When Mark Jacobson, popular expert on renewable energy, appears on the David Letterman Show tomorrow night, it’s likely that he’ll be saying essentially what I would if given the chance: It’s technically and economically feasible – as well as morally imperative – to phase out of fossil fuels and power the world with renewable energy. (more…)
Not to say “I told you so,” but for several years I’ve been predicting a steep decline in the levelized cost of energy (LCOE) coming from concentrated solar power (CSP). Now, that prediction is quite definitely coming true.
According to the article linked above, “When the SunShot program was planned in 2010, CSP was 21 cents a kilowatt hour without subsidies. Now, SunShot Initiative CSP Director Dr. Pitchumani tells CSP Today, they are getting reports of prices of as low as 13 cents a kilowatt hour.” (more…)
Here’s an article by my colleague Emma Websdale, writing for the new website EmpowerTheOcean. Apparently, The Philippines is making magnificent progress in the direction of clean energy, with a recent half-billion dollar investment in solar and biomass.
That’s great, but why not OTEC (ocean thermal energy conversion)? Googling the subject turns up lots of content that’s a few years old, but not much recently. The oceans there (like the one pictured here off the idyllic beach in Balesin) are 84 degrees F today; that’s certainly warm enough; perhaps it’s the availability of cold water near to land?
Recently, I had reason to check out what some of the suppliers of industrial HVAC products in the UK are up to, for example, Heaters Wholesale – England’s largest independent distributor of heating products. I was impressed that the controllers they use maximize fuel savings through what they call “self-learning optimization”; the device varies the heating start-up time to ensure that the building comes up to the required temperature precisely at the beginning of every programmed “on” period. (more…)
The work I’m doing for Ocean Thermal Energy Corporation has had numerous fortunate consequences, among them working with a brilliant and compassionate young writer, Emma Websdale (pictured here). Not a bad name for someone who writes content for websites and e-newsletters, is it?
Emma’s from Nottinghamshire in Northern England – a very beautiful (albeit wet) part of the world. Together we’re building most of the material for the new site EmpowerTheOcean.com. So far, so good.
I note that the Czech Technical University will be competing at this year’s Solar Decathlon. The team has designed what they call their AIR house (pictured here), targeted to empty-nesters who may be nearing retirement. The AIR House, a prototype for an affordable (A), innovative (I), and recyclable (R) house, is designed for the Czech tradition of spending weekends in the countryside. (more…)
Colin Brown comments on my recent piece Attempting To View Renewable Energy Intelligently: “Great to see that you now have thorium reactors in the mix.”
Anyone who rules out all types of nuclear — now and forever — simply because of the issues associated with the fission of uranium is a bigoted fool. That type of thinking is no better than those who reject modern medicine because its past practices included blood-letting and leaches. Having said this, we’re a very long way, in terms of both dollars and time, from a safe and practical approach to thorium.
Yesterday, I had the good fortune to speak with Brian Nordwall, the proprietor of Electric Bike Seattle, a retailer/distributor for the very hottest products from all over the world in the e-bike arena. I was completely impressed with the depth of Brian’s knowledge – not only about the products, but also about the sociological trends, the changing demographics, and the enormous number of business-to-business opportunities that this burgeoning market space offers: resorts, cruise lines, corporate campuses, etc. (more…)
I have a bunch of meetings in and around Los Angeles next Thursday. While I’m in town, I think I’ll try to stop by the Solar Decathalon that the U.S. Department of Energy hosts ever year, in which colleges compete for a prize given to the coolest design for an energy-efficient, solar-powered house.
I don’t see my alma mater listed as a contestant, which is understandable in that Trinity’s all about liberal arts. Out of 400+ kids in my class, I was one of only five or six physics majors, and I don’t think there were more than about 15 in the engineering program; most of my friends got degrees in English, history, or economics. But our rival to the north (Middlebury) does a very good job with this Solar Decathalon, I’m sure due to the presence of Bill McKibben.
I’ll post my observations.
I just got off a Skype chat with a talented young engineering student who lives near Paris and wishes to perform an internship in which he will conduct research as the basis for articles on a range of clean energy issues. I just compiled a list of potential topics that I had thought I’d email him, but then realized it might make a decent blog post. He can choose those that interest him most, and add others if he would like.
• Where are the areas for the greatest potential improvement in the cost effectiveness of PV, CPV, CSP, wind, etc? What role does materials science play in all this?
• How will costs come down as the world moves from the megawatt to the gigawatt and ultimately to the terawatt scale? (more…)
