Monthly Archives: August 2011
Apple and Samsung rumored to be evaluating organic solar powered devices
We all know that Apple is pro-environment, boasting environmentally friendly materials used for the construction of their products, so despite the fact that there are now rumors that Apple and Samsung are looking into building solar powered devices, we can’t say that it’s not too big a stretch of the imagination.
According to Digitimes, it seems that both companies have been “evaluating” solar technologies to power future products, focusing particularly on organic photovoltaic cells, a technology that yields a lower sunlight-to-electricity conversion ratio than large solar panels, but at the same time can be fitted into small gadgets, which we’re guessing won’t require a huge amount of power anyway.
Samsung already has a couple of solar-powered devices, most recently with their Android-powered Replenish smartphone and their upcoming NC215S netbook. Apple on the other hand does not have any solar-powered products yet but have a couple of patents filed away with concerns to solar technology.
No word on when we will start seeing this technology being implemented, it is noteworthy that given the organic nature of photovoltaic cells, the degradation may cause the cells to lose their efficiency over time, which could in turn affect the warranty of the device.
Article excerpted from www.ubergizmo.com
Looks like Samsung is a step ahead of Apple in the solar industry. Anyway, the degradation may well mean that these products would have a shorter life span (as if they are not short enough these days). Definitely the right approach when it comes to being (or going) green. Heads up!
Green Content Partners
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We would like to thank our Green Energy Content Partners. We recommend visiting the following green websites:Donald Danforth Plant Science Center
Maritime Tidal Energy Corporation
Environmental Development and Advancement of Novel Systems
Research and Media Group AnPron
Green Current Events, News, and Technology – (Spanish)
Croatian Center of Renewable Energy Sources
Mines Green Circle (US! =D)
Excerpted from www.greenergynews.com
Light to the Poor, One Liter at a Time
In the slums of Manila, an innovative project is shedding light on the city’s dim and dreary shanties. Plastic bottles jut from the roofs, bringing light to the dark dwellings below. The technology is as simple as it could be. Each bottle contains water and bleach. When placed snugly into a purpose-built hole in the roof, the home-made bulb refracts and spreads sunlight, illuminating the room beneath.
Eco-entrepreneur Illac Diaz is behind the project.
[Illac Diaz, A Liter of Light Project]:
“What happens is, the light goes through the bottle, basically a window on the roof, and then goes inside the water. Unlike a hole which the light will travel in a straight line, the water will refract it to go vertical, horizontal, 360 degrees of 55 watts to 60 watts of clear light, almost 10 months of the year.”
The initiative, known as “A liter of light”, aims to bring sustainable energy practices to poor communities, an idea originally developed by students at Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
Working with low-income communities, local governments and private partners, the project has installed more than 10,000 bottle lights across Manila and the nearby province of Laguna.
For residents, it means less money spent on electricity to power lights during the daytime, and more money on food.
Article excerpted from www.dutiee.com
Mines Green Circle 