ES-A Series Solar Panels
Solar panels are a collection of solar or photovoltaic cells. These photovoltaic cells harvest sunlight and convert the solar energy into electrical energy. Solar cells are positioned into grid-like pattern on the face of solar panel. Photovoltaic cells collect sunlight during day and this light energy can be stored and used as electrical energy. Photovoltaics are made up of semiconductors which have the property to transform sunlight into electricity. Many materials have semiconductor property but the most widely used material is silicon. Though silicon in itself resists electric current but this property can be altered by combining small amounts of other materials that make it receptive to positive or negative electrical charge. 1 Comment
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Till now we have battery operated cars or hybrid cars. Hybrid cars reduce your gas consumption and air pollution. If you are using battery operated cars, you can’t drive on the spur of a moment. You have to PLAN and recharge the batteries. Otherwise your vehicle will carry you for a few miles and then it will stop and you will be stuck somewhere you don’t want to. You also have to compromise on the size, space and speed of the car. And since you are using a storage device in the car, you have to fear and respect that too. 
Frontiers for electric vehicles have changed: 10 years ago or even more recently it was almost impossible to consider an electric solution for all-terrain purposes, now on the market we see new products with highly improved performances. Pioneer in this field is the Italian company Alkè (www.alke.com) who invested research and time to develop the new ATX E range of high performance electric vehicles. They have been able to provide electric utility vehicles that face till 40% slopes (with RID version engines), sandy and icy grounds, loading capacity of 500-1000Kg and towing capacity of around 2000-3000Kg. 
Green collar jobs are related to products and services that are environment friendly. The organizations that incorporate environment friendly practices are termed as "green" and the jobs arising out of this green policy is "green collared job." Like other sectors, green sector too has designing, manufacturing, installing, operating and maintenance units. The current scenario of price rise of gasoline, depleting stock of conventional energy sources, ozone effect, global warming are forcing humankind to look for alternative energy sources. Various research organizations are on the verge of breakthroughs as far as green technology is concerned. 
KinergyPower is a new form of alternative energy which is also an example of distributed generation. KinergyPower was invented by two brothers Stefanos and Dimitri Horianopolous in Greece in 2002. Their system uses a series of hydraulic pistons to absorb the kinetic energy from the motion of traffic and transform it into hydraulic pressure. This pressure powers a hydro-generator unit which produces electricity. KinergyPowerUSA was established in September 2005 and is based in Bedford, NY. It is headed by a management team that includes local Westchester business executives Demetri and Susan Papacostas. 
We are already experiencing the ill effects of greenhouse gases in the form of global warming, glaciers and polar ice melting, rise in the sea level and sudden, unpredictable variation in weather, turning catastrophic sometimes. The eventual effect of global warming is sending a chill down the spines of environmentalists. Several teams of researchers are working overnight on carbon capture technology. It intends to remove undesirable amount of carbon dioxide, the main culprit in global warming, from the atmosphere. 
American scientist Peter Glaser proposed the idea of using space solar power in 1968. The fast depleting conventional energy resources renewed the interest for trapping the solar power via satellites. Right now the usual alternative energy methods have their own shortcomings. Hydro power plants disrupt ecosystems and human habitats. Minimum rain threatens hydro power. Clouds block the sun and sunlight. Wind can choose not to blow at the desirable speed. Alternative energy plants provide intermittent power supply, thus forcing us to store energy. All these factors increase the complexities of using alternative fuels. 
All three presidential nominees for the upcoming 2008 US elections are promising that they can end America's addition to oil through the research and development of green energy technologies. They claim that developing alternative energies will create jobs and turn the economy around, while helping to stop global warming and the national security issues caused by dependence on foreign oil imports. While their platforms sound appealing, politicians often say what we want to hear in order to get votes... so who do you trust is most likely to follow through on these promises? Are their claims even realistic? We gathered a few YouTube clips of each candidate speaking on the topic. Scroll down to cast your vote and leave your comments. 
Norwegian company StatoilHydro is working on a 2.3 megawatt floating wind turbine that will be attached to the top of 'Spar-buoy' and moored to the seabed by three anchor points. It is hoped that the 80 meter diameter, 65 meter high Siemens turbine will have lower deep-water installation costs when compared to traditional wind installations. The company plans to have the first prototype ready by fall of 2009, when they will begin feasibility tests to assess how it stands up to high winds. A 3 meter high scale model has already been tested in a wave tank simulator. 
A dual mode road/rail vehicle is being tested in Japan by Toyota and its truck-manufacturing division Hino Motors. The bus bridges the gap between road and rail with 4 rubber tires for road use and 4 steel wheels for riding on rails. It can hold 25 passengers and is based on the Toyota Microbus. The bus has been in service in Japan for the past 18 months, and there are plans to produce a newer version by June of 2008. Hino spokesperson Kenichiro Baba has stated that the bus "is expected to be another step toward more practical use of the dual mode vehicle." This could be the mass transit vehicle of the future for Japanese commuters. 
Here's another flashy concept that uses solar energy for transportation: the solar speedboat! Unlike the solar sailor we talked about earlier, the Dutch MK1 prototype is designed to travel at speeds up to 30 knots! In 2006 the Delft Technical University Solarboat Team raced the speedboat to first place in the Nuon Frisian Solar Challenge. The 10 meter long lightweight boat has a carbon fibre body and an 80 kilowatt motor powered by 14 square meters of solar panels. The boat is obviously not designed for utilitarian purposes, but it is a positive step toward further development of solar technologies. Watch the video to see it in action! 
Mother Earth News recently featured an extensive article covering instructions on building your own small-scale solar heating system for as low as $30. The 9 page tutorial includes step by step instructions from Don R. and George Waterman of Springfield, Missouri, and is based on their experience installing the system on their 30x40 insulated workshop. According to Don, the system successfully supplies enough power to keep the building's interior comfortable in near-zero degree weather. 
According to a recent article from Greentech Media, a Massachusetts aerospace company called FloDesign is working on a wind turbine concept that could potentially be at least twice as efficient as traditional rotor blade turbines, which force air around them instead of through them. It works by channeling wind into a vortex that spins the blades and generates electricity. The company hopes to have a working prototype completed by the end of 2009. Unfortunately their website at flodesignwindturbine.org is not currently functional, but the following video gives a great overview and technical details. 
California based company Green Vehicles recently began selling an affordable $20,000 electric car called the Triac. The small but efficient 3-wheeled car has a range of 120 miles and can travel up to 70mph on the highway. Charging the lithium-ion batteries that power the 20kw electric motor takes about 6 hours, and there is an optional capacity boost battery pack available that extends the range by 20% (why not include it with the car?). The Triac comes in 8 different color combinations and is available from the dealership in San Jose. See the company website for more details. 
With oil prices crossing the $135-dollar barrier the alternative energy company executives are really rubbing their hands in anticipation. In just May the oil prices have risen 20% and consequently the stock markets are panicking big time. Rising raw material costs, if not tackled in time, is definitely going to trigger an economic slowdown. On the contrary the stocks of alternative and renewable energy companies are hitting new highs with: ABN AMRO index of renewable energy stocks has climbed 9.5%. 
Google recently launched Earth Outreach as part of an effort to provide non-profit and public benefit organizations the knowledge and resources they need to reach hearts and minds in the ongoing struggle to raise awareness about global warming and climate change. Their environment and science showcase provides links to some of the more helpful and informative tools in the collection. You have to have Google Earth installed in order to view the files. 
Remember the Solar Lily Pads? Well, Swiss inventor Thomas Hinderling has taken that idea to the next level with his solar islands concept (check out the video). The 5km wide, 20m height island concept would be mobile and would adjust according to the sun's movement across the sky. Each island would generate hundreds of kilowatts of electricity that would be almost five times cheaper than current electricity rates. A company called CSEM is financing construction of a prototype this year in the United Arab Emirates, and they are hopeful that full production of these islands could begin as soon as 2011. 
The flowing waters in the rivers and tidal waves can be a good source of alternative energy. With 70% of the earth's surface covered with water, a great amount of energy can be produced by placing turbines at strategic locations under strong currents. This method of generating electric power is called hydrokinetic power generation. In fact, plans are under way to install 875 submerged turbines inside the Niagara river. 
General Electric and the C-MAR Group recently announced plans to work together on the development of hybrid engine technologies for tugboats, in an effort to offer lower costs for customers and while lowering carbon emissions. The tugboat platform builds on current hybrid technology projects for locomotives, city buses and off-highway vehicles. These hybrid technologies are all part of GE’s ecomagination initiative. Ecomagination represents the company’s commitment to develop new environmentally friendly technologies and products to solve our toughest environmental challenges. 
For the past several months the San Francisco Public Utility Commission (SFPUC) has begun picking up used cooking oil from restaurants and businesses for free in an effort to find fuel alternatives for its municipal fleet. The city hopes to expand the grease recycling program (called SFGreasecycle) to include small-scale household pickups and eventually power all city vehicles on biodiesel, including public buses and fire trucks. The oil is picked from local restaurants by SFPUC trucks, dropped off at a transfer station, filtered, transferred into a multi storage tank settling system, then decanted for three days. The oil is then sold to a biodiesel plant using bulk transport tractor-trailer pickups. 
