Tag Archives: solar power

Researchers design bionic leaf capable of converting sunlight into liquid fuel

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“We’re almost at a 1 percent efficiency rate of converting sunlight into isopropanol,” Nocera said. “There have been 2.6 billion years of evolution, and Pam and I working together a year and a half have already achieved the efficiency of photosynthesis.”

via Researchers design bionic leaf capable of converting sunlight into liquid fuel – Techie News.

Mayfield told CBS News that the exact same thing – turning electrons into biomass – has already been done many a times previously by using the same bacteria.

Who needs sunlight? In Arizona, solar power never sleeps

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In a parabolic trough plant like Solana, the mirrors are curved inward, with a glass tube running along the deepest point, or trough, of each mirror. The tube is full of synthetic oil (also known as heat transfer fluid, or HTF). The concave mirrors concentrate light onto this HTF, heating it to 740 degrees Fahrenheit. The system is extremely efficient in collecting heat and concentrating it to a blistering level; when I asked what would happen if I touched the tube, the reply was a curt “Trust me, you definitely don’t want to do that.”

Once the oil is up to temperature, about 270 miles of pipe transport it to the power block, where the HTF takes one of two pathways, depending on Solana’s current needs.

via Who needs sunlight? In Arizona, solar power never sleeps | Ars Technica.

Artificial Photosynthesis Made Practical

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If you want hydrogen to power an engine or a fuel cell, it’s far cheaper to get it from natural gas than to make it by splitting water. Solar power, however, could compete with natural gas as a way to make hydrogen if the solar process were somewhere between 15 and 25 percent efficient, says the U.S. Department of Energy. While that’s more than twice as efficient as current approaches, researchers at Stanford University have recently developed materials that could make it possible to hit that goal. The work is described in the journal Science.

via Artificial Photosynthesis Made Practical | MIT Technology Review.

U.S. flips switch on massive solar power array that also stores electricity

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Abengoa Solar described the array as the world´s largest parabolic trough plant. The solar arrays use parabolic shaped mirrors mounted on moving structures that track the sun and concentrate its heat. That heat is used to heat water into steam, which is then used to power a conventional steam turbine. Being able to store the power allows the plant to continue distributing energy when the sun goes down or is blocked by poor weather.

via U.S. flips switch on massive solar power array that also stores electricity – Computerworld.