Monday, March 31, 2008
Sunday, March 30, 2008
Friday, March 28, 2008
Sunday, March 23, 2008
Saturday, March 22, 2008
Friday, March 21, 2008
Wednesday, March 19, 2008
Tuesday, March 18, 2008
Monday, March 17, 2008
Sunday, March 16, 2008
Friday, March 14, 2008
Thursday, March 13, 2008
Wednesday, March 12, 2008
Monday, March 10, 2008
Power Grid Capacity
Similar to how a mall parking lot has to sized handle the day after Thanksgiving load, our power grid must be sized to met the peak demands of morning factory turn on and early evening AC power-on.
Thursday, March 6, 2008
GM, Toyota Doubtful on Fuel Cells' Mass Use - WSJ.com
GM, Toyota Doubtful on Fuel Cells' Mass Use - WSJ.com
By EDWARD TAYLOR and MIKE SPECTORMarch 5, 2008; Page B2
GENEVA -- Top executives from General Motors Corp. and Toyota Motor Corp. Tuesday expressed doubts about the viability of hydrogen fuel cells for mass-market production in the near term and suggested their companies are now betting that electric cars will prove to be a better way to reduce fuel consumption and cut tailpipe emissions on a large scale.
Speaking at the Geneva auto show, GM Vice Chairman Bob Lutz told reporters that recent advances in lithium-ion batteries indicate that future electric cars might be able to travel 300 miles, or nearly 500 kilometers, before they need to recharge, making them much more practical as a mass-market product.
"If we get lithium-ion to 300 miles, then you need to ask yourself, Why do you need fuel cells?" Mr. Lutz told reporters. He added that fuel-cell vehicles are still far too expensive to be considered for the mass market. "We are nowhere [near] where we need to be on the costs curve," he said.
At a separate event at the show, Toyota President Katsuaki Watanabe echoed the concern about the high costs of fuel cells and noted the lack of an infrastructure to produce and distribute hydrogen fuel to a wide swath of consumers. These factors leave him with the impression that "it will be difficult to see the spread of fuel cells in 10 years' time," Mr. Watanabe said.
The comments indicate a shift in the auto industry's tone regarding fuel cells, especially at GM, which has spent the past two years highlighting its fuel-cell technologies as one of many initiatives it is pursuing to reduce petroleum consumption.
Fuel cells use hydrogen to create electricity, and have been hailed for years as the technology that will power no-emission cars of the future. Several years ago, GM essentially dropped its work on battery-powered cars to focus on fuel cells. Since then, Toyota has taken the lead on gas-electric hybrids, although it is working on fuel cells, too.
In the past two years, GM has been trying to improve its image with increasingly green-minded consumers by playing up its work on green vehicles, often with Mr. Lutz -- sometimes referred to in Detroit as Mr. Horsepower for his love of big, powerful cars -- as its chief spokesman.
The centerpiece of the effort is an electric car called the Volt, which includes a small gasoline engine to charge its battery on the go. GM hopes to launch the first Volt by 2010. Future versions may use fuel cells to charge the battery. The campaign has won fans among environmentalists for GM, a company previously scorned by many in the green crowd.
Mr. Lutz's comments in Geneva come at an awkward time for him. A few weeks ago, he told a reporter that he thinks global warming is a "crock of s -- ," raising questions about his commitment to GM's new green path. After news of his global-warming position spread on the Internet, he posted a response on GM's blog saying his personal views don't affect the company's direction.
Not all auto makers are backing away from fuel cells. Daimler AG expects to begin producing fuel-cell cars in limited quantities in 2010, Chief Executive Dieter Zetsche told reporters in Geneva. If demand takes off, Daimler could get the technology "into the cost range of conventional power trains," Mr. Zetsche said.
--John D. Stoll contributed to this article.
By EDWARD TAYLOR and MIKE SPECTORMarch 5, 2008; Page B2
GENEVA -- Top executives from General Motors Corp. and Toyota Motor Corp. Tuesday expressed doubts about the viability of hydrogen fuel cells for mass-market production in the near term and suggested their companies are now betting that electric cars will prove to be a better way to reduce fuel consumption and cut tailpipe emissions on a large scale.
Speaking at the Geneva auto show, GM Vice Chairman Bob Lutz told reporters that recent advances in lithium-ion batteries indicate that future electric cars might be able to travel 300 miles, or nearly 500 kilometers, before they need to recharge, making them much more practical as a mass-market product.
"If we get lithium-ion to 300 miles, then you need to ask yourself, Why do you need fuel cells?" Mr. Lutz told reporters. He added that fuel-cell vehicles are still far too expensive to be considered for the mass market. "We are nowhere [near] where we need to be on the costs curve," he said.
At a separate event at the show, Toyota President Katsuaki Watanabe echoed the concern about the high costs of fuel cells and noted the lack of an infrastructure to produce and distribute hydrogen fuel to a wide swath of consumers. These factors leave him with the impression that "it will be difficult to see the spread of fuel cells in 10 years' time," Mr. Watanabe said.
The comments indicate a shift in the auto industry's tone regarding fuel cells, especially at GM, which has spent the past two years highlighting its fuel-cell technologies as one of many initiatives it is pursuing to reduce petroleum consumption.
Fuel cells use hydrogen to create electricity, and have been hailed for years as the technology that will power no-emission cars of the future. Several years ago, GM essentially dropped its work on battery-powered cars to focus on fuel cells. Since then, Toyota has taken the lead on gas-electric hybrids, although it is working on fuel cells, too.
In the past two years, GM has been trying to improve its image with increasingly green-minded consumers by playing up its work on green vehicles, often with Mr. Lutz -- sometimes referred to in Detroit as Mr. Horsepower for his love of big, powerful cars -- as its chief spokesman.
The centerpiece of the effort is an electric car called the Volt, which includes a small gasoline engine to charge its battery on the go. GM hopes to launch the first Volt by 2010. Future versions may use fuel cells to charge the battery. The campaign has won fans among environmentalists for GM, a company previously scorned by many in the green crowd.
Mr. Lutz's comments in Geneva come at an awkward time for him. A few weeks ago, he told a reporter that he thinks global warming is a "crock of s -- ," raising questions about his commitment to GM's new green path. After news of his global-warming position spread on the Internet, he posted a response on GM's blog saying his personal views don't affect the company's direction.
Not all auto makers are backing away from fuel cells. Daimler AG expects to begin producing fuel-cell cars in limited quantities in 2010, Chief Executive Dieter Zetsche told reporters in Geneva. If demand takes off, Daimler could get the technology "into the cost range of conventional power trains," Mr. Zetsche said.
--John D. Stoll contributed to this article.
Wednesday, March 5, 2008
Photovoltaic Cells Are Still Very Green, Comparative Test Shows - New York Times
Photovoltaic Cells Are Still Very Green, Comparative Test Shows - New York Times
By HENRY FOUNTAIN
Published: February 26, 2008
Solar power generated by photovoltaic cells is among the greenest of energy options. The cells just sit there, basking in the sun and emitting nothing but electrons.
Emissions from Photovoltaic Life Cycles (Environmental Science & Technology)
But cells are manufactured, and the manufacturing process is not benign. Over the life cycle of solar cells — from the mining of raw materials to the finished product — just how green are they?
Vasilis M. Fthenakis of Brookhaven National Laboratory and colleagues have the latest analysis, to be published in Environmental Science and Technology. The short answer is that photovoltaic cells are still very green.
The researchers looked at emissions of greenhouse gases and pollutants like nitrogen oxide gases and heavy metals from the manufacture of four types of cells. Most of the emissions are results of the electricity used, and the amounts depend in part on the mix of electricity in the grid, or how much comes from coal plants, hydroelectric, nuclear and the like.
The researchers found that thin-film cadmium telluride cells were the greenest, although the differences among the four types were slight. All told, the researchers say, replacing electrical power from the grid with electricity generated by solar cells results in at least an 89 percent reduction in greenhouse gases and pollutants.
By HENRY FOUNTAIN
Published: February 26, 2008
Solar power generated by photovoltaic cells is among the greenest of energy options. The cells just sit there, basking in the sun and emitting nothing but electrons.
Emissions from Photovoltaic Life Cycles (Environmental Science & Technology)
But cells are manufactured, and the manufacturing process is not benign. Over the life cycle of solar cells — from the mining of raw materials to the finished product — just how green are they?
Vasilis M. Fthenakis of Brookhaven National Laboratory and colleagues have the latest analysis, to be published in Environmental Science and Technology. The short answer is that photovoltaic cells are still very green.
The researchers looked at emissions of greenhouse gases and pollutants like nitrogen oxide gases and heavy metals from the manufacture of four types of cells. Most of the emissions are results of the electricity used, and the amounts depend in part on the mix of electricity in the grid, or how much comes from coal plants, hydroelectric, nuclear and the like.
The researchers found that thin-film cadmium telluride cells were the greenest, although the differences among the four types were slight. All told, the researchers say, replacing electrical power from the grid with electricity generated by solar cells results in at least an 89 percent reduction in greenhouse gases and pollutants.
Monday, March 3, 2008
Low Impact Living » Blog Archive » The Future of Solar?
Low Impact Living » Blog Archive » The Future of Solar?
The Future of Solar?
Posted by Jason Pelletier, Low Impact Living
There’s a huge amount of hype out there about solar, but as any walk around your neighborhood will show the number of homes and businesses powered by the sun is still exceedingly small. In order for solar to be part of the solution to our energy and global warming woes, clearly some things have to change! Better rebates and higher electricity prices will certainly help, but the true solutions will ultimately lie in technology.
Today’s solar panels suffer from one critical shortcoming: cost. Each watt of solar capacity installed today costs around $8, and a typical home in the US will require 5,000 - 10,000 watts of capacity to produce 100% of its electricity needs (depending on how much sun there is where you live). Rebates can sometimes cut this price in half, but even with that you’re still talking about $20,000 - $40,000 per household!
Why is this so expensive? About half of the cost of solar today comes from the panels themselves (the rest is installation and other equipment). The vast majority of today’s solar panels are made from silicon, the same material that computer chips are made from. The manufacturing process is expensive, there’s more global demand than supply right now, and today’s panels are relatively inefficient: even the best turn only 15%-18% of the sun’s energy into electricity. That all leads to a high cost per panel.
There are at least three key ways to cut that cost. Number one, you can reduce the manufacturing cost. Number two, you can increase the efficiency of each panel, which allows a panel to convert more of the sun’s light into electricity. Or, number three, you can integrate solar PV technology into other building materials that you would have to buy anyway, such as rooftops and windows (like the cool solar shingles from SunPower Corp at left). Companies and researches across the globe are frantically working on all three (and some combine them all). Over the next few weeks we’ll highlight top companies focusing on each approach, starting with reducing manufacturing costs today.
Reduce Solar Manufacturing Costs
One of the most exciting sectors of the solar industry today is thin-film solar - venture capitalists have dumped hundreds of millions of dollars into solar companies (must be nice!), and the companies are the darlings of the green blogosphere. This technology involves depositing a thin film of pretty exotic materials onto a conductive backing. These panels are less efficient than today’s silicon-based ones, but they are so much less expensive to manufacture that they might cut the cost of each watt of solar capacity by up to 75% (to the $2 / watt installed range)!
One of the most promising companies in this area is Nanosolar, which has just finished building a 200,000 square foot factory in Northern California. If they deliver as promised, they could be a major step towards bringing solar costs into the realm of traditional power plants. Unfortunately for us, the company’s first year (at least) of production has already been reserved for the German market, so you might have to wait a few years if you want Nanosolar on your rooftop.
Another hot company is HelioVolt. HelioVolt uses materials similar to Nanosolar (often called CIGS, an acronym for copper indium gallium selenide, the compounds that form the solar coating), but employs a different process that can be used to deposit the coatings on metal, glass, and even composite surfaces. They aren’t nearly as far along as Nanosolar, though, so it will be some time before HelioVolt will come to a window near you!
We’re rooting for these companies, for they seem to offer a clear path to truly inexpensive solar. Look for our pieces on some other options over the next few weeks.
March 2nd, 2008 in Global Warming, Energy use, Solar permalink
The Future of Solar?
Posted by Jason Pelletier, Low Impact Living
There’s a huge amount of hype out there about solar, but as any walk around your neighborhood will show the number of homes and businesses powered by the sun is still exceedingly small. In order for solar to be part of the solution to our energy and global warming woes, clearly some things have to change! Better rebates and higher electricity prices will certainly help, but the true solutions will ultimately lie in technology.
Today’s solar panels suffer from one critical shortcoming: cost. Each watt of solar capacity installed today costs around $8, and a typical home in the US will require 5,000 - 10,000 watts of capacity to produce 100% of its electricity needs (depending on how much sun there is where you live). Rebates can sometimes cut this price in half, but even with that you’re still talking about $20,000 - $40,000 per household!
Why is this so expensive? About half of the cost of solar today comes from the panels themselves (the rest is installation and other equipment). The vast majority of today’s solar panels are made from silicon, the same material that computer chips are made from. The manufacturing process is expensive, there’s more global demand than supply right now, and today’s panels are relatively inefficient: even the best turn only 15%-18% of the sun’s energy into electricity. That all leads to a high cost per panel.
There are at least three key ways to cut that cost. Number one, you can reduce the manufacturing cost. Number two, you can increase the efficiency of each panel, which allows a panel to convert more of the sun’s light into electricity. Or, number three, you can integrate solar PV technology into other building materials that you would have to buy anyway, such as rooftops and windows (like the cool solar shingles from SunPower Corp at left). Companies and researches across the globe are frantically working on all three (and some combine them all). Over the next few weeks we’ll highlight top companies focusing on each approach, starting with reducing manufacturing costs today.
Reduce Solar Manufacturing Costs
One of the most exciting sectors of the solar industry today is thin-film solar - venture capitalists have dumped hundreds of millions of dollars into solar companies (must be nice!), and the companies are the darlings of the green blogosphere. This technology involves depositing a thin film of pretty exotic materials onto a conductive backing. These panels are less efficient than today’s silicon-based ones, but they are so much less expensive to manufacture that they might cut the cost of each watt of solar capacity by up to 75% (to the $2 / watt installed range)!
One of the most promising companies in this area is Nanosolar, which has just finished building a 200,000 square foot factory in Northern California. If they deliver as promised, they could be a major step towards bringing solar costs into the realm of traditional power plants. Unfortunately for us, the company’s first year (at least) of production has already been reserved for the German market, so you might have to wait a few years if you want Nanosolar on your rooftop.
Another hot company is HelioVolt. HelioVolt uses materials similar to Nanosolar (often called CIGS, an acronym for copper indium gallium selenide, the compounds that form the solar coating), but employs a different process that can be used to deposit the coatings on metal, glass, and even composite surfaces. They aren’t nearly as far along as Nanosolar, though, so it will be some time before HelioVolt will come to a window near you!
We’re rooting for these companies, for they seem to offer a clear path to truly inexpensive solar. Look for our pieces on some other options over the next few weeks.
March 2nd, 2008 in Global Warming, Energy use, Solar permalink
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