08/13/08 - New Way To Capture The Sun’s Energy
Actually, it works like this. The dish follows the sun throughout the day like a sunflower. Its mirrors concentrate the sunlight. That beam of light heats helium contained in a small engine. And that drives a piston. Presto! Energy! These are prototypes. But Brehm says Infinia’s dishes will be easier to make and more efficient than solar panels. And the invention has gotten the attention of venture capitalists. Senator Patty Murray: "Either we develop it here or we watch Germany or China or Japan develop it and create the jobs there. So it’s very important that the federal government partner with companies like this to make sure we are on the cutting edge." So far the only solar customers Infinia has are in Spain. The company is preparing to build 10 solar farms there in the next year. - Source
08/13/08 - Promethean Power Building Solar-Powered Fridge
Promethean Power Systems is working on a solar-powered refrigerator for use in rural areas where electricity is scarce or unreliable, so perishables like dairy and medicines can be safely stored. The invention sounds pretty neat – solar panels on the roof of the refrigeration shed will gather the energy needed to convert electricity into cold air via thermoelectric modules. Should the project be a success, and commercialization possible, this could be a huge relief for rural areas. One may be wondering how on earth a poor area could get an expensive machine such as this. Promethean Power is eyeballing businesses like food distributors and processors in India that want a better method than diesel generators to keep their products cooled. This will enable them to further save money by reducing the transportation costs involved in collecting products from farmers several times a day – they can make the trips just once. - Source
08/13/08 - Pioneering SRAM Technology
The SRAM is an emerging core technology for an entirely new generation of engine-driven pumps, compressors, generators, and any other device for which current power systems deploy multiple components (as in a crankshaft engine and a swash plate hydraulic pump) to transfer power. "SED's SRAM technology can successfully replace the crankshaft or swash plate in engines, pumps, motors, and compressors with a mechanism that converts linear to rotary, rotary to linear or linear to linear (replacing a combination of a crankshaft engine and swash plate pump)," explains Frost & Sullivan Energy & Power Principal Consultant Sara Bradford. "In addition, the SRAM's variable displacement hydraulic pumps technology scales to sizes not currently available by large crankshaft pumps, enabling new wind, wave and hydro-power applications." Sanderson Engine The SRAM almost completely eliminates friction, offering higher efficiency over a broad speed range (an energy savings result), as compared to existing technologies. It allows the piston stroke to be varied from maximum to zero, and this can easily be controlled on the run. As a result, the compression ratio can be varied as needed by a combustion engine or the flow to be varied in a pump or motor. Another unique feature is that the mechanism provides for a near-perfect balance, enabling very low vibration and noise, which is essential for many applications that are used indoors or in close proximity to consumers. A truly disruptive advantage is that the pistons can be double-ended, allowing one side to function as a combustion cylinder, while the other cylinder in line can be a hydraulic pump. The result is a very high transfer of power efficiency. The opposing cylinder can also be configured as a supercharger for the engine, providing higher power to weight and efficiency. For instance, SED's SRAM technology can be used to improve efficiency and create less costly wind turbines by relocating the generator from the top of the turbine to its base, either at ground/sea level or below. It can also replace the existing complex multi-stage gearboxes with a simple low reduction gearbox to provide reliability, low cost and high power density aspects to wind energy operations. SED's technology can be utilized in hydraulic hybrid power train designs to eliminate the need for expensive electric generators/motors for electric hybrid vehicles. SRAM technology used with hydraulic hybrid power train designs can dramatically increase the fuel efficiency of many types of material handling, farm, lawn/garden, and other equipment. In short, with an integral supercharger and hydraulic pump, SRAM engines can more than double the horsepower in the same space as compared to the combination of a crankshaft engine, supercharger and hydraulic pump. - Source
