QUICK NEWS, 9-9: WHITEHOUSE SOLAR COMES HOME; INS CO BUYS WIND; MORE OILY BACKERS FOR CA PROP 23; SUN HEALING SUN

WHITEHOUSE SOLAR COMES HOME
Carter's solar panels headed back to Washington
Glenn Adams, September 7, 2010 (Boston Globe)

"…Environmental author and activist Bill McKibben is leading Unity College students and staff on [a] solar road trip [to Washington with a well-traveled and recycled solar panel that once stood atop President Jimmy Carter's White House]…[Stops are] planned in Boston and New York en route…’[They want to show support for renewable energy and] hope to convince President Barack Obama to install new solar panels…

"The solar panels were placed in service on the White House by Carter's order during the late 1970s as a symbol of commitment to increasing the nation's use of renewable resources…They were removed by President Ronald Reagan in the 1980s and put in storage."

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"Unity College later discovered the panels and obtained them from the government…In the 1990s, 16 of the panels were used to heat water in the cafeteria serving the college's 580 students until they reached the end of their functional lives and were taken out of service.

"Though they're worn out, they continue to serve as symbols of environmental awareness. In August, Unity formally presented one of the solar panels to the chairman of Himin Solar Energy Group of China, which planned to place it in a museum in Shendog Province."

Bill McKibben talks solar power with David Letterman. From 350org via YouTube

"Now McKibben, who appeared last week on the David Letterman Show to discuss climate change, is headed to Washington in a trip sponsored in part by the climate change-awareness group 350.org. They're transporting the solar panel in a biodiesel van owned by [Unity College]..."

[Bill McKibben, activist/founder, 350.org:] "I can't think of a clearer win for the president, a better reminder to the legions of young people who worked on his campaign that he is still focused on the future…"


INS CO BUYS WIND
MetLife invests in Pattern Energy Texas wind farm
September 7, 2010 (AP via Bloomberg BusinessWeek)

"MetLife Inc. has become an equity partner in a Pattern Energy Group LP wind farm on the Texas Gulf Coast…Pattern said the insurance company invested in its Gulf Wind project in Kenedy County, Texas.

"Pattern Energy CEO Mike Garland said…MetLife's involvement will allow the partnership to efficiently use tax benefits that come with the wind energy project."

The Gulf Wind project (click to enlarge)

"Gulf Wind has 118 wind turbines and generates 283 megawatts of energy, about enough to power 80,000 Texas homes for a year…"

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"Garland also said the investment shows his company's ability to find creative yet practical financing in an uncertain market.

"The investment is on top of more than $1 billion that MetLife has made in renewable energy projects, the insurance company said…"


MORE OILY BACKERS FOR CA PROP 23
Koch brothers give $1M to back Proposition 23
September 4, 2010 (AP)

"Oil billionaires David and Charles Koch have jumped on board an effort to suspend California's global warming law by making a million-dollar contribution…

"A subsidiary of Wichita, Kan.-based Koch Industries, the nation's second-largest private company with oil refineries and pipelines, made a $1 million contribution…to the campaign for Proposition 23 [and may consider further support]. They join two Texas-based companies, Valero Energy Corp. and Tesoro Corp..."

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"California's global warming law, known as AB32, seeks to reduce greenhouse gas emissions statewide to 1990 levels over the next decade…Proposition 23 seeks to suspend California's 2006 law until the state's unemployment rate falls below 5.5 percent for four consecutive quarters. That level has happened three times in the last three decades, according to state statistics.

"The initiative is opposed by environmental groups, Democratic lawmakers and Republican Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger…[A] Koch spokeswoman…said the company believes [AB32] will cause ‘significant job losses and higher energy costs.’"

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"The Koch brothers have founded several libertarian organizations and think tanks dedicated in large part to fighting what they view as excessive government regulation. They have helped finance efforts to develop arguments against global warming.

"So far, the Proposition 23 campaign has raised $8.2 million, of which 97 percent has come from oil interests. The campaign against the measure has raised $6.6 million with donations from billionaire hedge fund manager Thomas Steyer, environmental groups and clean-tech businesses."


SUN HEALING SUN
Scientists Develop Self-Healing Solar Cells
Michelle Bryner, 7 September 2010 (TechNewsDaily)

"Over time, most solar cells degrade due to prolonged exposure to the sun's scathing rays and are rendered useless. But with a little inspiration from nature, researchers have now created a new solar material that regenerates its damaged energy-capturing packets on-demand.

"A small prototype solar cell built from the self-healing material can continuously produce electricity for an entire week without losing any efficiency, the scientists [led by Professor Michael Strano of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)] report."

The prototype (click to enlarge)

"The team was inspired by plants in nature. The ingredients within a plant’s leaves that turn sunlight into energy aren't actually immune to the sun’s damage. Instead, the molecules do their job (pump out sugar), get destroyed, and in less than an hour they regenerate. This process happens over and over again – enabling the leaves to produce energy at the same efficiency as they did on day one of their operation.

"Today’s solar materials, which range from the rigid-silicon panels found on rooftops to the flexible, organic kind that can be coated like paint onto surfaces, all degrade over time…Strano and his team have built what they call a “dynamic” solar cell. The light-capturing material is a mixture of several chemicals, including a photosensitive protein, a fatty substance called a phospholipid and carbon nanotubes."

Many solar cell innovators are studying the plant world for inspiration and insight. (click to enlarge)

"The team found that when they added soapy liquid to the mix, the components of the material break apart and form a soupy solution…[that] can’t produce electricity. However, when put into a special bag with tiny holes that only [releases] the soapy molecules – called surfactants – [the solution turns back into a material]…that can turn sunlight into electricity…This process of adding and removing the surfactant can be repeated over and over again, allowing the mixture to constantly regenerate…

"There’s still a lot to do before this technology could be used in homes and buildings to produce electricity…[The] initial efficiency – a measure of how much of the sun’s light the panel can convert into electricity – of the new system is much lower than today’s solar panels…The researchers see this research as a [step toward] developing a solar cell capable of regeneration…"