Robots Built to Clean and Install Solar Panels

Rover, a robot, placing a solar panel in a track at Alion Energy, which is looking to shave labor costs

       In Richmond, California, there are low-tech robots installing and maintaining large-scale solar farms, at least a start-up company, known as Alion Energy, believes so. Working in near secrecy until recently, the company is ready to use its machines in three projects in the next few months in California, Saudi Arabia, and China. If all goes well, executives expect that they can help bring the price of solar electricity into line with that of natural gas by cutting the cost of building and maintaining large solar installations.
       In recent years, the solar industry has wrung enormous costs from developing farms, largely through reducing the price of solar panels more than 70% since 2008. But with prices about as low as manufacturers say they can go, the industry is turning its attention to finding savings in other areas.
       "We've been in this mode for the past decade in the industry of really just focusing on module costs because they used to be such a big portion of system costs," said Arno Harris, chief executive of Recurrent Energy, a solar farm developer, and chairman of the board of the Solar Energy Industries Association. Now, Mr. Harris said, "Eliminating the physical plant costs is a major area of focus through eliminating materials and eliminating labor."

(877) 20-SOLAR Introduces Solar Power to Burbank with 0 Out-Of-Pocket Costs

         The leading Burbank solar energy company, Solar Center, is pleased to announce that their new (877) 20-SOLAR subsidiary is now offering zero down solar energy systems in Burbank. (877) 20-SOLAR is dedicated to serving every aspect of the Burbank solar energy market.
         Solar Center offers leasing options, with an extremely small upfront payment, that's usually around $1,000 but sometimes as low as zero, that allows homeowners to start saving money immediately. Homeowners can also purchase a system and earn an extremely attractive return, typically around 20% per year on the investment. Typical payback periods for solar systems today are approximately 6-8 years, although with leases the paybacks can be instant. As the solar industry has grown and matured over the last decade, the cost of putting solar panels on homes has decreased significantly. There's never been a better time to switch over to renewable clean energy than now and to Go Solar.
         Solar Center is one of a select group of Burbank solar power distributors who can offer the highest efficiency solar panels on the market, those manufactured by SunPower. With SunPower, the Solar Center can tailor a solar panel installation to specific needs and lifestyles, so customers get maximum Burbank solar energy performance without a maximum investment. Also, the provided experienced service and craftsmanship meets the highest standards set by the AAMA (The American Architectural Manufacturers Association).

Solar Cells Meets New World Record Efficiency

        Researchers at the German Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems have achieved a new world record for the conversion of sunlight into electricity using a new solar cell structure with four solar subcells. It took three years of research on this particular solar technology to hit the new world record of 44.7%, an efficiency that is getting the world of solar technology tantalizingly close to 50%.
        Just four months ago in May 2013, the group of researchers at the institute were able to achieve an efficiency of 43.6% with the technology. This type of solar cell is used in concentrator photovoltaics (CPV). Phys.org reports, "The terresterial use of so-called III-V multi-junction solar cells, which originally came from space technology, has prevailed to realize highest efficiencies for the conversion of sunlight to electricity. In this multi-junction solar cell, several cells made out of different III-V semiconductor materials are stacked on top of each other. The single subcells absorb different wavelength ranges of the solar spectrum."
       The solar cells developed in the Fraunhofer labs are manufactured by Soitec. So far, the company has produced solar cells for installations in Italy, France, South Africa and California, as well as in 14 other countries.

Solar Sidewalk Invented!

       George Washington University's Virginia Science and Technology Campus is now home to the world's first walkable solar-paneled sidewalk with the completion of a 100-square foot solar walkway, dubbed the Solar Walk. As part of the University's "sustainable Solar Walk" project, 27 walkable solar photovoltaic panels were installed as an extension of a public sidewalk on the campus, along with a solar trellis.

       The semi-transparent solar panels have a peak capacity of 400 watts, and is designed to power some 450 LED lights to illuminate the solar pathway after dark. The panels, which were designed by Onyx Solar, are said to be slip-resistant and able to stand up to regular foot traffic.

       The solar trellis, designed by Studio39 Landscape Architecture, is installed at the end of the solar sidewalk, and sends its solar energy output to help power Innovation Hall on the campus. Both installations can be seen on the public sidewalk between the Exploration and Innovation Halls, at the intersection of GW Boulevard and University Drive.

World's Largest Solar Power Plant is Now Online

         After three years and $2.2 billion of construction, California has just flipped the switch for the planet's largest solar thermal plant, the 392 megawatt Ivanpah Solar Electric Generating System. Ivanpah's 300,000 heliostatic mirrors, which reflect and concentrate light around a central molten salt-filled tower, rather than convert light to electricity like photovoltaics, sit on 3,500 acres of federal land in Mojave, California. The project has received major funding not only for the DoE but also Google, NRG Energy, BrightSource Energy and Bechtel.
         While only the first of they system's three central towers has begun operating, it's already feeding power back into the PG&E (Pacific Gas & Electric) grid. And when the remaining two will be activated in the coming weeks, Ivanpah is expected to produce enough energy at peak to power 140,000 homes while reducing carbon emissions by some 400,000 tons per year over its 30-year service life.

Elliot City Home Supports Solar Energy

        Starting in 2007, Dan and Margo Duesterhaus had 32 solar panels installed on their Elliot City home 12 years ago, in which it was placed on three sections of the roof, two additional panels for their solar water heater and another smaller panel for a solar attic fan. They added solar daylight tubes at three locations on the main floor of their rancher, two small heat pumps and large windows with extensive insulation.
        Over 5 years, the Duersterhauses transformed their 1950s-era home into a model of energy-efficiency. "It was a long-term desire," said Margo Duesterhaus, an IT consultant for the Baltimore-Washington firm Triple TeQ. "We were interested in the long-term cost savings, and obviously we had a concern for the environment."
        This weekend, the Duesterhaus home is one of the stops on the Metropolitian Washington Tour of Solar and Green Homes, which features 50 solar-powered homes in Maryland, the District of Colombia and Virginia. The Duesterhauses expect to greet at least 25 visitors when they opened their house Saturday; other houses in the area will be open Sunday as well.

Margo Duesterhaus' house is on a tour of solar homes. South facing windows were added to the kitchen area, which are double-paned with argon in between. EIFS, exterior insulation and finishing system is on the walls on the back of the house.

There are three sections of solar panels on the roof that provide 90-95% of the home's electricity.

Crowdfunding Helps Military Conversion to Solar Energy

U.S. Army's solar array at White Sands, New Mexico

      The U.S. military has ambitious plans ($7 billion worth) to install renewable energy at bases and other facilities across the nation. American taxpayers, of course, are footing the bill. But now they can choose to put their money into a military solar project and make a return, thanks to the crowdfunding craze.
      Mosaic, a California startup that earlier this year began letting ordinary investors put in as little as $25 to help finance commercial rooftop photovoltaic arrays, today announced its first military-related project, a 12.3-megawatt installation that will put 55,189 panels on housing at Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst in New Jersey. The panels will be installed on 547 homes and are expected to supply 30% of their electricity demand.
     The deal is significant on two fronts. Military bases represent a huge market that will help drive down the cost of solar energy through economies of scale. Silicon Valley's SolarCity, for instance, scored a $1 billion deal in 2011 to finance and install 371 megawatts of photovoltaic panels on military housing in 30 states. Second, the deal marks a new way to finance solar energy. As lucrative U.S. tax breaks for solar and wind projects fall from 30% to 10% at the end of 2016, they will become less attractive to big banks and corporate investors currently bankrolling commercial and residential solar projects. Enter the ordinary investors, not the high-roller ones but the ordinary ones.