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By Liz Enbysk
SGN Managing Editor
Today's itinerary takes us to Arizona, where researchers have developed a mirror technology they hope can make solar competitive. Next stop is Lowell, Massachusetts, a poster child for energy efficiency savings that other cash-strapped cities may find instructive. Click to page 2 for details on a transmission project in Vietnam that's using GE's latest fuseless technology, a metering trial with a twist in the UK and a geothermal conversion in Indiana.
In Arizona, it's mirror, mirror on the sun
On the University of Arizona campus in Tucson, researchers are using $1.5 million
from the Department of Energy to improve a mirror-making technology they've developed with the aim of producing solar electricity at a price competitive with non-renewable energy sources. How? A house-sized frame of crisscrossing steel tubes referred to as the tracker is mounted onto a swiveling post in the concrete bottom of an empty swimming pool. The tracker supports two curved, highly reflective glass mirrors, each measuring 10 feet by 10 feet. The tracker is "on sun," converting the hot Arizona summer sun into electrical power. "We use mirror-making technology we developed at the UA to make highly concentrating solar mirrors," said Roger Angel, Regents' Professor of Astronomy and Optical Sciences and director of the Steward Observatory Mirror Lab. "Our technology holds the promise of getting the price of solar energy down to where it can be used on a large scale without depending on subsidies and be competitive in the electricity market." Read more >>
Cities, take a lesson from Lowell
With news of cities going bankrupt, it may be wise for cash-strapped burgs to take a look at what's going on in Lowell, Massachusetts where an energy efficiency project is
expected to save the city $1.5 million annually over a 20-year contract. Due to on-going budget constraints and increasing operational costs, Lowell was facing needed infrastructure upgrades with limited funding. By partnering with Ameresco in an energy savings performance contract (ESPC), Lowell officials say they were able to replace outdated equipment and aging municipal infrastructure, lower utility costs and partially fund a city energy manager position, all on a budget-neutral basis without any upfront capital investment. In addition, as a result of the energy efficiency measures implemented during the first phase of the project, Lowell is expected to save the equivalent of 6,158 tons of CO2 annually or equal to removing 1,023 cars from the road per year. The city-wide initiative included 47 of Lowell’s municipal buildings and over 23 energy conservation measures, including electrical, mechanical, weatherization, water and operational upgrades, and installation of photovoltaic arrays on several municipal properties. Read more >>
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