solar

Busy London Rail Station to be Solar Powered

- Adam Clare

Blackfriars station has been under some major construction in the past few years and it’s about to reopen to operations next year. While that’s happening construction has begun on installing solar panels making the bridge at the station the largest solar bridge. It’s a novel use of space in a very crowded city.

“Blackfriars Bridge is an ideal location for solar; a new, iconic large roof space, right in the heart of London,” said Solarcentury chief executive Derry Newman in a statement.

“Station buildings and bridges are fixed parts of our urban landscape and it is great to see that this one will be generating renewable energy every day into the future. For people to see that solar power is working is a vital step towards a clean energy future.”

Other energy saving measures, such as rain harvesting systems and sun pipes for natural lighting, are also being fitted at Blackfriars, as part of Network Rail’s plans to reduce carbon emissions by 25 per cent per passenger kilometre by 2020.

Read the rest of the article.

From Landfill to Sustainable Power Plant

- Adam Clare 1 Comment

Madison, New York, has a landfill that has been sitting and rotting and essentially not doing anything productive. That’s all about to change. A new pilot test of a Spectro PowerCap Exposed Geomembrane Solar Cover system – a sheet of something close to magic that will convert the mound of trash into a mound of solar power.

The eight-acre demonstration site features a three-ply membrane that serves as both the closure system for the decommissioned landfill and the platform for an integrated 40-kilowatt Uni-Solar thin-film photovoltaic array. The technology was developed as both a long-term and final landfill closure solution. The PV system is expected to offset nearly all of the power requirements of the Madison County ARC Recycling Facility on the site for 20 to 30 years

Read more at Earth Techling.

Solar-Powered Wineries

- Adam Clare

Wine is good for you and can improve many aspects of your health. The wine-making process can be very intense on local ecologies due to the farming methods and shipping involved. Some wineries are looking to sustainable and responsible ways to create their wines.

Here’s one of a few wineries using solar power, catch four more at the link below:

Gracia de Chile Winery

This change towards using solar energy expands far beyond California. Gracia de Chile Winery in Santiago, Chile, uses solar paneling to provide energy for their cellars, reducing their yearly gas consumption by 46%. And as of this year, Gracia de Chile is also Carbon Neutral certified.

See the full list here.

Thanks to Jesse (from Snooth.com).

Sterilizing Medical Equipment with the Sun

- Adam Clare 2 Comments

When people think of solar power they tend to look at solar heating or solar electricity which makes a lot of sense. Now some researchers at Rice University have found a way to harness the power of the sun for sterilizing medical equipment in the developing world.

The Capteur Soleil, a device designed decades ago by French inventor Jean Boubour, was modified at Rice two years ago for use as a solar-powered cookstove for places where electricity — or fuel of any kind — is hard to get.

This year, Team Sterilize modified it further. When a set of curved mirrors and an insulated box containing the autoclave are installed, the steel A-frame sitting outside Rice’s Oshman Engineering Design Kitchen becomes something else entirely — a lifesaver

The system produces steam by focusing sunlight along a steel tube at the frame’s apex. Rather than pump steam directly into the autoclave, the Rice team’s big idea was to use the steam to heat a custom-designed conductive hotplate.

Read more here

Floating Solar Power Plants

- Adam Clare 2 Comments

Solar panels have to endure a lot of temperature variations be it from bright sun to cloud to rain so the panels need to be rather durable. Some smart people have figured a way to keep the ambient temperature of the solar array low b placing the panels over water.

The floating solar power units, called Liquid Solar Arrays (LSA), use concentrated photovoltaic technology where a lenses direct the light onto solar cells and move throughout the day to follow the sun.

The company says the advantage to floating a solar power plant is that it erases the need for expensive structures to protect it from inclement weather and high winds — when rough weather comes along, the lenses just submerge. Floating on water, whether it be the ocean, a lake or a tiny pond, also keeps the solar cells cool, which increases their efficiency and lifespan

Read the rest here

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