http://inhabitat.com/ http://inhabitat.com/ About Inhabitat.com is a weblog devoted to the future of design, tracking the innovations in technology, practices and materials that are pushing architecture and home design towards a smarter and more sustainable future.Inhabitat was started by NYC designer Jill Fehrenbacher as a forum for investigating emerging trends in product, interior, and architectural design. Managing Editor Mike Chino leads the editorial team, while Alyssa Alimurung assists with daily business operations. The rest of the team is made up of the best design editors and writers from all over the world: Yuka Yoneda(New York Editor), Diane Pham (Architecture and Design Editor), Bridgette Meinhold (Architecture Editor), Jasmin Malik Chua (Copy Editor and Fashion Editor atEcouterre) and Julie Seguss (Kids and Wellness Editor).Read more: About | Inhabitat - Sustainable Design Innovation, Eco Architecture, Green Building
http://inhabitat.com/ucla-develop-electricity-generating-transparent-solar-cell-windows/ UCLA Develops Electricity-Generating, Transparent Solar Cell Windowsby Timon Singh, 07/23/12 filed under: News, Renewable Energy, Solar Power A team from UCLA has developed a new transparent solar cell that has the ability to generate electricity while still allowing people to see outside. In short, they've created a solar power-generating window! Described as “a new kind of polymer solar cell (PSC)†that produces energy by absorbing mainly infrared light instead of traditional visible light, the photoactive plastic cell is nearly 70% transparent to the human eye-so you can look through it like a traditional window. In 2010, we reported that UK-based Oxford Photovoltaics had won a £100,000 ($150,000) prize to develop the technology for screen-printed organic solar cells that could be placed onto window panes in order to generate energy. However today, it seems like a team from UCLA has gone one step further and developed a new transparent solar cell that has the ability to generate electricity while still allowing people to see outside. “These results open the potential for visibly transparent polymer solar cells as add-on components of portable electronics, smart windows and building-integrated photovoltaics and in other applications,†said study leader Yang Yang, a UCLA professor of materials science and engineering and also director of the Nano Renewable Energy Center at California NanoSystems Institute (CNSI). “Our new PSCs are made from plastic-like materials and are lightweight and flexible. More importantly, they can be produced in high volume at low cost.†There are also other advantages to polymer solar cells over more traditional solar cell technologies, such as building-integrated photovoltaics and integrated PV chargers for portable electronics. In the past, visibly transparent or semitransparent PSCs have suffered low visible light transparency and/or low device efficiency because suitable polymeric PV materials and efficient transparent conductors were not well deployed in device design and fabrication. However that was something the UCLA team wished to address. By using high-performance, solution-processed, visibly transparent polymer solar cells and incorporating near-infrared light-sensitive polymer and silver nanowire composite films as the top transparent electrode, the UCLA team found that the near-infrared photoactive polymer absorbed more near-infrared light but was less sensitive to visible light. This, in essence, created a perfect balance between solar cell performance and transparency in the visible wavelength region. Windows that could power our homes? That would be amazing and a crucial step for fully sustainable houses. Read more: UCLA Develops Electricity-Generating, Transparent Solar Cell Windows | Inhabitat - Sustainable Design Innovation, Eco Architecture, Green Building
Bird-Friendly Saphonian Wind Turbine Ditches Blades for a More Efficient, Less Expensive Design Read more: Bird-Friendly Saphonian Wind Turbine Ditches Blades for a More Efficient, Less Expensive Design | Inhabitat - Sustainable Design Innovation, Eco Architecture, Green Building Renewable energy technology just got a much needed breath of fresh air. During the TEDGlobal 2012 Conference held in Edinburgh, Scotland the head of the Tunisian company Saphon Energy introduced a radical innovation in wind technology. Saphon has developed a design that allows turbines to function without blades. The turbine, named the “Saphonian†after a Carthaginian wind deity, took its inspiration from sailboats. Without the need for rotating blades, the Saphonian is quieter than traditional models, and can harness the power of the wind without hurting wildlife. Hassine Labaied, the head of Saphon Energy, may have revolutionized the world of renewables when he introduced the “zero blade†Saphonian turbine at the TEDGlobal 2012 Conference this past June. While current technologies only capture 30% of the wind's kinetic energy, the Saphonian can retain up to 80%, according to Anis Aouini, the turbine's inventor. Resembling a large dish, the Saphonian reduces the amount of energy lost through poor aerodynamics and discards unnecessary structural elements such as the blades, hub, and gear box. Its moving pistons can create hydraulic pressure that can be stored in a accumulator or converted directly into electricity. More efficient and less expensive than its bladed counterparts, the turbine costs almost half as much to manufacture. The technology was patented in Tunisia in September of 2010, and received its international patent in March of this year. Currently, Saphon is seeking a partner to produce the Saphonian for the market. They hope to finalize their search by the end of 2012, and estimate that the turbine will reach the market within two years. In Tunisia alone, the Saphonian could potentially produce up to 20% of the country's domestic energy. With that kind of potential, it is exciting to think of how the turbine could inflate the renewable energy market in the United States. Read more: Bird-Friendly Saphonian Wind Turbine Ditches Blades for a More Efficient, Less Expensive Design | Inhabitat - Sustainable Design Innovation, Eco Architecture, Green Building
http://inhabitat.com/livinglight-hanging-garden-oled-pendant-lights-are-powered-by-the-soil-they-contain/ http://inhabitat.com/livinglight-hanging-garden-oled-pendant-lights-are-powered-by-the-soil-they-contain/ LivingLight: Hanging Garden OLED Pendant Lights Are Powered by the Soil They Contain Michael Oechsle's gorgeous LivingLights are hanging gardens that illuminate interiors while freshening the air with living plants. Each ambient OLED light is powered by an “earth battery†that doubles as a small herb garden. The space-saving, self-powered garden lights are ideal for kitchens and other interior spaces in need of an infusion of greenery. Michael Oechsle's LivingLight combines a hanging garden with an innovative low-energy pendant light. The earth-powered lamps illuminate only when natural light levels are low, thanks to smart technology. As the plants grow, the OLEDs are able to harness more power and provide brighter light. The larger LivingLights can support herbs and small fruit and vegetable plants. The pendants can be grouped together to create an indoor hanging garden that provides herbs and veggies for a variety of recipes. The plants also double as natural air purifiers, and they cast patterned shadows around the room once the sun has set and the OLEDs are activated. The planter's shell consists of a biodegradable and recyclable glass water reservoir and a sustainable cork casing. The treated cork is water impermeable and rot-resistant, ensuring a fresh and clean growing environment for plants. The LivingLight is a unique lighting solution that lets urban dwellers farm fresh herbs and veggies. Read more: LivingLight: Hanging Garden OLED Pendant Lights Are Powered by the Soil They Contain | Inhabitat - Sustainable Design Innovation, Eco Architecture, Green Building
Now here's an encouraging story. Jellies have accomplished what humans havefailed http://inhabitat.com/jellyfish-force-huge-nuclear-reactor-to-shut-down-in-sweden/ One of the world's biggest nuclear reactors was shut down last Sunday by an unlikely foe: jellyfish. Sweden's Oskarshamn reactorwas closed when tons of jellyfish clogged up the pipes that supply the reactor with fresh water. It's a problem that may seem like an anomaly, but it has happened before and scientists suggest that it is likely to get worse as overfishingand poor water conditions eliminate native fish populations.Read more: Jellyfish Force Huge Nuclear Reactor to Shut Down in Sweden | Inhabitat - Sustainable Design Innovation, Eco Architecture, Green Building In 2005, one of the reactors at Oskarshamn was shut off because ofjellyfish and last year a reactor in California was shut down when sea salp – another jellyfish-like organism – clogged the pipes there. These types of boiling reactors require a constant supply of fresh cold water to keep them cool, so when that supply line is threatened, the whole reactor must be shut down before the temperature gets too high.While we've heard of things like tsunamis andunstoppable leaksshutting down nuclear reactors, jellyfish seem like a fairly unlikely problem, at least when it comes to running a power plant. But because of the increasingly poor water conditions in our oceans, extreme jellyfish blooms are increasing as they move in to take over where fish can no longer survive. Overfishing can also reduce fish population, giving jellyfish ample room to move in. Because of this, it is likely that we will more such shut downs in the future.Read more: Jellyfish Force Huge Nuclear Reactor to Shut Down in Sweden | Inhabitat - Sustainable Design Innovation, Eco Architecture, Green Building