 The results of a probably somewhat biased poll given to 1,004 Americans by the world's largest solar-cell producer, Japan's Sharp Electronics Corp show that 80% of Americans want to have solar power as a part of their houses. Two thirds of Americans are willing to pay a premium for solar panels and half said they'd pay 10% more for a house with solar panels.
The number one reason cited: to save money.
Ron Kenedi, VP of solar stuff at Sharp said, "Solar has been popular for a long time in areas like California and Arizona. Now we're seeing that the rest of the country is ready to embrace solar energy, and consumers want the option of having solar power their new home." So, what you're saying is, when it was economically viable to have solar power in places with lots of sunshine, people had solar panels? And now that it's economically viable in other areas, those people want solar as well. Crazy...
From PersonalTechPipeline
{mosimage} We've already seen prototypes for a solar powered MP3 player here at EcoGeek, and a solar cell phone is an obvious next step for the prototypers of the world. Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft is a consortion of over 50 technology research firms (most of which are, surprise! German.) Details on their solar powered cell phone are sketchy, and we are skeptical. This would, at best, simply be an alternate method for charging your phone. It wouldn't replace power chords and, unless solar panels get much more efficient (or some mysterious Russian substance saves the day) there simply won't be enough surface area on a phone to power it. Now, we should be fair, phones are getting more efficient all the time. But they're also getting smaller (less room for panels.) I'm ready to say that, if this ever happens, it's five years away. For now, we'll just have to settle for solar backpacks and clothes .
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{mosimage}Whether you're a bustling urbanite or a happy camper (or both) your portable devices need to be charged. The New York City based company Voltaic provides the solution in the form of bags that double as mobile power generators. Three solar panels grace the bags and generate up to 4 watts of power, allowing you to recharge most small electronic devices including: cell phones, cameras, two way radios, PDA's, and MP3s. Unfortunately the bags won't charge your laptop. The award winning bags come with eleven standard adaptors for common cell phones and other devices and a full range of optional adaptors are available on the website. Best of all, is the battery pack containing a 2,200mAh Lithium Ion battery, a voltage converter, built in LED torch and charge indicator. It clips inside the back pocket of the bag and allows you to save the juice for later. In case the forecast is really gray, the battery pack can also be charged using an AC travel charger or car charger (both included). Currently Voltaic offers 4 different models, Backpack, Daypack, Pouch and Messenger and you can customize your bag by choosing the color of the solar panels – silver, orange, green or charcoal. Regardless of which you choose, curious random strangers will stop you and ask "are those solar panels?" giving you an excellent opportunity to speak to the virtues of renewable energy sources.
{mosimage}Well, we've been keeping our eyes open for more information on this 'stellar battery' that we blogged about last week. Twice as efficient as a solar panel, operates in darkness and low light, cheaper than a solar panel. Lacking details, we were skeptical. Well, the Russian scientists at the Joint Institute for Nuclear Research (JINR) have given us some more information. They're claiming a 54% efficiency in converting visual light to electricity. They're claiming a system of storing that energy that does not use acid batteries, and they're claiming a 31% efficiency at converting low-light and infrared light to electricity. And, finally, they've actually given us a glimpse of how, exactly, this is supposed to work. Of course, they told the world in Russian, and we don't speak Russian, but we're happy to try and translate the translation / explaination we found at PESN. Summary:
The Russians said: We have a revolutionary new 'star battery' that is made of heteroelectric matter. The Russians meant to say: We made an ultra-capacitor and an ultra-efficient photoelement out of a metamaterial. Now, this might not strike you as a huge difference. But we can actually figure out what they're talking about in the second sentence, while, if you google “heteroelectric” you find only articles talking about the star battery. Read all about it after the jump:
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