Among the different ways to store energy, pumped hydro probably it is not the most known, but it is real and in use around the world. Basically pumped hydro works as a good complement of wind and solar energy, allowing to store the energy generated and accumulated thanks to these sources.
Pumped storage hydroelectricity is a type of hydroelectric power generation used by some power plants for load balancing, and is the largest-capacity form of grid energy storage now available.The method stores energy in the form of water, pumped from a lower elevation reservoir to a higher elevation, when there is available energy from the sun or wind that is not being used. When the power is needed later, you just need to let water fall down the slow-grade waterfalls and use it as hydro energy to fill the grid.
Taking advantage of this method the Danish architectural firm Gottlieb Paludan has the idea to use this kind of storage of green power to turn the world’s most island-ridden areas unused water-surrounded land into Green Power Islands. How? According to the firm each island would enclose a lagoon-like reservoir, which would be emptied using pumps driven by wind and solar power produced while demand is low. As consumption rises, seawater is allowed back into the reservoir, driving turbines that would generate new power. In this way it would be possible, according to them, to regenerate up to 75% of the energy that went into the process of pumping it empty.
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The Fuller Wind Turbine was developed about 5 years ago with an investment of £215,000. It harnesses the viscosity of air over the rims of thin discs to generate energy. This way, a housing is able to swivel in a silent way, as it was designed with urban rooftops in mind.
“This enclosed turbine should produce significant power at half the life-cycle cost of the windmills” says Howard Fuller, its inventor.
By rebalancing the blades of conventional wind turbines, the inventor was able to eliminate the up-tower maintenance.
A proof of concept model exists and a prototype is expected to generate 10kW, with production units ranging from 5 to 100kW. An insignificant amount, perhaps, compared to a 3MW windmill, but – argues Fuller – power generation can be scaled up by grouping arrays more densely, with blade clearance no longer a concern.
“The fact that people are coming up with such a variety of solutions testifies to the vibrancy and viability of the wind energy market, and shows that there is a lot of potential”, said Nick Medic of Renewable UK
Whether the Fuller can boost micro-wind for the home remains to be seen.
Via: World Changing
Energy efficiency is the easiest and most practical way to help alleviate the world’s energy crisis. Switching to the latest wave of ultra-efficient LEDs is something simple and necessary.
Fortunately, Philips recently unveiled the wonder bulb: EnduraLED, a new LED that lasts 25 times longer than a standard incandescent and only consumes 20% of energy. This 12-watt bulb is the world´s first replacement for the commonly used 60 watt incandescent, what means that Americans could save themselves 32.6 terawatt-hours of electricity each year -enough energy to power 17 million homes.
Ideally, our homes and buildings would not need air conditioning during summer. Constructions could be made in a way that they efficiently keep summer heat out and cool air inside. But unfortunately most of our present day buildings do not have these features, so they require AC units to maintain a comfortable, cool environment during summer working hours. In fact, air conditioning is responsible for up to 5 percent of USA’s annual energy use, so in addition to better insulated and better designed buildings, more efficient air conditioning units would be another solution to tackle this extreme energy consumption.
A team of scientists from NREL (National Renewable Energy Laboratory) has created an air conditioning process that is 90 percent more efficient than the top of the line units available today. The new discovery consists of membranes, evaporative cooling and liquid desiccants to remove heat from the air. Evaporative cooling is a process that has only worked well in dry climates in the past because the cooled air added humidity to the cool air output.
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Apparently Europe will start importing for the first time solar energy from the Sahara Desert within the next five years. The European Union is backing projects to harvest the plentiful sunlight that reaches the desert at a daily basis and turn it into electricity for Europe. Until now all the sunlight energy that was reaching the desert was lost for the most part, if harnessed energy harvested in deserts could cover considerable amounts of the world’s energy demands.
The whole scheme by Desertec Foundation hopes to achieve sustaining a 20% of the continent’s energetic demands by renewable resources by 2020. Gerhard Knies, one of the foundation’s founders explains "within 6 hours deserts receive more energy from the sun than humankind consumes within a year".
The EU is currently constructing new electricity cables known as inter-connectors, under the Mediterranean Sea, to carry this renewable energy from northern Africa to Europe. European Energy Commissioner, Guenther Oettinger, explains "over the next few years initial volumes would come from small pilot projects, but the amount of electricity would go up into the thousands of megawatts as projects including the 400 billion euro Desertec solar scheme come on stream", which sets a long-term plan of about 40 years until the project is completed.
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That is the difficult part. For this reason Dr Takashi Yabe (of the Tokyo Institute of Technology, Heroe of the Environment 2009) has developed a MAGIC process (Magnesium Injection Cycle) that uses new laser technology specially designed to this end. The laser includes an important innovation: it uses small Fresnel lenses, transparent and relatively thin planar lenses made up of concentric rings of prisms. These lenses allow around 80 percent of incident light to focus on the magnesium crystal, instead of the 10 percent that lasers typically can reach.
What can you expect from an island where there is no nature, no fresh water, no energy infrastructure, no roads and no sewers? The answer is ambitious: one man made ecosystem that will transform the island into a self-sustaining city containing 10,000 people and with zero emissions.
Located within the crescent shaped bay of Baku, Zira Island is going to take in The Seven Peaks of Azerbaijan, a master plan for a Zero Energy resort and entertainment city within the Caspian Sea. The project is an original design made by the danish architect Bjarke Ingels, from the BIG (Bjarke Ingels Group). The island is designed to be a sustainable model for urban development and an iconographic skyline recognizable from the city’s coastline. In this sense, far from becoming a visual impact to the bakunians, the new architectural landscape has derived from its natural landscape, and it’s intended to replicate, through artificial constructions, the seven most significant mountains of the country.
The mountains are conceived not only as metaphors but also engineered as entire eco-systems, a model for future sustainable urban development. The energy needed to operate the 1 million square city will be supplied entirely through renewable sources as offshore wind turbines, solar heat panels, photovoltaic cells and ocean wave energy. The development aims to be entirely independent of external resources. Fresh water will be provided through a desalination plant, and waste water and storm water will be collected and led to a waste water treatment plant, where it will be cleaned, processed and recycled for irrigation.
“Only the best ideas survive”, mentions the author when is asked for the design, making reference to the underpinning idea of the project: Darwin’s theory of evolution and natural selection applied to urbanism.
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A recent study corroborates that to feel more alive we need to spend more time outdoors, in nature.
We usually drink a cup of coffee or a can of Coke when we need a little energy boost, but the truth is, a stroll through nature has a much larger effect in making us feel rejuvenated and energized than any of our urban drinks.
“Research has shown that people with a greater sense of vitality don’t just have more energy for things they want to do, they are also more resilient to physical illnesses. One of the pathways to health may be to spend more time in natural settings”, says Richard Ryan, lead author and a professor of psychology at the University of Rochester. So this means nature might not only bring some energy into our lives, it might also bring a state of well-being.
People often don’t take the time to take a stroll through a nearby park or go somewhere green on weekends. The effect that nature has on us is very significant as Ryan’s studies show “we’re kinder, more gentle folks when we feel in-touch with the natural world”.
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It makes a big difference when big and respected companies such as Coca-Cola make a commitment to conserve energy and fight climate changes. People that might have been skeptic about eco-friendly lifestyles can not ignore the fact that if a major company such as this one has decided to go green, it has to mean something. They might even notice that it’s not all about giving up things, it can also be simple, and maybe even enjoyable!
The first big change that Coca-Cola underwent was switching to hybrid delivery trucks in North America, this move tackles the source of one of the largest environmental impacts the company makes. They already have 327 green trucks on the road, and they say many more are yet to join the fleet. These hybrids save about 30% on fuel consumption and produce 30% less emissions than the regular trucks, so, Coca-Cola is not only reducing their environmental impact, they are also saving on fuel which might have a positive impact on their economy, and also conserves oil resources.
The company started it’s first green movement in Japan in 2004, where it started a waste recycling program. It consisted in turning their own waste material into energy, this helped cut some of the waste that Coca-Cola puts into landfills. The green revolution eventually reached North America, where changes are now in motion. Here they are not only recycling their own waste, they are also developing recycling programs for communities and businesses. They have also installed water saving technology and energy efficient lighting to make the buildings more environmentally friendly.
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A new breakthrough in renewable energy consists of splitting seawater into Hydrogen and Oxygen, the hydrogen can then be stored to be used later for electricity generation. How does this work?
Researchers at the University of California are working on a project that consists on sailing ships that could harvest energy from the ocean far away from land. These ships would be equipped with a hydropower generator holding two wing-like underwater blades that oscillate by the sheer force of wind and water to generate power by movement. This power is then applied into splitting saltwater into Hydrogen and Oxygen. Extracting energy from the flow of water rather than from the air has an advantage: the power density is much higher down below.
It is estimated that sailing ships with 400 square meters of sail, operating in moderate conditions, could generate up to 11 kilowatts of electrical power. imagine what could be done with even larger ships! Platzer, of the University of California, says: “With enough ships, the energy needs of the entire planet could be met this way”. He also calculates that the electricity can be converted into hydrogen and back again with about 30 percent efficiency.
Via: Green Packs | New Scientist
When most people think about environmentalism they imagine sacrifice, a lot of effort and hard work . What if you could turn this image around, and show people how you can actually enjoy being nature-friendly?
Andrew Charalambous, head of the climate change organization Club4Climate , hopes his club can blow away this compromising image of 
environmentalism and open new avenues of thought as to how we can change our behaviour and save the planet.
He is the owner of Surya in London, the first sustainable night club in Britain. Here all the timber is reclaimed, the paint is ecologically friendly, the curtains and cushion covers are made from hemp, the granite and marble are sourced on a free-trade basis and all glass, cardboard and plastic are recycled. Solar panels power the club’s plasma screens and provide energy for many of the lights and a wind turbine on the roof powers the ozone-friendly air conditioning system.
But the most amazing gadget – the dance floor – is downstairs. It harnesses the motion of dancers to generate power, using the concept of piezoelectricity, where materials rub together to generate a charge – in this case, crystals in blocks under the floor which create an electrical charge when squashed – is then fed into batteries.
Regular gyms use a lot of electricity to get their exercise machines running, lighting and air conditioning use up a lot of it as well, machines that are not in use are rarely switched off.
Eco-friendly gyms on the other hand try to reduce the amount of energy they consume, or even try to produce some for themselves, like the Green Microgym in Portland, Oregon. This one in particular generates as much as 36% of it’s energy from solar panels and human powered generators attached to stationary bikes and ellipticals. They have also managed to reduce their total carbon emissions by 60%.
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