http://www.physorg.com/technology-news/energy/ en-us PhysOrg.com provides the latest news on energy sciences, energy technology, energy renovation, alternative energy, and green energy. A pioneer in solar power in the 1990s before it became "sexy," University of Houston Professor Alex Freundlich recently entered into a collaborative research agreement with U.K.-based start-up QuantaSol for the development of the next generation of super efficient solar cells. http://www.physorg.com/news176999193.html Technology - Energy Mon, 09 Nov 2009 14:40:02 EST news176999193 (PhysOrg.com) -- Of the 1.5 billion people in developing countries who do not have electricity, many rely on kerosene lamps for light after the sun goes down. But now, researchers from Denmark have designed an LED lamp that runs on solar cells, which costs less than one-quarter of the annual cost of using kerosene lighting. The solar-LED lamps are expected to last at least a year, making them an affordable alternative to kerosene. http://www.physorg.com/news176991580.html Technology - Energy Mon, 09 Nov 2009 12:20:34 EST news176991580 (PhysOrg.com) -- Tesla is becoming synonymous with high performance electric cars. Indeed, the Tesla car company has been making efforts to create a brand of sports car that runs on electricity, and does so in a way that is convenient to motorists. In an effort to prove that it can be done, a Tesla Roadster has gone 313 miles on one charge. This is a new world record -- one that breaks the previous record of 241 miles, set by another Tesla Roadster. http://www.physorg.com/news176990887.html Technology - Energy Mon, 09 Nov 2009 12:11:26 EST news176990887 It may sound like a sci-fi vision, but Japan's space agency is dead serious: by 2030 it wants to collect solar power in space and zap it down to Earth, using laser beams or microwaves. http://www.physorg.com/news176879161.html Technology - Energy Sun, 08 Nov 2009 05:50:01 EST news176879161 Solar Impulse, the Swiss bid to make the first solar-powered flight around the world, rolled out its prototype on Friday at an airbase near Zurich and powered up the engines. http://www.physorg.com/news176727342.html Technology - Energy Fri, 06 Nov 2009 11:10:02 EST news176727342 The new "smart meters" utilities are installing in homes around the world to reduce energy use raise fresh privacy issues because of the wealth of information about consumer habits they reveal, experts said Friday. http://www.physorg.com/news176703307.html Technology - Energy Fri, 06 Nov 2009 04:16:07 EST news176703307 (PhysOrg.com) -- A spinoff company from Arizona State University plans to build a new battery with an energy density 11 times greater than that of lithium-ion batteries for just one-third the cost. With a $5.13 million research grant from the US Department of Energy awarded last week, Fluidic Energy hopes to turn its ultra-dense energy storage technology into a reality. http://www.physorg.com/news176646131.html Technology - Energy Thu, 05 Nov 2009 12:23:03 EST news176646131 (PhysOrg.com) -- A Californian company, SolarReserve, is developing a solar power system that can store seven hours' worth of solar energy by focusing mirrors onto millions of gallons of molten salt, allowing the plant to provide electricity 24 hours a day. http://www.physorg.com/news176632405.html Technology - Energy Thu, 05 Nov 2009 08:34:37 EST news176632405 (PhysOrg.com) -- Europe has long been interested in developing alternative energy sources. And, one of the more interesting places that some Europeans are looking for solar power is the Sahara. With the vast amounts of sun beating down on the Saharan desert, it seems an ideal place for solar panels. The Desertec Industrial Initiative, a consortium of 12 companies, including Siemens and Deutsche Bank, aims to make Saharan solar power for Europe a reality. But it won't exactly be easy. http://www.physorg.com/news176541300.html Technology - Energy Wed, 04 Nov 2009 08:00:02 EST news176541300 (PhysOrg.com) -- As electric cars begin breaking into the short-distance vehicle market, one French company thinks that it has an alternative to the electric vehicle: a car that runs on compressed air. Motor Development International (MDI), located near Nice, France, unveiled its bubbly-looking AirPod last year, and has ambitious plans to begin manufacturing the car by early 2010. But some of its critics think that's a bold claim that will be extremely difficult to realize, especially considering that the company has yet to bring a car to market despite several past attempts. http://www.physorg.com/news176466717.html Technology - Energy Tue, 03 Nov 2009 10:32:31 EST news176466717 (PhysOrg.com) -- A new breed of rechargeable zinc-air batteries is soon to be available, and may replace lithium-ion batteries in cell phones, laptops and other consumer items. Lithium-ion batteries store only a third of the energy and cost around twice as much as the new batteries. http://www.physorg.com/news176034001.html Technology - Energy Thu, 29 Oct 2009 11:21:57 EST news176034001 A Japanese zero-emission "hybrid" scooter to be released next year runs 10 times as economically as a petrol engine bike and can be assisted by human pedal power, its maker said Thursday. http://www.physorg.com/news176014667.html Technology - Energy Thu, 29 Oct 2009 06:20:01 EST news176014667 A Japanese sun-powered car won the World Solar Challenge on Wednesday after averaging speeds of more than 100 kilometres (62 miles) per hour in a four-day race through Australia's desert Outback. http://www.physorg.com/news175930898.html Technology - Energy Wed, 28 Oct 2009 06:50:01 EST news175930898 Budding US hybrid car maker Fisker Automotive will reopen a shuttered General Motors plant in Delaware to build fuel-efficient, plug-in cars, the White House announced Tuesday. http://www.physorg.com/news175884098.html Technology - Energy Tue, 27 Oct 2009 18:00:03 EST news175884098 President Barack Obama Tuesday announced the largest modernization of the US electricity grid in history, in a 3.4-billion-dollar bid to launch a new era of renewable energy consumption. http://www.physorg.com/news175870357.html Technology - Energy Tue, 27 Oct 2009 13:53:45 EST news175870357 (PhysOrg.com) -- Toyota is developing a solar charging station for electric cars and plug-in hybrids, making a green technology even greener. It has also designed a battery charger for mounting inside an electric vehicle or plug-in hybrid to recharge the storage batteries. http://www.physorg.com/news175848652.html Technology - Energy Tue, 27 Oct 2009 07:51:38 EST news175848652 SunCore is a little known Irvine, Calif.-based company that's on the cusp of shipping some potentially revolutionary technology. http://www.physorg.com/news175809705.html Technology - Energy Mon, 26 Oct 2009 23:10:01 EST news175809705 Imagine a car that can be refuelled in minutes but emits only water. Sounds like science fiction? In fact it already exists -- Hollywood star Jamie Lee Curtis has one. So does Honda president Takanobu Ito. http://www.physorg.com/news175693235.html Technology - Energy Sun, 25 Oct 2009 12:50:03 EST news175693235 (AP) -- Greg Bove steps into his pickup truck and drives down a sandy path to where the future of Florida's renewable energy plans begin: Acres of open land filled with solar panels that will soon power thousands of homes and business. http://www.physorg.com/news175584369.html Technology - Energy Sat, 24 Oct 2009 06:26:50 EST news175584369 Sharp Corporation has achieved the world's highest solar cell conversion efficiency (for non-concentrator solar cells) of 35.8% using a triple-junction compound solar cell. http://www.physorg.com/news175452895.html Technology - Energy Thu, 22 Oct 2009 17:55:22 EST news175452895 Just when you were finally warming up to the idea of swapping out your old light bulbs with compact fluorescent ones, you may soon find a new alternative at your local hardware store. http://www.physorg.com/news175412870.html Technology - Energy Thu, 22 Oct 2009 08:10:01 EST news175412870 (PhysOrg.com) -- For people fed up with their mobile telephone or iPod batteries running out, Japan's Toshiba Corp. announced Thursday the launch of a portable fuel-cell that can power up digital gadgets on the move. http://www.physorg.com/news175412573.html Technology - Energy Thu, 22 Oct 2009 06:44:51 EST news175412573 (PhysOrg.com) -- A fleet of 17 buses near Shanghai has been running on ultracapacitors for the past three years, and today that technology is coming to the Washington, DC, for a one-day demonstration. Chinese company Shanghai Aowei Technology Development Company, along with its US partner Sinautec Automobile Technologies, predict that this approach will provide an inexpensive and energy efficient way to power city buses in the near future. http://www.physorg.com/news175355628.html Technology - Energy Wed, 21 Oct 2009 16:00:01 EST news175355628 Researchers at the Department of Energy's Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory released a new study on the installed costs of solar photovoltaic (PV) power systems in the U.S., showing that the average cost of these systems declined by more than 30 percent from 1998 to 2008. Within the last year of this period, costs fell by more than 4 percent. http://www.physorg.com/news175353308.html Technology - Energy Wed, 21 Oct 2009 15:00:01 EST news175353308 Futuristic concept cars, plug-in hybrids, zero-emission electric vehicles and even a hydrogen-powered scooter jostled for the limelight as the Tokyo Motor Show kicked off on Wednesday. http://www.physorg.com/news175340034.html Technology - Energy Wed, 21 Oct 2009 12:00:02 EST news175340034 (PhysOrg.com) -- Rain didn't ruin the 2009 Solar Decathlon in Washington, D.C. University teams successfully operated 20 net-zero, grid-connected solar power homes for a week on the National Mall. Some used more power-generating solar panels; others relied on energy efficiency strategies. The winner was clean energy. http://www.physorg.com/news175186726.html Technology - Energy Mon, 19 Oct 2009 15:59:40 EST news175186726 Most of the technology needed to shift the world from fossil fuel to clean, renewable energy already exists. Implementing that technology requires overcoming obstacles in planning and politics, but doing so could result in a 30 percent decrease in global power demand, say Stanford civil and environmental engineering Professor Mark Z. Jacobson and University of California-Davis researcher Mark Delucchi. http://www.physorg.com/news175173974.html Technology - Energy Mon, 19 Oct 2009 12:27:37 EST news175173974 Move over hybrids -- the biggest buzz at this year's Tokyo Motor Show looks set to come from electric cars as the dream of affordable zero-emission vehicles moves closer to reality. http://www.physorg.com/news175141608.html Technology - Energy Mon, 19 Oct 2009 03:28:24 EST news175141608 (PhysOrg.com) -- A new system from an Italian company uses weather satellite data to estimate the potential of solar cell power plants and monitor their performance. The approach helps to give a faster return on investments in clean solar energy. http://www.physorg.com/news174915151.html Technology - Energy Fri, 16 Oct 2009 12:50:01 EST news174915151 (PhysOrg.com) -- Race cars have long provided a testing ground for driving technology that we eventually see in passenger cars on the road. To this end, an engineering team in Lancashire, England, is hoping to give cow power a place in mass-produced consumer automobiles by creating a race car that runs on cow manure. Yep, there are hopes that by processing cow waste and using it to fuel cars, it can reduce the impact of two things that contribute to global warming. http://www.physorg.com/news174914638.html Technology - Energy Fri, 16 Oct 2009 12:25:04 EST news174914638