Adding to solar installations already in place at its Houston and Dallas area stores, today IKEA powered up its new 6,664 panel solar energy system on the roof of its location in Round Rock, Texas, making it the largest solar owner in the state. The system covers 273,700-square-feet and is capable of producing nearly 2.4 million kWh of clean electricity each year, enough to power 204 average-sized homes and cut CO2 emissions by some 1,800 tons. It is the 33rd completed solar installation for IKEA in the U.S.

“We at IKEA believe in the never-ending job of improving the sustainability of our day-to-day business,” said Gerd Diewald, the Round Rock store manager. “The Round Rock coworkers are excited to help contribute to this goal with our newly operational solar energy system. We appreciate the support of the City of Round Rock, Oncor and REC Solar, Inc., our partners in this project.”

With the addition of this latest system, the company now has some solar power at 75 percent of its stores in the U.S. In the coming months, that percentage will jump to 89 percent as six additional store installations are currently under construction.

Back in June we mentioned that IKEA wants to use energy generated by renewable sources for its 100 percent of its operations in Sweden and had installed 30 wind turbines in Härjedalen, Sweden to help it meet that goal. And earlier this month it was noted that the company was one of the top commercial solar energy leaders by the Solar Energy Industries Association. Seems IKEA is serious about being a renewable energy leader and is working to transition much of its energy needs over to renewables and away from fossil-fuels.

[via CSR Wire]

Image Credit: Steve Webel/Flickr

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Right now, homeowners wanting to get solar power on their rooftop can take the federal solar tax credit. When tax time rolls around, you can claim up to 30 percent of the cost of your solar system on your taxes. If your tax liability isn’t that high, the extra credit will roll over to the next year. The tax incentive has been an important part of helping solar power quickly grow; wind and solar have grown six-fold even in the middle of a deep recession. But the new report, from the Climate Policy Initiative, says that a cash incentive could work as well for much less money.

According to the study, a 14 percent cash incentive would provide the same benefit as the tax credit, while costing government 57 percent less. By providing up-front investment, the government could help homeowners reduce the need to get outside financing, which would help reduce the overall cost of the project. The other benefit of the cash incentive is that it can help anyone, regardless of their tax liability. The report recommends that the government offer homeowners options for both the incentive and the tax credit.

The study also found that a cash incentive could improve wind policy. By extending the current wind production tax credit, but delivering it as a cash incentive, the government could help wind project owners get the same benefit while reducing government costs by nearly half.

Main photo credit: isak55/Shutterstock

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Now, Reuters reports that two of nuclear’s biggest supporters, France and Japan, have essentially switched sides in the debate. In the wake of last year’s Fukushima disaster, Japan is phasing out its nuclear plants and increasing spending on renewable energy, while France plans to reduce its dependence on nuclear.

By the 2030s, Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda says the island nation — which produced more than 10 percent of the world’s nuclear power in pre-Fukushima years — will be out of the nuclear industry. At the same time, it plans to triple the share of renewable resources so they contribute 30 percent of its energy needs.

French president Francois Hollande promises to cut the share of nuclear power in the country from a whopping 75 percent today to 50 percent by 2025. Hollande also called for a 40 percent cut in the European Union’s carbon dioxide emissions by 2030 and a 60 percent cut by 2040.

Weighing in on the other side of the debate, the International Energy Agency (IEA) warned that it may be impossible to fill the gap left by nuclear power entirely with renewables and said the nations will inevitably end up using more fossil fuels. (Incidentally, the website of the journal Nature has an interesting set of charts showing IEA projections on fuel mix through 2035, as well as some other useful data.)

Luis Uriza of Bain & Co. told Reuters that natural gas is the most likely fuel to fill the void, which Japan already imports as a major energy source.

Germany, one of the most aggressive pursuers of alternative power, has backed away from nuclear since Fukushima, but it is still gets a large share of its power from fossil fuels.

Photo of nuclear power plant in Cattenom, France, courtesy of Stefan Kühn/Wikimedia

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A protein in spinach can convert sunlight into electricity even after it’s extracted from the plant. The photosynthesis is almost 100 percent efficient (meaning nearly all the sunlight that hits it can be converted into energy). In comparison, average solar panels on the market today are usually only around 15 percent efficient, with the best available solar panels offering about 20 percent efficiency.

Researchers have known about the protein for more than 40 years, but haven’t known until now how to effectively integrate it into solar cells. At Vanderbilt, scientists were able to create “biohybrid” cells with the spinach protein that generated more than 2.5 times more electricity than previous designs. They’ve patented the new technology.

However, it’s not a perfect technology yet. Early prototypes deteriorated quickly, and the cells don’t yet create as much electricity as current silicon solar cells. But the researchers believe the technique has potential. Their next step is to create another functioning solar cell with their design, and to continue to improve longevity and efficiency. If the technology continues to progress as expected, they believe that it could rival current solar cells within three years, though it would take longer to become commercially available.

In addition to the efficiency potential, spinach has the huge advantage of being easy to grow, renewable, nontoxic and cheap. Current solar panel designs rely on certain rare materials like gallium arsenide, tellurium and indium — all of which there are limited global supplies. Tellurium, for example, has only two known high concentration deposits in the world. By moving toward plant-based components, solar can become more truly renewable.

Main image credit: Nick Saltmarsh/Flickr; secondary image credit: Amrutur Anilkumar/Vanderbilt University

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A new energy law that took effect July 1 aims to phase out nuclear reactors and clean energy projects are now eligible for government subsidies through the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI). According to data released by METI for the first month of the program, 81 commercial solar power projects with generation capacity of 1 megawatt or more, six wind projects totaling 122 megawatts, and a hydro power project totaling 0.2 megawatts were among those getting approval for government money.

Reuters is reporting that in total, Japan has approved more than 33,000 large and small-scale renewable energy projects for funding in the last 2 months, including the following:

• Softbank Corp will build 10 solar farms and a 48 megawatt wind farm by March 2015
• Toshiba will build solar plants with a capacity of 100 MW on the tsunami-hit coastline of Fukushima prefecture
• Maeda Corp will install solar panels at 5,000 7-11 convenience stores
• The city of Sapporo will install solar panels on the roofs of all 311 of its public schools
• Marubeni Corp and Wind Power Energy will both build wind farms off the coast with a capacity of 250 megawatts
• Orix Corp and West Holdings Corp will build and operate 250 solar farms capable of generating 500 megawatts of power

All projects approved for the government subsidies must sign contracts with utility companies by March 2013 to supply their power at set prices that will last until next March.

While a nuclear disaster on the scale of Fukushima is certainly enough to get an entire nation interested in pursuing renewable energy projects, let’s hope it doesn’t take the same in the U.S. to get our elected officials to jump on board with clean tech.

Image Credit: Joi/Flickr

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Reuters is reporting that a group of developers want to build a tidal energy system in the Severn Estuary between England and Wales which they say is capable of generating 5 percent of Britain’s energy needs. They have presented their plans to the Ministry of Energy, which entail constructing a barrage across the estuary that would channel tidewater flow through turbines. Because of a 46 foot difference in water depth between high and low tide, the barrage would close at high tide to hold water until the tide goes out when it would then be released. This could generate 16 terawatt-hours of electricity each year for the Brits.

Development consortium Corlan Hafren estimates that construction of the system will cost a whopping $36 billion, which is one of the reasons it was rejected by the Department of Energy and Climate Change several times back in 2010. At that time, the project was estimated to cost at least $53 billion.

Tidal energy will play a valuable role in filling our energy needs for the future, and plans need to be put in place now in order to take advantage of it before fossil fuel prices skyrocket. With the public gun-shy about spending tax dollars on major energy investments and the government not willing to spend the money anyway, it may require private developers and investors to step in and play a major role in saving us from ourselves.

[via Reuters]

Image Credit: Sam, W/Flickr

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In its study, NREL defines what is technically achievable considering topographic limitations, land-use and environmental constraints for each state. Using state-level maps and tables incorporating available land area, installed capacity in gigawatts, and electric generation in gigawatt-hours for each technology, the study lays out in detail the broad “sense of the scale regarding the potential for renewables and which technologies are worth examining,” says report co-author Anthony Lopez.

“Decision-makers using the study will get a sense of scale regarding the potential for renewables, and which technologies are worth examining,” said Lopez. “Energy modelers also will find the study valuable.”

The report “normalizes” its assessment of the six clean energy technologies, unifying methods and assumptions in the comparison to give a clear picture of the technical potential for renewable energy across the country.

Some states and regions stand out for particular technologies. For instance, Hawaii has the most potential for offshore wind; the Lone Star State is prime for Texas-sized utility-scale PV solar (with California on its boot heels); the Rocky Mountain states roil with geothermal energy; the Great North of Alaska and the northwest offer the most potential for hydropower. In all, “it looks like every state has something to work with,” says Lopez.

According to the study the U.S. has 481,800 terawatt-hours of potential generating capacity from all renewable energy sources combine – 212,224 gigawatts. Those are big numbers, and more than enough to meet our current needs.

Of course, it isn’t as easy as simply mapping potential. The report  does not take into account economics and market forces, and the question of energy transmission remains- getting the power where it is needed. But the NREL study makes clear the potential of clean energy to transform the nation into a leader of the new energy economy – if we are up to the challenge.

Main image credit: fotopedia.com
Map credit: National Renewable Energy Laboratory

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At a high-security jail facility just outside of São Paolo, Brazil, prisoners dressed in red uniforms pedal a series of stationary bikes that provide electricity at night for the local community. In exchange, they earn credit towards time served, thus reducing their sentences. The bright idea of a local judge, Prison Director Gilson Rafael Silva believes it’s great for several reasons. “With our project, the idea is that they can now exercise, lose weight and at the same time it also benefits them because after every three days of work, their sentence shortens by one day,” he said.

In addition to the much-desired reduced sentences, some prisoners like the work because it boosts moral. “Here, by cycling, we feel more important and more useful,” said Ronaldo da Silva, who is serving five-and-a-half years for robbery. “You feel better day-to-day.”

Many folks say that prisoners should be put to work during their time inside and while I don’t believe this is what they had in mind, I think it’s fantastic. The prisoners get lots of exercise while the community benefits from the clean, renewable energy generation. It’s a win-win for everyone. Of course, it would take millions of stationary bikes to provide any meaningful amount of electricity, but there’s no time like the present to get started.

Check out a video of the prisoners riding their stationary bikes:

Brazil inmates cycle to freedom by generating… by euronews-en

Source: EuroNews via Autoblog Green

Image Credit: Ron Kloberdanz / Shutterstock.com

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Unbeknownst to many of us, the University of Arizona has already cooked up quite a reputation for itself as a mirror expert. It’s home to the Steward Observatory Mirror Lab which makes giant, lightweight mirrors for a new generation of optical and infrared telescopes. Thanks to a $1.5 million grant from the Department of Energy, it seems that that same expertise will now be applied to energy generation.

The solar thermal collector, which is mounted onto a swiveling post in the concrete bottom of an empty swimming pool, supports two curved, highly reflective glass mirrors. It’s an innovative configuration that could optimize solar thermal energy for cost-efficient mass production. In recent test runs, the prototype module generated 2.5 kilowatts of electricity, enough to meet the power demands of two average U.S. households.

“Most mirrors used in solar power plants are used for thermal generation by focusing light onto a long pipe used to heat water into steam,” said Roger Angel, Regents’ Professor of Astronomy and Optical Sciences and director of the Steward Observatory Mirror Lab. ”This requires the mirrors to be shaped like a cylinder. What we have learned here at the Mirror Lab is how to bend the glass to high accuracy so as to focus to a point or a line.”

Through a partnership with Rioglass Solar, an Arizona company that specializes in cylinder-shaped mirrors, researchers have already patented their design. The collector’s mirrors focus sunlight onto a 5-inch glass ball and from there to a small array of 36 highly efficient photovoltaic (PV) cells, developed originally to power spacecraft. They convert a broader range of the solar spectrum into electricity than regular cells. A unit of fans and radiators – not unlike the cooling system in a car – is attached to the solar cell array, keeping them about 36 degrees Fahrenheit above ambient air temperature.

The collector’s automated tracking system does the rest, waking itself up to the sunrise in the East, and following the sun across the sky until it sets in the West. Angel said an array of sun trackers on an area measuring about 7 miles by 7 miles would generate 10 Gigawatts of power during sunshine hours.

Photo Credit: Blake Coughenour/University of Arizona

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The 18-year loans will come from the U.S. Export-Import bank, which promotes U.S. export sales. Officials from the two countries were scheduled to sign a formal agreement for the loans today during a visit to South Africa by U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.

South Africa’s economic growth has been hurt by the public utility’s difficulty meeting electricity demands. The country considers increasing power production vital to its economy. As part of that goal, it has aggressive plans to add new renewable energy projects. The country plans to develop 6,000 MW of commercial wind and solar projects by 2020 and 17,800 MW by 2030.

South Africa is well known for its sunny skies. According to one analysis, it also has strong wind resources—potentially on par with China, the world leader in wind energy.

Last year, the South African public utility received a $3.75 billion World Bank loan to expand its power grid. Of that money, $260 million was earmarked for utility-scale wind and solar power. Kansas-based Black & Veatch is working on those projects, including a 100 MW wind farm in the Western Cape Province and a 100 MW concentrated solar power facility in the Northern Cape Province.

The new U.S. loans could help fund photovoltaic, concentrated solar and wind projects by General Electric Co., SolarReserve LLC and Siemens AG. Outside of the renewable energy field, the U.S. is pushing for other business relationships with South Africa. Fred Hochberg, president and chairman of the Export-Import Bank told the Associated Press that Boeing Co. is in the running to provide aircraft to South African Airways.

Photo credit: Klipheuwel wind farm in South Africa. Image credit: warrenski/Flickr

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