Video of the Day: Harvesting The Sun in Israel

For families of this Israeli kibbutz -- weaning themselves off the national power grid and transitioning to renewable power is an important task.

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Geothermal Power Continues Strong Growth, New Industry Report Shows

A new report by the Geothermal Energy Association (GEA) shows strong growth in new geothermal power projects continuing into 2009. "There has been a 25 percent increase in new geothermal projects from August of 2008, when the last GEA report was released. There is also an increase in overall production potential by 35 percent," says Kara Slack, the report's author.

The report also notes that the number of states producing geothermal power has increased from seven to eight with the addition of Wyoming. "Geothermal power projects continue to move forward, with new projects being added at an increasing rate," says Karl Gawell, executive director of GEA, a Washington trade group representing the geothermal energy industry.

The report identifies a total of 126 projects under development with the potential to put 5,500 MW of new geothermal power on line, equivalent to 15,000 MW to 20,000 MW from wind turbines or enough power for 5.5 million California homes, according to GEA. New geothermal power projects were identified in Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Hawaii, Idaho, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah, and Washington.

"It is great to see that between August 2008 and March 2009, there was a jump of about 1,500 MW in new geothermal projects," says Slack. "Interest in geothermal development continues to grow. We are seeing new entrants to the industry, in part because of new leasing by BLM and several new projects by the U.S. Navy."

According to the GEA report, Nevada, with 58 confirmed projects, has the most production under development. California is second with 27 projects, followed by Idaho, Oregon, Utah, and Alaska, respectively.

"The report shows a substantial movement of projects into the later stages of development, the permitting and construction phases," Gawell says. "If federal and state governments give them the support and priority they need, most of these projects could be on line in a few years." GEA estimates that bringing these projects on line could help economic recovery, spurring as many as 100,000 new jobs.

Copies of U.S. Geothermal Power Production and Development Update, March 2009 are available for download free.

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Nanogenerators Produce Electricity From Running Rodents, Tapping Fingers

Could hamsters help solve the world's energy crisis? Probably not, but a hamster wearing a power-generating jacket is doing its own small part to provide a new and renewable source of electricity.

And using the same nanotechnology, Georgia Institute of Technology researchers have also generated electrical current from a tapping finger -– moving the users of BlackBerry devices, cell phones and other handhelds one step closer to powering them with their own typing.

"Using nanotechnology, we have demonstrated ways to convert even irregular biomechanical energy into electricity," says Zhong Lin Wang, a Regent's professor in the Georgia Tech School of Materials Science and Engineering. "This technology can convert any mechanical disturbance into electrical energy."

The demonstrations of harnessing biomechanical energy to produce electricity were reported Feb. 11 in the online version of the American Chemical Society journal Nano Letters. The research was supported by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), the U.S. Department of Energy, the U.S. Air Force, and the Emory-Georgia Tech Center for Cancer Nanotechnology Excellence.

The study demonstrates that nanogenerators – which Wang's team has been developing since 2005 – can be driven by irregular mechanical motion, such as the vibration of vocal cords, flapping of a flag in the breeze, tapping of fingers or hamsters running on exercise wheels. Scavenging such low-frequency energy from irregular motion is significant because much biomechanical energy is variable, unlike the regular mechanical motion used to generate most large-scale electricity today.

The nanogenerator power is produced by the piezoelectric effect, a phenomenon in which certain materials – such as zinc oxide wires – produce electrical charges when they are bent and then relaxed. The wires are between 100 and 800 nanometers in diameter, and between 100 and 500 microns in length.

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Video of the Day: Japan's Green Garbage

Space-starved Tokyo uses green technology to turn garbage into electricity while wooing locals with community-friendly incinerators.

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Video: How Air Conditioners Work

The summer months come and the thermometer pops up and you reach for your nearest air conditioner.

Your AC can also be the bane of your existence each time you open your electric bill and a moment ago you were all cool but now you are hot under the collar for what you have to pay. That's particularly true in states, such as Maryland, which have experienced a sharp rise in electricity prices.

You may or may not stay cool but at least with this video now you can know what's going on, thanks to HowStuffWorks.com.

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Report: Western States Home To Untapped Geothermal Capacity

Fourteen western U.S. states are home to extensive undeveloped geothermal resources, according to a new report.

The states are: Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Texas, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming.

Key conclusions of the 140 page-report are:

* The West's geothermal resources appear to be more extensive than most people believe;
* The unidentified resource base is a significant near-term target of opportunity with up to 150,000 megawatts of electricity;
* Federal and state policies need to be complementary and support a clear path for new project development;
* Federal programs and tax incentives will make a significant difference; and
* Federal efforts should be tailored to support the specific needs in each state

The report, An Assessment of Geothermal Resource Development Needs in the Western United States, written by Dan Fleischmann for the Geothermal EnergyAssociation.


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