Airplane flies all night only on solar energy

A major achievement happened tonight: for the first time ever an airplane propelled alone with solar energy managed to fly a whole night.

The airplane, named Solar Impulse, has 12,000 photovoltaic cells, a wing span of 63.4 meters and weights 1600 kilograms. Piloted by André Borschberg, took flight yesterday from the Swiss town of Payerne reaching to 8700 meters of altitude, charging enough energy to stay flying around all night at the prudent speed of 50 km/h.

The duration of the flight, 26 hours, is in itself a record for this kind of vehicle, being the previous one in only 5 hours. Previously to tonight's achievement, the airplane had only flight for short periods.

One of the developers, Bertrand Piccard, plans to cross the Atlantic Ocean with the Solar Impulse and, by 2013, even circumnavigate the World on it.

Source: Gara[es].

New materials should make solar energy a lot cheaper and more effective

That's what a Swiss-Quebequois team has discovered recently: that the costly, ineffective and corrosive electrolytes used to date could be replaced by a new transparent organic material. In turn the costly platinum cathodes can be replaced by a much cheaper one made of cobalt sulphide.

Read more at Science Daily.

References:

Mingkui Wang et al., An organic redox electrolyte to rival triiodide/iodide in dye-sensitized solar cells. Nature 2010. Pay per view.

Mingui Wang et al., CoS Supersedes Pt as Efficient Electrocatalyst for Triiodide Reduction in Dye-Sensitized Solar Cells. Journal of the American Chemical Society, 2009. Pay per view.

Carbon nanotubes: efficient solar cells

In yet another step in the development of the much needed solar energy, scientists from Cornell University have found that the so much discussed about newest nanomaterial: carbon nanotubes (also promising in the field of electronics in general) generate electricity naturally when exposed to light.

This carbon nanotube, a single molecule thick rolled graphene sheet, is exactly the same as a carbon diode, which are being researched for their eventual electronic applications, just that the Cornell team have discovered that applying light to it (in the form of lasers) actually generates electricity.

Unlike current solar cells, made of silicon, the graphene does not need cooling, as it does not waste so much luminous energy in the form of heat.

Of course, there will be engineering issues to be able to make graphene nanotubes in a cheap way but the technology is there, and is in any case a technology that needs practical development for reasons other than energy generation. So I guess it will be done... eventually.

Source: Science Daily.
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Solar energy: new efficiency record

Scientists at the US National Renewable Energies Laboratory have developed a new typeof photovoltaic cell able to convert 40.8% of solar input. This way they have beaten their own record. Instead of using germanium as main catalyst, they now use gallium-iridium alloys that additionally decrease the size and weight of the resulting cell a lot.

In addition to other recent advances (see other posts in the category solar energy) this could brutally boost the ability of humankind for gathering energy directly from the Sun. I am each day more convinced that solar energy is the only realistic solution for the global energy crisis. Of course that there are many resistences, beginning by energy oygopolisic companies, but in the mid-run it is the only promising cost-effective and enviroment-friendly possibility. It can also empower local communities and individuals regarding energy production.

Photosynthesis replicated

Science Daily reports that researchers from Monash University have managed to replicate the natural process of photosynthesis, using a catalist made of manganese (the same chemical used by plants), a small steady current and sunlight. While the process still needs to be improved in its efficiency, it is the first time ever that the biological process of photosynthesis is replicated artificially, holding huge promises of cheap renewable energy for the short term.

Solar energy will soon be the cheapest

A new and most important finding by MIT researchers allows to store solar energy in a way very similar to how plants do. The newly developed energy storage system, uses solar energy to decompose common water into oxygen and hydrogen, with this one resulting available to be used as clean combustible when sunlight is not available.

The invention is a new catalyst made up of cobalt and phosphate and powered by an electrode (that would be solar fed) combined with another catalyst made of platinum. The resulting device is cheap and clean and therefore is basically bound to overcome all conservative resistences to green tech.

The prototype

This giant leap (in the words of photosynthesis expert J. Barber) adds up to another recent major developement in solar energy, also achieved by MIT researchers, that allows solar power generation to be ten times more effective. The combination of these new revolutionary technologies (plus whatever that may still come) will almost unavoidably make solar energy the dominant power source in the next decade or so.

Solar energy to be 10 times more efficient

Good news for all, I think. One of the main problems of solar energy had been its comparatively high costs. With a new technology that uses dyes to channel the light to photoelectric cells, developed by scientists at the Massachussets Institute of Technology, the power captured becomes 1000% greater and it can also prescind of other costly elements such as mirrors and mobility.

As the light is gathered at the edges of the dyed glass, one possible application is to make electricty generators that would also be normal windows.

More at MIT opens new 'window' on solar energy.