Solar Power

DTE is a fixture in supplying energy for consumers and businesses in many parts of Michigan, including parts of the upper peninsula. That’s why it’s exciting to see one of its subsidiaries, Detroit Edison, taking definite steps toward renewable energy. Detroit Edison is paying environmental consulting firm Nova Consultants $18 million to analyze the potential of adding 3 megawatts in solar power to southeast Michigan.

This is one of potentially 10 different projects that could each produce 500 kilowatts of solar power each. Detroit Edison needed approval from the Michigan Public Service Commission (MPSC) to proceed because its rates are regulated and this initiative had to fit within those budget constraints. Right now this won’t mean any rate hikes for end consumers, but the company wants to charge more in some form of “recovery fee”.

Electricity is the universal catalyst that makes gadgets possible in our lives. iPhones and iPods already command legions of satisfied customers and Apple is looking to up the ante even further by tapping into our universal power source: the sun.

Portable solar panels stowed underneath the touch screen of future iPhones and iPods would enable them to absorb energy while leaving the chic form factor intact. Nothing is certain yet but some Apple employees have filed a patent that outlines the idea of making the entire surface area of a touch screen receptive to converting sunlight into electricity.

Until now most devices that integrate solar panels have placed them on an open surface with obvious intent. However, that would be untenable for Apple customers who are accustomed to a sexy looking device that performs with grace and top notch speeds.

Germany became a solar panel leader through a feed-in-tariff (FIT) program but things may be changing.

Individuals in the cloudy nation that used their solar panels to feed back into the grid got a big bonus in the form of subsidies. Power companies had to pay back twice as much for that solar powered kilowatt hour than a normal consumer shelled out for coal powered juice. People collected fees for the life of their system, about twenty years.

The program was a win for the government and solar adopters. The incentives made Germany a world leader ahead of other nations like the US because consumers could make a green profit off of their solar panels. Citizens paid for the increased rate with a 3% addition to their power bills.

Before making the leap to buy home solar panels you may want to think about an additional investment: a solar security system. It differs in each circumstance but with solar panels costing on average a minimum of $1,000 each, thieves are beginning to shift their attention from metal to solar.

Buying solar panels is becoming a popular way for businesses and homes to go green without making sweeping changes to their way of life. In California, some of the most interested businesses are wineries looking to round out a solid product selection with a green image. The problem? Thieves stealing from from those installations and likely reselling solar panels for cheap.

Polaroid has suffered several challenges to its original business model of instantly printing pictures on the spot. Those range from digital pictures to the ubiquitous availability of store printing stations, and finally the presence of mobile phones in most households which makes printing photos completely unnecessary for many. That’s where building solar panels steps in.

Though Polaroid has had to adapt its business to accommodate different levels of demand, the factories built during its years of success are still very much present – and vacant. Konarka, saw an opportunity to repurpose those factories to build solar panels for the home and a variety of other applications.

Churches worldwide are not just showing off their commitment to a religious life but also decreasing their carbon footprint. One such community believes that “It's part of Christian spirituality to respect the environment."

Solar energy offers high capacity energy during peak consumption hours, which for smoldering hot regions, offers a unique opportunity to offset power shortages. But what happens to solar energy when the sun goes down? Already acknowledged as a weakness, rocket scientists think they have come up with the solution to the overcast and night sky: salt.

Rocket scientists from the company SolarReserve have filed an application for a solar energy farm that stores the sun's energy in heated molten salt. The heated salt, during the dark and cloudy hours, can hold up to 7 hours of the sun's energy potential and creates steam that generates an electrical turbine to keep the power grid going.

The project is huge: some 17,500 (24 ft by 28 ft) mirrors all surrounding a 538 foot tower that holds 4.4 million gallons of the liquid molten salt.  SolarReserve hopes to build the farm on private land, if the application is approved, and cash in from California utilities who would buy the electricity.

Chicago may not have the Olympics, but at least the U.S.’s third largest city is on the cutting edge of urban energy farming.

Instead of adding a track and field stadium and an Olympic Village to the rundown south side, Chicago is making plans to turn vacant industrial space into a $60 million solar plant.

The plant is projected to have 32,800 solar panels, enough to power 1,200 to 1,500 homes a year. Not exactly a lot of bang for the buck, but at least it’s a huge step up from the big abandoned buildings now haunting already scummy neighborhoods in Chicago.

Exelon Corp. announced the project in April, but just recently said it expects to receive federal subsidies to build the facility.

Sometimes seemingly small changes can add up to big savings for budgets and the environment.

Responsible schools such as Iowa State University are seeking out new technologies to do just that. ISU is using BigBelly solar powered trash cans to cut back on waste removal and Vending Misers to minimize the cost of keeping pop machines cool.

It looks like a normal trash can, but it’s far from it. BigBelly uses solar power to compact trash on the spot, which means the cans have to be emptied about five times less, according to http://bigbellysolar.com. Even though they cost around $4,000 a piece, the company says they’ll pay for themselves after a year and a half. Iowa State with its 27,000 some students is a big market, but hardly BigBelly’s biggest. The company sold 500 of the high tech cans to Philadelphia, which could save $13 million in 10 years with them. The cans are typically attached to recycling containers.

New York has been and continues to be the most populous and economically powerful city in the US. Its expansive global reach and political prowess has given it an edge over cities like Chicago and LA and now it is also hoping to get an edge in the green market and more specifically solar energy.

Governor of New York, David Patterson is looking to cut down on greenhouse emissions and energy costs by providing funds for solar energy projects. The $10 million American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) initiative to install solar photovoltaic systems hopes to not only green up the city, but also create jobs.

The governor certainly feels the city and state has room for improvement, and with the pressure from President Obama to reduce emissions, New York is looking to get on board with alternative energy projects.