Product Inspiration

No, the title is not an oxymoron, a not-so-new technology called “ammoniac-water absorption technique” is making a comeback to provide a sunlight-powered cooler for keeping food and beverages cold in places away from grid power. This method has been known for quite some time, though little has been done with it outside of flame-powered devices. Lets hope that changes, and we all get sun-powered coolers for those hot Texas summers in the near future.

http://www.dw-world.de/dw/article/0,2144,3106924,00.html via DVICE

A new startup has announced that they are now selling a new, much cheaper solar panel. Their manufacturing method allows the panels to be printed onto sheets of aluminum, which is MUCH cheaper than the traditional methods. Cost estimates are around $2 a watt for a full system, which falls slightly under coal’s $2.1 a watt (which seems a bit suspect), and much less than solar’s traditional $4 per watt.

Printable electronics, solar panels, and other goods which conventionally require lots of assembly and effort during manufacturing will make a huge impact in the next 5 years. The methods have been under development for quite a few years, but we are finally seeing some practical applications. The good news is that manufacturers will continue to get better and better at printing new complex goods for the next 15 to 20 years, so ideally the prices we pay for electronics (and solar power) should continually drop. Maybe the big talk will prove true, and solar will actually compete as a major power source…

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/12/18/technology/18solar.html?_r=2&ref=tec hnology&oref=slogin&oref=slogin via gizmodo

Technorati : printable, solar

This new toothbrush design purportedly cleans your teeth better without toothpaste than the one you currently use (with toothpaste). It uses a titanium oxide embedded in the base of the bristled end of the brush to send out free electrons, which then react with the acid in your mouth, helping it break down the plaque. The electrons are activated when light shines on the titanium.

While silver nanoparticles seem to be taking over the world of antimicrobial plastics and fabrics, maybe this alternative way of killing bacteria by using electrons could give it some competition.

http://blog.wired.com/gadgets/2007/11/solar-toothbrus.html

more information at: http://blogs.zdnet.com/emergingtech/?p=754

Technorati : solar, toothbrush

This new advancement by Nanosolar could be the first to actually bring the efficiency of solar power to the point that it directly competes with conventional energy (coal, fossil fuels, etc.). The new technology is a coating, rather than a whole cell, and drops the cost from $3 a watt to 30 cents a watt. Since it is a coating, it can be applied to all kinds of different materials ansd surfaces, and unlike the conventional silicon cells, it is not brittle and will not break easily. And if these benefits are not enough, the material can be printed using roll to roll processing, which practically guarantees cheaper and cheaper costs as time goes on.

Keep an eye on this technology- it may be the breaking point that takes solar energy from novelty to practical large scale power generation.

http://www.celsias.com/2007/11/23/nanosolars-breakthrough-technology-s olar-now-cheaper-than-coal/

Technorati : coatings, nanosolar, solar cells, thin film

Solar concentrators are parabolic mirrors which focus sunlight’s intensity onto a small spot, much like satellite dishes. This increases the light and/or heat onto a small area, which means you can have either a smaller solar cell (like is used in this design), or the ability to harness the sun’s heat to generate power (as seen here).

This particular advancement replaces the heavy and expensive polished metallic mirror collectors with lightweight, inflatable collectors. The cost savings from using lightweight materials could add a big advantage for solar energy harvesting. In addition, the concept of making useful structures out of inflatable units seems to be growing in popularity lately.

http://www.ecogeek.org/content/view/1111/