Bill Gates' investment firm, Cascade Investment, agreed last month to buy 5.25 million preferred shares in Pacific Ethanol, a producer of the corn-based fuel hailed by environmentalists as an answer to the earth's dwindling supply of petroleum. The financing, in which the preferred shares will be converted into common stock, is expected to close in January and will net the Fresno, California-based company $84 million. In an interview at Reuters' Times Square offices, Koehler said Gates' investment was a sign that ethanol can be a viable alternative to oil at a time of see-sawing gasoline prices and concerns about global warming and climate change. Gates' money will help Pacific Ethanol proceed with its plan to initially build five plants on the West Coast to process Midwestern corn into ethanol, he said.
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Bill Gates Invests $84M on Corn Power
New Methods To Protect Wind Generators During Voltage Dips Developed
To provide a solution to the problems caused to wind turbines by sudden dips in voltage in a part of the electric grid. This was the objective of industrial engineer and member of INGEPER Research Team at the Public University of Navarre, Jesús López Taberna. The fruit of his research is a rotor model which enables anticipating how the wind power unit will behave in these situations. Mr López has patented two techniques of protection, one of which has already been transferred to a manufacturer who will exploit it at international level. This system allows the generator turbine to remain in operation during these voltage dips and thus prevent the wind energy converter from ceasing to function. The title of the PhD is: “The behaviour of wind-powered generators with double-fed asynchronous motor during voltage dips”. Over the past few years, the growth and development of wind energy converters has been slowed by problems that have arisen from the increase in the number of these connected to the electric grid. One of the most important problems is precisely the manner in which the wind generators behave during these voltage dips. A voltage dip is a sudden reduction in potential in the electric grid, followed by a rapid return to its normal value. This, at times, can be caused by lightening or a tree falling on power cables but also due to a large company consuming a lot of energy in one go. This drop in voltage happens in a matter of milliseconds; “we are aware of it because the lights begin to flicker or because they go off and on momentarily – but, for a machine, this can be an eternity”, explained Mr López. In fact, an interruption of half a second in a productive process can cause the whole process to block and it may have to be reinitiated.
U.S. Leads World in Wind Energy
The United States has taken over from previous champion Germany in wind power production. For this USA has to be thankful to nature and human resource that produce technology. Nature has gifted USA with stronger wind than Germany. Randall Swisher, the executive director of the American Wind Energy Association, said that the US wind energy capacity is growing faster than anyplace else. But if we try to view those stats differently, Germany harnesses seven percent of their power from wind and Denmark generates twenty percent of power from wind. Wind energy only constitutes 1.2% of total power consumption in America.
Oilgae - Oil from Algae
| We now have a forum @ Oilgae - see here if the link above does not work, http://www.oilgae.com/forum |
Sections from Oilgae that might be of interest:
- Oilgae Blog – A dynamic news & discussion forum for biodiesel production from algae; contribute and join the discussions! See Blog Directory for list of articles.
- algOS – We are seriously exploring an Open Source movement for biodiesel from production algae; if you are a biodiesel enthusiast, perhaps you’d like to join algOS, the open source movement for oil from algae?
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- Oilgae Energy, Alternative Energy, Renewable Energy Research
Venture Capital Investment in Renewable Energy Soars to $3.4 Billion in 2007
According to newly released data from Greentech Media, Inc.,
venture capital investment in renewable energy reached an
unprecedented level of $3.4 Billion in 2007. Investment in solar power led the VC charge with more than $1.05 Billion invested in more than 70 VC financing rounds. Also winning record amounts of renewable energy funding was investment in battery technology at $433.9 Million and in the energy efficiency/smart grid sector at $419.1 Million. Venture firms continue to invest in biofuels such as cellulosic ethanol and biodiesel, with more than $750 Million directed towards these new feedstocks and technologies.
Ethiopia powers up with solar energy
Germany's Solar Energy Foundation aims to improve living conditions and foster a solar industry in Ethiopia.
The rural village of Rema in Ethiopia could become a cleantech boom-town if the work of Germany's Solar Energy Foundation continues its success in the region.
Since 2006, the foundation has installed 2,000 solar systems in Rema and in nearby Rema ena Dire, the biggest solar power project in East Africa. The project has brought power to 5,500 residents in a country where only one percent of people in rural areas have access to electricity.
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SOLAR ENERGY BENEFITS
Solar energy benefits are limitless making the environmental impact by humans on our planet nearly zero. Solar energy benefits should be examined with regard to you and your family’s quality of life for a number of reasons. I encourage you to note the following list of solar energy benefits:
- lower utility costs to you
- reliable power in an area where there is no dependable utilities available
- dependable power where emergency back-up is needed
- do your part to MAKE A DIFFERENCE in our environmental impact of burning coal or oil
- a practical project for people interested in the technology as a hobby
- creating your own electricity so that you are self-sufficient.
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