Solar Energy, the safest and eternal of all the green energy suffers from just two drawbacks. Most of the solar cells existing do not absorb all the wavelengths of visible light and also fail to convert this little engrossed energy into electricity. Researchers at the Ohio State University headed by Prof. Malcolm Chrisholm, have created a material that can overcome these weaknesses. This new hybrid prepared by combining conductive plastic and metals like molybdenum absorbs all the visible colors and converts them more efficiently in contrast to other solar cells. Read the full story »

Oysters are always popular for the pearls they produce, but how many of us really know that they are excellent water filters? The East Coast of New York city once had an oyster reef that boasted of its abundant biodiversity and pure water. Human settlements have now not only deprived the oysters of their habitat but also spoilt the water quality of the area. James Cervino, a marine biologist has finally found a way to rebuild the messed up reef using solar powered electricity.

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Famed Italian fashion designer Ermenegildo Zegna, in collaboration with Germany’s Interactive Wear that produces amazing innovations in ‘smart’ textile technology, brings to the� world the world’s first solar-powered ski jacket. The slightly hefty price (hey, it’s a Zegna!) of $1,350 apiece may be justified if you look at the corollary benefit: you can also charge your cell phone or iPod while out on the ski slopes.

The Microtene jacket is waterproof, and comes with its own solar cells connected internally within its neoprene collar. You will be a walking (or skiing) carrier of renewable power since what you’re wearing converts sunlight into energy. If you don’t want to be carrying the solar converter, you may detach the collar and use it as a power source. This is sheer convenience and, yes, power! No more problems with cell phones, cameras, or iPods that have run out of electrical charge while you’re on top of a snowy mountain.
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When it comes to LCD technology and solar energy, Sharp is surely not the name that comes first to the mind. But with growing rave for LCD television sets and the use of green energy gaining momentum, Sharp has decided to put itself in the headlines with its fabulous new Solar-Powered LCD TV. One already knows that the normal LCD television consumes far less energy than your traditional TV sets. Add to it the fact that this is back-lit by LEDs and is powered by a solar panel that surely is large enough to power the 52 inch green delight 24×7.

Sharp has unveiled the television at CEATEC and while a commercial version is not yet out and neither do we have a commercial name for it, this will surely set the ball rolling for solar powered LCD technology. It seems now that it is only a matter of time as the big guns of television market are all set to roll out there own versions as well. It is really nice to see such an eco-friendly product assume a classy and finished look.

Via:� Engadget / Aving

Creating a sustainable infrastructure in remote areas across the world is a challenge faced by communities and governments constantly. This problem is magnified in continents such as Africa where the vast jungles and the dense vegetation keep communities and villages isolated from the rest of the planet. While the entire continent is linked by satellite technology, it is the base stations that are missing. Envision Solar International’s LifeVillage Modular Concept aims at powering the remote areas to life using solar power.

The LifeVillage concept includes Envision Solar’s LifePort and LifePod modular steel-frame structures that are equipped with solar panels that provide between 1.5 and 4 kW of electricity. Energy storage is provided in the form of batteries to supply electricity outside of daylight hours. The LifeVillage also incorporates a self-contained water treatment unit to capture and reuse water. This technology can be used to power remote communities and help them flourish using clean energy.

Applications for the LifeVillage include the creation of medical clinics, schools, housing for doctors and teachers, cell, mobile telephone, radio, TV, Wi-Fi and WiMax facilities that are constantly powered by solar power. The technology is being tested in USA as we speak and will soon be tested on the West Coast of Africa. Cote d’Ivoire will be where it will make its debut and let us hope that it continues to spread across Africa from that isolate point.

Via:� Gizmag

Want to spend sometime in the middle of the ocean? For all you nature lovers out there, this is your chance to experience serenity and be one with the life beyond. The solar powered hi-tech rowboat is a perfect bliss for you. This new invention of a hi-tech rowboat epitomizes the voyagers delight. Unlike a meager “regular” boat, this one comes equipped with cooking materials and other working tools for you to use when rowing, and can eventually serve as your little home in the ocean, wherein you can also sleep comfortably. Its major USP evidently is that it is solar powered, along with having the ability to row and stay in the middle of the ocean. With this comes its capacity to hold extra space for your belongings reaching you at a whooping cost of $50,000.

So for all the adventurers out there, rowing was never so much fun!!Buy yourself the solar rowboat and make the sea your second home.
Via igreenspot

There are quite a few projects across the world that are trying to turn the desert in to farming space both because the remaining planet is struggling to find new land for agriculture and the number of mouths the world needs to feed is growing at a blurring rate. This has forced engineers and designers to turn to deserts to try and eek out anything that is possible. One of the theoretically simple solutions has always been to desalinate the water from the oceans and to make use of the newly available fresh water. But it is one thing to write that day and a whole different ballgame in execution.

The Sahara Forest project would marry huge greenhouses with concentrated solar power (CSP), which uses mirrors to focus the sun’s rays and generate heat and electricity. The installations would try and turn deserts into lush patches of vegetation. The greenhouses work by using the solar farm to power seawater evaporators and then pump the damp, cool air through the greenhouse. This reduces the temperature by about 15C compared to that outside. At the other end of the greenhouse from the evaporators, the water vapor is condensed.

Some of this fresh water is used to water the crops, while the rest can be used for the essential task of cleaning the solar mirrors. The greenhouse produces more than five times the fresh water needed to water the plants inside so, in addition to producing water to clean the CSP mirrors, some of it can be released into the local environment and that would be a very sensible thing to do. I guess before thinking about if we can make Mars inhabitable or Venus human-friendly, I guess we must look at the vast stretches of land right here on earth that could use a facelift. Sahara Forest Project is a brave venture in that difficult direction and we wish nothing but the best for the ingenious men at the heart of it all.

Via Guardian

If thinking out of the box is your cup of tea then Japan is the land for you. People there surely think out of the box even when they do not need to and ‘tea’ is pretty much all you will get their to drink. Japan is a land that has been known for its amazing new creations and amalgamation of electronic perfection with spectacular new gadgets. But here is an idea by the Japanese that is both needed and welcome. The spectacular Eco-Rigs to adorn Japan’s Coastline would soon make a mighty power source of free energy.

Huge Village-sized floating Eco-Rigs would soon float close to the Japanese shore to generate clean power for the country. These humongous structures would be fitted with both wind turbines and wide solar panels to produce energy in more ways than just one. While the 2 km by 800 meters solar base would be busy turning the power of the sun in to electricity, the wind turbine blades would be swirling around to power up Japan further.

So what about the ocean eco-system in all this? It gets better actually with some of that solar and wind energy to be used to power banks of underwater LED lights. They’re intended to be the source of light for nurseries of seaweeds to encourage the growth of fish and plankton population. That is indeed king-sized eco-revolution.

Via TimesOnline

So what exactly is ‘Solar Cogeneration Power’? That is probably something that we should clear out first and foremost before getting in to the meat of the matter. It is quite simple actually and it just means that solar power will help power the engine to a partial extent. Why are we so bothered about that one little term when we have such a huge story unfolding before us? Simply because it very cleverly hides the fact that this Solar Powered Cargo ship will probably be powered by solar energy to a very little extent. I would be surprised if it was even 10% of the total power required to power a cargo ship.

Japan’s biggest shipping line Nippon Yusen KK and Nippon Oil Corp said that solar panels capable of generating 40 kilowatts of electricity each would be placed on top of a 60,000-tonne car carrier to be used by Toyota Motor Corporation. The ship system is expected to help reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 1 to 2%, or about 20 tonnes per year. While the news is indeed great, using wind and wave energy would probably be more viable along with solar power. Any amounts of energy saving is indeed good, but why stay content for so little when it can be a lot better?

The energy provided by the solar panels would probably amount to 5% of the total power that the ship needs and both salinity and vibrations of the ship will further hamper their efficiency. On the wide blue oceans, it just makes more sense to tap in to the unabated wind and the untamed waves!

Via Nextenergynews

Germany is a country that has vividly stamped a class of its own in the international arena with what the world considers as the unending quest for perfection. Germans are known to be hard taskmasters who strive for that final millisecond and that last millimeter of perfect design, form and function. It is something that comes up with German athletes, German technology and of course the ever green German beer. From that perfect lap of magic by Michael Schumacher to the precision of the Mercedes- it is all about power with grace and accuracy.

But Germany has been a land that has been changing away from the technology to the green technology which saves both on oil and emissions. The home of the Mercedes, BMW (even though British) and Volkswagen is moving from oil-guzzling technology to windmills, green gadgets and electric vehicles. Germany is already the single largest producer and market for Solar Energy in the world.

To add to that Germany has recently taken to wind energy and now 7% of the country’s total power is produced by windmills and driven by those gusty flutters of the blade. It seems that the Germans are driven to even eek out perfection out of the renewable energy sources and that once again is a welcome sight.

Via Eco-Chick