Another 450,000 riders would have to wedge themselves into elevated trains and buses every day—a 30 percent increase—rather than commute by car. “I don’t know of another municipal plan that is this ambitious or comprehensive,” says Rebecca Stanfield, a senior energy advocate for the Natural Resources Defense Council... ... Now, if they could just produce a World Series winner... ApocaDoc permalink Mon, Nov 24, 2008 from Environmental News Network: 'Fish technology' draws renewable energy from slow water currents Slow-moving ocean and river currents could be a new, reliable and affordable alternative energy source. A University of Michigan engineer has made a machine that works like a fish to turn potentially destructive vibrations in fluid flows into clean, renewable power.... Here's how VIVACE works: The very presence of the cylinder in the current causes alternating vortices to form above and below the cylinder. The vortices push and pull the passive cylinder up and down on its springs, creating mechanical energy. Then, the machine converts the mechanical energy into electricity. Just a few cylinders might be enough to power an anchored ship, or a lighthouse, Bernitsas says. These cylinders could be stacked in a short ladder. The professor estimates that array of VIVACE converters the size of a running track and about two stories high could power about 100,000 houses. Such an array could rest on a river bed or it could dangle, suspended in the water. But it would all be under the surface. ... I love that sound of that: VIVACE energy from vortices -- va va VOOM. ApocaDoc permalink Sat, Oct 25, 2008 from Times Online (UK): Plug points in street will boost battery car revolution Charging points for electric cars are to be installed in thousands of car parks and on streets as part of a government plan to convert drivers from petrol and diesel to electricity. Under the scheme, motorists will be able to plug in and recharge their batteries while shopping or at work. In the longer term, those who are unable to wait will be able to exchange their empty battery and drive on with minimal delay.... They intend to borrow ideas pioneered in Israel, where half a million recharging points are being installed in a scheme known as Project Better Place. ... Now there's an idea with some juice. ApocaDoc permalink Thu, Oct 23, 2008 from Guardian (UK): UK announces world's largest algal biofuel project The world's biggest publicly funded project to make transport fuels from algae will be launched today by a government agency which develops low-carbon technologies. The Carbon Trust will today announce a project to make algal biofuels a commercial reality by 2020. The plan could see up to 26m pounds spent on developing the technology and infrastructure to ensure that algal biofuels replace a signficant proportion of the fossil fuels used by UK drivers. ... Say... maybe we can make use of those ocean dead zones we're creating! ApocaDoc permalink Thu, Oct 23, 2008 from UNSW, via EurekAlert: Magic solar milestone reached UNSW's ARC Photovoltaic Centre of Excellence has again asserted its leadership in solar cell technology by reporting the first silicon solar cell to achieve the milestone of 25 per cent effiency.... "Our main efforts now are focussed on getting these efficiency improvements into commercial production," he said. "Production compatible versions of our high efficiency technology are being introduced into production as we speak." ... Are we starting to see the light? ApocaDoc permalink Mon, Oct 20, 2008 from Issues in Science and Technology: A National Renewable Portfolio Standard? Not Practical To sum up, we estimate that the states could accommodate 10 percent of the electricity coming from wind (or solar, if the costs were to come down) at any one time. With some attention and adjustment, we find that the electricity system could accommodate 15 percent or even 20 percent.... A national system must also deal with the fact that the best wind resources are in the Great Plains, about 1,000 miles from the Southeast where the electricity is likely to be needed. Policymakers must remain mindful of the difficulty of expanding transmission infrastructure. Community opposition will be widespread, the cost will be high, and the lines themselves will be vulnerable to disruption by storms or terrorists. Thus, although a 20 percent national RPS might be physically possible with a very large transmission network and large amounts of spinning reserve, the logistical barriers will be high and the costs daunting. Embarking on this path without considering alternative strategies to reach the same ultimate goal would be short-sighted. ... I hate it when facts get in the way of rosy sustainable scenarios. ApocaDoc permalink Thu, Oct 16, 2008 from Ohio State University: New solar energy material captures every color of the rainbow Researchers have created a new material that overcomes two of the major obstacles to solar power: it absorbs all the energy contained in sunlight, and generates electrons in a way that makes them easier to capture.... At this point, the material is years from commercial development, but he added that this experiment provides a proof of concept -- that hybrid solar cell materials such as this one can offer unusual properties. ... We're all impatient! Let's get going! ApocaDoc permalink Wed, Oct 8, 2008 from ACS, via ScienceDaily: New Material Could Speed Development Of Hydrogen Powered Vehicles Researchers in Greece report design of a new material that almost meets the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) 2010 goals for hydrogen storage and could help eliminate a key roadblock to practical hydrogen-powered vehicles.... In the new study, the researchers used computer modeling to design a unique hydrogen-storage structure consisting of parallel graphene sheets — layers of carbon just one atom thick —stabilized by vertical columns of [carbon nanotubes]. They also added lithium ions to the material's design to enhance its storage capacity. ... Nice computer model -- now let's get it working! ApocaDoc permalink Wed, Oct 8, 2008 from Times Online (UK): Dutch city kept warm by hot-water mines Heerlen, in the southern province of Limburg, has created the first geothermal power station in the world using water heated naturally in the deep shafts of old coalmines -- which once provided the southern Netherlands with thousands of jobs but have been dormant since the 1970s. Tapping "free energy" marks a breakthrough in green technology by exploiting the legacy of the coalmines that emitted so much pollution and helped to create the climate change emergency faced by the planet. ... The Dutch have much to lose with the rising waters of global warming. ApocaDoc permalink Tue, Oct 7, 2008 from Scientific American: Cylindrical Solar Cells Give a Whole New Meaning to Sunroof There are approximately 30 billion square feet (2.8 billion square meters) of expansive, flat roofs in the U.S., an area large enough to collect the sunlight needed to power 16 million American homes, or replace 38 conventional coal-fired power plants. By covering these roofs with large, flat arrays of cylindrical thin-film solar cells (think massive installations of fluorescent tubes, only absorbing light rather than emitting it), Fremont, Calif.–based Solyndra, Inc., hopes to harness that energy....the newly shaped cells have the potential of harnessing solar power at around the same price as electricity from coal-fired power plants, currently the cheapest generation option at around six cents per kilowatt hour. ... Only the NMR (Not on My Roof) people will take issue with this. ApocaDoc permalink Mon, Oct 6, 2008 from CTV News: Wind turbines cause health problems, residents say Windmills may be an environmentally friendly alternative energy source but they also cause debilitating health problems, say people who live near them. Wind turbines are popping up in rural communities around the world, including Canada, in the hope that they will reduce reliance on coal and other sources for power. Currently, there are about 1,500 turbines across Canada and there are plans to build another 1,000 to 1,500 in the next year. But some residents who live near wind farms complain the turbines cause a number of adverse health effects, such as crippling headaches, nose bleeds and a constant ringing in the ears. ... You'll get no argument from the birds who are sliced and diced by the turbines. ApocaDoc permalink Thu, Oct 2, 2008 from University of Michigan: Scientists explore putting electric cars on a two-way power street Think of it as the end of cars’ slacker days: No more sitting idle for hours in parking lots or garages racking up payments, but instead earning their keep by providing power to the electricity grid. Scientists at the University of Michigan, using a $2 million grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF), are exploring plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEV) that not only use grid electricity to meet their power needs, but return it to the grid, earning money for the owner.... The concept, called vehicle-to-grid (V2G) integration, is part of a larger effort to embrace large-scale changes that are needed to improve the sustainability and resilience of the transportation and electric power infrastructures. If V2G integration succeeds, it will enable the grid to utilize PHEV batteries for storing excess renewable energy from wind and the sun, releasing this energy to grid customers when needed, such as during peak hours. ... Distributed batteries for the grid. Nice! ApocaDoc permalink Sun, Sep 28, 2008 from Associated Press: Scientists think algae may be the fuel of the future Borculo, Netherlands -- Set amid cornfields and cow pastures in eastern Holland is a shallow pool that is rapidly turning green with algae, harvested for animal feed, skin treatments, biodegradable plastics -- and with increasing interest, biofuel... Experts say it will be years, maybe a decade, before this simplest of all plants efficiently can be processed for fuel. But when that day comes, it could go a long way toward easing the world's energy needs and responding to global warming. ... Plus the word "algae" is rich in vowels. ApocaDoc permalink Sat, Sep 27, 2008 from Wiley-Blackwell via ScienceDaily: New More Efficient Ways To Use Biomass Alternatives to fossil fuels and natural gas as carbon sources and fuel are in demand. Biomass could play a more significant part in the future. Researchers in the USA and China have now developed a new catalyst that directly converts cellulose, the most common form of biomass, into ethylene glycol, an important intermediate product for chemical industry. ... If they can use the cellulose in my thighs for fuel, they are welcome to it! ApocaDoc permalink Thu, Sep 25, 2008 from Guardian (UK): 'Wave snakes' switch on to harness ocean's power Yesterday, the red snake-like devices were inaugurated as part of the world's first commercial-scale wave-power station, three miles from the coast of the northern Portuguese town of Agucadoura. The project, which will generate clean electricity for more than 1,000 family homes in its first phase, marks the latest step in Portugal's moves to become a leader in developing renewable energy sources. ... Slither, baby, slither! ApocaDoc permalink Fri, Sep 19, 2008 from National Science Foundation: From Sugar to Gasoline Following independent paths of investigation, two research teams are announcing this month that they have successfully converted sugar -- potentially derived from agricultural waste and non-food plants -- into gasoline, diesel, jet fuel and a range of other valuable chemicals.... While several years of further development will be needed to refine the process and scale it for production, the promise of gasoline and other petrochemicals from renewable plants has led to broad industrial interest. ... Well, this may slow down the Peak Oil crisis -- yet keeps those exhaust pipes belching. ApocaDoc permalink Tue, Sep 16, 2008 from Telegraph.co.uk: China to become world's largest investor in green energy Last year, China spent 6 billion pounds on renewable energy projects, just slightly short of Germany, the world leader. This year, the Communist Party has vowed to redouble its efforts. Li Junfeng, an energy expert at the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), said that in terms of the "overall scale of renewable energy development", China already leads the way. Greenpeace believes China can shortly produce half of its energy from renewable sources. "The task is tough and our time is limited," said Hu Jintao, the Chinese president, earlier this year. ... I hope to see a Little Green Book soon. ApocaDoc permalink Wed, Aug 27, 2008 from New York Times: Wind Energy Bumps Into Power Grid's Limits When the builders of the Maple Ridge Wind farm spent $320 million to put nearly 200 wind turbines in upstate New York, the idea was to get paid for producing electricity. But at times, regional electric lines have been so congested that Maple Ridge has been forced to shut down even with a brisk wind blowing.... The dirty secret of clean energy is that while generating it is getting easier, moving it to market is not. The grid today, according to experts, is a system conceived 100 years ago to let utilities prop each other up, reducing blackouts and sharing power in small regions. It resembles a network of streets, avenues and country roads. "We need an interstate transmission superhighway system," said Suedeen G. Kelly, a member of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. ... Or maybe fewer giant producers, and lots more smaller producers. ApocaDoc permalink Sun, Aug 24, 2008 from Christian Science Monitor: New rays of hope for solar power's future "From five miles away, the Nevada Solar One power plant seems a mirage, a silver lake amid waves of 110 degree F. desert heat. Driving nearer, the rippling image morphs into a sea of mirrors angled to the sun. As the first commercial "concentrating solar power" or CSP plant built in 17 years, Nevada Solar One marks the reemergence and updating of a decades-old technology that could play a large new role in US power production, many observers say... Spread in military rows across 300 acres of sun-baked earth, Nevada Solar One’s trough-shaped parabolic mirrors are the core of this CSP plant – also called a "solar thermal" plant. The mirrors focus sunlight onto receiver tubes, heating a fluid that, at 735 degrees F., flows through a heat exchanger to a steam generator that supplies 64 megawatts of electricity to 14,000 Las Vegas homes." ... As long as that sea of mirrors doesn't blind any extraterrestrials! ApocaDoc permalink Wed, Aug 20, 2008 from Ohio State University, via EurekAlert: A better way to make hydrogen from biofuels Researchers here have found a way to convert ethanol and other biofuels into hydrogen very efficiently. A new catalyst makes hydrogen from ethanol with 90 percent yield, at a workable temperature, and using inexpensive ingredients. Umit Ozkan, professor of chemical and biomolecular engineering at Ohio State University, said that the new catalyst is much less expensive than others being developed around the world, because it does not contain precious metals, such as platinum or rhodium. "Rhodium is used most often for this kind of catalyst, and it costs around $9,000 an ounce," Ozkan said. "Our catalyst costs around $9 a kilogram." ... Hip Hip Hooray! ApocaDoc permalink Tue, Aug 12, 2008 from Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft, via EurekAlert: 'Anti-noise' silences wind turbines IWU researchers have developed an active damping system for wind turbines.... "These systems react autonomously to any change in frequency and damp the noise -- regardless of how fast the wind generator is turning," says Illgen. The key components of this system are piezo actuators. These devices convert electric current into mechanical motion and generate "negative vibrations," or a kind of anti-noise that precisely counteracts the vibrations of the wind turbine and cancels them out. ... Sweet! Now we can get energy and still hear the whisper of the wind. ApocaDoc permalink Mon, Aug 4, 2008 from Bloomberg News: Pickens, Gore Sidestep Differences in Alternative-Energy Quest "The most unlikely alliance in this election year hasn't come out of any political campaign. It's in the convergence of interests between billionaire oilman and Republican Party backer T. Boone Pickens and former vice president turned environmentalist Al Gore. Gore, the Democratic Party's 2000 standard-bearer, and Pickens, who helped bankroll the group that questioned Democrat John Kerry's war record in the 2004 presidential race, are pursuing separate paths toward a shared goal: cutting U.S. dependence on oil." ... Preventing the apocalypse will require strange bedfellowship. ApocaDoc permalink Sun, Aug 3, 2008 from Times Online (UK): Host of new pylons to carry wind farm power A report due this autumn will warn that if Britain is serious about a low-carbon economy then it must string potentially thousands of miles of new high-voltage power cables across the country. The infrastructure is vital, experts say, because most renewable energy will be generated in remote areas such as northern Scotland or the North Sea – whereas most consumers live in southern Britain.... "We are moving from a system dominated by a small number of large power stations to something far more diverse. Our network needs to adapt rapidly to those changes." ... The British energy infrastructure guys are getting it, at least. ApocaDoc permalink Sun, Aug 3, 2008 from Guardian (UK): China 'leads the world' in renewable energy China is the world's leading producer of energy from renewable sources and is on the way to overtaking developed countries in creating clean technologies, according to a report by the Climate Group.... The country already leads the world in terms of installed renewable capacity at 152 gigawatts. In the next year, China will also become the world's leading exporter of wind turbines and it is also highly competitive in solar water heaters, energy efficient home appliances, and rechargeable batteries. ... There, but for the grace of the Supreme Court, go we. ApocaDoc permalink Fri, Aug 1, 2008 from Truthout: Major Discovery From MIT Primed to Unleash Solar Revolution "In a revolutionary leap that could transform solar power from a marginal, boutique alternative into a mainstream energy source, MIT researchers have overcome a major barrier to large-scale solar power: storing energy for use when the sun doesn't shine." ... So... they have figured out where to store energy where the sun don't shine? ApocaDoc permalink Sat, Jul 26, 2008 from Ohio State University via ScienceDaily: New Material May Help Autos Turn Heat Into Electricity "Researchers have invented a new material that will make cars even more efficient, by converting heat wasted through engine exhaust into electricity. In the current issue of the journal Science, they describe a material with twice the efficiency of anything currently on the market." ... We could drive around enough to power our homes -- or better yet, never have to go home again! ApocaDoc permalink Fri, Jul 25, 2008 from National Post (Canada): Fuel cell cars at least 15 years away at best: Study Hydrogen fuel cell vehicles are still 15 years away from becoming a viable business for automakers even if they overcome remaining technical hurdles and the U. S. government provides massive subsidies, a government-funded report said last week. Under a best-case scenario, automakers will only be able to sell about two million electric vehicles powered by fuel cells by 2020, according to the study by the National Research Council. That would mean that less than 1 percent of the vehicles on U.S. roads by that date would be powered by fuel cells. ... That's fuelish. ApocaDoc permalink Sun, Jul 13, 2008 from Massachusetts Institute of Technology via ScienceDaily: New 'Window' Opens On Solar Energy: Cost Effective Devices Available Soon "Imagine windows that not only provide a clear view and illuminate rooms, but also use sunlight to efficiently help power the building they are part of. MIT engineers report a new approach to harnessing the sun's energy that could allow just that." ... "Available soon"? I want this now! ApocaDoc permalink Wed, Jul 9, 2008 from Guardian (UK): GM installs world's biggest rooftop solar panels The largest rooftop solar power station in the world is being built in Spain. With a capacity of 12 megawatts of power, the station is made up of 85,000 lightweight panels covering an area of two million square feet. Manufactured in rolls, rather like carpet, the photovoltaic panels are to be installed on the roof of a General Motors car factory in Zaragoza, eastern Spain. ... On top of a car factory? Those witty Spaniards! ApocaDoc permalink Sun, Jul 6, 2008 from Times Online (UK): How China's thirst for oil can save the planet What is bad news for businesses and consumers, however, is good for investors in green energy. Vast sums of money are pouring into technologies that until relatively recently were the preserve of niche businesses and environmental campaigners. This year should see a record [200 billion dollars] or more invested in "clean technology" despite the credit crunch, according to a report published last week by the consultants New Energy Finance for the United Nations. ... Every challenge is an opportunity. Necessity is the mother of invention. When the shit hits the fan, make powdered manure. ApocaDoc permalink Mon, Jun 30, 2008 from Wall Street Journal: Indian Wind-Turbine Firm Hits Turbulence The Indian company -- the world's fifth-largest wind-turbine maker by sales -- earlier this year acknowledged that 65 giant blades on turbines it had sold in the U.S. Midwest were cracking because of the extreme gusts in the region. The company is reinforcing 1,251 blades, almost the total it has sold in the U.S.... Other Suzlon turbines have broken down because of cold weather in the Midwest.... Mr. Tanti has been able to exploit a shortage of turbines from more-established manufacturers like Vestas AS of Denmark, the world's largest wind-turbine producer, and General Electric Co, whose order books are full through 2010. At about $3 million each, Suzlon's turbines sold in the U.S. are priced about 25 percent cheaper than those of major competitors. ... How about 3,000 smaller thousand-dollar windmills instead? Couldn't those be mass-produced quickly, at a tasty profit? ApocaDoc permalink Thu, Jun 19, 2008 from Oxford Analytica, via Globe and Mail (Canada): Low carbon future depends on technology, reductions, efficiencies ... However, the report assumes that given the scale of the challenge, progress must be made on all viable technologies.... there is a disconnect between current energy sector investment plans worldwide and the requirements for transitioning to a low-carbon economy.... CONCLUSION: Conflicting political priorities suggest strongly that governments will be unable to act either individually or collectively with sufficient speed to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to IPCC recommendations. ... Well, then we just have to change our governments. ApocaDoc permalink Thu, Jun 19, 2008 from North Channel Sentinel (TX): Biocrude from waste too good to be true? Now Rivera must convince potential investors that his trade secret – 21 years and $31 million dollars in the making – isn’t just a bunch of smoke and mirrors. The "Rivera Method" takes such agricultural refuse as cracked soy beans, rice and cotton seed hulls, grain sorghum, milo and jatropha and turns them into bio-crude oil. This crude – or Vetroleum, as Rivera calls it - can then be further refined into everything from gasoline to jet fuel and just about every petrochemical in between. With this process, just one bushel (60 pounds) of organic waste can yield about six gallons of bio-crude, Rivera said. ... Please tell me the process itself isn't energy-intensive. ApocaDoc permalink Wed, Jun 18, 2008 from Daily Mail: New eco-nightclub where the dancers generate electricity Britain's first eco-nightclub is to open in King's Cross. The venue will sell organic spirits served in polycarbon cups and will be powered with renewable energy. There are also plans to install a recycled water system to flush its lavatories and an energy-generating dancefloor, which would harness power from the pounding of clubbers' feet and convert it into electricity. ... Saving the planet will have to feel like a party or people won't do it. ApocaDoc permalink Tue, Jun 17, 2008 from Science Daily (US): Pig manure 'crude oil' no panacea the NIST team has developed the first detailed chemical analysis revealing what processing is needed to transform pig manure crude oil into fuel for vehicles or heating. Mass production of [T]his type of biofuel could help consume a waste product overflowing at U.S. farms, and possibly enable cutbacks in the nation's petroleum use and imports. But, according to a new NIST paper, pig manure crude will require a lot of refining... [It] contains at least 83 major compounds, including many components that would need to be removed, such as about 15 percent water by volume, sulfur that otherwise could end up as pollution in vehicle exhaust, and lots of char waste containing heavy metals, including iron, zinc, silver, cobalt, chromium, lanthanum, scandium, tungsten and minute amounts of gold and hafnium. Whatever the pigs eat, from dirt to nutritional supplements, ends up in the oil. ... A far cry from "light sweet crude." But what did we expect from the back end of a pig? ApocaDoc permalink Mon, Jun 16, 2008 from Guardian (UK): Solar future brightens as oil soars "High oil prices have boosted demand even more. The market will probably expand another 40 percent this year," ... referring to both PV and solar thermal systems, which produce hot water. He said his previous assumption -- that grid parity would be reached in Germany in five to seven years -- now looked very conservative since it allowed for only a 3 percent rise in electricity prices each year. In many countries increases of 20 percent a year are becoming the norm. ... How about we choose to brighten our future... even faster! ApocaDoc permalink Sat, Jun 14, 2008 from London Times: Scientists find bugs that eat waste and excrete petrol "Silicon Valley is experimenting with bacteria that have been genetically altered to provide 'renewable petroleum'... To be more precise: the genetic alteration of bugs -- very, very small ones -- so that when they feed on agricultural waste such as woodchips or wheat straw, they do something extraordinary. They excrete crude oil." ... Now if we can just get them to also glow in the dark we'll have it made. ApocaDoc permalink Thu, Jun 12, 2008 from San Francisco Chronicle: Coalinga solar plant would also burn manure "A proposed Central Valley power plant will tap three potent sources of renewable energy at once - the sun, crop stubble and cow manure. The plant, near the old oil-patch town of Coalinga in Fresno County, will combine a large solar farm with a generator that burns orchard trimmings, agricultural waste and, yes, excrement. ... I don't wanna live downwind of that! ApocaDoc permalink Sat, Jun 7, 2008 from People's Daily: How to kick the carbon habit? To seriously de-carbonize the current energy economy, the greatest challenge perhaps lies in how to integrate the new energy resources into the existing energy infrastructure that was designed around fossil fuels. Electricity is the most important element of today's energy system. Mostly produced by coal-fired power plants, it also happens to be the largest and most easily replaced contributor to carbon emissions because almost all renewable sources, including solar, wind, geothermal, ocean and bioenergy, are all able to produce electricity. ... In The People's Daily!? Maybe we need a Little Green Book and a cultural revolution. ApocaDoc permalink Sat, Jun 7, 2008 from International Herald Tribune: $45 trillion urged in battling carbon emissions In one of the strongest warnings so far about the world's thirst for energy, the International Energy Agency said Friday that investment totaling $45 trillion might be needed over the next half-century to prevent energy shortages and greenhouse gas emissions from undermining global economic growth." ... Forty five trillion dollars sounds at lot like global economic growth to me! ApocaDoc permalink Mon, May 19, 2008 from Associated Press: Recycling options lag the compact fluorescent push "It's a message being drummed into the heads of homeowners everywhere: Swap out those incandescent lights with longer-lasting compact fluorescent bulbs and cut your electric use. Governments, utilities, environmentalists and, of course, retailers everywhere are spreading the word. Few, however, are volunteering to collect the mercury-laced bulbs for recycling — despite what public officials and others say is a potential health hazard if the hundreds of millions of them being sold are tossed in the trash and end up in landfills and incinerators." ... We're so good at making stuff and so bad at figuring what to do with it once we don't want it anymore. ApocaDoc permalink Tue, May 13, 2008 from San Francisco Chronicle: Energy Dept. says wind power could be savior "Windmills spinning over the Great Plains and along the coasts could supply 20 percent of U.S. electricity by the year 2030 and put a significant dent in greenhouse gas emissions, federal officials said Monday. Although wind farms now generate just 1 percent of the nation's electricity, a new report from the U.S. Department of Energy found that wind power could play a far larger role in the future. It could supply roughly the same percentage of the nation's power as nuclear plants provide today." ... Boy. If the U.S. Department of Energy is pushing wind power, you know the shit has hit the fan! ApocaDoc permalink Thu, May 1, 2008 from Christian Science Monitor: U.S. Eyes Shift Away from Corn Ethanol America's love affair with corn-based ethanol is cooling -- at least in Washington. Some legislators blame the rising use of corn as a biofuel as a key factor behind high food prices. Others want to freeze the federal mandate on biofuels production at current levels, reversing legislation passed just a few months ago that increases it through 2022. Still others are pushing to shift tax incentives away from corn-based to cellulose-based ethanol in the nearly completed farm bill. These moves represent a dramatic backlash against corn ethanol, which until a few months ago was widely viewed as a boon for both farmers and consumers. ...done right, a shift toward cellulose -- nonfood plant material like grasses and crop residues -- could reduce US reliance on imported oil just as well as corn does. And it would accomplish it with fewer food and environmental trade-offs. ... Was it ... was it something I said? ApocaDoc permalink Fri, Apr 25, 2008 from UTexas, via Slashdot: Solar-powered Cyanobacteria Produces Sugars for Biofuels A newly created microbe produces cellulose that can be turned into ethanol and other biofuels, report scientists from The University of Texas at Austin who say the microbe could provide a significant portion of the nation's transportation fuel if production can be scaled up. Along with cellulose, the cyanobacteria developed by Professor R. Malcolm Brown Jr. and Dr. David Nobles Jr. secrete glucose and sucrose. These simple sugars are the major sources used to produce ethanol. "The cyanobacterium is potentially a very inexpensive source for sugars to use for ethanol and designer fuels," says Nobles.... Brown and Nobles say their cyanobacteria can be grown in production facilities on non-agricultural lands using salty water unsuitable for human consumption or crops. The new cyanobacteria use sunlight as an energy source to produce and excrete sugars and cellulose, and can be continually harvested without harming or destroying the cyanobacteria. [Further,] cyanobacteria that can fix atmospheric nitrogen can be grown without petroleum-based fertilizer input. ... Hooray! This could be as big as the sun. Unless, of course, there's unintended consequences. ApocaDoc permalink Tue, Apr 22, 2008 from Los Angeles Times: Electric car for the masses to be made in Southern California "Norwegian automaker Think Global said Monday it planned to sell low-priced electric cars to the masses and will introduce its first models in the U.S. by the end of next year. The battery-powered Think City will be able to travel up to 110 miles on a single charge, with a top speed of about 65 mph, the company said. It will be priced below $25,000.... Ford Motor Co. was the longtime owner of Think but sold it in 2003. It was purchased by Norweigan investors two years ago, and began selling cars in Norway this year, with sales in Sweden, Denmark and Britain expected this year. The company said its annual production capacity in Europe is 10,000 vehicles. ... What was Ford thinking? ApocaDoc permalink Sun, Apr 13, 2008 from Chicago Tribune: Winds of change are blowing in the suburbs "Joel Lee doesn't consider himself an environmental maverick. He doesn't collect rainwater for bathing or drive a car powered by cooking grease. He's just an ordinary guy who has grown tired of the amount of money he forks over to heat his showers, light his bedroom and cool his home. So for the last year, Lee has been pressing officials in Will County to let him erect a 70-foot-tall wind turbine on the 10 acres that surround his ranch home near Peotone." ... Now, if we can figure out a way to keep these wind turbines from being a buzz saw for birds, we'll really be getting somewhere. ApocaDoc permalink Sat, Mar 15, 2008 from The News: "Islamabad Green City" charter to be signed today "Caretaker Prime Minister Mohammedmian Soomro has approved the proposal to declare the Islamabad a Green City and has directed the Ministry of Environment to finalise the Islamabad Green City Action Plan in consultation with all stakeholders including ministries of industries, petroleum, interior, health, CDA and others. A charter to declare the Islamabad a green city will be signed today (Saturday) with the promise that from now and onward every government official, resident, industrial and business entrepreneur, administration, planner/developer and civil society will work together to make Islamabad a True Green City by improving its Environmental Conditions and promoting Sustainable Development...About 100 cities have so far been declared as green cities world over. In the green cities, urban planning is given due importance and programmes such as energy conservation, tree plantation are carried out in a more coherent manner. ... Only 743,149 cities to go! ApocaDoc permalink Sat, Mar 8, 2008 from Los Angeles Times: Edison to launch big wind project "Southern California Edison said Friday that it was about to begin construction on a desert wind farm that could provide power for upward of 3 million homes by 2013, predicting that it would be the largest wind transmission project in the country...Michael Peevey, president of the California Public Utilities Commission, said the project would create the largest block of wind energy in the country." ... Clearly, this is a win-win-wind situation. ApocaDoc permalink Mon, Feb 25, 2008 from Science Daily (US): Bio-crude Turns Cheap Waste Into Valuable Fuel "This makes it practical and economical to produce bio-crude in local areas for transport to a central refinery, overcoming the high costs and greenhouse gas emissions otherwise involved in transporting bulky green wastes over long distances." The process uses low value waste such as forest thinnings, crop residues, waste paper and garden waste, significant amounts of which are currently dumped in landfill or burned." ... It's a start! How soon can I get a microversion for my yard waste? ApocaDoc permalink Sun, Feb 24, 2008 from Sandia National Laboratories: Sandia, Stirling Energy Systems set new world record for solar-to-grid conversion efficiency 31.25 percent efficiency rate topples 1984 record "Gaining two whole points of conversion efficiency in this type of system is phenomenal," says Bruce Osborn, SES president and CEO. "This is a significant advancement that takes our dish engine systems well beyond the capacities of any other solar dish collectors and one step closer to commercializing an affordable system." ... "Affordable" is a relative term, of course. If oil hits $200 this fall, this'll be a bargain. ApocaDoc permalink Sun, Feb 24, 2008 from Science Daily (US): New Fuel Cell Cleans Up Pollution And Produces Electricity "Scientists in Pennsylvania are reporting development of a fuel cell that uses pollution from coal and metal mines to generate electricity, solving a serious environmental problem while providing a new source of energy. They describe successful tests of a laboratory-scale version of the device in a new study." ... Sweet! Now, if only we could get funding to roll it out, since there's no obvious business model... ApocaDoc permalink Sat, Feb 9, 2008 from Associated Press: Device on knee can produce electricity "Call it the ultimate power walk. Researchers have developed a device that generates electrical power from the swing of a walking person's knee. With each stride the leg accelerates and then decelerates, using energy both for moving and braking...With the device, a minute of walking can power a cell phone for 10 minutes, [Max] Donelan, of Simon Fraser University in Burnaby, British Columbia, said in a telephone interview. Other potential uses include powering a portable GPS locator, a motorized prosthetic joint or implanted drug pumps." ... Now, if we can just get people to start walking. ApocaDoc permalink Thu, Feb 7, 2008 from Associated Press: Study: Ethanol may add to global warming "The widespread use of ethanol from corn could result in nearly twice the greenhouse gas emissions as the gasoline it would replace because of expected land-use changes, researchers concluded Thursday. The study challenges the rush to biofuels as a response to global warming. The researchers said that past studies showing the benefits of ethanol in combating climate change have not taken into account almost certain changes in land use worldwide if ethanol from corn -- and in the future from other feedstocks such as switchgrass -- become a prized commodity." ... Could it be the solution is to simply stop driving cars? ApocaDoc permalink Tue, Jan 29, 2008 from Technical Research Centre of Finland: Could Bush Chips Be Profitably Used For Electricity Generation In Namibia? "VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland has studied the profitability of using bush chips in electricity production in Namibia, where biomass from bushes has great energy production potential. Namibia suffers from the overgrowth of bush, which is disruptive to cattle raising, the country's primary source of livelihood. VTT also developed the production technology for bush chips. According to the study, the production of chips for power plants is technically possible." ... For once, bush could actually be of service to the environment. ApocaDoc permalink Sat, Jan 26, 2008 from Netherlands Organization for Scientific Research: Extra Power From Private Wind and Solar Generation Can Be Given Back To Grid More Easily "An increasing number of people use wind or solar energy as a power source, and at times, they have extra power available that could be sold to the electricity grid. Dutch-sponsored researcher Haimin Tao examined how this externally generated energy can be better stored and transferred." ... I'd sure like to figure what to with my private wind. ApocaDoc permalink Mon, Jan 21, 2008 from Montana State University: Renewed Interest In Turning Algae Into Fuel "The same brown algae that cover rocks and cause anglers to slip while fly fishing contain oil that can be turned into diesel fuel, says a Montana State University microbiologist. Drivers can't pump algal fuel into their gas tanks yet, but Keith Cooksey said the idea holds promise. He felt that way 20 years ago. He feels that way today. "We would be there now if people then hadn't been so short-sighted," Cooksey said." ... Well, good news for everybody but the algae! ApocaDoc permalink Fri, Jan 11, 2008 from DOE Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory and UC at Berkeley: Body Heat To Power Cell Phones? Nanowires Enable Recovery Of Waste Heat Energy "Energy now lost as heat during the production of electricity could be harnessed through the use of silicon nanowires synthesized via a technique developed by researchers ... The far-ranging potential applications of this technology include DOE’s hydrogen fuel cell-powered “Freedom CAR,” and personal power-jackets that could use heat from the human body to recharge cell-phones and other electronic devices." ... That our body heat can power our cell phones is such FABulous news! Of course ... if we don't have body heat it won't matter anyway. ApocaDoc permalink Copyright 2009 The Apocadocs.com