Serving The Environmental Industry Since 1992
(909) 980-1800
Mon-Sun: 8 am - 7 pm
15 Oct 2016

Enough Solar Energy To Power 1 Million Homes

A California company is planning on building the largest solar power plant in the world. The power plant, which is planned to be built in Nevada, will cost $5 billion and will be able to generate between 1,500 and 2,000 MW of power. That is enough energy to power 1 million homes.

This project should create about 3,000 jobs for almost a decade! With demand growing for clean, renewable energy, this is a perfect outlet for California’s job market. Along with creating thousands of jobs, the plant that is planned to be built is completely emission free.

For more information on this project, please visit: ecowatch.com

01 Jul 2016

Solar-Powered Airplane

A breaking new solar-technology is now in the works. A plane running purely on solar power is being tested in Long Island, New York. The goal here Is to have perpetual flight according to the CEO of Luminati Aerospace in Calverton. This technology is almost guaranteed to revolutionize the aircraft industry. The company is planning to hire around 800 people during the next two to three years.

The company eventually wishes to partner with a bigger company in hopes of better, faster expansion into this new technology. Luminati plans to have a second airplane completed before the end of 2017.

For more information on this project, go to luminati.aero

28 Jun 2016

ESNA 2016

Nominations for Energy Storage North America are now open for admission! ESNA has always been true to the idea and research of energy storage, market growth, and overall changes in solar-powered technology. To be eligible, your project must be some type of grid energy storage system in North America that is installed and fully operational on or before August 1, 2016. Nominations will be accepted in three categories: utility-scale, customer-sited (C&I or residential) and mobility (EVs and enabling infrastructure). Winners will be announced on October 5th, 2016 in an Awards Ceremony that will take place at the San Diego Convention Center.

“As the energy storage marketplace continues to grow and evolve, individual people and projects still play a critical role in shaping the direction of the industry,” said Janice Lin, Energy Storage North America Conference Chair. “With this year’s awards, we will recognize the storage champions and projects that are pushing the industry forward by developing and implementing innovative financing models, technology or grid services.”

To read more about the ceremony, please visit www.esnaexpo.com

11 Jun 2016

Solar Powered Cellphone Charger

Having a cellphone in this day and age is a complete necessity. Even for migrants crossing the Mediterranean and coming to Greece in search of a better life. But which such a long journey ahead, how do these people keep their cellphones charged? This is where a Greece-based solar technology company comes in. A company is called Entec and they have developed a solar powered cellphone charging station. This technology is able to charge hundreds of phone per day. And the best part? It’s all free of charge. Currently, the company has only produced two units, but wants to aim much higher than that. Using money raised from a crowdfunding campaign, their plan is to reach all the camps around Greece to provide help to people on making the journey a little easier.

To read more about this story, please visit www.bgr.com

Photo credit: The Huffington Post

20 Apr 2016
Fossil Fuels

Renewable Energy Out Ranks Fossil Fuels

We are seeing for the first time that renewable sources of energy, such as solar power, are becoming a majority of new electricity-generating capacity added around the world. This great news came from a study from the United Nations saying that more than half the $286 billion invested in wind, solar and other renewable energy occurred in emerging markets like China, India and Brazil — also for the first time. These numbers come as great news for the future of renewably energy as it seems we will be able to replace highly carbon-intensive coal and other fossil fuels.

Not only does switching to renewable energy sources help the planet, but it will also have extraordinary health benefits to people and animals around the world. An analysis by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) found that widespread solar adoption would significantly reduce nitrous oxides, sulfur dioxide, and particulate matter emissions, all of which can cause health problems.2

For more information, please read more from our friends at nytimes.com

 

Sources: www.nytimes.com
2 www.energysage.com

01 Apr 2016

South Africa’s Solar Power Progress

Africa now reportedly installed solar solutions in 14 African countries. Unfortunately, these resources have not been evenly distributed. Only 2 in 5 people have access to a reliable supply of energy throughout the day. Overall, 625 million people are without power in sub-Saharan Africa alone — that’s 68 percent of the population, according to the International Energy Agency.

THE GOOD NEWS

Major investments are underway. The World Bank’s Africa Energy project portfolio currently carries 48 projects totaling US$3 billion. Ugandan energy company Umeme is reportedly dedicating $80 million dollars to upgrading its network. And Kenya could house the largest wind farm in Africa if the 40,000-acre Lake Turkana Wind Power Project is completed.

It’s not just institutions that are providing relief, but even wealthy individuals: Hip hop artist Akon announced plans to help provide electricity to some 600 million Africans without power in 2015.

And finally, the world’s largest concentrated solar power plant was switched on in Morocco in February 2016, harnessing the power of the African sun.

 

For more information on the solar power progress of Africa please visit www.cnn.com

12 Feb 2016

Solar Power And The Modern Homeowner

With so many American homeowners moving away from fossil fuels solar power has become extremely popular. The sharp increase in interest from homeowners many solar power contractors have gone out of their way to make solar power pricing will contract is an extremely affordable. Gone are the days where homeowner had one or two types of solar power systems to choose from. In this modern era homeowners now have an extremely wide array of systems to choose from. These systems range from the very simple and inexpensive to the very elaborate and expensive. The type of solar power system a homeowner purchases will depend largely on the needs of their home and their budget. Solar power systems are helping homeowners as well as local and even state governments keep energy costs down and do something good for the environment.

TAX CREDIT & GOVERNMENT REBATS
There are many reasons homeowners purchase a solar power system the one of the most popular in recent years are the valuable rebates that these individuals receive once a system has been installed. These rebates and credits are quite substantial as well and should a homeowner higher the right solar power contractor it’s likely their contractor will take care of all the paperwork required for those rebates.

LOWERING ENERGY COSTS
While rebates and tax credits can certainly make solar power attractive to homeowners the most popular reason for adding a solo parses into a home is to decrease monthly electric bills and reduce energy consumption. With the rising cost of manufacturing and delivering traditional energy prices regularly and sometimes sharply increase which can make maintaining energy budget very difficult for families. What solar power system is then installed families can utilize appliances and electronic devices more often and save energy in the process.

The initial costs associated with the purchase and installation of a solar power system makes some homeowners extremely apprehensive about moving forward with the idea of having one of their home. Fortunately many smaller government agencies often reward homeowners to move ahead with the installation would either large discounts that paid for a good portion of their new solar power system or provide some sort of rebate or credit after his salacious been completed. This makes it extremely easy for homeowners on the most modest of budgets to have a solar power system installed.

THE EXPERTS IN SOLAR POWER
As experts in all things solar power we here at SolarGem know just how intimidating solar power seems to many homeowners prior to having one installed. With so many different choices for systems available, prices, and different levels of quality out there it behooves homeowners to seek the assistance of a professional contractor even if it’s simply for consultation. We offer free consultations and work closely with each and every client to help them understand the difference between all the different solar power systems and help them select one that will work best for their home and their budget.

01 Feb 2016

Solar Power Popularity And Frequency

Amazingly, but not surprisingly 85% of all solar power systems installed in homes are in California. California is often a leader in new technologies including those that make energy production and usage more efficient and those that are environmentally friendly. With the cost of solar power having come down considerably over the last few years thanks in large part to the technology having advanced rapidly in the same time frame there’s never been a better time to have solar panels installed in your home.

SOLAR SERVICE WITH A SMILE
When you contact us here at SolarGem you’ll be greeted by an experienced and courteous individual who will go over all of the benefits that solar power brings with it. He/she will also field any questions and concerns you may have and help put your mind at ease with regards to the technology and even the initial cost of installation. Once you commit to having a new solar power system installed your property will be inspected in order to determine the best location for your new solar panels. We will also go over with you just how much your energy bills will decrease and assist you with tax credits and even state rebates. Once all these things have been completed we will install your new solar panels and let you begin saving energy!

SOLAR POWER PROS AND CONS
With regards to the pros and cons of utilizing solar power there are far more pros than there are cons though in an effort to be objective and fair to our customers we will cover both. In the pro department’s solar energy does not produce any pollution which means there’s less carbon dioxide and nitrogen oxide filling our atmosphere. Additionally solar power systems operate very quietly decreasing noise pollution dramatically. One of the most impressive benefits of having solar panels installed is that the tax breaks and state rebates mentioned previously often pay for up to as much as 40% of the cost of the system itself. The only real con associated with installing new solar panels is the initial costs associated with doing so though this can be offset by tax breaks and rebates. Additionally those who live in volatile climates and those whose homes don’t see much sun won’t benefit as much from solar power as those who live in say Orange County.

01 Jan 2016
Space Solar Power

The Promise of Space-Based Solar Panels

Dreamy-eyed physicists have effused about the potential of stellar power, also known by the more prosaic name of space-based solar power, or SBSP, since the 1960s. They have sketched out preliminary designs that would bring that power from orbit to the grid — a giant engineering challenge, to be sure, but one that now has plausible solutions. What they haven’t been able to do is make it affordable.

Space scientists have roughed out designs for several different kinds of stellar power plants. Some look like an orbiting version of a terrestrial solar farm, with flat photovoltaic arrays stretching for miles. A design for NASA called SPS-Alpha, by former NASA physicist John Mankins, instead arranges thin-film mirrors into a bell shape that can redirect sunlight from almost any angle onto a smaller photovoltaic array.

The electrical current generated by an orbiting array can be sent to Earth in one of two forms. It could be converted into a broad infrared laser beam, or it could come down as a wider cone of microwaves, which, as Mankins notes, pass through clouds unimpeded. In either case, the satellite would focus its transmitter on a large receiving station on the ground. (See next page.) To ensure safety, the beam would be no more intense than the noonday sun, and a feedback signal would keep it from straying from its target.

For more information on these spectaculat advancements, please visit our friends at discovermagazine.com

08 Dec 2015
Solar Powered Car

Solar Powered Cars Of Today And Tomorrow

While you won’t find them on the streets or the freeways of today, solar cars have existed for roughly 20 years or so. Although the technology surrounding solar power has advanced dramatically whereas homes and commercial structures are concerned the technology is still somewhat impractical for regular vehicular travel. That’s not to say that solar powered cars aren’t functional but the amount of power that must be generated in order to meet the power needs of today’s cars is difficult to generate on such a small body and in order to utilize many photovoltaic cells as possible, makers of solar cars often build vehicles that are only capable of carrying one or two persons.

Although they aren’t commonplace on today’s streets and highways the solar power cars of tomorrow will feature an increased amount of solar technology. At some point in the not-too-distant future cars will operate entirely on solar energy and will be more than capable of generating power needed to not only run a car’s engine but address internal power needs such as air-conditioning, movie and audio playback, among other things.

Modern solar vehicles, although not extremely powerful, run efficiently when the sun shines brightly though they tend to run into problems on cloudy days and during the night. Recently scientists working with solar technologies and those who build solar vehicles have been experimenting with battery backups similar to the ones used in houses and places of business. These batteries essentially store gathered sunshine and convert it into electricity only when needed. These batteries are composed mainly of nickel-metal hybrids though they sometimes are made from lithium-ion and lithium polymers. Solar powered cars require these special types of batteries because the lead acid batteries found in more traditional cars are far too heavy.

Modern solar powered vehicles are all about efficiency and to reduce the amount of power needed to operate these vehicles the majority of solar powered cars currently only utilize three wheels. Three wheeled solar powered cars typically operate in the range of 80 to 170 volts. In addition to utilizing specialized batteries and just three wheels solar powered cars are designed to collect power when they are not in use. This collection never ceases and helps these breakthrough vehicles gather enough power for their next trip. With efficiency being the goal and power consumption a big concern, don’t expect to find things like iPods, DVD or Blu-Ray players, or any other modern amenities in solar powered cars. Until technology advances to point where power can be gathered and converted at a higher rate these things will be relegated only to more traditional vehicles.

Check out the video below brought to you by Sunswift
Although solar powered cars are not practical for everyday use there are several types of vehicles that utilize photovoltaic panels rather well and do their job efficiently. One such example is golf carts. Many modern golf carts utilize solar panels to carry golfers from one hole to the next. While golfers are busy playing the game these golf carts are continuously collecting and converting sunlight to energy for their next trip. Solar panels work well on golf carts because they’re not driving for long distances and the long periods of rest they in between holes gives them time to charge up.

So when exactly will solar power be of practical use for everyday vehicles? That question is a difficult one to answer though we can confidently say that over the next decade or two solar power technologies will change so much and advance so rapidly that it’s hard not to imagine people driving solar powered cars to work, to school, and to the grocery store. How exactly solar power will be utilized in cars of the future is impossible to predict though the technology and its usage will become far more efficient than it is today.