Mitsubishi, IHI to Join $21 Bln Space Solar Project

“It sounds like a science-fiction cartoon, but solar power generation in space may be a significant alternative energy source in the century ahead as fossil fuel disappears,” said Kensuke Kanekiyo, managing director of the Institute of Energy Economics, a government research body.

Japan is developing the technology for the 1-gigawatt solar station, fitted with four square kilometers of solar panels, and hopes to have it running in three decades, according to a 15- page background document prepared by the trade ministry in August. Being in space it will generate power from the sun regardless of weather conditions, unlike earth-based solar generators, according to the document. One gigawatt is enough to supply about 294,000 average Tokyo homes.

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601101&sid=aJ529lsdk9HI

New battery could change world, one house at a time

Ceramatec says its new generation of battery would deliver a continuous flow of 5 kilowatts of electricity over four hours, with 3,650 daily discharge/recharge cycles over 10 years. With the batteries expected to sell in the neighborhood of $2,000, that translates to less than 3 cents per kilowatt hour over the battery's life. Conventional power from the grid typically costs in the neighborhood of 8 cents per kilowatt hour.

http://www.heraldextra.com/news/article_b0372fd8-3f3c-11de-ac77-001cc4c002e0.html

New American Energy Sources youtube

General Motors Corp. and more than 30 utilities, including Duke Energy Corp., will work together on a project to integrate plug-in hybrid electric vehicles into the grid. The cars would use domestically produced electricity and cost less to run than traditional cars using petroleum fuels.

http://www.bizjournals.com/cincinnati/stories/2008/07/21/daily31.html

Diesel-Electric Hybrid Train

Mini nuclear plants to power 20,000 homes - £13m shed-size reactors will be delivered by lorry

http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2008/nov/09/miniature-nuclear-reactors-los-alamos

Plasma Turns Garbage into Gas

http://www.sciam.com/article.cfm?id=plasma-turns-garbage-into-gas&ec=su_garbagegas

University of Miami physicist develops battery using new source of energy

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/03/090311162807.htm

Virus battery could 'power cars'

Viruses have been used to help build batteries that may one day power cars and all types of electronic devices.

The speed and relatively cheap cost of manufacturing virus batteries could prove attractive to industry.

Professor Angela Belcher, who led the research team, said: "Our material is powerful enough to be able to be used in a car battery."

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/7977585.stm