Renewable Energy Breakthrough

[hard@work]

Just got done arguing with a neocon about our "interests" globally (oil).


http://www.solveclimate.com/blog/20071219/1-watt-itunes-solar-energy-has-arrived


:)

Don't need oil, coal, or (sorry Ron) nuclear. Period.

[Dr.3D]

Cool! :D

[Dequeant]

Oil doesn't have to be a "global" interest. We have 6 times more oil in the U.S. than they have in Saudi Arabia. We have over 2 trillion barrels of proven reserves under the Rockies in the form of oil shale. It's been untapped because the technology to extract the oil from shale was expensive, until about 5 years ago. Coupled with the skyrocketing prices of oil, it's nothing short of a conspiracy as to why we aren't drilling.

Next is wind, sure solar is great and very necessary in low wind areas....but the areas with high winds have absolutely no reason to pay electric bills (unless of course building codes prevent them from using wind turbines). I can build a wind turbine that outputs 250 watts for about 100 bucks......thats less that .50 cents a watt. It's not hard either, and you can almost BUILD one better than you can BUY them for some reason. All it takes is about 8 good NIB magnets ($40), a 2 ft PVC pipe ($10), some 22/30 AWG magnet wire ($20), some ball bearings (rollerblades work nicely) and a little craftiness. It scales up too, so you could build a 1KW for less than $500 bucks....easy. For the turbines alone you could end your reliance on "grid" electricity for less than $5,000. That would give you about 12KW, which would (unless your an INSANE electric hog) result in a net production of electricity, which your electric company would have to PAY YOU for.

If you live near flowing water, it's the same thing. You can take the generator you make for the wind turbine and put it on a water wheel in a creek, river, or stream....this is even better since the flow is constant. Unless you live in a city, there really is no reason to pay an electric bill.

Now couple all the things mentioned in this whole thread.....

Solar
Wind
Water

You'd be looking at a ridiculous amount of electricity flowing into your home, all completely renewable......and (other than solar) all cheaper than 50 cents a watt initial investment.

[OptionsTrader]

Intriguing story and I'll look at the company's website for more info, but claims like this raise red BS flags when I read them:


Nanosolar has developed proprietary process technology that makes it possible to produce 100x thinner solar cells 100x faster.

[hard@work]

Next is wind, sure solar is great and very necessary in low wind areas....but the areas with high winds have absolutely no reason to pay electric bills (unless of course building codes prevent them from using wind turbines).

Are you sure about that? Next time you are out and about in the city take a look at how much available surface space there is. And I am not just talking about where you can put an "ugly" panel on a roof. I am talking about everything, including the asphalt paving we choke our cities in.

Something to reflect on when it comes to envisioning true energy independence.

[Zarxrax]

If this pans out, its simply awesome. I've always been fascinated by solar power, and hoped that it could become feasible as a real power source. Now the next step is to come up with better batteries to store the juice...

[bernhtp]

Heliovolt is another company with similar technology claims that also garnered $100mm in VC money. http://www.heliovolt.net/

[hard@work]

http://www.borregosolar.com/web-common/images/business/commercial_diagram.jpg

No reason at all we cannot begin building like this asap.

[Mesogen]

Intriguing story and I'll look at the company's website for more info, but claims like this raise red BS flags when I read them:

I remember when the first papers were published on this like 3 years ago. They basically inkjet silicon onto aluminum sheets. That would definitely make it very cheap and very fast. 100x, eh maybe...

and $1/watt is more expensive than you think, but still MUCH cheaper (not 100x).

[Mesogen]

http://www.borregosolar.com/web-common/images/business/commercial_diagram.jpg

No reason at all we cannot begin building like this asap.

Under current technology, that roof would cost ~$100k.