Solspaces project to test year-round solar heating system

Researchers at the University of Stuttgart are preparing to test a solar heating system capable of long term storage as part of "Solspaces," a three-year project that kicked off in March 2012. The heating concept uses a solar thermal system in conjunction with a sorption tank for storing heat from solar collectors throughout the warmer months that can then be released when the mercury drops.

The Solspaces concept has the potential to reduce the required storage space for solar heating systems and address the issue of heat retention. It involves a thermochemical heat storage tank with three to four times the energy density of water and improved thermal insulation, enabling more compact storage with less susceptibility to heat loss than conventional solar thermal systems relying on water as the heat storage medium.

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Five Ways to Save Major Energy While Cooking Thanksgiving Dinner

If you'll be slaving over a hot stove all day, you can also reduce the amount of energy you use while cooking. So gather the whole family in the kitchen, get ready to make an eco-friendly turkey feast and follow these five tips. Your dinner may not be low-effort, but at least it will consume less energy!

1. Keep the Oven Door Shut

It's hard to resist cracking the oven to check the status of a roasting bird that's filling your kitchen with such wonderful aromas. But doing so causes the oven to drop its temperature, meaning it will require even more energy to stay constant. Resist opening that door! Instead of, turn on the oven light and monitor items through the window.

2. Stuff the Oven

Pies, potatoes, vegetables, and turkey all need to roasted or baked. Whenever possible, put several dishes in the oven at once, which can cut down on the amount of time the oven stays on throughout the day.

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Could Almost Everyone Be Angling Solar Panels the Wrong Way?

Conventional wisdom in the northern hemisphere is to face solar panels south so they get the most light all day. Architects and panel installers implement this approach all the time, especially on homes. But a new study indicates that panels facing west may actually get more juice from the sun, and at more convenient times.

Researchers at the Pecan Street Research Institute did a study of homes with solar panels in Austin, Texas and found that when homeowners faced solar panels west they were able to generate 2% more electricity in a day. And they also generated more electricity in the afternoon, when power grids experience peak demand.

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New flexible batteries could be made by users at home

Scientists at the New Jersey Institute of Technology have joined the ranks of those from the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, Stanford University and LG, by creating prototype flexible batteries. Designed for use in electronic devices with flexible displays, they could conceivably be manufactured in any size or shape, or even made at home.

Each battery is made up of a flexible plastic substrate, impregnated with electro-active ingredients consisting of carbon nanotubes and "micro-particles." Lead scientist Somenath Mitra tells us that those particles can be zinc and manganese dioxide in the case of alkaline batteries, or lithium salts for lithium batteries. "The goal is to take existing systems and convert them to a flexible platform" he says.

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Spirit Solar Powered Lighting Column integrates panels into the post

Street lights are one of things people in heavily populated areas tend to take for granted. They make walking and driving a safer, more pleasant experience, but they also account for a significant chunk of a city's energy usage. Solar powered street lights offer a solution for places where electricity is at a premium, or locations that are off the grid completely and the Spirit Solar Powered Lighting Column is the first example we've seen which rolls the post and the panels together in a standalone design.

Kaal Masten, the studio responsible for the new LED street light, says it can function using 100-percent solar power, who means it does not need to be connected to the grid at all in order to function.

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HEVO "manhole" wirelessly charges EVs

Combine the convenience of a wireless electric vehicle charging station with the safety and inconspicuousness of a manhole cover. This is the vision of HEVO (Hybrid & Electric Vehicle Optimization), and it’s made the company a semifinalist for the SAFE Emerging Innovation Award. Noting the problems typically associated with EV charging, such as vandalism, faulty connectors, and the inconvenience of plugging in and paying, HEVO set out to make charging a car, or a fleet of cars, as simple as parking.

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Neurio sensor monitors multiple household appliances to cut energy consumption

Smart energy company Energy Aware, based in Vancouver, Canada, has developed a new product called Neurio that is designed to help people better control their domestic energy usage by monitoring home appliances. The product also allows users to be reminded of domestic tasks involving appliances. In cases of smart appliances, Neurio can detect behavior patterns and program appliances to meet specific requirements.

To be at the hub of all electricity consumption in the house, the Wi-Fi-enabled Neurio sensor is installed in the breaker panel and sends data to a cloud service that analyzes it with smart pattern detection algorithms. The package includes an app called Wattson (iOS and Android), which reports power usage in real-time and can notify users when they forget to turn something off and tell them how much energy their appliances are using. Since Neurio uses Wi-Fi to send all the data to a cloud server, it can be accessed anywhere.

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