Green Energy

Solar Regulators and Inverters

Solar power has two main advantages that set it apart from other electricity generation methods such as nuclear power and hydropower.  First, it is the greenest energy power that harnesses the most renewable energy source known to man.  Second, it is relatively simple to install and use with just solar panels, wiring, battery, solar regulator and inverter. Solar Regulator The solar regulator is the small box located between the batteries and the solar panel.  It performs two main functions.  First, it protects the battery from overcharges, which usually happens when there is little consumption but there is a strong sun.  Second, it protects excessive discharge when there is little sun (i.e., bad weather conditions) and heavy consumption.  Either way, the solar regulator protects the battery from damage to its components. In addition to controlling the amount of charge from the solar panel into the battery, you can directly charge appliances to the solar regulator.  In this instance, the batteries are bypassed but continue to receive charges from the panels. There are two basic types of solar regulators.  First, there is the on-off shunt regulator, which possesses the advantages of simplicity of installation and use, high reliability at a low cost and very small power ...

New Battery Alternative Stores Huge Amounts of Energy

From their initial observation by General Electric engineers and subsequently commercialization by Standard Oil, ultracapacitors have grown into a multi-million industry.  With their green energy properties, which include quick charging and temperature stability, these battery alternatives have high potential to replace the conventional batteries found in electric cars and their hybrid cousins. New Development On a new development, researchers at the University of Texas have developed graphene to boost the energy storage capacity of ultracapacitors.  Supposedly, the carbon-based nanomaterial will double the present maximum capacity of these battery alternatives. Graphene is described as a planar sheet of carbon atoms, which are one-atom thick and densely condensed in a benzene ring structure.  When you see images of graphene, you will think of chicken wire or a honeycomb lattice albeit in atom sizes. The ability of graphene to store large amounts of energy lies in its large size, atomically speaking.  With each gram of graphene equivalent to one large football field, it is no wonder that the potential for double amounts of stored energy is possible.  It will take more research on the matter but it is an exciting development, nonetheless. Good News Without going into the technical side, the green energy movement will benefit from the new ...

Going Green and Becoming Rich

To paraphrase President Barack Obama in one of his State of the Union Address, the nation that becomes the leader in clean energy economy will become the leader of the global economy.  How very true, indeed, especially when one considers that the renewable energy industry and its allied industries are growing by leaps and bounds even in the worldwide recession.  Any nation that can supply the increasing demand for all things related to renewable energy from the solar panels to the wind turbines will become rich by going green. At present, it is China that is cashing in on the green revolution, with factories spread out over the rural and urban areas dedicated to the production of renewable energy equipment and materials.  This is very ironic considering that China is not exactly a nation that environmentalists will award the most eco-friendly in the world, far from it.  Then again, the United States is guilty of many dastardly acts against the environment, too. Proofs of this fact are the following statistics of how China fares in comparison with its nearest competitor in the renewable energy industry.  First, China and the United States are the top two producers of greenhouse gases, with Russia, India ...

Solar Options Cheaper Than You Think

Many people don't have solar power because they think it is incredibly expensive.  While you may want to start doing the right thing environmentally, you probably don't have the thousands available to purchase a photovoltaic system for your home.  Well, maybe you don't have to spend thousands on the solar options that you need. I happen to know a couple, Pam and Phil, who are both teachers.  One is a principal and the other happens to be a really smart English teacher.  Of course, they don't make a ton of money, and they have a baby on the way.  Instead of just throwing the idea of solar power right out the window, they sat down, did the numbers, and did a lot of research too.  One option they had was to put an entire system on their house and get rid of using coal and the other option allowed them to get rid of coal while paying nothing.  Take a guess which option they decided to go with. The option available is known as solar leasing.  If you can't afford to pay for a system outright, this option allows you to lease the system you need and it makes a great alternative ...

Understanding Energy Subsidies

Not sure what energy subsidies actually are?  Well, you'll find that they are something that is wielded as a champion of energy technologies that are favorites against those technologies that are competing.  Those that really support nuclear energy and fossil fuels try to say that those energies such as solar and wind and other types of renewable energies can't stand up by themselves.  Those who advocate these renewable forms of energy then argue that these other types of fuels have been supported by the government for some time. What you need to understand when it comes to energy subsidies is that every form happens to be subsidized.  There are not any types of energy, including nuclear, renewables, or any others, that can stand on their own without having loan guarantees, tax preferences, or even research grants on their behalf.  Of course, this really doesn't have to be a bad thing.  The biggest questions is which problems are we dealing with when it comes to energy and in order to solve them, what energy subsidies need to be used? Trying to pin down what really is and is not a subsidy is not that difficult.  There really isn't a definition of subsidy that ...