What if generating solar energy at home required little more than mixing some grass clippings with inexpensive chemicals? That’s exactly what MIT researcher Andreas Mershin has found to be the case. The scientist says creating a solar cell could be as easy as mixing any green organic material (grass clippings, agricultural waste) with a bag of custom chemicals and painting the mixture on a roof. Once the efficiency of Mershin’s system is improved, this type of solar technology could make cheap energy available in rural places and developing countries where people don’t have access to affordable energy. Read on to see a video of Mershin’s findings.

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Post tags: "clean energy", "solar energy", Andreas Mershin, biophotovoltaic, biophotovoltaics, green tech, massachusetts institute of technology, MIT, photovoltaic, renewable energy, Solar Power, solar power gro grass clippings, Technology

Read the rest of Electric Utility To Buy University of Maryland’s Solar Decathlon-Winning WaterShed House

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Post tags: design contests, energy efficient design, green architecture, green design, Pepco, photovoltaic, solar, Solar Decathlon, solar thermal, sustainable design, University of Maryland, Watershed

Read the rest of Sparano + Mooney’s Beautiful Kimball Art Center Proposal Takes Inspiration From Aspens

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Post tags: "sustainable architecture", Aspen, aspen tree, eco design, fritted glass, green architecture, Green Building, green design, green renovation, kimball art center, kimball art center renovation, kimball art center transformation, photovoltaic, sparano + mooney, sparano mooney architecture, Sustainable Building

Read the rest of World’s Largest Solar Bridge Crosses The River Thames in London

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Post tags: "clean energy", blackfriars, blackfriars bridge, cheap energy, Climate Change, CO2, eco design, eco habitat, eco-art, eco-conscious, eco-friendly, Environment, environmental design, Green Bridge, green design, green infrastructure, green living, green technology, green transportation, infrastructure, London, network rail, photovoltaic, pv, Solar Bridge, solar panel, solarcentury, sustainable design, sustainable living, sustainable renewable energy, thames

Solar activity sometimes causes disturbances through massive flares, but the energy can also be used to increase in-space propulsion capability – harnessing solar power with solar sails could expand future exploration potential by increasing spacecraft efficiency and lower operating costs. NASA recently announced plans to advance the technology by rolling out the largest solar sail ever created – in 2015, the next generation solar sail spacecraft will deploy and operate a sail with an area 7 times larger than any that has been flown in space. NASA’s Solar Sail mission is one of three proposed Technology Demonstration Missions set to “transform space communications, deep space navigation and in-space propulsion capabilities”.

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Post tags: applied science, Climate Change, CO2, deep space atomic clock, eco design, eco-friendly, engineering, Environment, environmental design, gadget, green design, green gadget, green technology, harvest energy, laser communications, nano technology, nasa, photovoltaic, pv, recycled energy, renewable energy, Satellite, solar display, solar panel, solar sail, space, space debris, space travel, sustainable design, sustainable living, Technology, technology demonstration

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Post tags: ambient light, applied science, backlit, cheap energy, Climate Change, CO2, display, display screen, Eco, eco design, eco-conscious, eco-friendly, energy loss, energy recovery, engineering, Environment, environmental design, gadget, green design, green gadget, green living, green technology, harvest energy, iPad, LCD, liquid crystal display, liquid crystals, MIT, nano electronics, nano renewables, nano technology, organic electronics, photovoltaic, photovoltaic devices, pv, recycled energy, renewable energy, smartphone, solar display, solar panel, solar screen, sustainable design, sustainable living, Technology, ucla, yang yang

China pumped €300 billion into its 2010 energy consumption goals, and it may be the only country on earth to have actually met them. This is partially thanks to strict environmental requirements for new projects such as SBA Design’s futuristic new city. Dubbed “Glo-cal DNA”, the self sufficient, low carbon, mixed-use development is slated for construction on Hainan Island – a pumping 42.6 square kilometer tourist hotspot.

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Post tags: "sustainable architecture", "sustainable development", "wind power", bio-gas, china, eco-tourism, future city, Hainan, pedestrian friendly, Personal Rapid Transport, photovoltaic, SBA Design, Solar Power, urban planning

Read the rest of OFIS Unveils Prismatic Carbon Neutral Solar Powered Offices for Slovenia

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Post tags: "sustainable architecture", carbon neutral building competition, carbon-neutral building, Eco Architecture, green architecture, green design, ofis, ofis architecture, photovoltaic, pv, Solar Power, sustainable design

Plants have long harnessed sunlight to create ‘food’ for themselves, and now a joint American and Swiss team have created a device that can duplicate the process! The team recently unveiled their prototype, which uses captured sunlight and a metal oxide called ceria to break down CO2 and water and create fuels which can be stored, used or transported to those who do need them.

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Post tags: Ceria, eco-friendly, Electricity, fuel, green, hydrogen, photovoltaic, power, prototype, PS10, reactor, renewable energy, research, science, solar, Solar Power, SolarPower, sunlight, syngas

Spain and Germany may be the renewable energy darlings of Europe, but Italy is set to become the first country with a solar-powered highway. The A18 Catania-Siracusa highway, a 30 km addition to Sicily’s 600 km highway network, will feature a whopping 80,000 photovoltaic panels installed along the road

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Post tags: green design, italy, photovoltaic, pv, sicily, solar highway

A remote-controlled quadrocopter recently set a new world record by staying aloft for 12 hours using energy beamed up to it by lasers. Developed by LaserMotive, the quadrocopter has photovoltaic panels installed all along its belly, which absorb laser light to power the vehicle. The quadrocopter hovered at 30 feet for 12 hours, breaking LaserMotive’s previous record.

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Post tags: Ascending Technologies, AscendingTechnologies, autonomous, flight, flight record, FlightRecord, helicopter, Laser, laser power, laser powered, LaserMotive, LaserPower, LaserPowered, Pelican, photovoltaic, quadrocopter, record, robot, solar, Solar Power, solar-powered, SolarPower, SolarPowered, UAV

If you’re gearing up to go back to school, can we let you in on something that might be the most useful thing you get for yourself all year? Solar-powered bags are a super handy and stylish way to keep all of your gadgets and gizmos fully charged with clean green energy. Plus, since you always carry your bag with you, you’ll never leave this easy way to juice up on the go at home. Read on for 7 of our favorite solar powered bags for back-to-school!

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Post tags: back to school, fashion and accessories, green design, photovoltaic, solar powered bags, sustainable design

Attention all Californians! Do you generate more power from your solar panels than you can use? Well, under a new bill adopted on Thursday, you can sell that excess electricity (and offset the cost of installing those PV panels on your roof). Assemblywoman Nancy Skinner, drafted the legislation allowing utilities to buy up to 5 percent of their energy right from their customers. The bill was adopted on a 53-1 vote and according to SFGate, a spokeswoman for Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger says that the governor intends to sign it.

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Post tags: "clean energy", alternative energy, California, eco design, green design, green energy, photovoltaic, selling back electricity, solar panels, Solar Power

Solar engineers have long sought to develop an energy-generating glazing that is as capable of producing power as it is easy on the eyes. The feat may just have been accomplished by The Center for Architecture Science and Ecology (CASE), who have developed a concentrating solar system that is not only modern and attractive but extremely efficient and cost effective. The system is made up of rows of pyramid-shaped glass receptors that move with sunlight throughout the day, magnifying the incoming light and capturing it in a small photovoltaic cell located in the center of each pyramid.

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Post tags: case, CASE solar facade, center for Architecture Science and Ecology, clean tech, concentrated solar power, green design, photovoltaic, photovoltaic glass, photovoltaic glazing, renewable energy, solar facade, solar glass, solar glazing, Solar Power, solar power glass, solar windows, sustainable design

Nabito Architects has proposed a fascinating new pop-art inspired design for the Taipei Pop Music Center that integrates a photovoltaic facade and a wall clad in LED panels. Depending on the activities of the Pop Music Center that day, the LED media wall can broadcast news, weather, advertisements and trailers for new events. Powered completely by the sun, the LED facade isn’t a drain on the grid when it lights up at night. Although just a proposal for the Taipei Pop Music Center Competition, this music events hall would showcase not only pop musical talents, but an innovative use of renewable energy.

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Post tags: "solar energy", LED screen, LED wall, photovoltaic, Solar Power, taipei, taipei music center

Things really heated up this past few days as we inched closer to finding out who the winner of this year’s Solar Decathlon would be, and in the end Team Germany’s surPLUShouse stole the show. We were sad to see that Cornell University’s Silo House did not place in the top 3, but we still love this totally unconventional and clever home which held steadfastly in the ranks as part of the top 10 throughout the week. As a compact modular structure, the Silo House proves that impressive green, energy-efficient things do come in small spaces!

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Post tags: cornell, cornell house, cornell university, Department of Energy, hvac, photovoltaic, Solar Decathlon, Solar Power

At first glance, Graft Lab‘s dazzling complex in Dubai may appear to have a cluster of sparkling geometric pools at its base. But upon further inspection, the web-like structures are actually something even more desirable than a place to take a dip in the hot desert – a means of collecting the scorching rays of the sun and transforming them into energy. Dubbed the Vertical Village, this multi-use building and accompanying massive array of solar collectors was designed to work smarter, not harder, which is expected to earn it a LEED Gold certification when it is completed.

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Post tags: "solar energy", desert, dubai, graft lab, Green Building, green construction, photovoltaic, Solar Power, vertical village

A retail lot in Austin, Texas recently sprouted a stunning field of solar sunflowers that soak up the sun’s rays to provide shade while generating a steady stream of renewable energy. Designed by public art team Harries/Heder, the installation consists of 15 flower-like solar photovoltaic panels located on a pedestrian and bike path between the village of Mueller and Austin’s highway I-35. According to Harries/Heder, the flowers are “an icon for the sustainable, LEED certified Mueller Development and a highly visible metaphor for the energy conscious City of Austin.”

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Post tags: austin, green design, harries heder, mueller, photovoltaic, renewable energy, solar, sunflowers, sustainable design, texas

Monolab is aiming to take solar power to extreme heights by designing their sky-high Rotterdam Tower with a skin of photovoltaic panels. At 450 meters, the Rotterdam Tower design is intended to connect Europe’s largest port to the city by reaching into the vertical landscape. The tower, which has been designated as a mixed-use building, will incorporate public, commercial, and residential spaces. An intricate series of gondolas, which move up, down, and diagonally across the tower will leave passengers with a bit of vertigo while affording them an amazing view of the city.

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Post tags: Monolab, Monolab Architects, photovoltaic, Rotterdam Tower, Sustainable Building

By far one of the most wasted spaces of every residence is the roof – of course it is there to protect us from the elements, but surely it can be put to better use. Aiming to innovate upon conventional roof cladding, researchers at the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory recently unveiled a new breed of flexible and moisture resistant solar panels that are designed to be rolled out en masse as energy-generating roof tiles!

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Post tags: "clean energy", green energy, pacific northwest national laboratory, photovoltaic, renewable, roof shingle solar cells, Solar Power, sustainable design