Xcel Energy announced the preliminary results of the company's wind-to-battery test project being conducted in Minnesota, USA. According to these results the technology works. Xcel Energy started this project in 2008, using a 1 MW battery storage device to demonstrate the technology's ability to store excess wind energy, and pass that energy onto the power grid when necessary. This is the first of its kind technology used in the United States.
E.ON announced its Vagr Atferd wave energy conversion device has arrived at the EMEC in Orkney, and is now awaiting installation and the beginning of the testing period. This will be the first time the P2 machine, designed and made by Pelamis Wave Power, will be tested. The Vagr Atferd ("wave power" in old Norse) has 750 kW of capacity, and will be tested over the next months and years, with the goal to transition this technology from development to commercial phase. E.ON initially announced the completion of its first wave energy device in May this year.
Vagr Atferd is 180 meters long, weigh about 1300 tons. The "snake" produced electricity using the oscillatory motion of the waves, which help puch the water within the device through hydraulic "rams", mounted at the hinged joints on the device.
[source: E.ON]
Trina Solar signed a letter of agreement with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) whereby the solar manufacturer has joined MIT's Industrial Liaison Program, an initiative started with a goal to promote university-industrial collaboration and transfer of technology.
As a result of this agreement, Trina Solar will have access to MIT's resources, including technology conferences, but also to directly access research opporutnities with MIT researchers. This way, the company can stay at the forefront of advanced technology in the field of solar energy. Trina Solar operates a research institute of its own, the State Key Lab of PV Science and Technology, and through this agreement the company hopes to bring top minds in the solar energy industry and R&D together to drive innovation.
[source: Trina Solar]
Chinese State Grid Energy Research Institute (SGERI) and wind turbine manufacturer Vestas are involved in a joint study called Joint Study on Coordinated Development of Wind Power and the Electricity Grid, representing an initiative to enhance large scale wind energy project integration into the the power grid. Additionally, the study is also looking into solutions for mass integration of renewable energy in general into the power grid.
SGERI and Vestas have announced the completion of the first part of the joint study, being carried out by the company with its international experience and local Chinese experts. The goal is to provide a holistic solution for the growing problem of absorbing all the renewable energy capacity needed into the national power grid to answer the growing energy demand in China. As far as wind energy is concerned, China is one of the fastest growing markets in the world, with 13 GW of newly installed capacity in 2009 alone. It is expected that the total installed capacity in the country will reach a staggering 120 GW by 2020. It is, therefore, quite clear that the country needs an appropriately large and capable power grid in order to be able to distribute all this power to the consumers. This task is by no means trivial, and involves major development efforts, the scale of which has been outlined in China's new ten year energy development strategy.
Scientists from South Korea, Belgium and the United States are working on a new breakthrough solar energy harvesting technology, that could change the game in the solar energy industry. Research is focused on producing technology for a new class of solar energy converters, with greater efficiency and cost savings. According to Scitech Solar, one of the companies involved in the research, the new technology will be scalable, sustainable, adaptable and eco-friendly. So, here's the scientific info…
US Department of Energy is awarding USD 122 million in funding to a multidisciplinary team whose project is to form an energy innovation hub and achieve breakthrough innovations in energy production. The team will be comprised of top scientists, working on developing new technologies for harnessing solar energy by converting sunlight directly into fuel.
The team will be housed under the Joint Center for Artificial Photosynthesis (JCAP), led by the California Institute of Technology (Cal Tech), in a partnership with Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. The center will bring together leading scientific minds to work on simulating the natural photosynthetic energy conversion process for practical purposes. The ultimate goal of the innovation hub is to develop an integrated solar energy-to-chemical fuel conversion system, and then advance this system to commercial scale application. In order for JCAP to achieve this, several technologies will need to be developed including light absorbers, catalysts, molecular linkers, and separation membranes.
The funding for the project will be issued in phases, the first being a USD 22 million tranche this year, with USD 25 million each of the next four years.
[source: US Department of Energy]
According to the recently published statistics document by the European Wind Energy Association (EWEA), Europe is looking at a record breaking year for wind energy capacity installations in Europe. The first half of 2010 has resulted in 118 offshore wind turbines getting connected to the power grid, totalling in 333 MW of capacity. This is already more than half of the total offshore capacity installed in 2009. Another 151 wind turbines (440 MW in total) were installed, although not yet connected to the power grid.
Sixteen offshore wind farms were under construction in the first half of 2010, representing 3972 MW of capacity in total. Of these wind farms, four became operational. These are Robin Rigg (UK), Alpha Ventus (Germany), Gunfleet Sands (UK) and Poseidon (Denmark).
The developers that contributed the most with their projects are E.ON (64%), DONG Energy (21%) and Vattenfall (11%). Looking at wind turbine manufacturers, Siemens takes the lead in the first half of 2010 with 55% of total installed turbines ensuring leadership position for the company, while Vestas (36%) and REpower (9%) trail behind.
The US Department of Energy announced it has awarded USD 92 in funding for research projects that will contribute to innovation in clean energy technologies, as well as create new jobs and help increase America's competitiveness in the global clean energy market.
In the annual report, Renewable Energy Snapshots, issued by the EU Commission's Joint Research Center, 62% of new power generation capacity in Europe in 2009 is said to have come from renewables. This represents an increase from 57% that was reported for 2008. Overall, renwewable energy sources account for almost 20% of the total energy consumed in Europe during 2009.
Just to summarize some of the findings in the report – of the 19.9% overall renewable energy stake in the energy consumed in Europe in 2009, 11.6% came, not surprisingly, from hydropower, 4.2% came from wind capacity, 3.5% from biomass and 0.4% from solar energy capacity.
According to the report, if the growth rates for particular renewable energy technologies are kept over the coming years, we could be looking at 35-40% of overall energy consumption in the EU to come from renewable energy sources. Some of the issues identified in the report, that need to be resolved before Europe is to meet the 20% by 2020 target, include fair access to power grids, R&D support, and the adaptation of existing energy systems to accommodate renewable energy.
If you're interested in diving into more detailed information, you can download the report here.
[source: EU Commission Joint Research Center]
Fraunhofer Institute has joined VDE Institute and the Canadian Standards Association Group (CSA) in laying the corner stone for the new solar photovoltaic module test facility in Albuquerque, New Mexico (USA). The sunny city is now home to an international test laboratory that will try to contribute to increasing the efficiency and finding improvements in solar PV technology.
Having a common set of standards for the solar energy industry is something that's needed to create an environment for advancement in this area of solar energy development. International testing and certification will now be available under one roof for all solar PV module manufacturers in North America. This will cut costs for businesses, while at the same time reducing the time needed to introduce new products to the market. The choice of Albuquerque as the new home of the test lab was made considering the fact that the area is also home to numerous solar energy and high-tech companies, but also to the University of New Mexico and the Sandia National Lab facilities.
[source: Fraunhofer]
