Solar

When I talk to people about the prospect of seeing millions of plug-in hybrids and all-electric cars hitting the streets by 2012, one of the first questions I get is:

"Won't all these electric cars require building hundreds of new power plants?"

The answer is: "No, but we have to be smart about it."

It's a great question because it goes to the heart of the solar economy. The traditional model is that this huge new demand for electric power would be satisfied with new power plants. The new model is to charge your electric car with solar PV panels on YOUR roof.

A medium-sized array on your house would feed the grid during the day (at peak hour rates), while you charge your car at night, using your credit to buy back power at non-peak rates.

Solar Shingles? It's a great idea, but do they make sense for the average homeowner?

First, let's take a moment to explain the concept. Thin-film photovoltaic material is bonded to shingle material and presto! - a shingle that generates electric current. The benefit is that your roof won't have an obvious solar panel sitting on it, so the roof is aesthically more pleasing (in case you're dealing with onerous HOAs or neighborhood associations) The compromise is efficiency... thin film PV is about half as efficient as regular PV panels.

Solar shingles require no additional under-roofing, so they replace part (or most) of your south-facing roof. As with traditional PV installations, for maximum efficiency, you should receive unblocked sun on your south roof for the entire day. If this isn't possible, an west or east-facing installation can be 90% as efficient as south-facing . Because solar shingles can't be cut or modified, traditional shingles are used along the edges of the roof.

Solar Fashion takes a big step forward... or backward! Check out this Scott eVest with a small photovoltaic unit to power or recharge your small electronics.

The detachable solar panels enable you to recharge *most* USB compatible devices on the go, either while wearing the jacket or with the panels removed. When attached, the solar panels compliment the jacket’s design.

Typical charge times in direct sunlight range from 2-3 hours. Unfortunately, the iPod is not a supported device.

Teach the concepts of solar power to kids!

Great idea! Let's get our future scientists, engineers and entrepreneurs thinking about solar energy as children, so they can develop new solar power ideas and build new solar companies as adults.

Solar Schoolhouse is doing just that. Founded by Tor Allen, the non-profit (a part of the Rahus Institute) has developed a variety of "energizing" demonstrations and techniques for engaging students and sharing the magic of solar energy.

I encountered Tor at Solar 2008, where I took his workshop on "Energizing Your Skills as a Guest Solar Speaker". While Tor positioned his 4-hour workshop as a way to present to children, I got a lot of ideas about making solar energy present to adult audiences.

Has SunDrum come up with an idea so simple that no one else thought of it?

Or are they compromising efficiency by combining processes that don't play well together?

SunDrum has combined Solar Thermal and Solar Electric panels into one unit. It's potentially more efficient and less clutter on your roof.

A typical photovoltaic cell is 12% to 15% efficient in converting the sun’s energy into useful energy. By combining the SunDrum thermal collector with PV panels, the company claims that 60% of the sun’s energy can be utilized.

Sun Drum collectors attach to existing PV panels, cooling the PV panel to improve electrical efficiency 10%, i.e. from 15% to 16.5% while capturing thermal energy for heating hot water. Thermal energy collection efficiency is greater than 40%. The company's specs are here.