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Energy News- DOE Offers $100 Million for Innovative Energy Research Projects March 3, 2010DOE is offering $100 million in Recovery Act funding for the third round of projects under the Advanced Research Projects Agency - Energy. The latest funding round focuses on grid storage, power converters, and cooling systems for buildings. […]
- World's Largest Solar-Powered Boat to Circumnavigate the Globe March 3, 2010PlanetSolar, the world's largest solar-powered boat, was unveiled recently in Germany. The 102-foot catamaran is scheduled to soon begin testing ahead of its planned round-the-globe journey, which starts in early 2011. Planned U.S. stops include New York City and San Francisco, California. […]
- Detroit Automakers Invest in Energy-Efficient Engines March 3, 2010The three major Detroit-based automakers are all investing in a variety of energy-efficient engine technologies. Ford Motor Company, General Motors Corporation, and Chrysler have all announced plans to build more efficient cars by retooling factories and adopting new powertrain designs. […]
- DOE Offers $100 Million for Innovative Energy Research Projects March 3, 2010
- Renewable Energy
- Light Inspires Energy Efficient Building DesignThe use of daylighting drives the size of the NREL's new super energy efficient Research Support Facility as well as the features of its windows. […]
- Making Wind Turbines Builds Career InterestGood-paying jobs in renewable energy are important to the nation's future and don't all require a college degree, high school students learn. […]
- Balancing Renewables and Natural ResourcesNREL biologists test revegetation and wildlife protection strategies at new solar power array at the National Wind Technology Center. […]
- Light Inspires Energy Efficient Building Design
- Energy And The Environment
- EPA Administrator Jackson to Address the National Press Club / Jackson to discuss EPA’s accomplishments and proposals for 2010 March 1, 2010WASHINGTON – On Monday, March 8, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lisa P. Jackson will speak at the National Press Club […]
- One Year Later, EPA-Funded Recovery Act Projects Yielding Cleaner Air, Water and Land Across New York State; EPA Assistant Administrator for Water Visits Renewable Energy Installations in Syracuse February 17, 2010(New York, N.Y.) One year ago today, President Obama signed the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, and over the last year, projects funded by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) have yielded cleaner air, water and land, and new jobs across the country […]
- As Anniversary of Recovery Act Nears, EPA-Funded Projects Yielding Cleaner Air, Water and Land Across New York State; EPA Regional Administrator, DEC Commissioner Visit Cleanup Project in Albany February 12, 2010(New York, N.Y.) As the one-year anniversary of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act nears, projects funded by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) are yielding cleaner air, water and land, and new green jobs across the country […]
- EPA Administrator Jackson to Address the National Press Club / Jackson to discuss EPA’s accomplishments and proposals for 2010 March 1, 2010
- Energy Research
- Probing life???s extremes in Yellowstone March 5, 2010Idaho National Laboratory biologist Frank Roberto squats on a gravelly patch of ground in Yellowstone National Park. […]
- Studying cesium to seize soil cleanup March 5, 2010Scientists at DOE's Lawrence Livermore Lab have developed soil clean-up methods at Bikini Atoll and other islands to the east where nuclear tests were conducted in the early 1950s. […]
- PPPL scientists awarded 111 million hours of supercomputing time March 5, 2010Four research projects involving six scientists at DOE's Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory (PPPL) have been awarded a total of 111 million processor hours on supercomputers at DOE's Argonne National Laboratory and Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL). […]
- Probing life???s extremes in Yellowstone March 5, 2010
- Agriculture
- Cows Like Leaves Their Tongues Can Wrap Around EasilyCattle grazing on rangeland with a taller canopy of plants with more and larger leaves take larger bites and meet their dietary needs with lower calorie expenditure, according to new research from ARS. Click the image for more information about it. Farming with grass may be just right for 21st century Grazing cattle year-round pays off Finding better y […]
- Tough New Spuds Take on Double TroubleFive new potato breeding lines now being tested by ARS scientists and collaborators could provide the basis for varieties that can handle powdery scab and black dot diseases. Photo courtesy of Microsoft Clipart ARS scientists help sequence genome of potato late blight pathogen Pest-resistant potato on tap Potatoes chock full of phytochemicals Tough New […]
- Kids Lose Pounds, Gain Fitness, in Houston StudyRead the magazine story to find out more. Children taking an intensive, instructor-led weight control course had significantly greater weight loss than did children in a self-taught program, according to preliminary results from ARS-funded studies. Click the image for more information about it. Research on childhood obesity may help fight epidemic USDA Ch […]
- Cows Like Leaves Their Tongues Can Wrap Around Easily
- Food, Drugs And Health
- FDA Investigation Reveals Salmonella Tennessee at Plant that Makes Flavor Enhancers for Food Processors and Other DistributorsThe U.S. Food and Drug Administration is actively investigating positive findings of Salmonella Tennessee in hydrolyzed vegetable protein (HVP) manufactured by Basic Food Flavors Inc. in Las Vegas, Nev. HVP is a flavor enhancer used in a wide variety of processed food products such as soups, sauces, chilis, stews, hot dogs, gravies, seasoned snack foods, dip […]
- FDA Approves Name Change for Heartburn Drug KapidexThe U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved a name change for the heartburn drug Kapidex Change to Dexilant is part of FDA effort to prevent medication errors(dexlansoprazole) to avoid confusion with two other medications – Casodex and Kadian. Effective in late April 2010, Takeda Pharmaceuticals North America Inc. will market Kapidex under the new n […]
- La FDA advierte a los consumidores en Puerto Rico acerca de la presencia de una bacteria dañina en desinfectantes para manosLa Administración de Medicamentos y Alimentos (FDA por sus siglas en inglés) está advirtiendo a los consumidores en Puerto Rico acerca de un alto contenido de la bacteria Burkholderia cepacia en los desinfectantes para manos: "Bee-Shield Hand Sanitizer” con Aloe Vera ( botellas de 10 onzas o de un galón) y “MD Quality Hand Sanitizer” con Aloe […]
- FDA Warns Consumers in Puerto Rico of Harmful Bacteria in Hand SanitizersThe U.S. Food and Drug Administration is warning consumers in Puerto Rico that two hand sanitizers – "Bee-Shield Hand Sanitizer” with Aloe Vera (10 fl. oz. or 1 gallon bottles) and “MD Quality Hand Sanitizer” with Aloe Vera (10 fl oz. bottles) – contain high levels of a bacteria, Burkholderia cepacia, that can cause serious infections in human […]
- FDA, FSIS, CDC Collaborate on Methods to Measure Success of Food Safety ProgramsThe U.S. Food and Drug Administration, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) will host a joint public workshop on how best to measure progress in reducing foodborne illnesses on March 30, in Washington, D.C. […]
- FDA Investigation Reveals Salmonella Tennessee at Plant that Makes Flavor Enhancers for Food Processors and Other Distributors
750-Megawatt Solar Two Project
The California Energy Commission (CEC) and the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) released on February 12 a joint staff assessment and draft environmental impact statement (EIS) for the Solar Two Project, a 750 megawatt (MW) project to be located in Imperial County, about 100 miles east of San Diego. Stirling Energy Systems (SES) and Tessera Solar propose to build 42,000 dish/Stirling systems, called SunCatchers, on 10 square miles of land in the desert. Dish/Stirling systems employ a sophisticated tracking system to point a dish-shaped array of mirrors at the sun, concentrating the sun’s heat on a Stirling heat engine, which converts the heat into electricity. SES and Tessera Solar have some commercial experience, as they launched the 1.5-megawatt Maricopa Solar power plant in Peoria, Arizona, in late January. The facility features 60 SunCatchers. SunCatcher technology was developed in the United States through a public-private partnership with DOE. See the press release from Tessera Solar (PDF 303 KB). Download Adobe Reader.
For the proposed Solar Two facility, the draft EIS found no significant environmental impacts, other than a significant and unavoidable visual impact. However, SES will have to undertake special measures to protect the desert species, including the flat-tailed horned lizard, which has been proposed for listing as a threatened species. The CEC is accepting comments on the EIS until May 13, while the BLM will accept comments until 90 days after the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency publishes its notice in the Federal Register. The BLM published its notice on February 22. See the CEC press release, pages ES-15 through ES-18 (PDF pages 21-24) of the draft EIS (PDF 7 MB), and the BLM notice in the Federal Register (PDF 49 KB).
SunCatchers are a form of concentrating solar power (CSP) technology, which generally involves concentrating the sun’s heat with some form of mirror, and then converting that heat into electricity. While dish/Stirling systems have been slow to take hold, parabolic trough systems, which use trough-shaped mirrors, have been operating in California since the 1980s, and many more are planned for the state. For example, NextEra Energy Resources, a subsidiary of the FPL Group, signed a contract in October 2009 to sell 250 MW of solar thermal power from its proposed Genesis Solar Energy Project in Riverside County to Pacific Gas and Electric Company. The proposed Genesis site, featuring more than 500,000 parabolic troughs, is one of 14 solar projects identified by the BLM for fast-track consideration to receive permits by the end of 2010. The company intends to break ground in late 2010, with operations beginning about 30 months later. See the press releases from the FPL Group and the BLM.
NextEra Energy Resources has also applied to the California Energy Commission (CEC) for permits to build its proposed 250-MW Beacon Solar Project, another parabolic trough facility, to be located in eastern Kern County. In November 2009, the CEC started its year-long review of three other proposed parabolic trough plants: the 484-MW Palen project near Palen Dry Lake in Riverside County; the 968-MW Blythe project near Blythe in Riverside County; and the 250 MW Ridgecrest project in the high northern Mojave Desert in northeastern Kern County. When such projects involve the use of federal lands, the CEC works closely with the BLM on their permit reviews. See the CEC press release and the CEC’s full list of proposed power projects.
Sixty SunCatcher Solar Dish / Stirling Systems