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A “solar automobile” is an electric vehicle powered by solar electricity. The electricity is obtained from the solar panels on the surface, usually the top or window of the vehicle. It is amazing to know that the cars can run on freely and abundantly available renewable energy source the solar energy. The increasing fuel prices, slow economy, and high rates of inflation project a doom picture for our future. In these times the hopes of alternative fuel like solar energy is ray of hope for the bright future ahead.

In these vehicles “photovoltaic cells” are used which directly convert solar power into solar electricity. PV cells directly convert sunlight into electricity. When sunlight strikes PV cells, they excite electrons and allow them to flow, creating an electrical current. PV cells are made of semiconductor materials such as silicon and alloys of indium, gallium and nitrogen. Silicon is the most common material used and has an efficiency rate of 15-20%. The electrical energy produced by them is stored in the battery. The battery runs the motor which in turn runs the wheels of the vehicle and drives it.

Advantages of solar automobiles are as follows:

1. Solar energy is a clean source of energy as combustion of solar power doesn’t emit any fumes or gases. Harmful gases released due to fuel combustion in the automobiles have resulted in several environmental problems such as pollution, global warming and green house effect.

2. Automobile fuel combustion is the cause of several respiratory disorders and other health-related problems. While by using solar automobiles we can control effectively these types of problems.

3. One can never encounter the problem of running out of fuel with solar powered cars; solar energy in cars is also an effective saving option.

Solar powered cars are pollution free and also solar energy is inexhaustible. There is a very bright future for solar energy to power our transportation needs and we’re just scratching the surface of the possibilities.

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So you thought solar lights was just restricted to residential uses? Or that it is just a fantasy concept that will just not work? Well, think again. Solar energy is used in a wide commercial sphere, with us just not knowing about it. The trend of using solar energy  for both commercial and residential purposes has caught on a high pace and businesses are gradually getting use to this cost effective solar power. Electrical power used for commercial purposes is often quite high and expensive. Companies are constantly looking for ways to minimize their costs and solar power just seems to be the perfect solution.

Let’s just take a brief view of how solar energy is used commercially.

Solar Street Lights

Have you ever wondered how much electrical energy street lights consumed? On a monthly basis the cost could rise up to over $2000. The best way to solve this issue was to use solar energy. The street lights would have a solar panel attached to each one of them and the entire day the bulb would be charged with all the energy of the sun. There is no risks of blackouts and another added advantage is that it does not even need any powerful grid station for wiring.

Solar Billboards

Billboards are the best ways businesses can reach the public. The messages on billboards have to be clear, lighted and remain visible 24/7.

For that a high amount of light is constantly needed, and the cost of a typical lighted billboard could be around $1000 a month. This in turn is not entirely beneficial for a business, and again in this comes solar power. Solar panels are inserted either at the base or on the top of these billboards and they charge the board through out the day through the sun’s heating power. At night the solar charged lights produce a brightening effect equally strong to that obtained from electrical power. This trend has caught up in most countries of the world and solar based advertising has become a cost effective methodology for both the companies and the government.

Solar Sign Lights

Solar sign lights or even Christmas decoration lights can now have solar power rather than the typical electrical power. Sign lights and signals now use solar powered  lightning power and this has helped reduce a considerable amount of electrical costs. Christmas lighting, decorations and every other commercial as well as residential lightning needs can depend on solar power.

Solar power is free and all the companies in the world can use it without any acclaimed rights, fights, wars or any other such issues that we currently face with electrical and fossil powers. Places where there is no feasibility of installing a power grid can instead benefit from solar panels and solar power. Hopefully these positive attributes will take solar power to a much higher altitude globally.

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The Sunshine State. That moniker has historically referenced Florida’s culture of sun, sand and surf, but in the age of green that sunshine is attracting a whole new level of attention. Solar power represents a key opportunity for Florida. The state is already home to the nation’s largest photovoltaic (PV) power plant and according to the Florida Solar Energy Center, is just behind the desert Southwest for best solar resources nationwide.

That means that home solar power or solar thermal systems in Florida will be considerably more cost-effective than in other states. So despite the recent expiration of state solar rebates, lack of a renewable portfolio standard and general inaction by the state government, solar in the Sunshine State remains promising — arguably the state’s best avenue to a break from fossil fuel dependence.

“But,” as Reading Rainbow’s LeVar Burton might say, “you don’t have to take my word for it.” Instead, listen and watch two actual Floridians discuss solar power in the Sunshine State. In a video from Modern Hippie Mag, founder and editor Jaszy McAllister interviews Monica Kennedy of Elite Solar Services as she breaks down the opportunities and obstacles to solar power in Florida. They cover everything from energy efficiency to solar pool & water heating to solar PV, including Florida’s 30-year-old solar rights law.

Elite Solar Services is a growing solar system dealer network made up of solar contractors, designers, installers and engineers providing important consultation and services to help Florida homeowners determine the right path to solar power for their individual homes and circumstances.

Watch the full interview of Elite Solar!

Photo Credit: KissMyFace

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With the popularity of solar energy on the rise, most gears and gadgets have gone solar. One of the most popular device; the laptop is now gradually switching over to solar energy. This simply means that regular laptops will be charged with solar powered batteries through the use of a solar charger. This invention has created a whole new spectrum for laptop users as they are now able to carry their laptop anywhere they want, charge it at any time without much of a hassle.

To get a solar laptop, you need to strike a balance between power and portability. That is you have to understand the charger size for the laptop. For a 40W/h charging, comes a bigger sized solar panel, and for something lesser, comes a smaller solar panel. The solar panel is needed to connect to the charger so that solar energy can be transferred to electrical energy through the panel. This charges the battery according to the desired need.

There are different power cells and each have their own specific capabilities. A solar gadget with 3.7V/12000mAH battery and a 1W peak power.

There will a total of 44 hours charging time in the sun. The watt ranges from 10 to 30 and each of them gives different running time. A 30watt battery would give around 9 hours of work, while charging for 10 to 15 watt would give approx 3 hours of runtime.

The solar charger is highly compatible with laptops such as HP, ACER and SONY, but with DELL there seems to be a compatibility problem. When wanting to make your laptop go solar, make sure that it is compatible and have it professionally checked out. Make sure there are safety kits and that the devices are compatible. Do not risk doing things your own, as an accident could result in a complete blackout of your laptop.

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Most people give up on putting any decorative lights out in their gardens or verandas, as that would consume an amount of electricity, and therefore the exteriors loose the beauty affect that is often needed. Now there is no more fear of consuming electricity uselessly, as solar energy is on the rise and people are now more adept to using solar powered lights.

Solar powered lights use solar energy and therefore even if you keep them 24/7, there will be no cost incurred. Outdoor lightening has become a fantastic option now as people can have dozens of decorative and stylish lights, without a single worrying thought. All you need is a solar panel with connections directly to the LED bulbs that come with a guarantee of years. When charged fully these lights last for ten hours and are also flexible enough to be moved around. These lights can be used for the garden, street, pathways, flowerbeds, pool, deck and dock. There is no environmental pollution concerns, no costs.

The solar lights can be hung instead of fixed to a lamp post, thus giving a more illuminating sense , where as solar pool lights can float on the pool surface, thus causing a soft reflective light on the water’s surface.

Solar powered lights are not only for soft illuminating purposes, but they can be used for security purposes as well,through the use of solar flood light. It gives the same amount of power as that run by electrical energy.

The best part is that solar powered lights can be ordered online too. You don’t have to go or search anywhere. Online sites provide samples and designs of the solar lights. All you have to do is to search around for the perfect light that matches the home exterior. If you have a small veranda or garden, don’t purchase a heavy lamp post neither buy too many lights. It will then loose the soft touch and instead will give a piercing glaring light. Understand your exterior first and then choose through the suitable design. As it is, different sites provide different price tags as well as different sizes of the solar panels required to charge the lights. Solar powered lights are flexible, beautiful, attractive and just the required thing to sparkle up your garden.

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Solar water heaters are devices that work exactly like regular water heaters, with just the difference of being operated through solar energy. They are much more convenient and more compact than regular water heaters. Solar panels are installed on the roof of the house, from which solar energy is converted into electrical energy that is stored in special batteries and used to heat up the water device. Some also offer the option of placing a water tank on the roof to minimize the energy loss.

As it is with every other solar energy advantages, there would be no cost at a later stage and therefore no regular buildup of energy bills. However, there is the initial cost of getting the water heater system. The prices of solar heaters are expensive, as they are still in the initial phase and it will take time before it goes mainstream.

The installation of solar panels also cost an amount especially if you happen to live in a not so sunny area, then extra effort has to be made.

Though there is also no environment issues with the use of solar water heaters, there is a problem of getting it fully functional for specific environments. If you live in a snowy and rainy environment, then it becomes very difficult to generate that much amount of heat for the process. Extra installations, extra panels and stronger systems are needed. To remove snow, solar heating strips are also needed to be used. In this way an entire solar system is installed which is extremely costly and could put off people who are not able to afford that much.

If you want to install water heaters at an affordable price then install small systems before you go fully functional on a large water heating system. Instead of having hot water for the entire household focus on one area first, then gradually increase the solar panels. A common rule of thumb is one gallon of water storage for every square foot of collector area works best. The path between the water heater and the collectors should not be less than 40sq feet distant.

Though it may be costly initially, it is a lifetime investment, where you don’t have to worry about paying high cost bills on electric and gas. Besides that there is no fear of accidents, short circuits, smoke or any other such issue as with gas or electric systems.

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In this world of high consumption, all nations depend upon heavy, toxic energy for electrical energy and other kinds of energy. Coal, oil, fossil fuels and gas are highly toxic forms of energy that we all are using. These are derived from underground finite resources that could with time diminish. On the other hand they are also not renewable, plus they are damaging our planet at an alarming rate.

It is because the Earth is facing severe global warming due to these substances that scientists are now looking for alternatives to these forms of energy. There are three main natural, infinite source of energy that has emerged. The sun’s powerful energy known as SOLAR ENERGY, the Earth’s internal heat known as GEOTHERMAL ENERGY and finally the power generated from the mighty seas and oceans of the earth known as TIDAL/OCEAN ENERGY. We will discuss and elaborate of these briefly.

Solar Energy

Solar Energy doesn’t need much of an introduction as everyone by now probably knows what is is and what are its excellent usage benefits. However what most people would not be knowing is that solar energy is used to derive another energy known as wind energy. This energy is captured with wind turbines and the water is evaporated through the heat of the sun. When the water is evaporated it turns into rain and this water is stored for use or for hydroelectric  power ( power gained from water).

When this water flows downhill it causes organic matters to grow under sunlight and the energy stored in these plants are known as bio energy. Bio energy when extracted can be used to produce electricity, transportation fuel etc. So with one single power of the sun, many other renewable energies are derived, which could make our Earth a more beautiful place to live in.

Geothermal Energy

One latest advancement in renewable energy is that of geothermal energy; the energy derived from the internal heat of the Earth. This energy is clean, sustainable, infinite and ofcourse renewable. The Earth’s surface maintains a constant temperature between 50° and 60°F (10° and 16°C). Geothermal devices are tapped into the surface to extract this energy and used with other systems, the energy can be used to heat or cool buildings. In winter the heat that is pumped removes heat from the heat exchanger and pumps it into the indoor air delivery system, for summer the process is reversed and the heat pump moves heat from the indoor air into the heat exchanger. Wells are drilled into underground reservoirs for the generation of electricity. This being the case, geothermal energy is another area that needs to be probed into and use on a large scale basis.

Ocean Energy

The ocean covers more than 70% of the Earth’s surface and being directly exposed to the sun, they are also the most efficient solar collectors. The sun’s heat warms the surface of the water and in this way the waves could be used to trap in solar energy. There are three systems of ocean energy, which includes closed-cycle, open-cycle and hybrid. Closed cycle systems use the ocean’s warm surface water to vaporize a working fluid. The vapor from that working fluid which has a low boiling point is used to turn a turbine. The turbine in turn activates a generator to produce electricity.  Open cycle systems boil seawater at low temperatures and this produces a steam that passes through a turbine, which is again used to produce electricity. Finally a hybrid system is a combination of both the closed and open cycle systems.

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Solar thermal power is a technology of harnessing solar energy for thermal energy. Solar thermal power is one of the expensive ways to generate renewable energy. Solar power used to heat water has amazingly innovated countless homes and commercial buildings and have already implemented.

But now all attention is towards photovoltaic power because they last for several decades, emit no pollution and require no maintenance. Photovoltaic systems convert solar energy directly into electricity. Photovoltaic power is so inexpensive that they can change the world. By using solar concentrators where the reflective solar collectors are used are many times the size of the heat absorber area and transfer fluids are super heated to drive turbines to generate electricity.

The designs used are three basic which includes a power tower, a parabolic reflector and a parabolic trough. On “power tower” there are mirrors tracking the sun surround an absorber tank on the tower in the middle of the array, a “parabolic reflector” tracks the sun with its own absorber tank at the focal point of the dish, and “parabolic trough” collectors, where stationary curved mirror extends in a straight line which have an absorber tubes that runs along the focal point of the trough’s curved surface.

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If ever you doubted that we had enough land to build the solar installations and wind farms necessary to power the United States, it’s time to put it to rest right here, right now.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, along with the National Renewable Energy Laboratories, is pushing forward with a program called Re-Powering America’s Land. This groundbreaking project could give 14 million acres of abandoned land a positive role in the attempt to switch the U.S. over to renewable energy.

Considering the alternative (i.e. letting these toxic lands sit unattended), there seems to be little downside to moving forward with the program. Many of the sites sit close to existing communities that would welcome the increase in available jobs, as well as the clean-up of these outlying areas.

So, are all of these lands OK to use? Most likely, yes. Some of the lands are home to abandoned mines, which obviously should be torn down and rebuilt. For the areas that are deemed toxic, the EPA and NREL are looking into building on top of the soil. Solar installations, for instance, don’t require the lying of new foundation to be built. Wind turbines can also be reconfigured with concrete base to house the necessary supporting wires.

What do we have to lose with such a project? At this point, the downsides are yet to be seen.

Source: CleanTechnica
Photo Credit: Arcade Heroes

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