Super Soaker Inventor Aims to Cut Solar Costs in Half
The Atlanta-based independent inventor of the Super Soaker squirt gun (a true technological milestone) says he can achieve a conversion efficiency rate that tops 60 percent with a new solid-state heat engine.
Green Living
PM's Ultimate Guide to Sustainability
From trends in alternative energy to products for environmental efficiency to tons of tips you can use, the best of what's right—right now.Drive Green
Solving the Fuel Crunch
From plug-in cars to biofuels, MPG legislation to far-out test drives, check out all our coverage on the gas-saving future of cars.PLUS: 5 Electric Cars Making History Around the Globe
Alaska Opens Its First Geothermal Power Plant
Chena Hot Springs, just outside Fairbanks, is the first geothermal power plant to come online in Alaska. Announced by Chena Hot Springs/Chena Power and ...www.renewableenergyaccess.com/rea/news/story?id=45789 - 34k -
PR112906 PureCycle at Chena Hot Springs
The Chena Hot Springs Resort in Alaska has the first geothermal power plant ... geothermal resource (165°F) ever used for commercial power generation in the ...www.utcpower.com/fs/com/
Around the world, scientists are risking their lives to retrieve seeds destined for a massive vault near the North Pole. Their work just might save mankind
PopSci's Best of What's New 2007
The company produces its PowerSheet solar cells with printing-press-style machines that set down a layer of solar-absorbing nano-ink onto metal sheets as ...www.popsci.com/popsci/flat/bown/2007/green/item_59.html
Popular Science Blog - Innovation of the Year Winner Nanosolar ...
After years of development, Nanosolar has announced today that they have shipped their first batch of inexpensive solar panels to the site of their first ...popsci.typepad.com/popsci/2007/12/innovation-of-t.html
Step 5: Switch on the Sun Lamp - Popular Science
Once the world’s largest solar-energy farm is completed, some 20000 dishes ... Stirling solar dishes can convert about 30 percent of the sun’s energy into ...www.popsci.com/popsci/energy/
How to make one of our most ubiquitous gadgets—every part of it—environmentally sound.
Energy Saving Program in Seattle Puts Consumer in Control January 11, 2008 08:57 AM - , Environmental Graffiti
Today, the New York Times reports on such a pilot experiment involving 112 homes in the Seattle area. The project by the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory of the Energy Department, showed that ”˜if households have digital tools to set temperature and price preferences, the peak loads on utility grids could be trimmed by up to 15 percent a year. Over a 20-year period, this could save $70 billion on spending for power plants and infrastructure, and avoid the need to build the equivalent of 30 large coal-fired plants.’
Ames Lab "Beefing" Up Magnets for Electric-Drive Cars January 10, 2008 08:55 AM - Ames Laboratory
The Ames Lab senior metallurgist and Iowa State University adjunct professor of materials science and engineering is playing a major role in advancing electric drive motor technology to meet the enormous swell in consumer demand expected over the next five years. He and his Ames Lab colleagues, Bill McCallum and Matthew Kramer, have designed a high-performance permanent magnet alloy that operates with good magnetic strength at 200 degrees Celsius, or 392 degrees Fahrenheit, to help make electric drive motors more efficient and cost-effective. The work is part of the DOE’s Vehicle Technologies Program to develop more energy-efficient and environmentally friendly highway transportation technologies that will enable America to use less petroleum.
Australia to end plastic bags in supermarkets January 9, 2008 10:37 PM - Reuters
SYDNEY (Reuters) - Australia has followed China in announcing it plans to end plastic bag use in supermarkets, with its new environment minister saying on Thursday he wants a phase-out to start by the end of 2008. "There are some 4 billion of these plastic bags floating around the place, getting into landfill, ending up affecting our wildlife, and showing up on our beaches while we are on holidays," Environment Minister Peter Garrett said on Thursday.
'Green' Energy Efficient Mobile Home Designed January 9, 2008 09:45 AM - Wiley-Blackwell
But "green" is exactly what Michael Berk, F.L. Crane Endowed Professor of Architecture at Mississippi State, wants mobile homes to be. He hopes to toss traditional thinking about the structures into the recycling bin, salvaging the traditional "mobile home" perception one national award at a time. Working in the Carl Small Town Center--a part of MSU's College of Architecture, Art and Design--Berk created an award-winning, next-generation factory-built unit he calls the GreenMobile. Unlike other lower-end housing, Berk's applies sound construction methods, as well as energy-saving concepts for lower utility costs.
LED Lights may light homes in less than 3 years January 9, 2008 09:29 AM - University of Glasgow
Light Emitting Diodes (LEDs), already used in electrical equipment such as computers and mobile phones, are several times more energy efficient than standard light-bulbs. However, because of their structure and material, much of the light in standard LEDs becomes trapped, reducing the brightness of the light and making them unsuitable as the main lighting source in the home.
Switchgrass fuel yields bountiful energy: study January 8, 2008 05:45 PM - Reuters
Switchgrass, a crop touted by venture capitalists and environmentalists alike as a next-generation ethanol feedstock, yields about five times more energy than it takes to grow it, making the plant a far more efficient fuel source than corn, a new study said. In addition, the life cycle of the switchgrass ethanol -- which includes growing the crop, making the fuel, and burning it in vehicles -- emits about 94 percent less of planet-warming carbon dioxide than the life cycle of gasoline, said the study, published on Tuesday in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
Beijing Introduces Strictest Fuel Standard Yet January 7, 2008 03:26 PM - , Organic Consumers Association
On January 1, China’s capital city of Beijing introduced its toughest vehicle fuel standard yet. The rule requires that gasoline and diesel sold in the city must comply with the new China IV emission standards, equivalent to the European Union’s Euro IV standards. Under the elevated standard, motor fuels are permitted to contain only 50 parts per million (ppm) of sulfur, compared with the previous China III level of 150 ppm.
Pucker Up: Industry Sees Rise in Organic Makeup January 7, 2008 03:23 PM - , Organic Consumers Association
Animal byproducts weren't something Holly Tashian wanted to smear on her face. But it was hard to get away from lanolin, a fatty substance secreted by sheep, which was in many of the cosmetics in her makeup bag. "I began to realize what I was putting on my face, and it's pretty bad stuff," says Tashian, a Nashville, Tenn., musician and a feng shui consultant. "I've just gotten turned off about what is going on in the cosmetics industry."
Energy Recovery Ventilation Systems Growing in Importance January 7, 2008 10:29 AM - , Green Lodging News
PALO ALTO, CALIF.—Energy recovery ventilation (ERV) systems are becoming increasingly important in North America in light of the current drive to conserve energy, make buildings “green,” and enhance indoor air quality (IAQ). New analysis from Frost & Sullivan, “North American Energy Recovery Ventilation Market,” found that this market earned revenues of $324.6 million in 2006 and it is expected to reach $778.7 million in 2012. “ERV is a growing segment within the heating, ventilation and air-conditioning (HVAC) market, particularly in northern tier winter heating zones and areas with warmer and high humidity climatic conditions,” says Frost & Sullivan research analyst Jorge Moreno. “The focus on IAQ is another key trend benefiting ERV, as people become increasingly conscious of the importance to maintain air quality through properly designed and managed HVAC systems.”
21 Things You Didn't Know You Can Recycle January 6, 2008 09:35 AM - www.coopamerica.org
Garbage. Americans produce more and more of it every year, when we need to be producing less. Even the most waste-conscious among us can feel overwhelmed by the amount of household waste that goes beyond what municipal recyclers and compost bins can handle. That’s why our editors spent the summer of 2007 investigating the state of waste management in our country, putting this list togther for you, explaining how we can get serious about the three R’s — reducing, reusing, and recycling — and divert more waste away from landfills.
Welcome to the Solar Century January 4, 2008 08:42 AM - , Environmental Graffiti
New technology means solar power could one day provide all the world’s energy needs — but governments must do their bit. Until a few years ago the suggestion that solar power might provide the answer to the intertwined problems of long term energy security and climate change would have been dismissed as a pipedream. The high cost of solar cells, their inefficiency in converting the sun’s rays into electricity and the lack of state investment or assistance for renewable energy start-ups meant there was little hope.
India to provide subsidy for solar power plants January 2, 2008 04:24 AM - Reuters
India will subsidize the running of solar power plants to help develop a renewable energy infrastructure, where high costs can be prohibitive, the minister for renewable energy said on Wednesday. Renewable energy accounts for about 7.5 percent of India's installed generation capacity of 127,673 MW, a rate that compares favorably with much of the rest of the world.
China responds to global wind turbine shortage
Private company in Guangdong agrees to supply 900 MW to United States
Opening doors to the US tax credit for wind power
Innovative financing structure opens up wind market to publicly owned utilities too
Galapagos Island clean energy evolution
Three wind turbines reduce reliance on risky imports of diesel oil
Quarterly update of wind market indicators
Data and commentary on the wind sector's share price performance over the past three months, plus country-by-country wind power capacity totals. Whether looked at in terms of share price performance, new issuance of company stock, or positive news flow, the past quarter was a beauty. Some would call it "the greatest ever." ... More
Virginia Commission Approves First Wind Farm in State 
December 31, 2007
Google Aims to Make Renewable Energy Cheaper than Coal Power
December 5, 2007
Largest Wind Farm in Minnesota, Associated Transmission Line Completed
December 3, 2007
NREL Report Sees Near-Term Supply Shortage for Renewable Power
To help meet America's increasing energy needs while protecting our Nation's energy security and environment, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) is working with wind industry partners to develop clean, domestic, innovative wind energy technologies that can compete with conventional fuel sources. DOE's Wind Energy Program efforts have culminated in some of industry's leading products today and have contributed to record-breaking industry growth.
In 2005, the United States installed more new wind energy capacity than any other country in the world. The new capacity, totaling 2,431 megawatts (MW), was worth more than $3 billion in generating equipment, and it brought the total national wind energy capacity to 9,149 MW. That's enough electricity to power 2.3 million average American households. In 2006, an additional 2,454 MW were installed, bringing the Nation's total installed capacity to 11,603 MW.
The following links will provide you with more information about wind energy and the Wind Energy Program's research and development efforts. Some of the documents are available as Adobe Acrobat PDFs. Download Adobe Reader.
Selected Wind Energy Topics
- Wind Energy Basics
- Low Wind Speed Turbine Technology
- Distributed Wind Energy Technology
- Wind Powering America
- Federal Wind Siting Information Center
- Systems Integration
- Wind Energy Program Multiyear Program Plan 2007 - 2012
(PDF 2.3 MB) - Wind Power Today (PDF 2.1 MB)
- Annual Report on U.S. Wind Power Installation, Cost, and Performance Trends: 2006 (PDF 2.4 MB)
- Annual Report on U.S. Wind Power Installation, Cost, and Performance Trends: 2006 (A presentation from Ryan Wiser and Mark Bolinger, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (PDF 2.9 MB)
- Wind Energy Program 2006 Peer Review Report
(PDF 535 KB)
Regulations to Increase Energy Efficiency in New Federal Buildings by 30% 
December 21, 2007
U.S. and China to Cooperate on Biomass Research and Development
December 13, 2007
DOE Invests $7.7 Million in Biomass Gasification for Biofuels
The Cheapest Way to Power Your Car
If you had the right ride, hydropower could lop 2/3 off your gas bills. 12.18.2007
Green House vs. Greenhouse
To save the environment, imitate mobile homes and go pre-fab. 11.29.2007
Solar Power, At Last?
The long-sought mechanism for a superior solar cell may now be at hand. 11.16.2007
Wave Energy
Can a mechanical snake that surfs the ocean squeeze enough watts from water? 12.02.2005
Energy
Who needs oil or coal or gas when the world is full of plain old algae? 10.24.2005
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