SolarPACES Conference 2020 Early Bird Registration Ends September 6!

Last few days for the 2020 SolarPACES Conference discounted early bird tickets! Be quick and save money by registering early! Attend the SolarPACES 2020 online conference from September 28 – October 2, 2020. By registering until September 6 (midnight pacific time) you can still benefit from the discounted early bird tickets. >> Register Now! Detailed Program …

Could Congress Commission a Government Agency Like WAPA to Build CSP?

State Owned Enterprises can be very popular, especially when they yield an annual dividend to households as in New Zealand (Aotearoa is its indigenous Maori name). Here, Aucklanders protest a proposal to privatize them IMAGE @Cory Anderson The USA seems like the most unlikely nation to nationalize a clean energy resource for the public good. …

Promising Test Results for Molten Salts in Trough CSP

IMAGE@SolarDynamics flex hose test One conundrum for the two main Concentrated Solar Power (CSP) technologies is how to be both bankable and efficient. Parabolic trough CSP is often considered more bankable, while central tower plants are more efficient. Trough technology is about a decade older than tower and has built up experienced supply chains, making …

Australian Researchers Assess the Commercial Viability of Solar Alumina Calcining

Pinjarra Alumina refinery in Australia IMAGE@Alcoa Commercializing alumina refining using solar heat Approximately 27% of Australia’s industrial carbon emissions come from alumina refineries, in which fossil fuels are burned to heat the processes. But concentrated solar thermal (CST) could provide up to half of the heat needed. Australian researchers have for the first time demonstrated …

Promising Test Results for Molten Salts in Trough CSP



IMAGE@SolarDynamics flex hose test One conundrum for the two main Concentrated Solar Power (CSP) technologies is how to be both bankable and efficient. Parabolic trough CSP is often considered more bankable, while central tower plants are more efficient. Trough technology is about a decade older than tower and has built up experienced supply chains, making …

Industry Shares its Experience to Advance Next Generation CSP

Heliostats for Tower CSP IMAGE@NREL Engineers generally tend to be solutions-oriented, and engineers in Concentrating Solar Power (CSP) are no different. A history of making things better than they were is why we now have advanced technologies. As Hal Harvey, founder of Energy Innovation told the NYT opinion columnist Tom Friedman: “A prime difference between …

Which is the Most Efficient Way to Make Solar Fuels from Methane?



IMAGE@DLR Product composition from redox processes in solar SMR and DMR in comparison with conventional methane reforming Solar fuels like hydrogen have the potential to be next generation energy carriers for a carbon-constrained world. Green hydrogen and other solar fuels could replace fossil fuels used for most transport; replacing heavy fuel oil used by container …

Which is the Most Efficient Way to Make Solar Fuels from Methane?



IMAGE@DLR Product composition from redox processes in solar SMR and DMR in comparison with conventional methane reforming Solar fuels like hydrogen have the potential to be next generation energy carriers for a carbon-constrained world. Green hydrogen and other solar fuels could replace fossil fuels used for most transport; replacing heavy fuel oil used by container …

Switzerland’s International Airport to Buy Synhelion’s First Solar Fuel

Synhelion is researching and developing technology to produce synthetic gas from air and sunlight. This can be processed into fuel that can be burned in standard engines IMAGE@Synhelion Flughafen Zürich AG commits to ETH spin-off Synhelion for CO2 reduction Flughafen Zürich AG aims to cut its CO2 emissions to zero net by 2050. The coronavirus …