The U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) has created an energy analysis tool to help individuals and educators experiment with future energy use scenarios. The interactive Buildings, Industry, Transportation, Electricity, and Transportation Scenarios (BITES) allows users to explore how changes in energy demand and supply can impact carbon dioxide emissions and […]
Applications
Device Tosses Out Unusable PV Wafers
Silicon wafers destined to become photovoltaic (PV) cells can take a bruising through assembly lines, as they are oxidized, annealed, purified, diffused, etched, and layered to reach their destinies as efficient converters of the sun’s rays into useful electricity. All those refinements are too much for 5% to 10% of the costly wafers. They have […]
Peugeot Workers Shut Down Plant Slated to be Sold
Hundreds of Peugeot Citroen workers occupied a French factory scheduled to be sold off, largely shutting down production on Wednesday in a protest against planned layoffs at the struggling automaker, union and company officials said. The Aulnay plant near Paris has been at the center of a battle over the future of France’s largest automaker. […]
Georgia Tech Partners to Improve Prosthetic Socket for Veteran Amputees
Researchers at the Georgia Institute of Technology are major players in a team that will develop an advanced prosthetic socket system that could offer better comfort, functionality and mobility for military-veteran amputees. Georgia Tech is part of a $4.4 million contract awarded to Florida State University by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. Ben Wang and Chuck […]
Official: Rare-Earth Elements in Jamaica’s Red Mud
Jamaica may be able to benefit from newly found deposits of rare-earth elements that are key ingredients for smartphones, computers and numerous other high-tech goods, the Caribbean island’s top mining official said Tuesday. Science, Technology, Energy & Mining Minister Philip Paulwell said Japanese researchers believe they have found “high concentrations of rare-earth elements” in the […]
Hot Wheels Edition Camaro Has Toy-Themed Touches
The Hot Wheels edition of the Chevrolet Camaro at the Detroit auto show offers a little something for car lovers, kids and kids at heart. General Motors Co. last year announced it would sell the vehicle with Hot Wheels logos and other toy-inspired touches such as red-lined wheels. At the North American International Auto Show, […]
Comcast pumps $150M into Arris
In a stock deal with one of its main suppliers, Comcast has agreed to pay $150 million for a stake in Arris. Comcast will acquire 10.6 million shares in Arris, and the deal will be completed in concert with Arris’ $2.35 billion purchase of Google’s Motorola Home division that was announced last month. Once the […]
Shaw enters into $700M deal with Rogers that includes AWS, Mountain Cable
Shaw Communications and Rogers Communications have signed a series of agreements that include the sale of Hamilton-based Mountain Cablevision and Shaw’s AWS wireless spectrum to Rogers. The agreements total $700 million and also include Shaw gaining Rogers’ one-third stake in TVtropolis, as well as negotiations with Rogers to provide services in Shaw’s Western Canada footprint. […]
Concentrated Solar Power with Thermal Energy Storage Can Help Utilities’ Bottom Line
The storage capacity of concentrating solar power (CSP) can add significant value to a utility company’s optimal mix of energy sources, a new report by the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) suggests. The report found that CSP with a six-hour storage capacity can lower peak net loads when the sun isn’t […]
2013 Kia Optima Named ‘International Car Of The Year’
DETROIT, Jan. 15, 2013 /PRNewswire/ — Kia Motors America (KMA) is proud to announce that Road & Travel Magazine has named the 2013 Kia Optima as the International Car of the Year at the 2013 North American International Auto Show (NAIAS) in Detroit. Completely redesigned for the 2011 model year, the Optima’s stunning design combined with […]