It's fun getting weeMail ... we've just learned from Alchemy Architects about some new weeHouse announcements relating to affordability and sustainability. First things first, everyone wants to know about prefab pricing, right? You can now get a 2000 sf weeHouse with so called Good Stuff for around $125 per sf, give or take. Second, weeHouse has teamed up with The Fusion Companies to offer off-grid and supplemental Energy Kits for weeHouses.
We keep hearing about thin film solar innovation and building integrated photovoltaics (BIPV), but it may be hard to image how this technology will play a part in the future of our buildings. But I think CENTRIA Services Group has a product that could certainly change that: EnergyPeak. They've combined the flexibility of laminate photovoltaics (LPV) with strong, durable standing seam roof panels to create a rooftop solar option with a fast payback. I mean, just look at the diagram and check out its immediately recognizable benefits:
I just noticed this RoofRay mashup that uses Google Maps and various other information to help you calculate the solar potential of your building. It's pretty interesting, actually. You can find your building, trace the potential solar roof area, adjust the calculations based on your estimate of orientation and angle, and then see what you have. After that, you start entering in your electricity usage information and the company you purchase electricity from (watch out though because they didn't have Rocky Mountain Power's information and may not have your information yet). After that, you cruise along where they start to provide you with an estimate of the system's cost, rebates, and potential savings, etc.
The Silicon Valley-based law firm of Cooley Godward Kronish has just brought online the largest on-site solar system of any Bay Area law firm. The 465 panel, 87 kW system was installed on the roof of their Palo Alto-Hanover building of 130,000 sf. Installing a solar system of this size has almost lost its newsworthiness, especially with tons of companies placing monster solar arrays in service by the end of this year to take advantage of the tax benefits. But what's really interesting, I think, is one of the reasons the firm decided to generate some on-site green power: their clients are in this business and inspired them to go green.
This is part of the Jetson Green birthday giveaway, so make sure to
leave a comment by midnight Friday, July 25, 2008, if you want to be considered for the contest.*
We've blogged about e² previously because the video series is so absolutely compelling. You can catch previews of the show at the e² series website, view episodes at Hulu, and buy episodes at iTunes. With the Brad Pitt-narrated, design season three in production and available for viewing from September 1, 2008, we can expect more incredible information in this delicious video format. While you're waiting for the next installment, why not catch up on what's already been produced? The critically acclaimed series envisions a better quality of life on earth and explores attainable solutions in a variety of fields: design, energy, transport, water, food, and urban development. This three pack promotional DVD giveaway is made possible through the generosity of Kontentreal.
Martin Eberhard calls it "Solar Synergy" -- an apt phrase for the benefits derived from having an electrical car and a home that's powered by an extensive solar PV array. Eberhard was a founder of Tesla and he just received his shiny new Founders' Series Roadster. It's an incredible car, don't you think? As you ogle its curves -- it's the embodiment of pure innovation, try to recall what I said recently in the article about the Green Building Aspects of the Plug-in Toyota Prius. In that article, I made the statement that "buildings might just replace gas stations." Actually, I should be more assertive: buildings will replace gas stations. And if you'd like to see a more defined example as to how that will happen, make sure to read about Eberhard's 5.2 kW photovoltaic system and all-electric Tesla Roadster.
Not unlike John F. Kennedy's goal to land a man on the moon, Al Gore challenges the nation to produce every kilowatt of electricity through wind, sun, and other earth-friendly sources within 10 years. Here are some links ...
[+] The (Annotated) Gore Energy Speech [NY Times]
[+] Former V.P. Lays Down a Green Gauntlet [WSJ]
[+] Gore sets 'moon shot' goal on climate change [AP]
It seems like there's a new, cutting-edge technology in the limelight everyday and today is no exception. You've heard of CSP -- concentrated solar power, right? Well Sopogy has been in R&D for several years perfecting their MicroCSP technology. They developed the above pictured application for commercial, industrial, and small utility uses. MicroCSP takes traditional, large scale, open faced, desert, parabolic trough CSP panels and shrinks them down to 25% of the size. The trough is between 12 and 18 feet long and is meant for distributed energy solutions from 200 kW to 20 MW. It can be used on-site, too, whether on a roof or adjacent to a building.
Today, the writers at Ecofriend debuted this Solar Tree design by Gurdeep Sandhu. The article doesn't present any technical specs, although it does present us with another example of what can be done with solar panels in the built environment. Use it as a picnic awning, shade device, carport, or whatever. As you can tell from the images, the flexible and movable wings can be adjusted to capture more of the sun's rays, although I'm not sure if those adjustments are automatic or manual. But it certainly has kind of an industrial look that might fit into various areas of the built environment. Something like this would be perfect if/when you have that electrical vehicle -- use it to charge up with green power. Regardless, it's an example of one of the many possibilities created by this new green economy.
The innovators of this new technology, if they get it into production, may just be the green building revolutionaries of tomorrow. At the end of the week, MIT engineers published research of new technology showing that the sun's energy could be harvested from a large area, such as a window, and concentrated at the edges by solar cells. With this so-called luminescent solar concentrator, the potential for low-cost electricity seems almost within reach. Technically, here's how it works:
