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

Permalink | Add to del.icio.us | digg
Post tags: design contests, energy efficient design, green architecture, green design, Pepco, photovoltaic, solar, Solar Decathlon, solar thermal, sustainable design, University of Maryland, Watershed

The U.S. Department of Energy has just announced the location of the 2013 Solar Decathlon – as well as the 20 lucky teams who will be competing for green design glory! After being kicked off the National Mall last year, organizers scrambled to find a back up location – and they’ve found a gem in the Golden State. This fall, the Orange County Great Park in Irvine, California will be filled with energy-efficient prefab homes as they duke it out to see which house can generate the most solar energy!

Read the rest of U.S. Department of Energy Announces the 2013 Solar Decathlon is Coming to California!

Permalink | Add to del.icio.us | digg
Post tags: Department of Energy, orange county great park, orange county great park solar decathlon, solar, Solar Decathlon, solar decathlon 2013, solar decathlon 2013 news, solar decathlon news, SOLAR HOMES, solar news, Solar Power, solar powered homes, U. S. Department of Energy

An average global temperature of 57.9 degrees Fahrenheit marked 2011 as the 11th hottest year on record. At a full 0.9 degrees warmer than the 20th century average, this past year was hotter than every year in the last century except for 1998. The sentiment among climate scientists is that higher temperatures are largely sustained by increased concentrations of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, especially carbon dioxide emissions from human activity. This means that if global emissions aren’t curbed and development continues without consideration for climate, the future will be full of freaky storms, extreme weather, and even more record-breaking weather anomalies.

Read the rest of 2011 Was the 11th Hottest Year on Record

Permalink | Add to del.icio.us | digg
Post tags: 2011 was 11th hottest year on record, carbon dioxide, Climate Change, climate model, CO2, Drought, eco habitat, eco-conscious, emissions, emissions reduction, extreme weather, giss, global climate, green infrastructure, green living, green technology, green transportation, heatwave, hottest year, infrastructure, localize, municipal water, nasa, nasa giss, Recycle, renewable energy, solar, sustainable design, sustainable living, water conservation, water issues, weather

If you live in New York City, you may soon have the chance to check out the Waterpod, an incredible self-reliant eco-habitat, exhibition, and living space designed to showcase sustainable grassroots technology. The Waterpod just launched this Saturday, and it will now dock for public viewing at various locations in Manhattan’s five boroughs. We had the chance to conduct an exclusive interview with Lonny Grafman, the project’s sustainability advisor, about this floating model of self-sufficiency.

Read the rest of INTERVIEW: Sustainability Advisor Lonny Grafman on the Waterpod

Permalink | Add to del.icio.us | digg
Post tags: "energy efficiency", "wind power", Green Building, grey water treatment wind power, greywater, inhabitat interview, lonny grafman, Lonny Grafman Interview, mary mattingly, new york city, new york city environmental issues, nyc sustainability and water, nyc water, solar, Sustainability, sustainablikity advisors, water issues, waterpod

Permalink | Add to del.icio.us | digg
Post tags: "energy efficiency", ambient light, backlit, Climate Change, climate control, curtain, display screen, e-ink, eco interior, eco lighting, eco-leaf, eco-shade, energy loss, energy recovery, flexible technology, green design, green infrastructure, harvest energy, interior design, LED, Lim Wan Xuan, Lite-on, liteon, natural light, OLED, passive cooling, pv, recycled energy, renewable energy, solar, Solar cells, solar screen, Tang Xueling Jane, window shade

The US Patent and Trademark Office just revealed that Apple has been granted 20 new patents which focus on next generation solar technology. According to PatentlyApple, the patents not only cover solar technology being used to extend the battery lives of personal devices, but will also see the development of a cool new product – a specialized back panel reflector that uses sunlight to illuminate laptop screens.

Read the rest of Apple Patents Next Generation Solar Technology

Permalink | Add to del.icio.us | digg
Post tags: "solar energy", apple, apple patent, ApplePatent, environmental, patent, patents, solar, Solar Cell, solar panel, Solar Patent, Solar Power, SolarCell, SolarEnergy, SolarPanel, SolarPatent, SolarPower, USPTO, USPTOApple

Read the rest of Artful Renovation Turns San Francisco’s Historic Pier 24 Into Enormous Photography Gallery

Permalink | Add to del.icio.us | digg
Post tags: aia, architecture and the city, architecture and the city 2011, art gallery, Climate Change, CO2, concrete floor, contemporary photography, dimmer, eco design, eco habitat, eco-art, eco-conscious, eco-friendly, envelope a+d, Environment, environmental design, green design, green infrastructure, green lighting, green living, green technology, green transportation, historic waterfront, hvac, infrastructure, magnetic lighting, photography exhibit, pier 24, pilar foundation, rail-spur, San Francisco, solar, sustainable design, sustainable living, two-track lighting, waterfront

Read the rest of Team Tidewater’s Solar Decathlon Unit 6 is an Efficient Prototype for a Multi-Family Residence

Permalink | Add to del.icio.us | digg
Post tags: "sustainable architecture", eco design, green architecture, Green Building, green design, modular housing, net zero, off-grid, Prefab Housing, solar, Solar Decathlon, Solar Decathlon 2011, solar home, Sustainable Building, sustainable design, team tidewater, Team Tidewater Virginia, tidewater virginia, unit 6

Read the rest of Solar OLED Tiles Transform Skyscrapers Into Zero-Energy Displays

Permalink | Add to del.icio.us | digg
Post tags: Architecture, Eco, green, green lighting, OLED, power, renewable energy, solar, Sustainable, tile, window shade

Permalink | Add to del.icio.us | digg
Post tags: Alex Driver, algae, biophotovoltaics, biotechnology, Cambridge University, Carlos Peralta, clean tech, eco design, green design, lily pads, London Design Festival, MoSS, photosynthesis, renewable energy, solar, sustainable design

Over the years, new solar technology has broken a few records including solar energy concentration and solar vehicular speed. However this week, SCHOTT Solar announced that they had broken the record for screen-printed solar cell efficiency, after creating the world’s first monocrystalline screen-printed solar cell with a conversion efficiency of 20.2%.

Read the rest of SCHOTT Solar Company Breaks Record for Screen-Printed Solar Cell Efficiency

Permalink | Add to del.icio.us | digg
Post tags: "clean energy", "energy efficiency", "solar energy", conversion efficiency, monocrystalline solar cells, renewable energy, SCHOTT Solar, solar, Solar Cell, solar cell efficiency, solar panels, Solar Power, solar power conversion efficiency, Sustainability, sustainable cells

Read the rest of Elithis Tower: The World’s First Energy Positive Office Building

Permalink | Add to del.icio.us | digg
Post tags: "sustainable architecture", Architecture, arte charpetier architects, charpentier, elithis tower, energy positive, france, green architecture, green design, green office, net zero, solar, sustainable design, world's first energy positive office

Hundreds of thousands of electric cars are expected to be on the road in the next five years. Charging these vehicles has proven to be a challenge, mostly because of the lack of infrastructure — but now SolarCity is stepping in and answering consumer demands for cleaner transportation by offering installation services for ClipperCreek‘s solar-powered EV chargers, which are compatible with all EVs currently on the road.

Read the rest of SolarCity Brings Solar-Powered EV Charging Stations to the Masses

Permalink | Add to del.icio.us | digg
Post tags: carbon-neutral, charger, Charging Station, ClipperCreek, electric vehicles, ev, plug-in hybrid, solar, Solar-Powered EV Charger, solarcity, zero-emissions

Solar cars are rapidly becoming more and more efficient, but they’re going to have to step up their game in order to beat the Celeritas, a 275 lb vehicle that can travel 2,200 miles per gallon. The car, designed by a team from Purdue University, just won the urban division of the 2011 Shell EcoMarathon international competition, which was held this week in Houston.

Read the rest of 2,200MPG Celeritas Solar Car Wins Shell Eco-Marathon

Permalink | Add to del.icio.us | digg
Post tags: car, cars, celeritas, electric car, electric vehicle, ElectricCar, ElectricVehicle, ev, Ivy, prototype, purdue, Purdue University, PurdueUniversity, Shell, shell eco marathon, ShellEco-marathon, solar, solar-powered, SolarPowered

One of the major issues with renewable energy technologies like solar and wind power is that energy generation tends to be intermittent — i.e. the sun doesn’t always shine and the wind doesn’t always blow. Therefore, in order for such technologies to be capable of meeting our needs without the support of fossil fuels, we need to find effective and commercially viable ways to store energy. That’s why the guys at Highview Power Storage are getting particularly excited about their most recent technology – the CryoEnergy System (CES). CES takes excess energy generated and uses it to run refrigeration units which cool air down to a temperature of -196C (-320.8F), at which point it liquefies. The liquid air, also known as cryogen, can be stored in an insulated tank, and at times of peak-demand, when the direst output of existing energy sources cannot meet the demands of a power grid, this liquid air is released to generate energy.

Read the rest of Highview’s CryoEnergy System Efficiently Stores Energy With Liquified Air

Permalink | Add to del.icio.us | digg
Post tags: "wind power", ces process, cryoenergy systems, daniel c jones, emission-free power generation, energy storage, highview power storage, power generation, regasification process, solar

Read the rest of Marc Boutin’s Modern Frame House Showcases Passive Solar Design

Permalink | Add to del.icio.us | digg
Post tags: Cascadia green home, contemporary eco house, eco home, geothermal, green home design, green mountain view, modernest green, Northwest green home, passive cooling, passive solar, solar, solar glazing, solar thermal

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.

Read the rest of Solar Machine Mimics Plants to Transform CO2 Into Fuel

Permalink | Add to del.icio.us | digg
Post tags: Ceria, eco-friendly, Electricity, fuel, green, hydrogen, photovoltaic, power, prototype, PS10, reactor, renewable energy, research, science, solar, Solar Power, SolarPower, sunlight, syngas

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.

Read the rest of Laser-Powered Helicopter Breaks World Record

Permalink | Add to del.icio.us | digg
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

Your next Clif Bar may be produced by the sun now that the food manufacturer is installing the biggest smart solar array in North America. The 530 kilowatt array, which is currently under construction at Clif Bar’s new Emeryville, California headquarters, features over 1,900 Suntech 270 watt solar panel modules.

Read the rest of Clif Bar HQ to Get Largest Smart Solar Array in North America

Permalink | Add to del.icio.us | digg
Post tags: "solar energy", clif bar, green design, renewable energy, solar, Solar Power, suntech, sustainable design, tigo, tigo energy

New York-based artist Josh Hadar has developed an electric three-wheeler dubbed the E-Trike that not only runs on renewable energy, but it has enough power to hold its own on city streets. Built around a carbon steel frame, the black motorcycle is powered by a Mars Electric motor that can produce an output of 4.8 kilowatts (6.4 horsepower) continuously and 15 kilowatts at a push, allowing the chopper trike to hit a top speed of 45 mph.

Read the rest of Josh Hadar’s Electric E-Trike Chopper Can Hit 45MPH

Permalink | Add to del.icio.us | digg
Post tags: e-trike, electric vehicles, josh hadar, josh hadar e-trike, josh hadar three wheeler, motorcycles, solar, solar electric, solar electric three wheeler, solar electric vehicle