Related topics: solar panels
Solar energy
hideSolar energy is the radiant light and heat from the Sun that has been harnessed by humans since ancient times using a range of ever-evolving technologies. Solar radiation along with secondary solar resources such as wind and wave power, hydroelectricity and biomass account for most of the available renewable energy on Earth. Only a minuscule fraction of the available solar energy is used.
Solar power provides electrical generation by means of heat engines or photovoltaics. Once converted, its uses are limited only by human ingenuity. A partial list of solar applications includes space heating and cooling through solar architecture, potable water via distillation and disinfection, daylighting, hot water, thermal energy for cooking, and high temperature process heat for industrial purposes.
Solar technologies are broadly characterized as either passive solar or active solar depending on the way they capture, convert and distribute sunlight. Active solar techniques include the use of photovoltaic panels and solar thermal collectors (with electrical or mechanical equipment) to convert sunlight into useful outputs. Passive solar techniques include orienting a building to the Sun, selecting materials with favorable thermal mass or light dispersing properties, and designing spaces that naturally circulate air.
For more information about Solar energy, read the full article at
Wikipedia.
This text uses material from Wikipedia and is available under the GNU Free Documentation License.
News tagged with solar energy
Toward home-brewed electricity with 'personalized solar energy'
Dec 16, 2009 |
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New scientific discoveries are moving society toward the era of "personalized solar energy," in which the focus of electricity production shifts from huge central generating stations to individuals in their ...
Taiwan chip giant TSMC to enter solar energy
Dec 10, 2009 |
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Chip giant Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. is planning its first foray into solar energy with an investment in the island's largest producer of solar cells, a spokesman said Thursday.
Researchers Identify Key Molecules in Photosynthesis
Dec 02, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- Chemistry professor Harry Frank led an international group of researchers that identified the molecules in algae which direct the organisms to convert sunlight into oxygen. The findings may ...
Studying ice crystals to understand the cloud-climate connection
Space & Earth / Earth Sciences
Dec 14, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- Beginning in mid-December, scientists will undertake a special mission to squeeze the secrets out of ice crystals in cirrus clouds. The SPARTICUS, or Small Particles in Cirrus, campaign will ...
World Bank musters $5.5 billion for solar projects
Dec 09, 2009 |
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The World Bank announced Wednesday 5.5 billion dollars would be invested in solar energy projects in five countries of the Middle East and North Africa in a bid to combat climate change.
Solar energy powers Marines on battlefield (w/ Video)
Dec 08, 2009 |
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A year ago, U.S. Marines operating in the Arabian Desert only viewed the sun as the source of the region's relentless heat. Recently, the Office of Naval Research (ONR) Advanced Power Generation Future Naval ...
Solar power generation around the clock
Nov 05, 2009 |
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(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 ...
Easing Atmospheric CO2 Levels Using Nanotubes and Sunlight
Nanotechnology / Nanomaterials
Feb 16, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- Researchers at The Pennsylvania State University have determined a way to use arrays of nanotubes in a solar-based process to convert carbon dioxide and water into methane and other hydrocarbon ...
Gold solution for enhancing nanocrystal electrical conductance
Nanotechnology / Nanomaterials
Sep 10, 2009 |
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In a development that holds much promise for the future of solar cells made from nanocrystals, and the use of solar energy to produce clean and renewable liquid transportation fuels, researchers with the U.S. ...
Liquid Battery Offers Promising Solar Energy Storage Technique
Mar 06, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- One of the biggest challenges currently facing large-scale solar energy technology is finding an effective way to store the energy, which is essential for using the electricity at night or ...
Scientists create new enzymes for biofuel production
Mar 23, 2009 |
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Researchers at the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) and world-leading gene-synthesis company DNA2.0 have taken an important step toward the development of a cost-efficient process to extract sugars ...
New Florida City To Run On Solar Power
Apr 13, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- A new Florida city, Babcock Ranch, will power 19,500 homes by solar power and cost the average customer's monthly bill an additional 31 cents. This will be the first city on earth powered ...
Commercialization of new solar technology to boost solar efficiency
Nov 09, 2009 |
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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 ...
Transparent solar cells
Jun 02, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- If solar cells were transparent they could be fitted to windows and building facades. Physical modeling helps in the development of suitable materials for transparent electronics and thus ...
Ancient diatoms lead to new technology for solar energy
Nanotechnology / Nanomaterials
Apr 08, 2009 |
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Engineers at Oregon State University have discovered a way to use an ancient life form to create one of the newest technologies for solar energy, in systems that may be surprisingly simple to build compared to existing silicon-based ...
