Technology Archives - Page 11 of 18

HyRef Technology Revolutionizes Renewable Energy Forecasting

IBM has long been known for building some of the world’s most powerful supercomputers, but what happens when it applies advanced modeling to solving the intermittency of renewable energy? The answer, it turns out, is “Hybrid Renewable Energy Forecasting” (HyRef). This new technology, already online in China, is able to produce accurate local weather and renewable energy forecasts as far as one month in advance, down to 15-minute increments. The HyRef technology combines advanced power and weather computer modeling, sophisticated cloud imaging, sky-facing cameras, and on-site sensors to accurately predict solar power and wind energy output and increase the amount of renewable electricity flowing onto grids across the world. HyRef forecast system graphic via IBM Crowded Field In Renewable Energy Forecasting Race HyRef joins an increasingly crowded field of innovative technologies seeking to accurately predict the output of renewable energy resources. The National…

GM Drops Sticker Price For Chevy Volt For 2014

Nino Marchetti for Earthtechling General Motors is set to debut the 2014 Chevrolet Volt, and with the new model year of what’s noted as being the best selling plug-in vehicle in America comes a price drop. The extended range electric vehicle will start for $34,995 which, with a federal tax credit of up to $7,500, could drop the starting price to $27,495 before one applies other price reductions such as green vehicle rebates in select states. GM is looking to broaden the vehicle’s exposure to price-sensitive prospective buyers, especially in regards to trying to make the Volt competitive against lower cost gas-powered sedans. Those who pony up for the car will be joining those, according to the automaker, who, when charging regularly, drive 900 miles between fill-ups and visit the gas station about once a month. The 2014 Volt will continue to provide owners with [a] fuel economy of 98 MPGe (electric) and 35 city/40 highway on gasoline power without any need to change thei…

Solar — $1.20/Watt In Europe (Unsubsidized), & Much More Solar $ Fun

Originally published on Solar Love. We’re in the midst of a massive cleantech revolution. Solar power is beginning to disrupt the hell out of the power industry. Electric vehicles are on the verge of putting gasmobiles to sleep. Wind power is already one of the cheapest options for new electricity generation in the world — if not the cheapest. The movement is exciting to watch. And, in a decade or so, we might need to change our name from CleanTechnica to Your Life. The solar revolution is certainly one of the more exciting things to watch. Below is some solar number fun that should get your blood pumping. Full disclosure: much of the legwork for this piece was done by one of our excellent readers — we’ll just call him CleanTechnica advisor #1. Low Solar Prices Around the World EU solar without subsidies as low as $1.20/watt: Deutsche Bank has reported that about ⅓ of small- to mid-sized solar installations in the EU are now going in without subsidies. Furthermore, “Multi-me…

Interns Help Create Solutions For Clean Energy Challenges

by National Renewable Energy Laboratory on Earthtechling They travel far and wide, from all corners of the country. They come from a diverse set of backgrounds, and they have very different plans for their futures. But the 54 student interns at the Energy Department’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) this summer all have something in common — a thirst for knowledge and a desire to apply what they have learned in school to real-world science in a state-of-the-art laboratory environment. Each summer, students make their way to NREL’s facilities in Golden, Colorado, seeking an opportunity to work side by side with top researchers investigating the solutions to our energy challenges. “Students get to take their knowledge from school and apply it in a national laboratory environment,” said NREL Education Program Coordinator Linda Lung. “The students are contributing members of these research teams. It’s an invaluable experience for both the interns and their ment…

New Coating Inspired By The Pitcher Plant Turns Glass Into ‘Super-Glass’

Originally published on: CleanTechnica An incredibly slippery, self-cleaning “super-glass” can be created from ordinary glass with the application of a simple, transparent coating that was recently invented by researchers from the Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering at Harvard University and Harvard School of Engineering and Applied Sciences. The super-glass is so slippery that it even repels oil, and super-sticky materials such as honey — as well as resisting ice formation and the growth of bacterial biofilms. The researchers think that their new super-glass could be used to create “improved” solar panels, super-durable eyeglass lenses, self-cleaning windows, and new medical diagnostic devices. The new coating was inspired by the ultra-slippery surface of the carnivorous pitcher plant, which feeds on insects by funneling them with their extremely slippery leaves into a “pitcher” filled with digestive fluids. The insects which venture onto the plants can’t gr…