Solar energy news and discussion

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Solar Coating Could Generate Power for Smartphones, EVs
On-the-spot energy harvesting could reduce the world's reliance on massive solar farms, according to scientists at the University of Oxford.
By Adrianna Nine August 26, 2024

Researchers in England have created an "ultra-thin" photovoltaic coating that harvests solar energy on the go. If incorporated into smartphones, backpacks, and even electric vehicles, the coating could offer instant, grid-free power and mitigate the world's reliance on massive solar farms.

Right now, our on-the-spot solar power options are both limited and inconvenient. Solar power banks allow outdoorsy folks to charge small devices while away from a wall outlet, but they're bulky and easy to forget at home. A couple lesser-known smartphone accessory brands make so-called solar phone cases, but even as advertised, they're slow to charge; honest reviews about their quality are also tough to come by. This means juicing up our devices almost always requires a connection to the energy grid, making outages and long trips difficult to navigate.

https://www.extremetech.com/science/sol ... phones-evs

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[wjfox]

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[Yuli Ban]

Even solar energy’s biggest fans are underestimating it

In the past year, solar power has experienced Brobdingnagian growth, even by solar standards. According to a new report from Ember, an energy think tank, the world is on track to install 29 percent more solar energy capacity this year — a total of 593 gigawatts — compared to last year, which was already a record year. This is more than one-quarter of the electricity produced by every operating coal plant in the world combined. In 2020, the whole world had installed just 760 GW of solar in total. Yes, this deserves all the italics I’m using.


“When you look at the absolute numbers that we’re on track for this year and that we installed last year, it is completely sort of mind-blowing,” said Euan Graham, lead author of the report and an electricity data analyst at Ember.

I have good hopes that an energy surplus in the 2030s is in fact feasible, as I once guesstimated a decade ago. Solar will lead the charge, followed by wind, tidal, geothermal, and a renewed nuclear, before eventually AI helps us figure out fusion and beyond.

Imagine solar providing 10x more power than our civilization currently COULD use, perhaps even getting us to near Type I status BEFORE you add nuclear fusion.
Heck, just imagine geothermal and tidal power's potential.

[wjfox]

a renewed nuclear

Strongly disagree there. But I agree with you on everything else.

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[Yuli Ban]

a renewed nuclear

Strongly disagree there. But I agree with you on everything else.

I have to disagree with that, as it seems like both China and the AI companies are reviving nuclear
The AI bros because nuclear powers their data centers
China because they licked thorium
Generally China's going all in on the whole suite of them, even though it's much faster and cheaper to deploy wind and solar— I presume that long term, in the next couple of decades, the nuclear, especially emerging nuclear fusion, will begin deploying in quantities that actually overtakes even solar
Generally in the West we almost deliberately made nuclear too expensive to build and upkeep, and invested far less into designs that wouldn't have the Fukushima/Chernobyl problem of "irradiating thousands of miles if something goes wrong" as time went on. Since China is doing the opposite, well, it seems obvious who won the future.

[firestar464]

I suppose we'll have to see whether China's investments really do lower the price of nuclear energy. Definitely agree that fusion would simply blow everything else out of the water when it finally happens.

[wjfox]

[caltrek]

This article is slightly dated, but I don’t remember any previous references in this thread to the project it describes.

Officials Greenlight Multi-million Acre Energy Storage Project in Nevada Desert
by Kearton Peters
August 30, 2024

Introduction:

(Canary Media) In the vast desert northeast of Las Vegas, a new solar installation will soon be assembled atop an ancient lake bed. The Dry Lake East Energy Center, a 200-megawatt solar installation with 600 megawatts of on-site battery storage, was cleared to begin construction this week by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM).

In planning documents, Boulevard Associates LLC, a subsidiary of NextEra Energy Resources, said the solar plant and 200 megawatts of attached battery storage will be in operation in December 2026. An additional 400-megawatt stand-alone battery is set to come online in 2028.

The solar and storage installation is the latest renewable energy project to be approved on public land. Since 2021, the U.S. Interior Department has approved more than 7 gigawatts of new clean energy capacity on public land in the form of solar arrays, geothermal plants, and new transmission lines to bring clean power from where it’s produced to the population centers that need it. As of this month, there are 60 projects currently under review with a total capacity of more than 29 gigawatts.

A large portion of the Western U.S. is public land managed by BLM, and historically some of this space has been leased for oil and gas extraction and mining purposes. The Biden administration has sought to open these lands to renewable energy development as part of its effort to rid the power grid of carbon pollution by 2035. In April, BLM finalized a new rule lowering fees for wind and solar projects seeking to lease federal lands, and just yesterday (August 29, 2024) it announced a plan to expand solar development on public lands.

Read more here: https://www.canarymedia.com/articles/c ... ic-land

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Wave-resistant PV platform explores offshore solar potential
By Paul Ridden
October 21, 2024

Fields turned over to solar farms are becoming a more common sight as we look towards a zero-carbon future. But like wind turbines, massive PV installations may soon be heading offshore. China is looking to lead the charge, and is embarking on sea trials of a wave-resistant hexagonal floating platform.

The Yellow Sea No. 1 is being transported to a wind farm operated by the Huaneng Group in the southern Shandong Peninsula, and signals the start of China's offshore solar research program.

The test rig's 1,624-sq-m (~17,500-sq-ft) upper surface area is home to 434 photovoltaic panels that will test three different technologies and have four different capacities to determine the most robust setup. The platform stands 9 m (29.5 ft) tall on a series of 64 buoys mounted around the lower structure. Cables secured to the seabed keep it in position, and it's designed to withstand 10-m waves.

https://newatlas.com/energy/wave-resist ... -shandong/

[Time_Traveller]

Plan to put solar panels on all new English homes could be scrapped

Wed 23 Oct 2024 13.27 BST

Labour is considering making solar panels optional on new homes in England, after pressure from housebuilders, in a move that would weaken low-carbon regulations, the Guardian has learned.

Ministers are preparing to publish long-delayed regulations for new homes, known as the future homes standard, which would ensure that all newly built homes are low-carbon.

These rules should include requirements that homes are not connected to the gas grid, are insulated to a high standard and can generate renewable energy.

Ed Miliband, the energy secretary, promised a “rooftop revolution” in solar power soon after the election. Putting solar panels on new homes as standard is popular with about 80% of voters, according to polling.

But instead of requiring housebuilders to equip new homes with an adequate number of solar panels, which campaigners and clean energy experts were hoping for, current plans for the future homes standard are only to “encourage” builders to equip homes with some solar panels “where appropriate”.

https://www.theguardian.com/environment ... in-england

[Tadasuke]

Solar power's exponential growth is real. Cumulative capacity doubles every 3 years on average. Costs decrease as production increases, leading to increased demand, which further raises production. However, as sunlight is not constant, solar energy needs to be stored for use during non-daylight hours.

Presently, China is producing most of the world’s solar panels and purified silicon. It raises concerns on supply chain reliability. Although this concentration has enabled fast growth, it also poses geopolitical risks.



Solar photovoltaics are on track to generate more electricity than today's all of the world's nuclear power plants in 2026, than all wind turbines in 2027, its dams in 2028, its natural gas in 2030 and its coal in 2032, according to the International Solar Energy Society.

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