Archive for renewable energy
17 February, 2008 at 10:56
Where will you get your electricity in fifty years? According to Daniel Nocera, professor of energy at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, it won’t be from fossil fuels like coal. Nocera is experimenting ways to capture the sun’s energy using artificial photosynthesis, something he said could one day make our homes totally self-sufficient.
He spoke at the Argonne-Northwestern Solar Energy Research Center’s inaugural symposium on Wednesday at Northwestern University, about the challenges scientists in his field will face in the 21st century. After his talk he spoke with me about the future role of solar power. Here’s a link and transcript of the interview.
Listen to the interview More..
4 February, 2008 at 10:56
Despite a push to more than double heating assistance to low-income families, the Senate will likely have to nix plans to pump $5.5 billion into wind, solar and other renewable energy tax breaks to pass its version of an economic stimulus package. This on the heels of the Energy Department’s decision last week to cancel construction of a first-of-its-kind “clean coal” plant in Illinois with ”near zero emissions.”
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21 January, 2008 at 10:56
The American Wind Energy Association announced on Thursday that domestic wind power capacity increased 45 percent last year. According to the group’s release, 5,244 new megawatts of wind power were installed nationwide.
“The U.S. wind power fleet now numbers 16,818 MW and spans 34 states. American wind farms will generate an estimated 48 billion kilowatt-hours (kWh) of wind energy in 2008, just over 1% of U.S. electricity supply, powering the equivalent of over 4.5 million homes.”
With Illinois’ renewable energy pledge in the books, it will be interesting to see how fast wind power expands in the Midwest. According to an earlier report from AWEA, Illinois ranks 16th nationally in wind energy potential. This map indicates wind power productivity potential in Illinois, with pink being the highest.
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