BLVCKDOT Solar

Smoke from California wildfires is now visible in Kansas. Photo taken on Aug. 19, 2020 at the Windy Hill Open Space Preserve of San Mateo County shows the dense smoke of wildfires in San Francisco Bay Area, California, the United States. Photo: Xinhua News Agency / Getty Images.

California fires

Hundreds of wildfires ignited in California over the weekend, since then the fires have left a path of devastation in their wake. Courtesy @abc7la #fires #california

Fires are spreading quickly across Northern California.

California’s power grid operator delivered a blistering rebuke Monday to the state’s Public Utilities Commission, blaming the agency for rotating power outages the first since the 2001 energy crisis and warning of bigger blackouts to come. In their first public comments since the blackouts began Friday evening, officials at the California Independent System Operator described a perfect storm of conditions that caused demand to exceed available supply: scorching temperatures in California and across the western United States, diminished output from renewable sources and fossil-fueled power plants affected by the weather, and in some cases plants going offline unexpectedly when electricity was needed most.

With high heat and peak electricity demand expected to continue throughout the week, California may well be forced to rely on rolling blackouts for the immediate future, CAISO President Stephen Berberich said in a Monday meeting. Gov. Gavin Newsom declared a state of emergency on Monday, allowing backup generators, including those deployed to power customers facing wildfire prevention blackouts, to be used to combat outages. #BLVCKDOTsolar #gosolar #solar #renewableenergy #electricity #climatechange #power #weather #energy #environment

Solar as a savior? Solar agriculture (AKA agrophotovoltaics and dual-use farming) allows farmers to install solar panels that offer a way to make their energy use more efficient, and directly enhance their farming capabilities. For farmers with small tracts of land especiallylike is commonly seen in Francesolar agriculture provides a way to offset energy bills, reduce their use of fossil fuels, and breathe new life into existing operations.

BloombergNEF has predicted that at least 50,000 California homes will install storage systems this year. That figure would quadruple the total from 2019. The forecast came on the heels of a year of record-breaking growth for home solar storage in the U.S, due to the increased need for blackout protection and utility rate hedging. While the COVID-19 pandemic has likely delayed home storage installations statewide, the demand forces are still there. Bloomberg cited California...’s catastrophic power shutdowns in 2019 and the adoption of time of use utilities pricing as key motivators for the increased demand. As the forecast pointed out, more than a million California homes already had solar panels when the year began. That number is projected to grow dramatically going forward: As of January 1, the state requires new home construction to be equipped with solar. Regardless of the COVID-19 situation, home construction will continue and the solar mandate will translate to about 100,000 new solar installations each year.

#5 Photovoltaic solar noise barriers (PVNB) Highway traffic noise in the US has always been a concern for everyone. To overcome this issue, 48 states have built nearly 3,000 miles of traffic noise barriers. Noise barriers were always constructed with the single aim of designing cost-effective barriers that efficiently perform noise abatement functions. However, the goal of the US Department of Energy has now evolved to merge noise abatement with sustainable power generation. Given the widespread use of noise barriers in the US, the potential of producing solar energy from these is likely to be around 400 gigawatt hours (GWh) annually. This is approximately equal to the annual electricity usage of 37,000 homes.

#4 Solar fabric Solar radiation is available all over the planet, so why not generate your own energy, wherever required? Imagine that besides producing solar power at a fixed location, you could also do it while on the move through your own clothing. Researchers are developing solar fabrics with a vision of including solar power in each fiber. These solar filaments can be embedded into your t-shirts, winter coats, or any other clothing to help you keep warmer, power your pho...ne, and provide energy for other needs while you’re on the go. There are several areas where researchers have attempted to combine solar fabric and solar panels, which include: Building facades that provide both shade and power Awnings that lighten up streetlights, and Curtains that eliminate power consumption from the grid Solar fabricated household clothing can help you save on solar panel mounting and installation costs. Solar cell manufacturing companies are also working specifically on the US Army project with a vision to create solar-powered robotic tents. With solar costs continuously falling, it’s no more unlikely to imagine a future where almost everything will be powered by free solar, the sun.

#3 Solar skins Solar skins are a novel PV technology to integrate custom designs into solar panel systems. The solar skin technology is similar to the ad wraps displayed on bus windows. Sistine, the manufacturer of solar skins, is testing the technology at the United States National Renewable Energy Laboratory to increase its efficiency. Solar thin-film skins maintain high efficiency due to its selective light filtration advancements. The sunlight falling on solar skins is fi...ltered to reach the solar cells beneath it. As a result, it simultaneously displays the custom image and provides solar energy. These imprinted custom images, embedded into solar panels, can exactly match your grassy lawns or rooftops of your homes. Solar skin panels can also be beneficial for businesses or government offices. They can be customized to display business logos, business advertisements, a country’s flag, and so on. Moreover, solar skins utilize rail-less racking systems, sit lower, have a sleek finish, and hide metal components, giving the panels a super cool look. If panel aesthetics stops you from going solar, Sistine’s SolarSkins might be the solution you are looking for.

#2 BIPV solar technology Building-integrated photovoltaics, as the name suggests, seamlessly blend into building architecture in the form of roofs, canopies, curtain walls, facades, and skylight systems. Unlike traditional solar PV panels, BIPV can be aesthetically appealing rather than a compromise to a building’s design. Of course, aesthetics alone is not enough for solar buyers; economics matters too. The good news is that the BIPV solar panel systems enable homeowners to ...save on building materials and electric power costs. By substituting BIPV for standard building materials, you can cut down on the additional cost of solar panel mounting systems. BIPV technology, when used on the building's facades, atrium, terrace floor, and canopies, provides the following benefits: Increased energy efficiency High thermal and sound insulation Clean and free power output from the sun Decreased O&M costs Zero carbon footprint The photovoltaic PV glasses installed as building materials act as an energy-generating device, allowing natural light inside homes and offices, just as conventional architectural glasses.

#1 Floating solar farms (aka ‘floatovoltaics’) Silicon panels are becoming cheaper and more efficient day-by-day. According to experts, if photovoltaic panels are placed on reservoirs and other water bodies, they offer even greater efficiency as well as a plethora of other benefits. Floatovoltaics are photovoltaic solar power systems created for floating on reservoirs, dams, and other water bodies. Floating solar farms can generate huge amounts of electricity without using valuable land or real estate. The installation costs of floating photovoltaic panels are less than land-based photovoltaic panels. Also, research showed that the power production of floating solar panels is greater by up to 10% due to the cooling effect of water.