Apple, the electronics wizard, has permission to establish its third solar farm in North Carolina. Apple plans to spend $55 million, to create this 17.5 MW new solar farm. It estimates that the construction will be completed 5 years after purchase of the land.
Expectations are that Apple’s project will provide 75 new jobs during construction. City Manager Doug Barrick notes that Apple’s intention is to source jobs from the local area.
Another big investor in the regional solar farm market is Duke Energy, which has invested more than $2.5 billion since 2007. Owning 15 solar farms in the US, it has built a stable presence in the commercial solar and wind energy sectors.

Published on Sep 27, 2013

Originally published on August 26, 2013, 

Aircraft designer Titan Aerospace unveiled last week its Solara 50 and 60 unmanned aircrafts, the world's first atmospheric satellites powered by the sun with a mission range of over 4 million kilometres.

An atmospheric satellite is a drone that can conduct most of the operations of an orbital satellite, but is much cheaper and more versatile. 

Among the applications of a Solara aircraft there are disaster recovery, weather monitoring, communications relay, oceanographic research and earth imaging.

According to reports, Solara 50 and 60 can be launched at night using power from internal battery banks. 

When the sun rises, the solar panels covering the crafts' wings and tails, store enough energy to allow them ascend to a position of 20 km above the sea level and to stay aloft continuously for five years, without ever having to land and refuel. 

The aircrafts will operate in an atmospheric sweet spot known as the tropopause where winds are generally less than 5 knots.

Despite its massive dimensions, Solara 50 only weighs about 160 kg, and can carry a payload of 32 kg. According to reports, differently from satellites, it is possible to get the payload back at the end of its five years endurance. 

As for the speed, Solara 50 can travel at 104 kilometres an hour (about 64 MPH).

According to reports, smaller versions of Solara have already flown, and Titan Aerospace is planning to start selling operational systems in less than a year which opens up possibilities like regional internet or a version of Google Maps with real-time images.

Project Description

Solar Energy Installation Complexes will be able to generate enough energy to attend to the energy demands of the urban plan. Aside from generating solar energy, these complexes became an open space for the citizens because they provide large green areas where citizens will be able to take walks, bicycle rides and many other outdoor activities, such us the use of intelligent parking where they will be able to park and charge their vehicles. The two upper levels house the administrative offices of the staff that administrates this complex. The staff has vertical access that is distributed within four intelligent elevators. This system of entry is only allowed for administrative personnel. The most important aspect of the complex is its Cover, which generates the greatest amount of solar energy through the thousands of solar panels used as coatings.
The green areas also contribute to the environment for the reason that it has a series of sculptural structures that are receptors of rainwater and also enable the growth of moss on their outside walls. Some of these structures are only energy generators since they are constructed with special glass that allows the cultivation of algae which are an interesting source of energy
 
Project Details

Solar Energy Installation Complex:  Orlando, FL, United States 
Shared by:  lieg 
Client/Owner: City of Orlando, Florida 
Firm Name: Arquitectura Yngrid Echalar Gutierrez 
Project Team: Yngrid Echalar Gutierrez
Project Type: Government,  Other 
Project Status: Concept Proposal 
Year Complete: 2013 

SpiderFab creates carbon fibre truss framework.

By Joao Peixe | Mon, 02 December 2013 22:

Space-based solar power (SBSP) offers many advantages over Earth-based solar, yet the main obstacle in its development is the cost of sending up the solar panels into orbit. 3D printing may well be able to slash these installation costs and therefore make SBSP a much more viable energy source.
3D printing has been developed at a fast pace in recent years as scientists find more ways to use the technology. It is thought that by sending up special 3D printers into space to manufacturer the solar panels in orbit, the installation costs can be drastically reduced, compared to sending up pre-made solar panels.
Rob Hoyt, the CEO and Chief Scientists at Tethers Unlimited Inc. (TUI), explained to GreenTechSolar that “the overall vision is to create a ‘satellite chrysalis’ with compact, durable ‘software DNA’ assembly instructions, and the ability to fabricate space system components in-orbit instead of building them on the ground.”


Related article: New Efficient Materials Promise a Photovoltaic Revolution
TUI’s product, the SpiderFab 3D robotic printer, has already been awarded to sets of funding from NASA via its Innovative Advanced Concepts program. The initial $100,000 allowed them to prove the technical feasibility and value of the technology to such a degree that they were awarded another $500,000 to continue developing the idea. Hoyt said that “our analysis shows we can get orders of magnitude improvement in the stowed volume and mass of space systems.” He believes that sending compact materials into space instead of bulky solar panels “could reduce stowed volume tenfold and mass by 50 percent to 80 percent.


Related articles: Ceramic Converter Tackles Solar Cell Problem
http://media.smh.com.au/technology/tech-talk/scientists-print-flexible-solar-panels-4277134.html

3-D printing and robotic construction of components in-orbit would allow a smaller, less expensive launch rocket that will “improve performance per cost by orders of magnitude.” TUI has already completed a design analysis for a SpiderFab that would be able to manufacture a 300kW solar installation in space, and confirmed that such a process would indeed reduce stowed volume by 50% and total mass by 80%. Once the SpiderFab is sent up into orbit, the ‘Trusselator’ would 3D print a carbon fibre truss structure, and then robotically assemble it into a high-performance framework to provide the support system for the solar panels. Another unit would then fix a membrane onto this framework structure, made out of either thin-film PV materials, or a reflective surface, depending on whether the structure would use PV or concentrating solar technologies.
Hoyt added that “given the way NASA is funded, SpiderFab is three years to five years out. We will have to develop our process incrementally and demonstrate our reliability.”

By. Joao Peixe of Oilprice.com

 
librii, a new library model for africa developed by gensler architect david dewane, operates under the principal that information is the crux of social mobility and thereby has managed to incorporate a low-cost solution to internet access in africa by way of the built form. of the one billion people that live on the continent, less that 3% have access to the web; an issue that stems from fractured infrastructure and widespread poverty. designed for the developing world, librii is a community-based and revenue-generating model that engages users as content creators and spans various programs. librii engages sustainable practice as both a business model and tectonically, with the usage of a digitally fitted shipping container as the building envelope of the librii's e-hub.

Safmarine Container Sports Center by tsai design studio, Piketberg, South Africa
 all images courtesy of tsai design studio




'Safmarine Container Sports Center' is a recycled shipping container transformed into a communal athletic space in piketberg, 
120 kilometers from Cape Town South Africa by South African firm tsai design studio. commissioned by shipping company Safmarine, 
this prototype has been constructed to address green principles since the freight boxes are intended for ten years of market use and are 
constructed to last for a total of twenty. the 12-meter long structure supports social functions including a projecting roof to shade
the bleacher seating and then wraps into a vertical surface for movie screenings and advertisements. doubling as a billboard,
the facade can become a source of income for the center.

mounted on steel framing, a gap between the independent canopy protects from harsh daylight and allows cross-ventilation to eliminate 
any heat buildup. the interior contains two changing rooms and storage for equipment. easily positioned near the field, the shelter acts
as a coach's office.


Does our government subsidizing and tariffs protection of solar, wind, ethanol industries best serve the market and what effect does this have on global economic conditions? As founder and investor in an alternative energy consulting business, www.greenleafenergygroup.com, for the past five years I have witnessed that many solar panel companies have benefited from increased sales of equipment and services as a result of federal incentives to increase investment activity in solar and wind. The primary incentives were tax credits that were built into the Energy Act of 2005 and renewed annually by Congress since then. However, in the past 3 years many of these subsidized industries (primarily solar) have failed at the expense of tax payers.  The prices of solar photovoltaic modules have fallen in the United States by more than 50 percent.  China now out produces the US due to their under valued 
currency, “dumping” and their government subsidies. It has virtually destroyed the market for our domestic producers and has affected global markets.
I believe the U.S. energy market, if left to its own devices, without distortions or subsidies, will continue to provide plentiful and affordable power.  In my opinion the best strategy for government to pursue at this time:

1. Federal government should set a floor on the price of natural gas because the low prices of gas are making their existing and planned projects uneconomical and uncompetitive.

2. Eliminate all subsidies and protection of energy producers including oil, coal, gas, nuclear, ethanol and wind and solar. It would be better for national security, the balance of payments, the budget deficit, and in the long run for the environment.  The elimination of existing subsidies would create a level playing field and benefit green energy sources. It would enable them to adapt to long-term energy supply strategies pursued by public utilities and also respond better to price signals and consumer demands. It’s likely that short-term fluctuations in oil prices will continue in the future due to middle east conflicts.  Petroleum industry studies show that there will be substantial demand-supply imbalances during this coming decade, particularly as China and India continue to add tens of millions of new cars each year. But, these countries are not energy producers and will need to rely on imports of oil for vehicles.  This will drive up cost of oil expand demand for our domestic natural shale gas, nuclear and green production development in the interim.  If the US exploits our abundant  natural gas resources, protects the price and eliminates subsidies to all energy sources  then will solar and wind become more competitive.  by Darrell James, AIA

COMMENTS ARE WELCOME