Tasmania consists of the 26th-largest island in the world and its surrounding 334 islands — an island state of Australia with a population around 540,000 people, according to Wikipedia. Friday the Tasmanian government “declared that it has become the first Australian state, and one of just a handful of jurisdictions worldwide, to be powered entirely by renewable electricity,” according to one…
Tag: renewable
EU Plans To Increase Offshore Windfarm Capacity By 250%
The capacity of the EU’s offshore windfarms in the North Sea, the Baltic, the Atlantic, the Mediterranean and the Black Sea will be increased by 250% under a draft plan drawn up by the European commission. The Guardian reports: The total energy generating capacity in Europe’s seas stands at 23 gigawatts (GW), from 5,047 grid-connected wind turbines across 12 countries, including…
Iron Powder Passes First Industrial Test As Renewable, Carbon Dioxide-Free Fuel
An anonymous reader quotes a report from IEEE Spectrum: While setting fire to an iron ingot is probably more trouble than it’s worth, fine iron powder mixed with air is highly combustible. When you burn this mixture, you’re oxidizing the iron. Whereas a carbon fuel oxidizes into CO2, an iron fuel oxidizes into Fe2O3, which is just rust. The nice thing…
Emissions From US Industrial Facilities Fell Nearly 5% In 2019
Greenhouse gas emissions from U.S. power plants, manufacturing sites and other large facilities declined nearly 5% from 2018 to 2019, according to data released Monday. Bloomberg reports: The drop is consistent with a decade-long downward trend in greenhouse gas releases from large stationary sources, partly propelled by the power sector’s ongoing shift away from coal to renewable sources and cleaner-burning natural…
A Biden Victory Positions America For a 180-Degree Turn On Climate Change
“Joe Biden, the projected winner of the U.S. presidency, will move to restore dozens of environmental safeguards President Donald Trump abolished,” reports the Washington Post, “and launch the boldest climate change plan of any president in history.” destinyland shares their report: While some of Biden’s most sweeping programs will encounter stiff resistance from Senate Republicans and conservative attorneys general, the United…
Tesla Project To Install Another Giant Battery In Australia
An anonymous reader quotes a report from Bloomberg: France’s Neoen SA will partner with Tesla Inc. to install one of the world’s biggest lithium-ion batteries in Australia after reaching a grid connection deal with the power market operator. The 300-megawatt Victorian Big Battery will be located in the southeastern city of Geelong and use Tesla’s Megapack technology. It will be double…
World’s First Ocean Hybrid Platform Converts Tidal Waves Into Energy
Qusi Alqarqaz writes via IEEE Spectrum: In August I spoke with Philipp Sinn, founder of Sinn Power, a German green-energy startup founded in 2014. This year he and his colleagues began building and testing the world’s first ocean hybrid platform. The floating platform uses a combination of wave, wind, and solar energy to harness renewable energy on the open seas, Sinn…
In World First, 100% of South Australia’s Power Supplied By Solar Panels
1.76 million people live in the 983,482 square kilometer (379,725 square mile) state of South Australia. This weekend Australia’s national broadcaster made a big announcement: South Australia’s renewable energy boom has achieved a global milestone. The state once known for not having enough power has become the first major jurisdiction in the world to be powered entirely by solar energy. For…
Spinach Gives Fuel Cells a Power Up
Researchers at the Department of Chemistry, American University, used spinach to make a carbon-rich catalyst that can be used to improve the performance of fuel cells and metal-air batteries. IEEE Spectrum reports: The spinach was a used a precursor for high-performance catalysts required for the oxygen reduction reactions (ORRs) in fuel cells. Traditionally, fuel cells have used platinum-based catalysts, but not…
One Solar/Wind Energy Company Is Now More Valuable Than Exxon Mobil
The world’s biggest provider of wind and solar energy is now more valuable than the giant oil company Exxon Mobil, “once the largest public company on Earth,” reports Bloomberg: NextEra ended Wednesday with market value of $145 billion, topping Exxon’s $142 billion… NextEra has emerged as the world’s most valuable utility, largely by betting big on renewables, especially wind. Exxon has…