Daily Tech News

Everyday, we hear about the giant strides that are being made by various alternative and sustainable energy sources. But by-and-large, the public is still apprehensive about what kind of impact it will have. Basic questions such as, ‘can solar power provide round the clock power?’ or ‘can a regular household afford to switch to solar panels?’ or ‘is it really more cost and energy efficient?’ tend to plague alternative energy solutions—proving that, while it’s slowly gaining attention, large scale use remains elusive and uncertain. But check this out—in India, the  Cochin International Airport , which has been outfitted to provide round-the-clock electricity solely through solar energy, is putting all these apprehensions to rest. Everyday,   we hear about the giant strides  that are being made by various alternative and sustainable energy sources. But by-and-large, the public is still apprehensive about what kind of impact it will have. Basic q...

The Japanese electronics multinational Kyocera has begun work on what it says will be the world’s biggest floating solar farm. The power plant is being built on a reservoir in Japan’s Chiba prefecture and is anticipated to supply enough electricity for nearly 5,000 households when it is completed in early 2018. Space-starved Japan has already seen several floating solar farms built as part of the country’s drive to exploit more renewable energy in the wake of the 2011 Fukushima disaster. The shutdown of nuclear plants has seen Japan increasingly reliant on fossil fuel imports that have hit its emissions-cutting ambitions. The Yamakura dam power plant will see more than 50,000 solar photovoltaic panels cover a 180,000 m sq area, but compared to other land-based plants it is relatively small. At 13.7MW when finished, it would not make the top 100 of the world’s largest solar photovoltaic farms. In the UK, water company United Utilities  started work last year on a float...

German solar technology firm Heliatek claims to have outdone itself by setting a new world record for directly converting sunlight into electricity using organic photovoltaic cells. In 2012 it claimed a then world record 10.7 percent conversion efficiency and said it was gunning for 15 percent in the near future. This week it announced it's halfway there, achieving a new record of 13.2 percent. Heliatek says its R&D teams achieved the new record using a multi-junction cell and that the measurement was independently confirmed by Fraunhofer CSP's solar testing facility. While traditional silicon cells have achieved higher levels of conversion efficiency, organic cells are also pursued because they can be produced more cheaply and are also more flexible. In fact, the firm claims that "the excellent low light and high temperature behavior of the organic semiconductor" in the new cells makes them equivalent to the electricity generation capability of conventional s...

Google is pushing forward in the race to deliver universal Internet access, testing solar-powered drones capable of beaming high-speed Internet back to Earth. The secretive Project Skybender,  The Guardian   reports , aims to use high-frequency millimeter wave transmitters that could be used to provide next-generation 5G wireless Internet access. The experimental technology has previously been used in airport body scanners. But by using what’s called a phased array, millimeter waves could theoretically be used to transmit data 40 times faster than the fastest 4G systems used today. A network made up of thousands of autonomous drones, powered by solar energy, would then be used to deliver high-speed, reliable Internet around the world. “The huge advantage of millimeter wave is access to new spectrum because the existing cellphone spectrum is overcrowded. It’s packed and there’s nowhere else to go,” said Jacques Rudell, a professor of electrical engineering at the Unive...

Although  velomobiles  in general are a rather obscure class of vehicle, the human/solar-powered  Elf  is certainly one of the better-known recent examples. Inspired by its design and performance, Spanish startup evovelo recently put the finishing touches on the prototype of a similar vehicle, known as the mö. Like the Elf, it's propelled by pedal-power and/or an electric motor – and that motor is in turn powered by the sun. The enclosed 85-kg (187-lb) tricycle seats two people side-by-side, plus it has room for things like bags of groceries or an infant seat. Along with pedals it has a direct drive motor, the power of which can be adapted to meet legislation in different countries – it could range from 250 up to 1,500 watts. Besides receiving electricity from the rooftop photovoltaic panels, its 48V/15Ah battery pack can also be recharged via a sealed exterior charging port, or it can be removed and taken indoors to charge. According to evove...

It's the kind of simple yet brilliant invention that would have the tycoons of Dragons' Den salivating with excitement. Not only is the fridge solar powered, it can also be built from household materials  -  making it ideal for the Third World. Emily Cummins, 21, came up with the idea while working on a school project in her grandfather's potting shed. The fridge is now improving the lives of thousands of poverty-stricken Africans. Emily Cummins holds the portable eco-fridge. It can keep perishable goods, such as milk or meat, cool for days at a temperature of around 6C And Miss Cummins hopes to patent a more sophisticated portable model for use in transporting medical supplies around hot countries. From the age of four, when she was given a hammer as a gift, Miss Cummins has spent much of her spare time making things out of ordinary materials. She has won awards for a toothpaste squeezer for arthritis sufferers and for a water-carrying device, again for Third World ...