Alternative sources of energy are clean and green but the catch is they generate less energy compared to fossil fuels. So now the scientists are trying to use different sources of alternative energy at the same place and same time to generate power. Attempts are being made to combine two forms of external energy sources such as light and heat or light and vibration to generate external energy so that enough energy can be collected for practical use. Fujitsu Laboratories have now succeeded in using hybrid energy sources to generate power. Fujitsu Laboratories wants to provide this technology for commercial use by the year 2015.
Fujitsu Laboratories: Making power from two sources of energy
Fujitsu Laboratories are working extensively in this regard, and to generate electricity both from heat and light, they are creating a new hybrid energy harvesting device. Energy harvesting is the procedure used in accumulating energy from the environment. Later on that energy is transformed into electricity. Fujitsu is not doing something innovative. Work in this field was done by scientists earlier too. But hybrid energy could only be generated by combining separate devices and that proved costly so it was commercially unviable.
Reducing the cost
Now Fujitsu laboratories confirm that two separate devices are not needed to generate electricity from a hybrid source. How were they successful in reducing costs? They used organic materials for creating hybrid device. This lowers the cost, and the new technology is showing promise to convert energy from the environment to electricity. The device from Fujitsu Laboratories is just a one-piece device that catches energy from the most common form of energy available for large scale use.
The use of organic material
An organic material of high efficiency that can generate power from both photovoltaic and thermoelectric mode has been developed by Fujitsu Laboratories. This organic material can make power both from heat in thermoelectric mode and indoor lighting in photovoltaic mode. The production cost is very low because of the organic materials and the processing costs are very low. The device can be made to work as a thermoelectric generator or photovoltaic cell by changing the electrical circuit connecting P-type and N-type semiconductors.
read more...
Power from Two Energy Sources
Coal Emissions from U.S. Could Stop in 20 Years
Quoted from journal Environmental Science and Technology (ES and T), Pushker Kharecha and his colleagues believe that we should follow some practical methods to do away with coal and conventional fossil fuel emissions. We all know that use of fossil fuels leads towards carbon emissions that cause immense damage to our environment.They say, “The only practical way to preserve a planet resembling that of the Holocene (today’s world) with reasonably stable shorelines and preservation of species is to rapidly phase out coal emissions and prohibit emissions from unconventional fossil fuels such as oil shale and tar sands.” This group includes scientists, engineers, and architects. They are from NASA’s Goddard Institute for Space Studies, the Columbia University Earth Institute, the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, and 2030 Inc./Architecture 2030.
They believe that United States could totally stop emissions of carbon dioxide from coal-fired electric power plants. It is not a tall talk but can be achievable within 20 years. To achieve this target one doesn’t have to depend on some miracle or God send technology. This can be done by using technology that already exists or could be commercially viable within a decade.
The authors suggested some strategies to make that phase-out possible. They ask for elimination of subsidies for fossil fuels. They also suggest about putting rising prices on carbon emissions. They also want major improvements in electricity transmission. They want the utilization of power in the homes, commercial buildings, and appliances to be judicious and efficient. This team is also suggesting for the replacement of coal power with biomass, geothermal, wind, solar, and third-generation nuclear power. Pushker Kharecha and colleagues also want that if nuclear power plants are a success at commercial levels then we should opt for the deployment of advanced (fourth-generation) nuclear power plants. They also advocate of the methods of carbon capture and storage at remaining coal plants.
Human Power is The Future, Forget Solar Power
That may be a little aggressive, but Princeton University engineers have developed a device that may change the way that we power many of our smaller gadgets and devices. By using out natural body movement, they have created a small chip that will actually capture and harness that natural energy to create enough energy to power up things such as a cell phone, pacemaker and many other small devices that are electronic.The chip is actually a combination of rubber and ceramic nanoribbons. When the chip is flexed, it generates electrical energy. How will this be put to use? Think of rubber soled shoes that have this chip embedded into them and every time a step is taken, energy is created and stored. Just the normal walking around inside the office during a normal work day would be enough to keep that cell phone powered every day.
An application that has pacemaker users excited is the fact that this chip could be placed in proximity of the lungs and it would create natural power for their pacemakers. Currently, the only way to replace the battery is to go through another surgery, but the natural motion of the lungs would create enough movement to continuously power the device via this chip. Finally, only one surgery would be needed and unless there was actually a problem with the pacemaker itself, there would no longer be the need to go under the knife again.
This technology is an incredible development in that it can have so many different applications. The engineers at Princeton were able to combine the materials in a way that created an electric charge when pressure is applied to the chip. It actually converts about 80% of the mechanical energy into electrical energy. In the case of the pacemaker, this means a constant power source as the lungs would obviously continuously apply the pressure that was needed to create the energy.
Additionally, the new power chip is pretty much ready to go in regards to being an implant device. Because of the materials that it is made up of, the body should readily accept it without fear of rejection. When we think of how many varieties of medical devices that are available and require power sources, this is a truly amazing invention.
While it would appear that the technology itself is very futuristic, once it is able to be mass produced, it is probably reasonable to assume that the chips will not actually be all that expensive because of the materials that are being used in its construction. They may be a bit pricey when they first hit the market, but as they become more widely used and available, that price tag should come down.
Similar technology has already been introduced in other products, but nothing that has the flexibility of this product. Human power is nothing new, but to be able to have medical devices implanted that require nothing more than normal breathing or walking is quite amazing.
(alternative energy)
Energy Harvesting "Piezo Tree" Consept
Researchers at the Cornell University have taken inspiration from nature and tried to imitate the swaying of tree branches. So what is the difference between natural swaying of trees and energy-harvesting tree created by Cornell University researchers? The flapping leaves developed in the laboratory generate energy which can be utilized by us. They are christened as the “Piezo-tree.” The synthetic leaves of the “Piezo-tree” are connected to a piezoelectric stem. The whole exercise till now appears to be low-cost, and easily scalable.
The movement of leaves is responsible for generating energy. They convert wind energy into electrical energy. The flapping motion of the leaves causes the instability of the aero-elastic system. The main constituent of the “Piezo-tree” is of Polyvinylidene Fluoride (PVDF) which is a flexible piezoelectric material.
The prototype behaves as a tree facing breeze. The Piezo-tree’s flexible plate and film oscillate just as a flag or leaf might flap in the wind. The flapping motion is generated due to instability of the aero-elastic system. Because the flexible piezoelectric material Polyvinylidene Fluoride (PVDF) can endure unpredictable wind strength. They have attached one edge of PVDF element to a cylinder bluff body and left the other edge free. When the breeze blows and touches this bluff body, it leads to a vortex-shedding. Then the periodic pressure difference forces the piezo-leaf to synchronously bend in the downstream of the air wake. The AC signal is gleaned from the flapping piezo-leaf that is working on a periodic bending model, and the electrical energy is then stored in a capacitor after rectifying it with a full-wave bridge.
However, Cornell University researchers were able to generate only about 100 pW because of the weak piezoelectric strain coefficient of PVDF. When the preliminary Piezo-Leaf Generator’s power level was not sufficient enough it was unable to drive even a common LED. Then, researchers attached a piece of plastic film to the end of the leaf along the direction of air flow. This move paid off. Now it showed around 100 times increase of power in the same condition. Researchers also tried various permutations and combinations. They had conducted a series of experiments. They utilized attachments of various shape, area, density and flexibility of plastic and polymer film. This threw out different results in the level of power.
When researchers were trying out different anatomical structure of their synthetic tree their design optimization studies showed that a particular vertical stalk, horizontal leaf arrangement would increase power output by an order of magnitude. This is a enormous, ten-fold progress over current leaf-stalk arrangements. The “piezo-tree” could be utilized as an efficient and exceptional power producer in a variety of environments. For practical and commercial purposes the researchers anticipate to build plant-like devices with hundreds or thousands of piezo-leaves
read more...
The World Bank Invest to North African Solar Power
The World Bank will invest $5.5 billion for North African solar power projects. They have announced that initially World Bank will put in $750 million dollars from the Clean Technology Fund with the remaining amount will be arranged from other sources. World Bank is expecting to complete these projects by 2015. They are willing to include five countries in this project and hoping to triple world wide concentrated solar power technology (CSP) capacity. This relatively new technology uses mirrors to concentrate sunlight onto a single point, heating water to drive turbines. Construction of the 11 facilities in the project is scheduled to begin in 2011. It is expected that the North African project will generate a total of 900 MW in capacity by 2020.The project will save 1.7 million tons of greenhouse gases per year. That will be equal to taking 600,000 cars off the road. It is estimated that 10,000 jobs may be created by this project. This project will include Algeria, Egypt, Jordan, Morocco and Tunisia. It will provide energy to countries in the area as well as to Europe. Europe will act as the nerve center of the production jobs. U.K. is willing to invest 56 million pounds or $91 million USD in this project. Gareth Thomas is the International Development Minister. He shares his opinion, “Large-scale solar projects such as this have the potential to power the globe in the coming decades, offering us a route away from fossil fuels and limiting the potentially devastating impacts of climate change. Global financial support for renewable energy is absolutely vital if we are to meet the international emissions targets we are pushing for at Copenhagen.”
In terms of generating electricity it might not make a big impact, the project could change the economics and the quality of life for many in the region. It goes without saying that the solar project will give the necessary boost to the market for a growing solar infrastructure. The PR material claims “accelerate cost reduction for a technology that could become least-cost globally.”
The most important beneficiaries of the CSP project will be the citizens of North Africa. They will be able to use clean and green energy to power their homes. But a portion of this energy will be up for sale too. The energy can be exported to the nearby markets of Europe.
Shamshad Akhtar is the World Bank Regional Vice President of the Middle East and North Africa (MENA). He explains about the project, “This is a most strategic and significant initiative for MENA countries. The initiative would leverage energy diversification, while promoting Euro-Mediterranean integration to the benefit of MENA countries that will be able to exploit one of the major untapped sources of energy. This endeavor is far-reaching with global objectives, implications, and potential impact. It will facilitate faster and greater diffusion of this technology in this region which holds significant potential for CSP
New Hidrogen Storage Method
Hydrogen is an extremely environment friendly fuel as when it burns it releases only water vapor into the atmosphere, but the problem is that it is not easy to store it because it needs to be stored like other compressed gases. A new solid may solve the problem. A nonreactive noble gas called xenon combined with hydrogen and other massive pressure gives rise to a solid that can be later used to store hydrogen fuel. The research paper is published in the November 22, 2009, advanced online publication of Nature Chemistry. The discovery initiates a new line of materials that which could render impetus to new hydrogen technologies.Xenon is used as an anesthesia, to preserve biological tissues, and it is also used in lighting. Being a noble gas xenon does not typically react with other elements. Researchers used a diamond anvil device to squeeze together xenon and hydrogen.
The lead author Maddury Somayazulu, research scientist at Carnegie’s Geophysical Laboratory, explained: “Elements change their configuration when placed under pressure, sort of like passengers readjusting themselves as the elevator becomes full. We subjected a series of gas mixtures of xenon in combination with hydrogen to high pressures in a diamond anvil cell. At about 41,000 times the pressure at sea level (1 atmosphere), the atoms became arranged in a lattice structure dominated by hydrogen, but interspersed with layers of loosely bonded xenon pairs. When we increased pressure, like tuning a radio, the distances between the xenon pairs changed-the distances contracted to those observed in dense metallic xenon.”
The researchers imaged the compound at different pressures using X-ray diffraction, infrared and Raman spectroscopy. They were really surprised to realize that the response of xenon with the surrounding hydrogen was responsible for the unusual stability and the continuous change in xenon-xenon distances as pressure was adjusted from 41,000 to 255,000 atmospheres.
The researchers were taken off guard by both the structure and stability of this material xenon, according to the lead crystallographer who looked at the changes in electron density at varying pressures using single-crystal diffraction. As electron density from the xenon atoms spreads towards the surrounding hydrogen molecules, it stabilizes the compound and the xenon pairs.
Xenon as a hydrogen carrier is too heavy and expensive but further research in this direction can definitely lead to lighter alternatives. According to Russell Hemley, director of the Geophysical Laboratory and a co-author, “This hydrogen-rich solid represents a new pathway to forming novel hydrogen storage compounds and the new pressure-induced chemistry opens the possibility of synthesizing new energetic materials.”
TOYOTA : Solar Charging Stations
It seemed like it would only be a matter of time before Toyota would jump into the market of using renewable energy to charge a car and they have done so in a big way. The solar charging station by Toyota will be put on display at the Tokyo Motor Show 2009. While there are other charging stations on the market for electric cars, the fact that this one is solar powered has the industry abuzz in anticipation.The solar charging station by Toyota almost looks like something that you would have seen in one of the old sci-fi movies, but this is the real deal. It works by collecting the suns energy through solar panels and then stores the energy in a battery that is later used to charge and power the vehicle. This is just another great innovation that is pushing our world to a ‘greener’ lifestyle and will use renewable energy in yet another every day application.
While there is not yet a price tag that has been placed on the device, it should be available on the general market for purchase sometime in 2010. Current estimates have it coming out in the range of “several hundred thousand yen” (a few thousand in USD). With the money that one would save on their electric bill, you would have to think that this will be worth every penny once it finally does hit the open market.
In addition to the solar charging station by Toyota has also introduced a battery charger that can be mounted directly into the vehicle. It will just about double the current voltage to charge the secondary battery of hybrid vehicles. This is another money saver that electric car owners will probably flock to once it is available to them.
A solar panel charger for an automobile is a huge breakthrough in that hybrid and electric cars are becoming more and more popular because of the falling economy and rising gas prices. If someone can use solar charging and recover the cost of their investment in just a few months, it makes even more sense to buy one of these energy efficient cars. In less than a year, you can literally be charging your car and driving down the highway at absolutely no cost to you. The world is well on its way to becoming ‘greener’ and innovative uses of solar panel chargers will lead the way.
Consept Bridge could Generate Electricity from Moving Cars
When people thought about telephones in underdeveloped countries it was like they would have to invest a huge sum in infrastructure in the form of poles, wires and equipments. No one imagined about cell phones at that time. They transcend most of the infrastructures. In this hour of impending depletion of fossil fuels we have to think differently. The steps may seem small today but they might leave a huge impact in future. Today we can’t be a bystander and watch the energy scene passively.We know that solar and wind energy is the richest sources of energy. Tiago Barros and Jorge Pereira have created a design that increases the ‘green’ quotient of a bridge. We might have experienced the fact that when cars pass below a bridge, they increase the velocity of the neighboring wind. Tiago Barros and Jorge Pereira are harnessing that quality of the wind. Their designed bridge will light up itself in the night with the power generated by the cars that pass below the bridge by the day. It works on the principle of energy conversion, i.e. from wind to electric energy. The designers believe that cars passing under the bridge will add to wind velocity by up to 20%, optimizing the rotation of the panels. The cross-wind bridge will act like a multipurpose envelope. A unique kind of envelop that will capture the wind power from a network of 2,188 light-weight rotating panels. This bridge is called as Cross-Wind Bridge.
In this design an induction power system plays an important role. It exchanges wind energy through an electromagnetic band located on each panel. This culminates into a power source which is used to light the bridge by night. This clean and green source of energy will increase the green quotient by 35% because of the punctured membrane utilized in the bridge cladding. Why? Because it is made of recycled steel from the auto industry.
Tiago Barros and Jorge Pereira team consists of Ines Valente, Rob Foote III, Yoon-Young Hur, Natalie Bazile and Joao Paulo Fernandes. The cross-wind bridge is 40m in length running southwest / northwest direction over the Segunda circular highway in Lisbon. Its path’s oblique angles are positioned in such a way that they can optimize predominant wind directions. This bridge has another unique feature; it provides a tunnel for pedestrians and bikers too. Cross-Wind Bridge also reconnects and makes accessible the remaining paths of Maria Droste Vila split by the highway and surrounded by Telheiral’s residential park. Again , the bridge gives out an all inclusive message in magnetizing sustainable development and turning rural fragments into areas of public green space.
(source : alternative-energy)
150mpg Algae-Powered Toyota Prius
First algae fuel-powered vehicle in the world was officially launched in San Francisco. The car, called Algaeus is a modified Toyota Prius, which derives power from green crude, from Sapphire Energy. The car runs on an astonishing 150 miles per gallon of green fuel. But they are aspiring to cross the US on approximately25 gallons of fuel.
According to Fuel producer Rebecca Harrell, "Powering our cars with algae-based fuel could be the next Apollo mission". Rebecca Harrel is the co-founder of the Veggie Van Organization and producer of the upcoming film FUEL. In the coming 10 days she'll be accompanying the Fuel director and Veggie van Organization cofunder Josh Tickell. Together they will take the Algaeus on a countrywide road trip. The duo's other travel companions will be other green energy vehicles (including the Veggie Van and the biodiesel-powered big green energy bus), "It hit us that we needed to drive the car across the country", Harfel said "People think of algae fuel as this long-therm, far off thing. But seeing is believing".
This countrywide tour will serve a dual purpose. People will be aware of the new clean and green fuel and they will give publicity to their forthcoming film FUEL. This film depicts America's dependency on foreign oil. They claim that their film is different from other environmentally-themed movies. Till now these movies raise a question mark and present us with bleak future. Those movies were ususally silent about the answers to environmental hazards. FUEL tries to fill the gap here. They talk about the various methods to make the transition from oil to alternative sources of energy. What's important for everyday people is information. People don't say 'Can you give me something else to be scared about? They say, How can I get my car to run on algae fuel? Tickell explained. Fuel will be released in New York City, San Francisco, Berkeley, and Washington DC on September 18th.
But you can not fill your tank with algae fuel at your local gas station in the foreseeable future. But the company aims to increase production of algae-based jet fuel this year and plans production of over 2 million liters of algae based diesel fuel per year over the next two years. The car is powered by a mixture of algae fuel and the environmentally friendly-fuel-driven automobile.
Though, it is early to conclude that we can use algae as transport fuel. We all know that five percent blend of algae doesn't precisely indicate the initation of an algae revolution. But as the saying goes, glass if half full too. It states that advancement is being mad on the fuel with great potential. This road trip will allow people to witness the progress in action. The main point of the Algaeus is to show the capability of algae to be used in an ordinary engine.
(www.alternative-energy-news.info)
read more...
Getting Biofuel from the World's Garbage
Biofuels are producted from living organisms or from metabolic by-products (organic or food waste products). In order to be considered a biofuel the fuel must contain over 80 percent renewable materials. It is originally derived from the photosynthesis process and can therefore often be referred to as a solar energy source. There are many pros and cons to using biofuels as an energy source.
There is plenty of garbage on this planet, in fact there is so much garbage that many developed countries, at a fee of course. But does dumping garbage on other places solve the problem? On the contrary it spreads pollutions and diseases. In fact it is more dangerous to dump garbage in the less developed countries (because there are neither technologies available to process it nor enaugh awareness).
Even creating landfills wastes precious resources. Rather than having to dump, what if garbage can be used to generate power?
Global change biology has published new research that claims replacing gasoline with biofuel fromm processed garbage could cut global carbon emissions by 80%. A dream com true, isn't it?
Great strides are being made in the field of creating biofuels but a galling problem is that the biofuel production causes food shortage. Additionally, farmers are adopting controversial techniques and methods to increase their production a
nd rather than helping the climate, it is harming it.
But garbage is abundantly available, fortunately or unfortunately. Second generation biofuels like cellulosic ethanol obtained from processed urban waste may the sort of solution that kills two birds with one stone (just an expression, throwing stones at birds and killing them is bad): take care of the garbgage and produce fuel.
According to the study author Associate Professor Hugh Tan of the National University of Singapore, "Our results suggest that fuel from processed waste biomass, such as paper and cardboard, is a promising clean energy solution."
He further says, "If developed fully this biofuel could simultaneously meet part of the world's energy needs, while also combating carbon emissions and fossil fuel dependency."
Data from the United Nation's Human Development Index and the Earth Trends database was used to arrive at an estimate of how much waste is producted in 173 countries and how much fuel the same countries annually require.
The research team has calculated that 82.93 billion liters of cellulosic ethanol can be produced by the available landfill waste in the world and the resulting biofuel can reduce global carbon emissions in the range of 29.2% to 86.1% for every unit of energy produced.
"If this technology continues to improve and mature these numbers are certain to increase", concluded co-author Dr. Lian Pin Koh from ETH Zurich. "This could make cellulosic ethano an important component of our renewable energy future."
read more...
