6 Engineering Quotes From World's Renowned People

We know engineering is important and lets see how the world's top leaders described the important of it. Below quotes are from Eco Founder:

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Charging Mobile Phones With Sound

Dr. Joe Briscoe and Dr. Steve Dunn from Queen Mary University of London (QMUL) are partnering with Microsoft to develop an energy-harvesting prototype (a nanogenerator) that could be used to charge a mobile phone using everyday background noise – such as traffic, music, and our own voices.

Zinc oxide possesses the property of generating voltage when it is been squashed or stretched. QMUL's researchers used it to form nanorods which respond to everyday sound, such as our voices, to produce electrical energy. The rods can be coated onto various surfaces in different locations making the energy harvesting quite versatile.

Using spray-on technique a thin layer of zinc oxide was formed on a plastic sheet. Mixed with other chemicals and heated to just 90°C, zinc oxide nanorods grew all over the surface of the sheet. Then cheap and cheerful aluminum foil, instead of expensive gold, was used as the electrical contacts. About the size of Nokia Lumia 925 the device was able to generate 5V, which is enough to charge a phone.

Dr Joe Briscoe commented: "Being able to keep mobile devices working for longer, or do away with batteries completely by tapping into the stray energy that is all around us is an exciting concept. This collaboration was an excellent opportunity to develop alternative device designs using cheap and scalable methods. We hope that we have brought this technology closer to viability."

Developing Better Anode For Li-Ion Battery From Old Tires

Li-ion batteries provide power to plug-in electric-vehicles and tires roll the vehicles around the town, and they seem to be 2 unrelated vehicle parts. Wait! Researchers from Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), U.S.A., have developed a new technology to recycle old tires into the material for the anode contact of li-ion batteries. The new process can be seen below.

Graphite is commonly used to produce the anode of li-ion battery. Now, ORNL's team uses a proprietary pretreatment to recover pyrolytic carbon black material from old tires, which is similar to graphite but man-made. When used in anodes of lithium-ion batteries, researchers found a reversible capacity that is higher than what is possible with commercial graphite materials. After 100 cycles of charging and discharging the new battery still measured nearly 390 milliamp hours per gram of carbon anode, which exceeds the best properties of commercial graphite.

ORNL plans to work with U.S. industry to license this technology and produce lithium-ion cells for automobile, stationary storage, medical and military applications.

Kyocera Solar Modules Ranked "Performance Leader"

GTM Research has ranked Kyocera as the "Performance Leader" among 15 solar PV manufacturers in all 6 categories, including Temperature Cycling, Dynamic Mechanical Load, Humidity Freeze, Damp Heat, and two Potential Induced Degradation Tests. The tests were carried out by independent testing body PV Evolution Labs.

“With the exception of one manufacturer, Kyocera, no company consistently ranked within the Performance Leaders group for all test regimens,” GTM Research noted. “Results showed that most producers that performed well in one test did not necessarily perform well in all tests.”

PV Evolution Labs’ stringent test protocols exceeded the current industry standards to emulate various real-world climatic conditions over lifetime periods while observing power degradation performance of the solar modules being evaluated.

“Kyocera has proven time and again, both in independent testing and by solar modules performing uninterruptedly in the field for decades, that our modules are able to consistently produce clean, renewable energy even in the harshest conditions,” said Steve Hill, president of Kyocera Solar Inc.

Source: http://pv.energytrend.com/news/20140826-7309.html

By 2017 Half Of U.S.A. states Will Have Solar Reaching Grid Parity

The Cambridge-based Union of Concerned Scientists has just published a series of 3 quick infographics about U.S.A. rooftop solar installation. Here’s what they show:

(1) By 2017, more than half the states could have rooftop solar as cheap as local electricity prices. 

(2) Installing rooftop solar has never been more affordable.

(3) The number of households with rooftop solar is skyrocketing.

Recycling Old Batteries Into Solar Cells

Perovskite solar cells have been the focus recently in the solar research. In less than 2 years, perovskite solar cells efficiency has been improved to more than 19%, which is close to most of the commercial available solar cells.

Researchers from MIT, U.S.A., have found a way to produce a 0.5um (0.0000005 meter) thick thin-film Pb-based perovskite solar cells using recycled lead from old car batteries. This helps to divert toxic material from landfills the old batteries and reuse it in solar panels that could go on producing power for decades. Each single car battery can produce enough solar panels to power 30 households.

The technology behinds isn't new. The team extracted the lead (Pb) and lead-dioxide (PbO2) from the battery's positive and negative electrodes, respectively, and ground to fine pieces. Then they heated up the PbO2 to 600 degree Celsius to convert to PbO (lead-oxide). The Pb was dissolved into Nitric acid and PbO was dissolved into acetic acid. Potassium-iodide was then added to both solutions to form lead-iodide which then will be sprayed deposited onto the transparent substrate, following with sequential deposit, to form solar cell.

For more info and video to produce the solar cells go to http://newsoffice.mit.edu/2014/recycling-batteries-into-solar-cells-0818.

Yingli Reduces Production Cost of Monocrystalline Silicon Wafers

Silicon wafers are produced by slicing silicon ingot (as shown on the picture). Conventional, monocrystalline silicon ingots are produced by pulling out from graphite crucible. Graphite crucibles are known to have low strength, short lifetimes, and a high risk of silicon leakage because the crucibles are prone to cracking during the heating process.

Yingli has successfully completed trial production of monocrystalline ingots using new material technology. They are using crucibles made from a carbon-carbon (C-C) composite material. Initial estimates suggest that the new material could reduce manufacturing costs by nearly US$0.01 per watt. This is few percent of panel production cost already.

C-C composite crucibles are not as vulnerable as graphite because they are made from a reinforced carbon fiber matrix that is low-density, high-strength, with high thermal conductivity, thermal shock resistance, and dimensional stability. The new crucibles can improve the stability of crystal pulling, and increase the utilization rate of monocrystalline silicon ingots by approximately 3%.

Source: http://pv.energytrend.com/news/20140811-7210.html

Antibacterial Products Are Harming Unborn Baby

In 2013 I talked about "How Effective Are Those Antibacterial Soaps?" and in 2005, U.S.A. Food and Drug Administration also highlighted "no medical studies that showed a link between a specific consumer antibacterial product and a decline in infection rates." Overusing antibacterial products would lead to the breeding of super-bacteria that can't be killed easily.

Now, scientists have found another disadvantage of using antibacterial products. The chemical compounds contained inside antibacterial products have found their way into pregnant women and their fetuses, and this poses potential health risks.

“We looked at the exposure of pregnant women and their fetuses to triclosan and triclocarban, two of the most commonly used germ-killers in soaps and other everyday products,” says Dr. Benny Pycke, researcher from Arizona State University, U.S.A. “We found triclosan in all of the urine samples from the pregnant women that we screened. We also detected it in about half of the umbilical cord blood samples we took, which means it transfers to fetuses. Triclocarban was also in many of the samples.”

The problem is that there is a growing body of evidence showing that the compounds can lead to developmental and reproductive problems in animals and potentially in humans. Some research even suggests that the antibacterial additives could contribute to antibiotic resistance, a growing public health problem, says Pycke.

Good news, bad news: Our bodies are good at removing these compounds from our systems, but if you are constantly exposed (and these things are everywhere, including 2,000 everyday consumer products), you could be topping up, so to speak, and keeping your exposure roughly constant.

Source: http://www.treehugger.com/health/antibacterial-soap-harming-you-unborn-child.html

Beijing Targets To Stop Coal By 2020

Beijing Municipal Environmental Protection Bureau announced on 5th of August that the districts of Dongcheng, Xicheng, Chaoyang, Haidian, Fengtai and Shijingshan will stop using coal and its related products, and close coal-fired power plants and other coal facilities by 2020. Clean energy like electricity and natural gas will replace coal to serve residents in heating, cooking and other users.

Currently, coal burning together with vehicles, industrial production and dust contributed 85.9% of Beijing's smog. Coal burning alone has contributed about 22.4%. China's rapid economic development also makes it now consumes just about 50% of all the coal produced in the world.

China is planning a renewable energy program 10 times larger than the U.K.'s entire power system, as well as accelerating nuclear power and energy efficiency measures in line with commitments to reduce the carbon intensity of its economy by up to 45% between 2005 and 2020.

In addition, carbon trading schemes have been launched in seven cities and provinces, while regional governments have been given new powers to shut down factories and power plants that fail to meet air quality standards.

Hopefully, with all efforts China people can soon breath a fresh air again.

Source: http://www.greenbiz.com/blog/2014/08/06/beijing-ditch-coal-use-2020

China Biggest Phone Maker Is Entering Solar Inverter Market

Huawei Technologies Co. plans to ship 4 GW of smart solar inverters this year and officially enters into the solar business. The inverter is named SUN2000 string inverters, with output ranging from 8kW to 17kW and efficiency of 98.5%.

Last year, Huawei tapped its telecommunication technology to develop solar inverters. It shipped about 1GW of products during the first half of 2014, launching the smart PV power business by addling “smart” features, such as digital data collection and analysis, to its solar inverters.

Solar demand for 2014 is projected to be around 42GW so Huawei stands a chance to penetrate the market. This move will also lead to a direct competition with SMA Solar Technology AG, a Germany-based solar inverter maker, and Sungrow Power Supply Co. in China.

Meanwhile, Huawei is working with China’s solar power plant investors and operators include Yingli and GCL to improve the device as well as extend its domestic market.

Source: http://pv.energytrend.com/news/20140805-7187.html

Advantages Of First Solar's Thin-Film Solar Panel

First Solar's thin-film Cadmium Telluride (CdTe) solar panels are taking up market share quickly due to its lower cost and better high-temperature performance than mono- and poly-crystalline silicon panels. First Solar’s thin-film solar panels have been increasing in efficiency extremely fast in recent years. Furthermore, First Solar’s panels perform better in the field compared to their rated efficiency. Hence, First Solar may see a boost in market share before too long.

Below lists out the advantages of First Solar thin-film solar panels:

(1) Conventionally, silicon solar panel outputs drop about 0.4% to 0.5% for every degree Celsius increases in temperature. First Solar’s thin-film solar panels lose less efficiency in high temperatures, about 0.25% per degree Celsius, often making them a better buy in hot climates.

(2) First Solar’s solar panels are reportedly at the higher end of the reliability spectrum.

(3) First Solar uses a lot of automation to build its solar modules, bringing down cost and also ensuring quality consistency.

(4) After trading places with GE for years on CdTe efficiency records for years, First Solar finally bought GE’s CdTe intellectual property.

(5) The efficiency increase of CdTe efficiency in recent years is “unrivaled” in the solar PV industry.

(6) The efficiency record of conventional multicrystalline silicon is 20.4%, and First Solar is now closing in on that record.

(7) Adjusted for the effect of heat on the solar panels, First Solar’s thin-film solar panels are generally as efficient as silicon poly-crystalline solar panels already.

(8) First Solar’s module testing is intense.

Source: http://cleantechnica.com/2014/07/30/first-solar-thin-film-solar-panel-advantages/

Self-Cooling Solar Cells Yield Better Output And Longer Lifespan

When solar panels operate under full sun they can easily reach temperatures more than 60 degrees Celsius. High temperature will reduce panels' output and shorten their lifespan. For typical silicon solar panel, every degree increases in temperature, about 0.5% drop in output power. For example, if a rated 250 watts of solar panel is operating at Kota Kinabalu, Malaysia, you will only get about 206 watts of output. Using coolant or ventilation to cool the panels is expensive and energy intensive.

Scientists from Stanford University, U.S.A., have developed a passive cooling technology by adding a tiny pyramid-shaped silica glass structures to the surface of ordinary solar cells. The pyramid will help to shepherd away unwanted heat and reduce panel's temperature.

"Silica is transparent to visible light, but it is also possible to fine-tune how it bends and refracts light of very specific wavelengths,” said Prof. Fan, who led the research. “A carefully designed layer of silica would not degrade the performance of the solar cell, but it would enhance radiation at the predetermined thermal wavelengths to send the solar cell’s heat away more effectively.”

The team has tested different shapes and sizes of the structure. They were able to fine tune the shapes to refract and redirect only the unwanted infrared wavelengths (wavelengths that will heat up the panels) away from the solar cell and back out into space.

Their next step is to demonstrate radiative cooling of solar cells in an outdoor environment.

New Finding Could Increase Solar Efficiency By 30%

Solar industry is a non-stopping battle ground of price and performance. Now, scientists from University of California, Riverside, U.S.A., has found a way to use one photon to generate 2 electrons, which theoretical could boost solar efficiency.

What is photon? Photon is an elementary particle of light. When we see different color of light it is simply photon with different wavelength and energy. When light, or photon, strikes the solar cell, they will penetrate and be absorbed by the solar material. Electron will be generated and electricity will flow when the cell is connected to a load.

Conventionally, one photon will only generate one electron. But newly discovery could double the generation. The technique is called singlet fission, in which an initially excited singlet state spontaneously splits into a pair of triplet excitons, boosting the overall solar efficiency by as much as 30%.

Here’s the Bardeen lab’s diagram of how singlet fission works to spontaneously split into two triplets, effectively dodging the efficiency barrier of the Shockley-Queisser limit.

“The exact mechanism is unknown, but it does happen quickly—at the sub-nanosecond timescale—and with high efficiency,” said Prof. Bardeen, who led the research.

Prof. Bardeen cites recent work at MIT that has already demonstrated an organic photovoltaic cell with more than 100% external quantum efficiency based on this effect. Prof. Bardeen believes similar improvement can be observed in inorganic semiconductors.

The next move of the team is to find new materials that exhibit singlet fission, figuring out how to turn the triplet excitons into electricity.

Source: http://cleantechnica.com/2014/07/11/solar-cell-efficiency-rises-30-singlet-fission/

Solar Manufacturing Inspired By "Tofu" production In Reducing Toxin Chemical

Thin-film solar offers the characteristics of being flexible and low-profile to all kinds of surfaces. Unfortunately, the key ingredient to produce millions of thin-film solar panels is cadmium chloride,which is highly toxic and expensive.

Inspired by the production of "tofu", researcher from University of Liverpool, U.K., found that the magnesium chloride used to make tofu and bath salts could replace the highly toxic and expensive substance used to make the solar cells.

Safe and at a fraction of the cost – US$0.001 per gram compared to US$0.3 per gram for cadmium chloride, it makes the finding full of potential.

The cheapest solar cells being manufactured today are based on a thin film of insoluble cadmium telluride. Alone, these cells convert less than 2% of sunlight into electricity. By applying cadmium chloride to them, the efficiency increases to over 15%. When the team from University of Liverpool replaced the cadmium chloride with magnesium chloride, similar boost in performance was achieved.

Of course, simply finding a cheaper ingredient doesn't necessarily make for a cheaper solar cells. But the potential of replacing a highly toxic cadmium chloride makes the finding valuable.

Source: http://news.liv.ac.uk/2014/06/25/watch-tofu-ingredient-could-revolutionise-solar-panel-manufacture/

Yingli Supplies 12 MWp Of Solar Modules To Malaysian Projects

Yingli Green Energy Holding Company Limited is supplying 12 MWp of solar modules to Gading Kencana Sdn Bhd., Malaysia.

8 MWp of Yingli's modules will be used in solar farm in Malacca, Malaysia, which covers approximately 14.5 acres and estimated to generate 11 GWh of electricity every year. The remaining 4 MWp of Yingli's modules will be used for residential installations across Malaysia. This is estimated to produce about 4.16 GWh of electricity per year, which is enough to power 1,000 typical homes in Malaysia.

Source: http://pv.energytrend.com/news/20140620-6938.html

A Lighter Solar PV Module Helps To Reduce Cost

Why weight matters in solar PV installation? According to Giga Solar this is because heavy solar module increases overall cost, limits application and slows adoption.

Giga Solar has come out with an innovative new design of non-glass and frameless PV module which allows for significant weight savings while still maintaining strength and durability. Comparing Giga Solar's 265W module to conventional glass-covered module, Giga Solar's product only weights 1/3 of conventional one.

This helps to reduce the installation cost of residential solar system by 1/3. Also, being very low profile and light, a 40ft container can fit 3 times more Giga Solar's modules, compared to conventional modules, thereby reducing shipping cost by half. Below picture shows a person simply using one hand to hold the module.

Significant Of 4.5 Degree Celsius Changes In Global Temperature

Randall Munroe, from XKCD, uses a very comic pictorial way to describe the significant impacts of 4.5°C changes in global temperature. The 4.5°C is derived from the difference between the norm temperature of 20th century and the coldest temperature during last ice age. Randall calls every 4.5°C be 1 "Ice Age Unit" (IAU).

(1) If we are -1 IAU (4.5°C below) then Randall's neighbor (in Boston, U.S.A.) will be 1/2 mile under ice.

(2) If we are -4 IAU (18°C below) then the whole earth will be a snowball.

(3) If we are +1 IAU (4.5°C above), which will be 86 years from now, Randall is not sure how the earth will be...

(4) If we are +2 IAU (9°C above) then the sea level will be 200 meters above today, no more ice on North and South Poles, and palm trees will grow on the poles.

New Nano-Technology Turns Wires Into Energy Storage Too

Batteries are used to storage energy and electrical cables are only used to transmit electricity. These two things seem to have no similarity in functionality.

However, nanotechnology scientist and professor Jayan Thomas and his Ph.D. student Zenan Yu, from University of Central Florida, have merged these 2 functions into one thing - a single lightweight copper wire to both transmit and store electricity. Copper wire is the starting point but eventually, Thomas said, as the technology improves, special fibers could also be developed with nanostructures to conduct and store energy.

This is how the cable works:

First, the team took a single copper wire and placed a sheath over the wire made up of nanowhiskers on the outer surface of the copper wire which treated with a special alloy to form an electrode. The whiskers then wrapped around with a thin plastic sheet and grew another layer of whiskers, to act as second electrode. Finally, a metal sheath was used to wrap around the cable to form the outer covering.

Because of the insulation, the inner copper wire retains its ability to channel energy and both the outer whiskers acted like a supercapacitor to store powerful energy.

It can be applied in the design and development of electrical vehicles, space-launch vehicles and portable electronic devices. By being able to store and conduct energy on the same wire, heavy, space-consuming batteries could become a thing of the past. Although more work still needs to be done, but it holds a tremendous potential to revolutionize the energy storage industry.

Source: http://today.ucf.edu/new-nanotech-may-provide-power-storage-cables-clothes/

Mini Wind Turbine That Can Be Fitted On Your Rooftop

When we talk about wind turbine we always refer to those gigantic 50m tall, 20m blade-span wind turbine. Unlike solar energy which sunlight is everywhere on the earth, wind turbines are very selective on locations and it also generates loud noise that most people won't be able to deal with.

A Dutch renewable energy start-up called The Archimedes is working on a wind turbine, called Liam F1, that is compact (weighted about 75kg and blade diameter of 1.5m), quiet and very efficient. Liam F1 is capable of generating maximum power of 1.5 kW at wind speed of 15 m/s. Even at just 5 m/s the turbine also can generate 1,500 kWh of energy per year.

Because of its screw-like blade design, Liam F1 will automatically point into the wind to capture the most amount of energy, allowing it to reach 80% of the theoretical maximum energy that could be harnessed from the wind.

The company is now working on an even smaller wind turbine, half the size of Liam F1, which can be installed on the lamppost to power the light.

MIT To Improve Performance Of Shaded Solar Panels

Shading has been a big challenge for solar system. Merely a 3 % of shading on solar array could lead to a 25% loss in output. Solar panels on residential rooftops that are partially shaded by clouds or trees sacrifice as much as 30% of their energy potential over a year. Group of graduate students from Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), U.S.A, has formed a startup called Unified Solar to solve this problem.

Current solutions for partially shaded solar panels optimize power at the panel level. But these bulky “boxes” rely on costly energy-storage components, such as capacitors and inductors. Failing to account for the strength or weakness of each individual PV cell, these also only restore roughly half of lost power. But Unified Solar innovates “at the cell level” by integrating entire power balance circuit onto a low-cost chip that can be integrated into a solar panel to regain that lost energy. The energy capture under partial shading is basically 2 times better compared to panel level solutions.

The team has received US$100,000 from U.S.A. Department of Energy on Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Clean Energy Prize, and US$125,000 from the NSTAR MIT Clean Energy Prize, to further develop their idea.

Source: http://newsoffice.mit.edu/2014/mit-team-wins-clean-energy-prize-solving-solars-shade-problem-0429