Lifeboat Foundation

Researchers at Xerox PARC are working on a way to cheaply print efficient solar cells at a large scale.

New miniature sized dye solar cell technology developed by an Israeli company can be installed onto devices and charge them with indirect light, making batteries obsolete. Sharon Reich reports.

This giant floating solar panel is saving a water company millions of dollars.

A chemical compound named Perovskite could be the next big innovation in solar power technology. http://voc.tv/14JQHoo

A far-out plan to create swarms of self-replicating solar panel satellites.

Even if we don’t create a true AI for a thousand years, these algorithms, pared with our exponentially increasing computing power, could have much of the same effect on our civilization as the more traditional, AI-centric type Singularity. Very, very soon.

Replacing inefficient experimentation, UConn researchers have used machine learning to systematically scan millions of theoretical compounds for qualities that would make better materials for solar cells, fibers, and computer chips.

Continue reading “Using machine learning to rationally design future electronics materials” »

The U.S. solar market is expected to grow 120% this year with 16GW of new solar power, more than double the record-breaking 7.3GW installed in 2015.

The three solar micro-grids, with combined capacity of 35 kilowatts, were installed in the communities of Harkapur in Okhaldhunga district, and Kaduwa and Chyasmitar in Khotang District, as per a statement issued today. They will provide a 24-hour reliable electricity supply to around 540 people in 83 households and 25 local businesses.

“Nearly a quarter of Nepal’s population has no access to electricity and rely heavily instead on kerosene in particular. Since most of them live in remote areas, there is little possibility of connecting to the national power grid in the near future,” said Jiwan Acharya, senior energy specialist at the Asian Development Bank (ADB). “The solar micro-grids that we are piloting here provide a clean, cost-effective, local solution involving private sector that will change the lives of these communities and serve as a model for other far-flung villages.”

Electricity costs for households are forecast at $4 to $6 per month. Currently households relying on kerosene for lighting alone, can pay up to $10 a month. And by using solar power rather than fossil fuels, the project will avoid 41 tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions every year.

Continue reading “Solar micro-grids launched in three remote villages” »

The future of aviation? A completely solar-powered plane is trying fly around the world. http://voc.tv/14JQHoo