Green Options » generators

Magenn Wind Power; Turbine In The Sky

Christopher DeMorro — Tue, 18 Aug 2009 20:12:42 +0000

Wind power is a great, effective way to make energy, but only when the wind blows. Or if you can find the open space to plant large wind farms that tear apart birds, bats, and low-flying hot air balloons. There are also many people who would hate to live in the shadow of one of these wind farms. But what if the turbines were 1,000 feet in the air?

This is the idea behind a conceptual wind turbine in the sky built by Magenn Power Inc. Called the MARS (Magenn Air Rotor System), this system utilizes an inflatible rotor that floats high above the air without requiring a tower, just a tether.

Green Technology at Your Community College

Fred Etcheverry — Tue, 17 Mar 2009 03:17:28 +0000

Community Colleges teach many skills needed for green tech. Some like Skyline are bundling these courses into a certificate program. Students in these programs learn by doing. Obama’s stimulus package will encourage more campuses to create more interesting and versatile green technology programs. Your enthusiasm for these programs will make a difference.

Skyline Community College in Marin, California is offering a course in solar voltaic installations. Students earn certificates while working in the field encountering real problems. They master skills and concepts in both electrical and construction technology.

The Los Angeles Community College District has created a sustainable energy curriculum, which integrates construction and electrical technology with chemistry, engineering and physics. The goal is to remove their nine campuses from the grid.

The LACCs will teach students to install solar panels that will produce 1-megawatt at each of its campuses. This is sufficient power for the daytime load and enough to produce hydrogen gas by electrolyses for full cells to power the night load.

New Equipment Provides Heat AND Electricity

Dawn Killough — Sun, 30 Nov 2008 23:03:24 +0000

American Honda Motor Company presented its new Micro-sized Combined Heat and Power (MCHP) Deluxe co-generation unit at Greenbuild 2008 in Boston, Massachusets. The unit has been around for a while (in Japan since 2003, and here in the US since 2007). The system provides home heating or water heating along with power generation in one package. It also includes a generator to provide power during an outage.

When installed in combination with a furnace system such as ECR International’s “freewatt,” homeowners can expect to save between $500 and $1,000 per year on their power bills. This is achieved through the power-generating capabilities of the MCHP, plus the fact that the “freewatt” system provides additional electricity as a by-product of its heating process.