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Solar Power Towers

By  in August 29th 2011   No Comment »
Filed Under Solar Energy, Solar Power Tower     Tags:      

solar power towers

Solar Power Tower is a technology for utilizing the solar thermal energy of the sun. The solar energy is one the best alternate sources of energy. In fact it is the renewable source of energy. The only drawback of this solar thermal energy is that it is available only during the day when the sunlight is present and cannot be of any help at night. But this problem has been solved by use of heat capacity which helps to generate energy even when the sun is not up. It is designed to capture the solar thermal power using mirrors. Solar power tower also goes by the name of central tower power plants or heliostat power towers. The name heliostat power tower suits its functioning and is therefore the most appropriate name for it. Heliostat is a device which by the help of mirrors captures the sun’s thermal energy. It is accentuated at a particular angle with the help of distant target towards the sun and this way it receives the sunlight throughout the day and you get your required solar thermal energy. If you are an eco friendly person then you will definitely love this technology. It is purely environment friendly.

Now the solar power tower is sort of a furnace which utilizes sun’s energy, more precisely a solar furnace. It uses a tower on which the heliostat is placed and that is how it receives the solar power and captures it. It makes use of a series of flat mirrors situated at some distance which are focused on the target which is the placed upon the collector tower. It therefore generates for itself concentrated solar energy. This concentrated solar energy is one of the best alternate energies available in the renewable energy section. It is purely harmless and extremely eco friendly and does not cause any kind of pollution at all.

Initially this energy was used to heat water by directing it towards a boiler and then used in turbines. On a small scale it was also used for cooking. Actually it was the heliostats that were used for cooking. This technology is totally based on sunlight and the heliostat device. The different solar power towers have different design criteria based on the type of application they have there. Some require air cooling rather than water cooling, for example in desert areas. In the mirrors of the heliostat it is not necessary that you have to use the expensive curved glass you can even go for the less expensive flat glass. In general the normal areas covered by solar power towers undertake 150 to 320 acres of land.

Some of the major solar power towers of the world are, Sierra Sun Tower installed in United States by the eSolar and having the capacity of 5MW; PS20 Solar Power Tower installed in Spain by Abengoa and having a capacity of 20MW; PS10 Solar Power Tower a predecessor of PS20 Solar Power Tower again installed in Spain by Abengoa with a capacity of 11MW; and lastly an under construction solar tower, the Solar Trees Power Tower installed by Sener in Spain having a capacity of 17 MW.

 

Solar Thermal Energy – Pro and Con

By  in April 25th 2011   No Comment »
Filed Under Solar Energy     Tags: , ,      

One square kilometer of land holds the capacity – depending on the specifities of location – to  generate as much as 100 gigawatt hours (GWh) of electricity per year through solar thermal technology. To make it clear, this amount is enough to run 50,000 residents.

A Picture Trying to show Solar Thermal Energy

One option to produce this energy is the solar power tower, which is a type of solar thermal plant that uses a tower to receive the sunlight, focused  upon it via an array of flat, movable mirrors (ie. heliostats). These focused rays heats the water and the steam produced powers a turbine. As you see, no pollutants are emitted in producing the electricity.

Today liquid sodium is commonly used instead of water to store the energy before using it to run turbines.

  • A major advantage: Solar thermal plants produce electricity whose current and future costs are known.

It is a fixed-cost generation resource know to the consumer in advance and it decreases consumers’ exposure to market fluctuations and the volatile cost of natural gas (which solar thermal typically replaces in the portfolio).

  • A major disadvantage: Solar thermal power plants are huge

It uses a lot of land. With respect to the electricity output versus total size, they land more effectively than coal plants or hydroelectric dams, though. The best locations for solar power plants are on land, such as deserts, for which there might be few other uses; but again, then comes the problem of how to provide the necessary water.

Solar water Heater

By  in April 25th 2011   1 Comment »
Filed Under Do it Your Self, Energy Saving, Solar Energy     Tags: , ,      

Solar water heaters pro and contra

As information gets more and more availale thanks to the internet, more and more people learn about free energy and how to use it.

In this post we will explain you the function of a solar water heater. It is not to hard to buil heaters powered by solar energy yourself if you have the riht manual to hand.The main funktion of a solar water heater is to heat water that you use in your houshold through solarpanels. Basicaly you install a solar panel to outside of your house and connect i to a heating device that also, most of the tie, is installed outside your house.

The big advatage is obviously that, once set up, you never need to pay for heating up your water again. It is a big pleasure to take a shower knowing that the hot water you use is for free

We searched the web a lot for good manuals on how to build a solar water heater and we found a load of information on this topic. Although, themost reliable once where paid ebooks on that topic. We couldn´t find any unsefull information or manuals that where for free. After buying and downloading a lot of guides for free energy, we decided to give oneas reviewed back to you. The main point why we recommend this particular product is :

  • it is easy to understand
  • idiot proof step by step guide
  • 60 day money back guarante

After all research I personaly was able to build a solar water heater that is now beeing used at my summerhouse in orlando. It works perfectly well and i am more then proud of my DIY solar water heater. The best thing is, along with the guide for the water heater I got a full manual on how to build solarpanels in general and also a guide on building windmills.

My next project will start in summer and I will keep you updated with information on my windmill building. The reviews for that I got from windmillpower.net

Stay updated and subscribe to our rss feed !


Review on DIY solar energy

By  in March 23rd 2011   No Comment »
Filed Under Do it Your Self, Energy Saving, Solar Energy     Tags: , , ,      

With the world’s ever-increasing demand of power being more than its supply, it is about time that we take concrete steps to save power. Apart from being conscious about the usage of power and water at home, one can employ pollution-free and cost-effective power solutions at our homes.

Solar power solutions and wind power solutions are the two of the most efficient solutions that can replace the conventional power solutions employed at our homes. These solutions can help you combat power outages, reduce your electricity bills, and also help the environment.

Wind power solutions work best when the following conditions are met:

You have a house or farmhouse spread over a big area. Typically, wind power solutions are employed in areas that spread over an acre.

The average wind speed in your area is around 11 miles per hour

If you stay in a place that has little wind flow, your system will not work. Consult an expert before installing the wind power solution at home.

You need to draw water from external sources. You can install a wind power system even when you do not need to draw water from outside. However, if you need to draw water from outside on a regular basis, a wind power system offers the best solution.

Your house needs a lot of uninterrupted power supply. Combating those power outages is easy with the pollution-free wind power systems. You need no longer worry about a break in your work because of a power uncertainty. A typical wind power system comprises of a tower and five blades to churn out wind energy. The length of the wind tower varies depending on the location of your house. You may need a longer tower if you are in low-wind zone; you can work with a shorter tower if you live by the beach. Using a wind generator, this wind energy can be converted into useful electrical energy to be employed at home for running various electrical appliances. You can even store the power generated for later use, making wind generators more efficient than convention power systems. If you are confused with the wind power jargon, here’s a piece of information for you. The terms, wind mills, wind turbines, and wind generators are used to refer to the same machine. Make power at home with solar and wind energy to eliminate your power bill. Get our complete guide at www.earth4energy.com

How Can You Use Solar Power in Your House?

By  in September 29th 2010   3 Comments »
Filed Under Energy Saving, Solar Energy     Tags: , , , , , , , , ,      

Solar power systems is very multi functional and they can be adopted to the following to ease our lives. In other words, you can make use of your whole house solar panels for all your needs from heating to electrical appliances. Literally you can live off the grid.

Would you like to see some examples?:

Solar panel cookers: For solar cooking you don’t need to burn gas or use electricity. You can do everything that you are used to with your conventional stoves: boiling, baking, roasting.  It is one of the most popular solar energy systems you can use at your house with its many advantages. First of all, the food cooked using such a cooker is very healthy. Moreover, electrical cookers are electricity consuming monsters among all other electrical appliances. So, cooking solely with sun light helps you save power and prevent emissions considerably.

Solar generator: Converting solar energy into electrical energy through the PV cells, a solar generato or solar lighting system as some people call it, enables runing all your electrical appliances and your lighting up your house. Whats more, the solar generator stores electrical energy in cells for later use.

Solar thermal system: Implementing a solar heating system at home helps you maintain a steady temperature at your house. These systems were the first to use solar energy and by now they are already present in many house.

It is not only the house that you can heat by means of solar panel heaters. You can also benefit from them for your hot water needs. Did you know that about 30% of our total energy consumption is used to heat water? It is a big amount! So, it would be wise to use solar power to heat your baths and pools.

Cost of Installing Solar Panels

By  in September 28th 2010   No Comment »
Filed Under Solar Energy     Tags: , , , ,      

 

How To install SOlar Panels

How much your solar system will cost depends on various factors and it is not easy to guess. You can follow the three steps below, to estimate how many panels you need. Once you find that,  you can calculate your average cost.

Step 1 – How much do you use daily?

First of all, look at your electricity bill for the KWH. Dividing that number by 30 you will find your average daily electricity consumption. For example, if you used 600 KWH last month, that makes 20 KWH daily. If your bills change alot in the course of the year, use the average amount.

Step 2 – How many watts of solar panels do you need?

Divide the number you found for your daily consumption, by the number sunny hours per day, again on a yearly average. And than, multiply it by 1.15. For example, if you get 4 hours of sun daily, dividing 20 by 4, you will find 5 KW (or 5,000 watts, as one KW is 1000 watts). Multiply that by 1.15, and you get 5,750 watts.

The number you found is a very close estimate to how many watts of solar panels will meet your electricity needs. So you need 5,750 watts of solar panels.

Step 3 – Estimate the cost of installing solar panels.

Average cost of your solar power system will amount to around $6 per watt if you install the panels yourself, or $8 -9 if hire someone for the work. In addition, you may need to pay for extra services, such as expert inspection.

You can use the online calculator PV WATTS program .


Affordable Options

You may think that this sum is a little bit above your expectations. Even though the costs are decreasing sharply in comparison to previous years, still it can be a big investment to make at once.

But, you can always build affordable solar panels by means of DIY guides. One such guide is Earth4Energy, following which you can build and install your solar panels less than 200 dolars. I’d highly recommend you to visit the webpage and read the testimonials.

Maintanence Costs

Maintanence and repair costs for PV panels are often very low. Most systems have no moving parts and they don’t require much upkeep. One key tip to keep your PV panels longer is to keep their faces clean.

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