The Efficiency Zone
Researchers develop new possibilities for solar power
July 10, 2012 2:12 pm | News | CommentsTwo Queen's researchers have contributed to a significant breakthrough in solar technology. Their research has led to a new solar photovoltaic thermal (PVT) system that generates both electricity and heat. Solar PVTs are normally made with crystal silicon cells which generate electricity, but little heat. Stephen Harrison and Joshua Pearce (Mechanical and Materials Engineering) designed and tested amorphous silicon cells in a PVT system.
$1.6 million for sustainability
July 3, 2012 2:48 pm | News | CommentsFrom solar energy to water treatment, from smarter buildings to electric cars: at Concordia University, "sustainability" is more than just a buzzword. On June 26, the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC) announced that Concordia had received $ 1,643,700 in support of research and training via an Institute in Water, Energy and Sustainability.
Audi R8 e-tron sets world record for a production vehicle with an electric drive system
July 2, 2012 9:19 am | News | CommentsThe future of electric mobility at Audi is highly dynamic: The R8 e-tron has set a world record for a production vehicle with an electric drive system on the Nürburgring Nordschleife – the toughest test track in the world. Racing driver Markus Winkelhock piloted the high-performance, all-electric-drive sports car around the demanding 20.8-kilometer (12.92-mile) track in 8:09.099 minutes.
Voltage regulators intended for netcom, server, and storage applications
June 29, 2012 10:16 am | International Rectifier | Product Releases | CommentsInternational Rectifier today introduced its third generation of integrated, feature-rich SupIRBuck synchronous buck voltage regulators designed to address the new requirements of emerging energy efficient netcom, server and storage applications. The new SupIRBuck single output devices feature a newly patented modulator scheme that generates the industry’s smallest, jitter free pulse widths.
Crystalline PV module profits fall to single digits
June 26, 2012 1:06 pm | News | CommentsAverage gross profits of crystalline photovoltaic (PV) industry module manufacturers fell to just nine U.S. cents per watt in the first quarter of 2012, putting huge pressure on suppliers according to the latest quarterly report from IMS Research, recently acquired by IHS
Bringing down the cost of fuel cells
June 22, 2012 1:43 pm | News | CommentsEngineers at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee (UWM) have identified a catalyst that provides the same level of efficiency in microbial fuel cells (MFCs) as the currently used platinum catalyst, but at 5% of the cost. Since more than 60% of the investment in making microbial fuel cells is the cost of platinum, the discovery may lead to much more affordable energy conversion and storage devices.
New technique allows simulation of noncrystalline materials
June 22, 2012 1:19 pm | by EurekAlert! | News | CommentsA multidisciplinary team of researchers at MIT and in Spain has found a new mathematical approach to simulating the electronic behavior of noncrystalline materials, which may eventually play an important part in new devices including solar cells, organic LED lights and printable, flexible electronic circuits.
Vehicle solar charging panel helps to offset battery drain from computer systems
June 22, 2012 10:16 am | Product Releases | CommentsStreamlight today introduced the Streamlight SolarStream, a supplemental solar charging panel for emergency responder and fleet vehicles. The Streamlight SolarStream helps to offset battery drain from computer systems and other rechargeable electronics when a vehicle is off, extending battery life and limiting battery-related vehicle maintenance.
Coordinated circuit protection for small solar power systems
June 20, 2012 2:43 pm | by Neal Schultz, Senior Applications Engineer, TE Circuit Protection | Articles | CommentsRising energy costs and increasing support for clean, renewable energy sources has made solar power a growth industry. Solar panels directly generate power by converting sunlight to electricity with no moving parts, zero emissions, and little to no maintenance.
50 hydrogen filling stations for Germany: Federal Ministry of Transportation and industrial partners build nationwide network of filling stations
June 20, 2012 11:14 am | News | CommentsThe German Ministry of Transport, Building and Urban Development (BMVBS) and several industrial companies today signed a joint Letter of Intent to expand the network of hydrogen filling stations in Germany. By 2015, Germany will have a supply network of at least 50 public filling stations.
Historic triumph: Audi achieves first victory of a hybrid vehicle at Le Mans
June 18, 2012 2:20 pm | News | CommentsAUDI AG has achieved another technological milestone in motorsport. On the 80th running of the famous Le Mans 24 Hours, a vehicle with hybrid drive – the Audi R18 e-tron quattro – has triumphed for the first time. Around 200,000 spectators witnessed a fascinating race with the drama and incidents that are typical for Le Mans plus an impressive demonstration of “Vorsprung durch Technik.”
Catching some rays
June 15, 2012 9:48 am | News | CommentsDrawn together by the force of nature, but pulled apart by the force of man – it sounds like the setting for a love story, but it is also a basic description of how scientists have begun to make more efficient organic solar cells. At the atomic level, organic solar cells function like the feuding families in Romeo and Juliet.
Environmental benefit of biofuels is overestimated, new study reveals
June 8, 2012 10:45 am | by EurekAlert! | News | CommentsTwo scientists are challenging the currently accepted norms of biofuel production. A commentary published today in GCB Bioenergy reveals that calculations of greenhouse gas (GHGs) emissions from bioenergy production are neglecting crucial information that has led to the overestimation of the benefits of biofuels compared to fossil fuels.
Photovoltaic cells tap underwater solar energy
June 7, 2012 3:28 pm | News | CommentsScientists at the U.S. Naval Research Laboratory (NRL), Electronics Science and Technology Division, dive into underwater photovoltaic research to develop high bandgap solar cells capable of producing sufficient power to operate electronic sensor systems at depths of 9 meters.
Smart grid, smarter design
May 24, 2012 12:27 pm | by Jeff Reinke, Editorial Director | Articles | CommentsWe all fall for them. The allure of buzzwords and hot topics captures our attention and appeals to an optimistic nature for all things that will make our world better. However, they can also lead us to fall for the hype instead of focusing on credible, real-world applications. This leads into our discussion of the smart grid.
BLE and energy harvesting enable low-cost, maintenance-free active RFID systems
May 24, 2012 11:37 am | by Joe Keating, Infinite Power Solutions, Inc., www.infinitepowersolutions.com | Articles | CommentsRadio frequency identification (RFID) has long been a valuable tool for asset management, allowing objects to be identified, tracked and/or located. Limitations in the accuracy of passive tag systems along with high tag and battery maintenance costs in active systems have limited the adoption of RFID in broader applications.
Foundations of the smart grid
May 24, 2012 11:10 am | by Matt Tyler, ON Semiconductor, www.onsemi.com | Articles | CommentsThe smart grid has been a topic of vigorous discussion and intense design and marketing activity for many years. As the smart grid evolves, virtually every supplier of technology is rushing to produce solutions that fit into this complex puzzle. If we strip away the automation and novelty products we are left with one key question...
The ZigBee impact
May 16, 2012 3:44 pm | by Janine E. Mooney, Editor | Articles | CommentsYour home and office contain a host of technologies working to improve the way you live. From monitoring energy intake and usage, to controlling your appliances and lighting, ZigBee is a protocol that is changing the way we live – and in some cases, we don’t even realize it.
Google-backed wind power line clears hurdle
May 14, 2012 3:05 pm | News | CommentsA planned $5 billion transmission line to send power from wind farms off the East Coast cleared a hurdle, allowing the Google Inc-backed project to move to the next step in the approval process, officials said. The Department of the Interior declared on Monday there was "no overlapping competitive interest" in proposed areas for building the line off the mid-Altantic coast.
Single-chip processor platforms deliver on power/performance balance for mobile devices
May 8, 2012 9:14 am | by Carsten Wild, Director Marketing, Mobile Application Platforms, Renesas Mobile Corporation | Articles | CommentsAs with every new technology, delivering LTE chipsets presents many technical challenges. Performance, power and price are key concerns. Higher data rates, such as LTE Cat4with up to 150Mbps download speeds, require very high performance computing, which is achieved mostly through higher clock rates...
Earth Day at the EcoCAR 2 lab
April 27, 2012 11:38 am | by Tyler Rose, Outreach Coordinator, UW EcoCAR 2 Team and Tom Egel, Consulting Engineer, MathWorks | Blogs | CommentsEarth Day is our favorite holiday around the UW EcoCAR 2 lab. From our standpoint, this time of the year encourages people to celebrate the ways in which they can help reduce vehicle emissions and fuel consumption. We will be showcasing our team's EcoCAR 2 efforts alongside the Puget Sound Clean Cities Coalition at the Earth Day festivities put on by the University of Washington.
ERG Lighting is exclusive North American distributor for LED drivers from GRE Alpha Electronics
April 27, 2012 10:09 am | Endicott Research Group | Product Releases | CommentsThe ERG Lighting division of Endicott Research Group, Inc. is now offering the SLD, XLD and XLA Series of LED drivers from GRE Alpha Electronics, Ltd., Gainesville, GA, a specialist in the design and manufacture of solid state lighting power supplies for architectural, signage, retail, office, street and LED strip lighting.
Solar panels cause clashes with homeowner groups
April 26, 2012 2:42 pm | by Ray Henry, Associated Press | News | CommentsThe government wants you to install solar panels at your house, and will even give you a tax break to do it. But your neighbors? Maybe not. It's a lesson Angel and David Dobs discovered when their homeowners association north of Atlanta denied their request to install solar panels on their roof.
Vicor introduces baseplate option for 98% efficient quarter-brick IBC modules
April 25, 2012 1:18 pm | Vicor Corp. | Product Releases | CommentsVicor Corporation today introduced new thermal and mechanical mounting options for its IBC050 series of high performance quarter-brick VI BRICK intermediate bus converters (IBCs). Now available with an integral baseplate and multiple pin-length options, Vicor’s high-efficiency IBCs afford customers even greater flexibility...
Starter kits incorporate onboard debug and current probe functionality
April 24, 2012 10:49 am | Product Releases | CommentsEnergy Micro today introduced two feature-rich starter kits (STKs) for designers building more complex battery-powered products such as portable health and fitness devices and smart accessories. Based on the already available EFM32 Leopard Gecko and Giant Gecko microcontrollers...
