Energy news

Workers at the Statkraft Osmotic power plant prototype in Tofte

Harnessing the power of salt, Norway tries osmotic power

Technology / Energy

created Nov 23, 2009 | popularity 3.8 / 5 (4) | comments 4

After wind, sun, currents and tides, a company is preparing to make clean electricity by harnessing another natural phenomenon, the energy-unleashing encounter of freshwater and seawater.


NREL Uncovers Clean Energy Leaders State by State

NREL Uncovers Clean Energy Leaders State by State

Technology / Energy

created Nov 24, 2009 | popularity 3.4 / 5 (5) | comments 2

(PhysOrg.com) -- That California and Texas still lead the United States in generating renewable energy probably is no surprise. But, NREL's 2009 State of the States report shows that several smaller states ...


Seeking a Smarter Grid: Integrating Wind Energy by Linking Buildings to the Grid

Seeking a Smarter Grid: Integrating Wind Energy by Linking Buildings to the Grid

Technology / Energy

created Nov 24, 2009 | popularity not rated yet | comments 2

In utility parlance, wind energy is known as a “variable load.” That’s because wind is naturally unpredictable and inconstant. What’s worse, it is more likely to blow at night, when demand for electricity ...


ORNL 'deep retrofits' can cut home energy bills in half

ORNL 'deep retrofits' can cut home energy bills in half

Technology / Energy

created Nov 25, 2009 | popularity 3.7 / 5 (3) | comments 0

(PhysOrg.com) -- Oak Ridge National Laboratory has announced plans to conduct a series of deep energy retrofit research projects with the potential to improve the energy efficiency in selected homes by as ...


China is the world's largest emitter of the greenhouse gases blamed for global warming

China harnesses mountain wind power

Technology / Energy

created Nov 22, 2009 | popularity 4.4 / 5 (12) | comments 3

In the mountains above the southwestern Chinese town of Dali, dozens of new wind turbines dot the landscape -- a symbol of the country's sky-high ambitions for clean, green energy.


The KLM airplane which runs on biokerosene is seen at Schiphol airport, near Amsterdam

KLM flies world's first 'passenger flight on biofuel'

Technology / Energy

created Nov 23, 2009 | popularity 5 / 5 (1) | comments 0

A Boeing 747, one of four engines powered by a 50-percent biokerosene mix, circled the Netherlands for an hour on Monday for what airline KLM called the world's first passenger flight using biofuel.


Advanced nuclear fuel sets global performance record

Advanced nuclear fuel sets global performance record

Technology / Energy

created Nov 17, 2009 | popularity 4.5 / 5 (20) | comments 1

(PhysOrg.com) -- Idaho National Laboratory scientists have set a new world record with next-generation particle fuel for use in high temperature gas reactors (HTGRs).


plug-in hybrid electric vehicle

Pulling the plug on hybrid myths

Technology / Energy

created Nov 19, 2009 | popularity 3.8 / 5 (16) | comments 31

(PhysOrg.com) -- Whether you call them myths, urban legends, fables or old wives' tales, there's a lot of misinformation out there about plug-in electric hybrid vehicles. These vehicles, abbreviated PHEVs, ...


Battery Research Aims To Store Renewable Energy

Battery Research Aims To Store Renewable Energy

Technology / Energy

created Nov 19, 2009 | popularity 4.1 / 5 (13) | comments 6

The biggest chemical battery in the United States is located near Interstate 90 in the small town of Luverne, Minn. The 80 ton device -- the size of two tractor-trailers stacked on top of each other -- stores ...


Liquid battery big enough for the electric grid?

Liquid battery big enough for the electric grid?

Technology / Energy

created Nov 19, 2009 | popularity 4.3 / 5 (6) | comments 3

(PhysOrg.com) -- There's one major drawback to most proposed renewable-energy sources: their variability. The sun doesn't shine at night, the wind doesn’t always blow, and tides, waves and currents fluctuate. ...


Metal air battery

Metal-Air Battery Could Store 11 Times More Energy than Lithium-Ion

Technology / Energy

created Nov 05, 2009 | popularity 4.4 / 5 (48) | comments 12

(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 ...


A system of space solar power system (SSPS)

Japan eyes solar station in space as new energy source

Technology / Energy

created Nov 08, 2009 | popularity 4.8 / 5 (23) | comments 32

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.


Solar LED lamps

Solar Cells with LEDs Provide Inexpensive Lighting

Technology / Energy

created Nov 09, 2009 | popularity 4.4 / 5 (17) | comments 2

(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 ...


California targets TVs to lower electricity demand (AP)

Calif. requires TVs to be more energy-efficient (Update)

Technology / Energy

created Nov 18, 2009 | popularity 5 / 5 (2) | comments 1

(AP) -- California regulators adopted the nation's first energy-efficiency standards for televisions Wednesday in hopes of reducing electricity use at a time when millions of American households are switching ...


Solar power generation around the clock

Solar power generation around the clock

Technology / Energy

created Nov 05, 2009 | popularity 4.6 / 5 (29) | comments 15

(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 ...