Solar Powered Cars

Solar Charger for Notebook: Clean Energy and Economic

The field of renewable energy, ie the energy produced from sources such as solar and wind are experiencing a very broad development in recent years. The reason are not only non-renewable sources are undergoing a progressive deterioration, but also because some technical limitations related to the exploitation of renewable energy have been exceeded.

The benefits of renewable energy are many, they are sources of clean, non-depletable and capable of cutting energy costs compared with conventional sources.

These characteristics have allowed for renewable sources of finding increasingly wide application, going to affect technology areas not covered so far. You are so quickly spread the environmentally friendly technologies for conventional products such as batteries and chargers which operate based on the energy of the sun.

These products of common and daily use are rapidly replacing traditional energy ones as they are able to provide better performance and a high degree of "autonomy" and independence.

Among the many advances in electronics, solar energy are proving a great success for notebook solar chargers.

The increasing prevalence of laptops, combined with the consistent development of the network wi-fi super-fast has radically changed the habits of all of us. In fact, the PC could be used only at home or in the office but today it is possible to carry it with us and use it anywhere. A nice convenience, of course, but one should be a limit: the exhaustion of the battery. As these PC technology can be, in fact, it is very easy to meet after a few hours of use with the battery.

How to do in this case if you are away from an electrical outlet?

The solution is precisely the solar charger which feed with sunlight, it is able to provide power anywhere, anytime. Light and easy to transport, solar charger for netbooks are ideal for those who need to bring their computer up with it and use it for hours without fear of battery!

There many models of solar batteries on the market for PC. Among them one of the latest is the solar battery notebook ES70, one of the devices probably more representative of this product range.

The solar battery for notebook ES70 is distinguished by its small size and compact and to be equipped with a set of accessories that make it compatible not only with the notebook, but also with tablets, phones, cameras, MP3 players, etc. .

The battery ES70 is perfectly equipped for any requirements as equipped with an integrated solar panel that can provide an electrical capacity equal to 11200 mAH. Another interesting feature of this product is the ability to recharge the battery with not only the sunlight but also in a traditional manner, seen that the device is equipped with a system of electrical power compatible with each wall outlet.

You can find solar battery notebook ES70 here.

Bore tip on solar energy. The Mayor: "We pay attention to news"

The City Council has approved a few days ago Bore a Memorandum of Understanding for the promotion and development of renewable energy sources and on the whole territory under its jurisdiction. During the meeting, which was attended by the mayor Fausto Ralli, his deputy Joseph Volpicelli and the commissioner Mario Bazzinotti, the city administration has shown all his sensitivity to the issue of renewable energy and energy conservation, " We are very careful - he said the mayor - to all the innovations in the field of alternative energy and with this decision we open ourselves to new valid experiments. "

"The free energy of the Sun is a great resource - he continued - because you can not only produce electricity using photovoltaic cells, but can also be used for the production of hot water to reduce the consumption of gas or electricity."

The City Council has decided in this regard of relying on companies' Accomandita Special Technologies Energia Spa »Salsomaggiore, which produces solar systems since 1953 and since then has installed more than 1.2 million Solahart solar systems" in more than 80 countries worldwide .

"This company - said the mayor - has gained in Italy an experience of over 30 years in the distribution of plants for the production of hot water from solar energy by installing more than 65,000 plants."
But the news for Bore do not end here.

"The company will provide Salsomaggiore not only solar panels - said the mayor -. Thanks to its partnership with "Raychem", which since 1970, develops the self-regulating heating cable technology, we will be able to prevent our territory finally the formation of ice in sensitive areas such as downspouts, gutters, sidewalks, steep descents to garages, roads with steep slopes and more, bringing great benefits to all our citizens. "

The City borese is committed to promoting the use of alternative energy solar panels to produce hot water and / or hot air, heating, air recirculation system environment, and the self-regulating heating cables to prevent frost and snow all over the territory within the deadline indicative and not binding on March 30, 2014.

Black Silicon for Solar Panels Efficiency

Black Silicon for Solar Panels Efficiency? Of course you have noticed that, for example a black car is hotter than a white car or light colors. So do the clothes, when we are in the sun on the beach or try to use white or light colors, and a black T-shirt is hotter.

What happens is that the objects reflect light receiving more or less depending on the color.

The objects white or light colored reflect nearly all the light they receive, instead of black or dark colors that absorb it.

That is why it is expected that the black silicon solar panels will be more efficient solar panels that will absorb more light than other colors of silicon. So if more light that can be absorbed by black silicon it would increase the efficiency of conversion of light energy.

It's simple, solar panels currently have a silver or gray and black colors, it would look black. It is believed that this manner the solar panels will have an efficiency of 25%, unlike the current panels that not exceeding 18%.

That sounds positive, but there is a "but" black silicon is not new, it has been known for a long time, the disadvantage is that it is very expensive. We know that many companies around the world work in the development of black silicone to improve imperfections and reduce manufacturing costs.

The latest advance was made known by a group of researchers at the National Renewable Energy Laboratoy where involved in the process of chloroauric acid (derived from gold), which is more economical to use it instead of gold, reducing costs black production convenient, but it's not enough.

Origins of Solar Energy

Solar energy is simply the conversion of sunlight into electricity. This can be done directly, or through the use of photovoltaic (PV) or indirectly by the concentrated solar energy (CSP). Photovoltaic energy is created when sunlight strikes the protons of a solar panel that is produced electrical currents. Concentrated power (also known as thermal energy), on the other hand, extracted directly from the sun emits heat. This solar energy is also popularly known as "green energy" due to the fact that it is driven by nature and the environment. It is also the safest way of resources to date and truly renewable, but solar technology is still not very popular in some places.

Leonardo Da Vinci in the 15th century, one of the biggest brains in the design of industrial use of the sun. Da Vinci came to design a system to heat the water in the concave mirrors. In 1954 by Bell Labs, were discovered the photovoltaic properties of certain silicones. Were subsequently developed the first functional photovoltaic panels, for use in satellites. Later, the solar energy was first used in Australia. Since then, more than 60,000 installations have been successful.

Albert Einstein is famous famous scientist, who has experienced the photoelectric effect. He won the 1921 Nobel Prize in Physics for their outstanding contributions to solar energy and photovoltaic. In the 1950s the first true solar panels were working. Furthermore, in 1954 Bell Labs found silicon photovoltaic properties determined. A remarkable fact of solar energy is that all communications and satellite television are also powered by solar energy with photovoltaic cells.

Solar energy is measured in kilowatt-hours. Briefly, 1 kilowatt = 1,000 watts. Furthermore, it is estimated that about 1366 watts of direct solar radiation per square meter reaches the atmosphere, about 1000 watts per square meter per hour reaches the earth. This is a fascinating fact and a lot of energy, to be precise. Another example of the fact that the solar energy is, on average, would use a normal domestic 860 kilowatts per month.

This energy goes into effect when the light of solar energy systems, such as solar panels, is converted into heat. However, sunlight, can be reduced when there is a blockage of the wind and solar contamination.La clouds can be used for different purposes such as heating water, providing a household lighting, as well as feeding a number of drivers to cook . Solar energy is also free, but the installation cost is high.
To facilitate this would require the purchase of solar energy systems, which consist mainly of investors, solar panels, the structure of the battery, charge controller, wiring and support.

In recent years, the cost of energy were down, and in order to make them accessible to everyone. One of the most popular in recent years to reduce the high cost, have been guides DIY solar and wind power and success was huge, with many thousands in savings over 50% or more in energy costs, or to be completely off the network.

However, solar technology has come a long way. Instead, a world record was set in his favor around 1990 when a solar powered plane flew 4,060 kilometers across the U.S., without fuel. Likewise, solar energy systems such as racing engines have been in use since 1985. In fact, for the promotion of this initiative, World Solar Challenge race, held annually in Australia and the USA. In these races, it is reported that the engines of solar technology, a speed exceeding 90 kilometers per hour.

Apple invests in solar energy

Apple will use only solar power in the three servers that consume more energy. According to the company explained, these measures will be implemented by the end of the year. These are part of the sustainability strategy and environmental responsibility implemented in recent years.

The brand that sells products like iPod, iPhone or iPad revealed that SunPower will purchase equipment and startup Bloom Energy and build two new solar installations in North Carolina, near its largest data center.

Once built, the facility will produce 84M kWh of annual energy in a space of about 100 hectares, one of the largest of the industry.

Apple's CFO, Peter Oppenheimer, said the strategy is to stop using electricity generated by coal in its three main data centers by the end of 2012.

"I know of no other company that is producing energy at this scale," said Oppenheimer. Apple had already lifted the veil on this project, but the CFO of the company ensured that the solar parks will be double the size originally planned.

In recent weeks, several environmental activists protested the use of "dirty" energy from Apple, Amazon and Microsoft.

Solar cells made from plastics

A process that is already used in organic solar cells and OLED sheets available on some mobile phones, which must be protected by glass against oxygen and moisture. Now a group of researchers from Georgia Tech, led by Bernard Kippelen, has achieved a new way to reduce the work of a conductor, and thus have achieved what would be the first plastic solar cell.

The team used an inexpensive material, ecological, and readily available: a polymer. After processing and spreading it on a thin layer (10 nm) on a driver, they saw that the interaction became stable in air. The reactive metal replacement polymer completely changes the requirements for producing electronic components, making it possible to lower costs. Therefore, the advantage of a solar cell is plastic that can be manufactured at a lower cost than conventional crystalline silicon.

According to Bernard Kippelen, this technology will eliminate certain restrictions so far imposed on electronics, but there is still a long way to go before it reaches commercial production.

How to Maximize Solar Panel

The efficiency of a solar panel depends on the material used to make the solar cells that are placed on the surrounding frame.

What is a solar cell?

A cell is part of a solar panel which collects solar radiation light overhead sun, and then converted into electrical energy.

The main materials found inside a cell that performs the actual creation of electricity are called semiconductors.

In general, the effectiveness of any given cell is measured by the total amount of radiation / sunlight falling on it.

Conventional silicon solar panels

In just over 90% of photovoltaic panels that are located at the top of the roofs of today, the semiconductor is called crystalline silicon. This is a very efficient cell. Silicon is one of the highest degrees of conversion efficiency. Convert 15-20 percent of the light reaches its cell.

Thin film solar panels

The new wave of the future is coming into the world of solar panels, and is called thin film. The cost to manufacture these panels is much lower than the crystalline silicon panels, but the problem with these is that even closer to the silicon solar panels, in terms of conversion efficiency.

Cadmium telluride (CdTe) and cadmium, indium-gallium-selenide (CIGS) solar panels are the two main leaders of the thin film solar technologies, with an average around 11 percent efficiency. This remains substantially surprising since most of the thin film solar cells lie in the range of 4 percent to 10.

The fill factor

When power is measured, the fill factor is defined as the ratio between the real power and the product maximum attainable open circuit. This is a very important parameter to consider when analyzing and evaluating the performance of solar cells. A typical commercial solar cell has a fill factor greater than 0.70.

Grade B cells have a filling factor typically between 0.4 and 0.7. Another important consideration is that the factor is undoubtedly one of the most important parameters for energy. The solar cell containing an element of high see much less loss of power when it is purchased. Briefly, the higher the filling factor of energy, the solar to be generated.

Cheaper solar power as an energy study

Although in most countries generate electricity from renewable sources is expensive, high energy costs on the island, supported by the dependence on oil-production allows alternative technologies like solar photovoltaics, cost the same or less than crude oil and other fossil fuels.

An analysis prepared by the electrical engineer Agustín Irizarry revealed even now a photovoltaic system installed on a Puerto Rican home generate electricity cheaper than selling the Electric Power Authority (ESA).

In reaching this conclusion, Irizarry, who is an expert in electric power systems, considered the most recent audited financial statements of ESA and quotes from installers of photovoltaic systems.

"In Puerto Rico, photovoltaic electricity is cheaper than the EEE sell us oil. Why people think it is more expensive? I can not understand, "he explained.

According to the financial statements at the end of fiscal year 2010-2011, the cost per kilowatt hour (kWh) of a residential customer was of 23.5 cents.

According to quotes, a photovoltaic system in a residence is $ 5 per installed watt. Therefore, a two-kilowatt photovoltaic system costs $ 10,000 and the solar panels are guaranteed for 20 years.

Considering that the PV system receives only four hours of sun during the next 20 years would produce 58.400 kilowatts (eight per day). If those 58.400 kilowatts are divided between the $ 10,000 initial investment, the cost per kWh would be 17 cents.

Irizarry said the cost per kWh of a photovoltaic industry would be lower (13.7 cents). The kWh cost of 28 cents round today.

Less "externalities"

But gave no numbers, the electrical engineer Efrain O'Neill also noted that large wind farms (wind) are already competitive with fossil fuel systems.

O'Neill noted that although in principle prove expensive renewable energy, environmental and social costs, known as "externalities" are much more expensive than fossil fuels.

"The United States accounted for external use of coal at $ 63 million annually ... And that study, commissioned by the 'National Research Council', only focused on health costs, so we have to estimate the environmental costs, "said the Puerto Rico clarify that no such analysis.

'Bitter' experience in Spain

In economic terms, the use of renewable energy in Spain has not had the expected results because the government chose to subsidize companies that installed technologies and the cost per kWh has not fallen as much as anticipated.

The subsidy-50% - amounting to $ 31.000 million. To pay that debt, the Spanish government plans to increase birth rate by 20%, said Fermin Peace, Secretary General of the International Association for Energy Law, based in Paris.

He explained that in Spain, unlike here, the price of electricity generated from fossil fuels is lower than that of renewable energy. This led the Spanish government to subsidize companies to alternative technologies. But apparently there was a "premium" on the promise to sell to these companies and so is on the table a possible rate increase.

"Renewable energy sources have their problems: some polluters, no continuity, are costly and face technical problems. So far, not replace conventional energy, "said Paz.

Solar Cells Consisting of Nanocrystals

Still working on improving solar technology, a group of scientists from the University of Southern California, created a new solar cells built by Nanocrystals looking liquid and could be used to print or paint any plastic surface or color.

The design of new cells is small enough to fit 250 million head of a pin. The manufacturing process is much cheaper than the current silicon solar cells, but the efficiency is much poorer, so we can see this technology in the market will be much improved.

That is why the technology will take many years to reach the market. Scientists are still working to the next step which is to replace this with another harmless compound.

Concept car with integrated solar panel Mazda wins contest

Always looking to the future and the use of renewable and clean energy vehicles, Mazda in partnership with the Aurora Vehicle Association has chosen as winner of Survivor Aurora 2050 model developed by designer Ali Jafari, Solaris Concept Car.

The car which resembles the visual used by Luke Skywalker on Tatooine (Star Wars) is the result of a project team inicado Aurora in 2010. In addition to focusing on the use and conversion of solar energy into electricity, longed for a Project pragmatic and feasible for use in a few years. It's quite different from what normally occurs in the universe of concepts.

Design and potential

The design of the Aurora Solaris comes from a partnership between staff and students of the Aurora design course at Monash University. The result is a car with a futuristic aesthetic and optimized for solar energy. Its surface is also used for absorption and can be lifted up and placed on top position for capture.

Solaris is able to reach a speed of 150 km / h. In its initial design was intended to allocate up to four passengers. It hampered the performance of the vehicle in terms of speed and useful area of sun exposure, making researchers decided so far put only one seat.

Even with this temporary limitation on the project, those involved in research at the Aurora Car Solaris intend to expose it in the 2013 World Solar Challenge, an event in which scientists from around the world gather to show their inventions powered by solar energy.

Aurora accepts suggestions

If you are interested in the project and would not want to wait until 2013 to see it live, you can know where the car will be updates on the official website of Aurora Team. And if you have suggestions about design and technology that could be used in Solaris Aurora, the Aurora team Team is open to suggestions which can be sent by the same site.

Amazing Solar Powered Cars

Amazing Solar Powered Cars

Solar Powered Cars

Amazing Solar Powered Cars

Saleen S5S Raptor

Saleen S5S Raptor

The Saleen S5S Raptor is a sports car revealed by Saleen, Inc. on March 20, 2008 at the 2008 New York International Auto Show.

The Raptor is intended to be equipped with a 5.0-liter supercharged Saleen engine (similar to that used on the 2008 S302E) which will yield 650 hp. This will allow it to accelerate to 60 mph in 3.2 seconds or less and complete the quarter-mile in 10.9 seconds. Expected retail price is $185,000, roughly $400,000 less than the S7.Development has stopped as a result of the 2008 recession, and the future of the project is uncertain.