This week, solar news is becoming more cost-effective thanks to innovations in solar materials; wave energy research glides forward; and wind farms dominate the near-future energy landscape. What cleantech news have you been reading? Share them with us @GreentownLabs!
Green Biz : DoE Trumpets Clean Tech ‘Energy Revolution’
Critical to the success of these decarbonization efforts is the ability of countries to roll out new clean technologies on a scale never before seen. From wind turbines to electric cars, economies around the world will need to embrace a new world of technological innovation — and not just test these new ideas out, but firmly embed them into their economic and social structures.
CNBC : Floating Solar Arrays Point to Bright Future for Clean Energy
The potential of solar power is significant, with the International Energy Agency previously stating that the sun could be the planet’s biggest source of electricity by 2050.
IEEE Spectrum : Quantum-Dot Coating Could Pull Solar Energy From Your Windows
In big cities, sometimes buildings that don’t have a lot of roof space for solar cells still have large windows that could harness light for electricity. Researchers at the Los Alamos National Laboratory, in New Mexico, reported yesterday in Nature Energy that a thin film of quantum dots on everyday glass could be the key to achieving acceptable efficiency in window photovoltaic systems at low cost.
MIT Technology Review : A Desert Full of Tomatoes, Thanks to Solar Power and Seawater
At first glance, growing fruit in the desert sounds like an awfully good way to feed a mushrooming global population and adapt to the worst effects of climate change. And a farm in South Australia run by the greenhouse developer Sundrop Farms is doing just that, using solar power to desalinate water and grow tomatoes in the otherwise parched landscape.
Science Daily : Wave Energy Researchers Dive Deep to Advance Clean Energy Source
One of the biggest untapped clean energy sources on the planet — wave energy — could one day power millions of homes across the U.S. But more than a century after the first tests of the power of ocean waves, it is still one of the hardest energy sources to capture. Now, engineers are conducting the largest model-scale wave energy testing of its kind to improve the performance of wave-energy converters (WECs).
Morning Consult : Clean Power Plan or No, Wind Energy Poised to Power America’s Future
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit began hearing oral arguments on the CPP last month, and pundits are volleying arguments in support and opposition of the rule. However, few people are talking about something exceptional: many states are already on track to meet their carbon reduction requirements. How can this be? The answer, it turns out, is blowing in the wind.
The Wall Street Journal : U.S. Tax Credit Powers Wind-Farm Upgrades
Wind-power producers are rushing to take advantage of a green energy tax credit extended by Congress – and, in a new twist, many are using it to renovate existing wind farms, not just build new ones.
Cleantechnia : Global Wind Energy Capacity Reaches 456 GW, Set to Hit 500 GW By Year-End
Published this week, the World Wind Energy Association (WWEA) released its half-year report, revealing that 21 GW of new wind installations were completed during the first half of the year, bringing the global cumulative total up to 456 GW. Further, the WWEA predict that global wind capacity will reach 500 GW by the end of the year.