Bijli Project Connects 58,000 People in India to Clean Energy.

NEW DELHI: The Climate Group project, Bijli – Clean Energy for All has now officially provided energy access to 58,000 people across India. The new milestone results are well over the initial target of 50,000 people in India.

As the roll-out phase of the project comes to an end this September, The Climate Group will continue to connect people in India to clean, cheap solar power, together with local partners and companies.
Bijli project, principally funded by the Dutch Postcode Lottery, is creating a model of renewable energy access, with over 58,000 people now impacted positively. The model could be scaled up, allowing potentially hundreds of millions of people – many of whom have to rely on expensive and dirty kerosene lamps for lighting – in India and elsewhere in the world to access affordable, low carbon, solar powered electricity.
For instance, a transition to efficient off-grid lighting in the whole of South East Asia would have an equally significant benefit for the almost 500 million consumers in the region who are not connected to the grid. Replacing all the kerosene, candles and battery-powered torches with solar LED lanterns would save US$5.6-7.6 billion in fuel costs and avoid 23.3 million tons of CO2 emissions each year.

The project’s progress was welcomed at the first ever India Off-Grid Energy Summit this week, which saw top off-grid energy practitioners, policymakers and entrepreneurs agree that sector collaboration is the most effective way to lead India’s flourishing renewables market.

In most poor rural parts of India, electrical power is a rarity. When night falls, whole families and villages rely on kerosene and diesel lamps. These are dangerous, expensive and bad for the environment.
Approximately 400 million people in India still have no connection to the main electricity grid. Even those who do, suffer from regular blackouts. In 2012, 600 million were plunged into darkness because of outages on the main grid – the biggest power failure in human history.

There’s a much better energy source available, one that’s getting cheaper and cheaper to access. The average 300 days of sunshine in India makes it the perfect destination for solar energy. Solar powered lighting outshines a kerosene wick lamp 10 times over, and is less than one fourth the cost.
Together with local organisations in India, The Climate Group is providing clean, cheap solar power to poor rural villages in the states of Maharashtra, West Bengal and Uttar Pradesh.

Being connected to clean and cheap electricity means having access to more safety, security, being able to expand your business, studying at night and improving the quality of your life.
These new solar electricity innovations can literally light up the lives of people in rural areas. Implementing them lowers carbon emissions, improves public health, creates jobs, and provides a reliable, long-term energy supply at low, stable prices.

Wind Turbines to Dot Vijayapura District in Karnataka Soon.

Soon, one might see innumerable fans spinning from far away in Vijayapura, with the district, like Chitradurga, gradually foraying into large-scale harvesting of wind energy in order to effectively tap the abundantly available natural resource.

Though the district is neither located on a higher altitude nor has too many hills, it has vast open and elevated areas where wind turbines are being installed to generate power.

According to sources, the district would soon have enough wind turbines to generate nearly 700 MW of power in the months to come, as several private firms including Hyderabad-based Greenko has obtaining contract to generate wind power.

Greenko has already started generating some 180 MW of power by installing turbines in Ingaleshwar village of Basavanabagewadi taluk, the sources said.

The company plans to generate 50 MW of power in Kumatagi village in the first phase, and an equal quantum of power from the same village in the second phase. In Shivanagi village, the company plans to generate 200 MW of power.

The company is reportedly establishing substations with the help of Hubli Electricity Supply Company (HESCOM) to supply electricity to the power grids.

Other projects

Three other private companies besides Greenko have together proposed to generate around 303 MW of power in the district by installing hundreds of wind turbines. According to reports, the companies are using the high-end technology in the wind energy sector by importing machines and units from the Netherlands.

The sources said that each turbine could generate from 1.2 MW to 2 MW of power. Since barren land is often used for installing turbines, the cost of unfertile land in the district has increased substantially, bringing cheers among the farmers who have such land.

Though the generated power is directly supplied to the central grids for distribution, the sources believe that since the power would be generated in the district itself, it would, to a great extent, mitigate the power crisis in the district.

This Super-thin OLED Desk Lamp will also Charge our Phone

 


Do you take your desk lighting seriously? Really seriously? You'll want to look at Aerelight's just-shipped A1 desk lamp, then. The eye-catching design uses an OLED panel to illuminate your room, which both makes it wafer-thin and produces a natural-looking, energy-efficient glow that should last as long as the lamp itself. You shouldn't have to touch anything but the controls for the next 20 years, according to Aerelight. And did we mention that it'll wirelessly charge your phone? In a seeming bid to one-up IKEA, the A1 can top up mobile devices using either the Qi or PMA charging standards.
You're going to pay a premium for this ultimate light, mind you. It's available in both the US and Canada for $299, which could easily make it more expensive than the furniture it's sitting on. Look it this way, though: if you work from home or otherwise spend hours at a time in poorly-lit spaces, this could be considered an investment in your eyes.

Road Trials of Electric Buses to Start Soon

In a bid to provide eco-friendly and cost effective intra-city bus services, the Union ministry of road transport is set to provide 30 electric-powered buses to select cities across country soon. After months of lab trials by Bangalore Road Transport Corporation, the government wants to start trial of these buses on the road to find out the cost of operations and practical feasibility of the concept.

Of the 30 buses, seven will ply in UP  at Agra, Meerut, Lucknow, Varanasi, Allahabad, Gorakhpur and Kanpur. Speaking to TOI, UPSRTC general manager Vineet Seth said, "The idea is to replace fossil fuel technology with eco-friendly technology, where buses will be recharged at terminals during the night and run the entire day without recharging."

Seth said, "At an International Conference and Exhibition on Public Transport Innovation held in Delhi on August 13 and 14, Union road transport minister Nitin Gadkari announced that electric-powered buses would be provided to some proposed smart cities across the country."

Speaking on the occasion, organized to mark the golden jubilee celebration of the Association of State Road Transport Undertaking (ASRTU), which was established on August13, 1965, Gadkari laid emphasis on the use of bio-diesel and other alternative fuels to reduce emission and hence air pollution. He said bus service providers should adopt new technologies such as GPS-based systems, passenger information systems, CCTV cameras, automatic fare collection system and electronic ticket vending.

If UPSRTC sources are to be believed, the corporation is eager to replace CNG and diesel-run city buses with electric-powered buses before 2016-end. This would not only reduce pollution levels, but will also cut the overall cost of operation in the long run. In June, the corporation had sent a group of nearly 20 officials from different regions to European countries like Italy, Switzerland and France to study public transportation systems in those countries and gather knowledge about new and eco-friendly technologies.

Ravinder Singh, service manager of Agra roadways and the man behind this idea in UP, said, "At present, we have to spend about Rs 25 a km to run CNG buses. If we use electric buses, the cost will come down to Rs 7 a km. A feasibility study in this regard was done in Bangalore and it proved effective. The idea is to remove carbon footprints and at the same time use minimum power to run our vehicles. The buses will be charged at stations during the night or at bus stops during the day. This way we would not require overhead wires or electric tracks on roads." Source : TOI 

Fuel Stations may be Rebranded to Service E-cars

Fuel stations across the country may soon be rebranded to provide specialised services for electric run cars and autos as government looks to promote the use of these eco-friendly vehicles in cities facing rise in pollution levels from vehicular emissions.

Top sources in the heavy industries ministry said that select fuel stations state-owned oil marketing companies (OMCs) such as Indian Oil, Hindustan Petroleum and Bharat Petroleum would be provided with solar powered charging points that could be used by electric vehicles on payment of nominal fees.

“We have already held discussions with OMCs over this initiative. It would be launched after a successful run in the pilot project slated for New Delhi,” the official quoted earlier said.

As part of the programme to support electric vehicle initiative, the heavy industries ministries has already asked Bharat Heavy Electricals Ltd (BHEL) and Rajasthan Electronics to develop prototype of electric vehicle charging stations based on solar power panels. The prototype is expected to be ready in next couple of months after which the pilot project would begin in Delhi.

The national roll out of the scheme may start from next financial year onwards depending on the proliferation of electric vehicles in the country. One of the issues faced by electric vehicles is lack of proper battery recharging facility. This has given birth of entry of hybrid vehicles that run both on conventional fuel and electricity.

At present only Mahindra, Toyota and BMW have introduced electric/hybrid passenger cars in the country. In addition, Lucknow-based public sector undertaking Scooters India Ltd (SIL) is running SIL its electric vehicle – Vikram EV – on a trial basis in Delhi and Lucknow while Hyundai launched and electric variant of its i10 car.

Ford Motors, Tata Motors and general Motors are planning to launch electric vehicles in the country. Besides, a few smaller makers are manufacturing e-rickshaws and companies like Hero, BSA and Electrotherm are making electric two-wheelers.

“The market for electric vehicles is very small in the country. But with government support both in terms of fiscal incentives and creation of infrastructure by way of increased number of charging stations, it can soon become popular mode of transportation,” said an official of Scooters India asking not to be named.

As per industry estimates, electric vehicle comprise mere 1 per cent of total two-wheeler market and 2-3 per cent of car market in the country. Optimistic estimates suggest that this would go up to 6 per cent level over next 5-7 years.

Government on its part has launched a new scheme - Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of (Hybrid &) Electric Vehicles in India or FAME—to promote use of electric vehicles in the country. FAME was announced in the budget this year with a provision of Rs 75 crore.

The scheme takes forward the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government’s National Electric Mobility Mission Plan (NEMMP) that aimed at putting seven million electric and hybrid vehicles on Indian roads by 2020.

Under FAME, the government has proposed incentives on hybrid and electric vehicles of up to Rs 29,000 for two-wheelers and Rs 1.38 lakh for cars. It is also offering discount support amounting to one-third of the difference between the price of an electric two-wheeler and a comparable petrol model.

Eveready Launches the Brightest Ever 8W LED Bulb

Eveready Industries, a market leader of dry cell batteries, flashlights and a leading lighting solution provider, has launched India’s brightest ever 8W LED bulb. The latest addition to Eveready’s bulb portfolio offers the highest lumen efficiency at 120 lumens per watt. 

The company brand has always stood for the best in quality and endeavors to offer value for money products keeping the Indian consumer in mind.

The new launch is a result of the company’s endeavor to be ahead in a fast changing dynamic lighting industry with focus on innovation, R&D to develop the best in class products. This new range of lamps will continue to be energy efficient thus resulting in lower electricity bills for the Indian consumer. Keeping the ultimate consumer in mind, the product has been positioned as a value pack of 2 having MRP of Rs. 799/- being offered to the consumer at Rs. 599/- (including of all taxes).

The company’s 8W (960 lumens) LED Bulb is being launched on snapdeal to ensure that consumers across the country. The product will also be available on all leading online/ modern retail formats as well as traditional forms of retail.

Eveready is the market leader of dry cell batteries selling more than 1.2 billion units annually. Apart from dry cell batteries, Eveready is also the market leader in flashlights selling in excess of 26 million units per year.

New Technology may Reduce Wind Energy Costs

London: The efficiency of wind turbines can be increased and repair costs reduced through a new technique developed by engineers from the University of Sheffield.

The novel technique can predict when bearings inside wind turbines fail which could make wind energy cheaper.

Unexpected bearing failures are a common problem in wind turbines.

"By removing the risk of a loss of production and the need for unplanned maintenance, it can help to reduce the cost of wind energy and make it much more economically competitive," said co-author of the paper professor Rob Dwyer-Joyce.

The method, developed by mechanical engineering research student Wenqu Chen, uses ultrasonic waves to measure the load transmitted through a ball bearing in a wind turbine.

The stress on wind turbine is recorded and then engineers can forecast its remaining service life.

When a bearing is subjected to a load, its thickness is reduced by a very small amount due to elastic deformation, and the speed of sound is affected by the stress level in the material. Both these effects change the time of flight of an ultrasound wave through a bearing.

The new method is the only way to directly measure the transmitted load through the rolling bearing components.

It uses a custom-built piezoelectric sensor mounted in the bearing to measure the time of flight and determine the load.

This sensor is less expensive and significantly smaller than currently available, making it suitable for smaller turbines.

It can also provide a better prediction of the maintenance needed, saving money in servicing, researchers said.

The study was published in the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society.

Now, Hippo Innovations focuses on clean energy

Hippo Innovations, a mobile e-commerce player, funded by Amit Gupta, partner and CEO at NewQuest Capital Partners, Hong Kong, and Nitin Jindal, MD at Morgan Stanley, Greater NYC area, is now set to create a brand for an online clean energy marketplace.

Branded as SolarHippo, the first such platform will introduce a wide array of solar products such as solar lights, solar fans, solar heaters, solar inverters, solar power banks and solar accessories. They are also looking at raising $2 million in the next round of funding.

“The new government’s thrust on development of solar energy sector coupled with ‘make in India’ campaign offers a tremendous potential in Indian market for solar energy products. SolarHippo envisages tapping the growing potential of the solar energy sector in India and promises to provide best-in-class solar energy products with the help of this branded online store,” said Rajiv Kumar, CEO of the Gurgaon-headquartered Hippo Innovations.

With consumers becoming increasingly brand loyal, there was an urgent need to have a branded market place for clean energy products so as to ensure delivery of quality items.

The firm has a proven track record of building niche marketplaces by using its flagship mobile e-commerce platform StoreHippo. The company helps small and medium entrepreneurs to launch online stores. In the first tranche, the company had received seed funding at a valuation of Rs 20 crore from NewQuest and Jindal to build mobile ready architecture and highly advanced technology stack.

“SolarHippo is the result of our vision that we must find ways to protect our environment for a sustainable future with use of a clean and safe energy source. In keeping with this vision, SolarHippo aims to be an exclusive marketplace selling distinguished, top quality and high performance products related to solar energy,” said Kumar.

Cochin International Airport to Inaugurate 12MWp PV Project.

An airport in the Indian state of Kerala will become “absolutely power neutral” when it inaugurates a 12MWp solar power plant onsite next week.

Cochin International Airport will unveil its green initiative on 18 August with Kerala’s chief minister, Ooomman Chandy, in attendance, according to local reports.

The commissioning of the PV plant is the third and biggest move so far in this direction by the airport, which installed a 100kWp rooftop plant in 2013 and another shortly after that with 1MWp capacity. According to the airport this was the first megawatt-scale solar PV plant in Kerala.

The latest move adds 45 acres of ground-mounted array, using 265Wp modules by Chinese manufacturer ReneSola and 1MW inverters by ABB India. The project was executed by German engineering company Bosch.

Cochin International Airport’s press release said that the array, when combined with the existing 1.1MW of installed capacity will “technically” make the airport “’absolutely power neutral’”, meaning the PV plants will produce as much electricity as the entire facility demands.  

Other significant airport PV installations in Asia include an 11.6MW PV plant at Kansai Airport in Japan, commissioned in March 2014 and a 19MW plant in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

Indian Oil Proposes Setting up Solid Waste Plant in Varanasi

The Indian Oil has expressed desire to set up a solid waste processing, treatment and management plant in the suburban area to dispose of tons of waste generated in the Prime Minister Narendra Modi's constituency in a more scientific manner and in a bid to cater to the growing population of the city. 

A proposal for the same was put forth by the representatives of the commercial enterprise to mayor Ramgopal Mohley during a meeting with various organizations to discuss scope of work under corporate social responsibility (CSR) in the presence of officials of ministry of urban development at Varanasi Municipal Corporation (VMC) on Tuesday evening. For this, the enterprise has asked for an eight-acre land and resources for carrying the collected waste to the treatment plant. 

Considering this a need of the hour, Mohley had asked them to prepare a written proposal which needs to be submitted to municipal commissioner Shrihari Pratap Shahi within two days. Notably, the total quantity of waste generated in the city is about 650 MT per day assuming that locals generate solid waste of about 425 grams per person per day on an average. 

During the meeting, while representatives of various organizations including Airport Authority of India (AAI), Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC), Hindustan Petroleum Limited (HPL), Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited (BHEL) and Power Finance Commission (PFC) proposed various ideas on development works to be conducted in the city, others shared the progress of ongoing works with the mayor and other officials. 

While reviewing the progress of beautification of ponds and setting up of water ATMs, Mohley asked the representatives to ensure no harm is done to the water sources of the kunds including Soniya, Lakshmi kund, Durgakund and Sarangnath pond while the beautification drive is carried out and stressed on maintenance of attraction quotient of the kunds keeping the tourist angle in mind. Mohley further asked them to begin the work of setting up water ATMs by August 20. 

He also reviewed the report of construction of five toilets by Indian Oil, proposal on cleanliness and disposal of garbage by AAI and a presentation on use of advanced machines for cleanliness in serpentine lanes of the city. Following this, the officials of PFC proposed the idea of plying of 100 Eco-friendly e-rickshaws in the city. 

The mayor acknowledged the idea and asked them to prepare an effective road map of city where no-vehicle zone could be developed.
Source : TOI

Thondamuthur in Coimbatore Imposes Plastic Ban

Rural areas in the district have woken up to the need for effective solid waste management. Taking cue from the city, Thondamuthur town panchayat, abutting the city, announced on Thursday that plastic carry bags would be banned in its limits from August 15.

The civic body has decided to prohibit plastic cups, thermacole plates and cups, disposable plastic plates and such materials made of polypropelene from Independence Day. Panchayat president T A Ravi has warned that in addition to the plastic ban, severe penalty would be levied on people and commercial establishments dumping waste in water bodies.

"We would strictly implement the ban across 15 wards in the town panchayat. We have decided to conduct a rally to create awareness among the public. Super stockists of plastic polythene bags below the permissible 40 micron size will face the highest penalty of Rs1lakh," said T A Ravi. Retailers found using plastic bags would be slapped a fine of 1000 while roadside vendors would have to pay 200 and the public 100. "Many people live below poverty line in panchayat limits. Hence, we have plan to focus on grocery shops to implement the ban initially," said Ravi.

District collector

Archana Patnaik said that the district has 44 town panchayats and 227 village panchayats. All local bodies would be asked to enforce the ban, she said.

"All town and village panchayats have been asked to curb plastic usage. Panchayat level officials have been instructed to visit every shop and check if they use plastic bags," said Archana Patnaik. While manufacturers of banned plastic bags should also be dealt with severely.

The city corporation had implemented the ban way back in January 2014. The civic body initially decided to collect fine of Rs200 from public if they were found to use banned plastic carry bags. However, they failed to penalize the manufacturers of plastic bags.

According to corporation health officials, many roadside eateries were using plastic carry bags below 20 microns in thickness. Many hotels do the same but no action has been taken against them.
Source: TOI

New Materials Could Provide High-density, Energy-efficient Memory Sorage

A team of scientists from Rice University have designed a new technology for solid-state memory storage, using tantalum oxide, which could potentially be a dramatic improvement on current technologies in terms of both the density of storage and the efficiency of energy consumption. The journal Nano Letters, of the American Chemical Society, has the details.

Two platinum electrodes sandwich layers consisting of multi-layer graphene, nanoporous tantalum oxide, and tantalum. The tantalum oxide loses its oxygen ions over time, turning from oxygen-rich at the top of this layer to oxygen-poor at the bottom of the layer. When all the oxygen ions are lost, it turns into pure tantalum.

The lead-author Gunuk Wang explained that, “The exchange of contact barriers causes the bipolar switching”.

In contrast to flash technology used at present, this design only requires two electrodes for each circuit, rather than three.

Rice University's professor of materials science, nanoengineering, and computer science, James Tour, said, “This tantalum memory is based on two-terminal memory systems, so it's all set for 3D memory stacks,” adding, “And it doesn't even need diodes or selectors, making it one of the easiest ultradense memories to construct.”

According to the researchers, this design could store up to 162 gigabits (approximately 20GB) using crossbar array memories, and could use one hundredth of the energy required by devices currently in use. If these claims were to be realised consistently on a large, commercial scale, this would be a significant breakthrough in the field of memory storage.

Gunuk Wang cites certain obstacles such as the need to control nanopore size, and the need to make a crossbar device which is dense enough for individual bits, as concerns which will have to be addressed before the technology gets to that point.

However, while a few details still need to be ironed out, this design sounds, at least in theory, very promising.

Tantalum oxide, or strictly speaking tantalum(V)oxide, otherwise known as tantalum pentoxide, is used in capacitors in a range of electronic equipment, including computers, mobile phones, DVD players, and game consoles. It replaced aluminium oxide in this capacity, thus allowing the 'brick' phones of the 1980s to be replaced by smaller, lighter mobile phones.

Some may see potential ethical issues surrounding the sourcing of the rare element tantalum. One of the sources of tantalum is the mineral known as coltan, found in relative abundance in the Democratic Republic of Congo (formerly known as Zaire). While Congo represents a only small proportion of the world tantalum market, coltan mining is significant in terms of the country's economy. The coltan trade has been linked to ongoing warfare in the region, leading to tantalum being viewed as a conflict resource.

However, there's hope for such ethical questions regarding tantalum from the Congo to be resolved. One initiative, aptly named the Solutions for Hope Project, aims to preserve the coltan mining trade's contribution to the local economy, while ensuring that it doesn't fund the conflict.

Source: the stack

Mangaluru Firm Installs 2 Solar Power Systems

The Mangaluru-based Solar Trade Links has set up two rooftop solar power generation systems in the city.

Kumble Narasimha Prabhu, Managing Partner, said his firm had installed and commissioned rooftop solar plants of 10 kw and 12 kw capacity at Ramanath Enterprises at Karangalpady and at Ajith Enterprises at Baikampady Industrial Area in Mangaluru, respectively.

Stating that these are the first two net-metering rooftop solar projects in coastal Karnataka, he said both units save 2,700 units of power a month and ₹2.58 lakh a year in electricity bill.

He said these two independent solar power producers have power purchase agreements with Mangalore Electricity Supply Company (Mescom) at ₹9.56 a unit for the next 25 years.

These two enterprises now meet their power requirements through solar plants. The excess power is supplied to Mescom, Prabhu said.

Terming it as a small step towards the energy self-sufficiency of the city, he said another four rooftop solar power installations of a combined capacity of 50 kw would be commissioned by October.

He told Business Line that the target is to set up a combined capacity of 100 kw in Mangaluru by the end of December.

Prabhu said that industrial units and hospitals can make use of rooftop solar power plants, as these power plants are also eligible for tax benefits.

India Celebrates 69th Independence day . JAI HINDH

Chess that accommodates three players has been developed- article by Abirami.

Chess that accommodates three players has been developed. The rules are changed but the fun is still there.

A player can be checkmated by a combination of both other players or ultimately one player can checkmate both other players at the same time.

Combined Heat and Power Videos

Cummins - Green Factory in India

Railway Minister Advocates Use of Clean Energy in Railways

Expressing concerns over the use of fossil fuel, Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu today said there was a need to embark upon a "clean energy mission" to prevent the loss of bio-diversity as carbon emission was affecting climate change and affecting world's biological life. 

Our mission should be clean energy and not just solar energy, Prabhu said while addressing a conference to explore opportunities for using solar energy in the rail sector here. 

He said railways was single largest consumer of energy in terms of both fuel and electricity in the country and steps should be taken to use wind and solar energy. 

"Emission is affecting climate change which is causing concern for the survival of biological life of the world and we are losing bio-diversity in the process. The need of the hour is to arrest the decline of bio-diversity," he said. 

Highlighting the urgent need for protection of environment, Prabhu said climate change is causing unseasonal rains, cloud bursts, change in cropping pattern, as a result farmers are facing problems. 

Railways consumes about 18 billion units of electrical energy per annum. 

Advocating use of clean energy which is environmentally sustainable and economically viable, Prabhu said "we should work not only for reducing carbon footprint but also earning carbon credit." 

Taking note of the high demand for energy, he said alternate source such solar energy should be explored. 

"Energy-consumption per capita has increased and we have to find a different source and the best source to provide energy is solar energy." 

He said rooftops of railway buildings and vacant land like desert of Rajasthan can be used for producing solar energy. 

He also stressed on the need to develop technology for storage of electricity saying it is also important so that we can store it and use it whenever required. 

Referring to wind energy, he said there were so much opportunities in the sector since India has a vast track of seashores. 

There should be a hybrid technology developed for using both wind and solar energy, he said. 

Railways, in its endeavour to counter the menace of global warming has targeted large scale harnessing of renewable energy, mainly solar and wind energy, in addition to adoption of energy efficient technologies. 

Prabhu in his budget had announced a target of installing 1000 mega watt solar power in Railways in next 5 years.

Source : The Business Standarad

Bank of America issues $600m green bond

            

Bank of America has issued a green bond worth $600 million (£383m) for energy efficiency and renewable projects.

It will help fund projects under the company’s $70 billion (£44.7bn) multi-year environmental business commitment.

It initially issued $500 million (£319m) in 2013, which helped finance projects such as retrofitting traditional street lights to LEDs in Los Angeles, California and solar installations.

Thomas Montag, Chief Operating Officer said: “We believe green bonds will play an important role in closing the financing gap for renewable energy, energy efficiency and other low carbon projects. The market for green bonds is expanding rapidly and issuing our own green bonds is one way we are helping to meet that growing demand.”

A record $36.6 billion (£24.3bn) worth of green bonds were issued last year, according to a new report launched earlier this year.

Indian bank raises $50m for green projects

An Indian bank has raised almost $50 million (£32m) for renewable projects.

It was through the issue of Green Infrastructure Bonds to International Finance Corporation (IFC), a member of World Bank Group.

YES BANK will lend the cash to fund projects such as wind and solar farms.

It has made a commitment of funding 5GW of green projects by the end of the decade.

Inessa Tolokonnikova, IFC’s Financial Institutions Group Manager for South Asia, based in Mumbai said: “Green bonds have opened a new finance flow that will be essential to confronting climate change impact. IFC’s investments in programmes like YES BANK’s Green Infrastructure bonds will also encourage issuers in other markets to issue similar bonds and support greater resources for climate change finance.”

The Government of India has set a target of installing 175GW of renewable capacity by 2022.

6,000 LEDs to Brighten up Chennai Streets

CHENNAI: City streets will start looking brighter at nights as Chennai Corporation plans to install more than 6,000 LEDs (light-emitting-diode) as streets lights by the year end. With an aim to make the city more energy efficient, corporation allocated Rs 150 crore to the electrical department in this year's fiscal budget, which is a 50% increase from last year. "Our electricity bill will significantly reduce," a senior corporation official said. The LEDs will replace CFL bulbs and age old sodium lamps in both interior roads and arterial roads. "There will be 30 to 50 meters distance between each lamp post," the official said. "Work orders have been given and contractors will have to complete installing the lights and lamp posts within six months." 

Lack of effective street lighting has been an issue in many residential colonies. In Kodambakkam, residents say that a year ago they had requested mayor Saidai Duraisamy to install street lights. "There are no street lights on the service lane of Arcot Road from Station Border Road up to United India Colony 1st Main Road, barring one old lamp post and light which doesn't work frequently," says D Balaji, vice president of Kodambakkam Residents' Welfare Association. "Mayor sanctioned new street lights for us right then so we don't know why it is being delayed. This is a crucial road and public is unable to use this because it is dark, narrow and unsafe. Since no one uses this road, there is massive commuter and pedestrians traffic on Station View Road." 

Some of the roads that will have LED street lights are Perambur High Road, Thirumangalam Main Road, Ramandhiram Street in Villivakkam, KK Nagar, MMDA Colony Main Road, Luz Church Road, Burkit Road and South Usman Road. The advantages of using LEDs are that they have a longer life span, they are brighter, they emit lesser heat and have no mercury content. Though the initial cost of LEDs is higher they operate on a low cost resulting in reduced electricity bills. Civic officials have also said that they will start a streetlight monitoring system that will allow them to track streetlights that stop functioning.

Source : TOI

New Hybrid Solar Cell Battery Takes Aim at Solar Power’s Energy Storage Problem

As the world seeks alternatives to fossil fuels, scientists, entrepreneurs and government leaders are pushing to develop cheap, clean energy. 

Wind-harnessing turbines are increasingly found in many parts of the world. Solar panels can be seen on more and more rooftops as budget and energy-conscious homeowners take advantage of government subsidies for renewable energy sources.

However, renewable energy has yet to reach the level of increased efficiency and lower cost needed to compete with fossil fuels. With this in mind, researchers at Ohio State University recently announced their creation of a new hybrid device that can act both as a solar cell, producing energy from sunlight, and as a battery storing that energy.

The new device, the brainchild of Dr. Yiying Wu, a professor of chemistry and biochemistry, may overcome some limitations in both solar cell and battery technology. They published their results in the journal Nature Communications earlier this month.

A shortcoming of solar panels is the loss of energy production on overcast days or at night. (This is the same issue for wind turbines on windless days.) Most homeowners with rooftop solar panels add excess daytime-produced energy to the local grid. Then in the evenings or on overcast days, they buy energy back from the local utility.

While this system isn’t ideal, the lack of an efficient battery system to store the excess energy necessitates it. For a home to truly be energy-independent, it would need to produce and store energy for later use.

Dr. Wu’s patent-pending device, however, may bring us one step closer to the development of a system where efficient, decentralized power generation is the norm.

One way the device improves on current systems is by nearly eliminating inefficiency in energy transfer. Usually, up to 20% of the energy produced by a solar cell is lost as it travels to and charges a battery. But since this new device combines the solar cell and battery into one device, nearly 100% of the energy produced can be stored.

Another advancement in the device is how the energy is stored, using a next generation lithium battery called lithium-air (Li-air) or lithium-oxygen battery.

Most lithium batteries in use today are lithium-ion (Li-ion) batteries, which can be found in everything from consumer electronics to electric vehicles. They work by the movement of lithium ions from the negative electrode to the positive electrode during discharge. As they're charged, the lithium ions move back to the negative electrode.

Compared to the older nickel-metal hydride (NiMH) and lead-acid batteries, the advent of Li-ion batteries brought many advantages. They have a much higher energy density, meaning they can store significantly more energy per weight. Li-ion batteries also lose their charge at a much slower rate when not in use.

But Li-ion batteries aren’t without shortcomings either.

They can have a short lifespan despite withstanding many charge/discharge cycles and are temperature sensitive. Use or storage of Li-ion batteries in high temperatures results in their rapid degradation. Because of these and other limitations, some researchers have focused on refining Li-air battery technology since as early as the 1970s.

These batteries use lithium at the anode and oxygen (from air) at the cathode to create current, and they can have up to 15 times the energy density of Li-ion batteries—matching the energy density of gasoline. This means that their use in electric vehicles could potentially increase the driving range to over 500 miles on a single charge, directly rivaling the range of most gas-powered cars. IBM even has a program called The Battery 500 Project to develop such range for an EV using an Li-air battery.

Previously, Dr. Wu and his team developed a potassium-air battery (K-air) that won major funding from Ohio State University and the Department of Energy.

The K-air battery packed a much higher energy density than Li-ion batteries and was shown to be cheap to produce and almost 100% energy-efficient without producing toxic byproducts. The Li-air battery subsequently developed by Dr. Wu’s group was based on the design of the K-air battery, essentially substituting lithium for potassium.

Next, the researchers overcame several technological challenges to combine this Li-air battery with a solar cell to provide the energy.

As mentioned above, these batteries need the oxygen from air to create the current. However, most solar cells are solid and mostly impermeable to air. So the team designed a novel mesh-like solar cell made from microscopic rods of titanium dioxide.

Titanium dioxide gauze allows air to enter the battery while the rods gather light.

The mesh made the solar cell permeable to air while the rods were treated to capture sunlight. The capture of sunlight produces electrons that will decompose lithium peroxide into lithium ions, thereby charging the battery. During discharge of the battery, oxygen from the air is used to replenish the lithium peroxide.

So far, tests of this hybrid device have shown promise in terms of reliability and energy efficiency. The researchers will continue refining their device and experimenting with new materials to improve performance. They hope to license the technology to companies for further development and, eventually, to bring the device to market. Even though the idea of a Li-air battery was proposed in the 1970s, little progress was made until the mid-1990s when new advanced materials made these batteries feasible. Just like any battery technology, Li-air batteries have their own set of challenges that must be overcome before large-scale use. But with over 400 research articles published in the past four years, the field continues to show promise.

The use of fossil fuels has driven our technological evolution for over 100 years. However, we now realize that there is a price for this evolution.Earth is our only home; the only planet we know to sustain life. And while this new device is just one small step, it moves in the right direction, to a future where abundant, reliable, and clean energy is the standard.

Graphene Wrap Improves Lithium-Sulfur Batteries

Researchers have discovered that they can come up with longer-lasting lithium-sulfur batteries by wrapping flexible graphene around the sulfur-carbon energy storage unit. This leads to the faster transfer of ions and electrons.

For a paper published in the APL Materials journal, Dr. Vasant Kumar of the University of Cambridge and Professor Renjie Chen of Beijing Institute of Technology led a team of researchers in discussing how they used a metal organic framework (MOF). This acts as a template in creating a conductive porous carbon cage, where sulfur is the host and the sulfur-carbon nanoparticles are the energy storage units where the electrochemical reactions take place.

MOF is a nanomaterial powder that has recently garnered a lot of interest because of its numerous applications, such as carbon dioxide sequestration, gas separation and gas purification.

"Our carbon scaffold acts as a physical barrier to confine the active materials within its porous structure," said researcher Kai Xi of Cambridge. "This leads to improved cycling stability and high efficiency."

Furthermore, the researchers found that by wrapping a thin sheet of graphene around cathodes of lithium-sulfur batteries, they can create a bridge that speeds up the transport of ions and electrons and increases conductivity, thus improving the battery's performance and potentially eliminating performance issues such as low efficiency and battery degradation.

The combination of the graphene wrap and the MOF-derived porous carbon cage creates a composite structure of a porous scaffold that has promising industrial applications.

Xi says the research provides a "basic but flexible approach to both enhance the use of sulfur and improve the cycle stability of batteries." He also says that further modifying the energy storage units, such as doping or coating with a polymer, could still enhance the battery's performance.

The team believes that their novel design, which brings together energy storage and the ion-electron framework, has numerous practical applications, particularly in industries that require high-performance non-topotactic energy storage systems, or systems where chemical reactions do not cause structural changes in the crystalline solids.

Xi says the team is currently working on the development of high-energy density batteries that use hybrid free-standing sulfur cathode systems, which will involve creating novel electrolyte components and lithium "protection layers" to improve batteries' electrochemical performance.

Now Solar Cells made of Animal Blood to Tap Energy

In a move to optimise the cost of solar power, researchers of the premier S N Bose Institute of Basic Sciences have come up with an idea to lessen over-dependence on silicon for creation of solar panels. 

The research by a group of scientists of the internationally known institute has stumbled upon element of hematoporphyrin, a component in Haemoglobin in animal blood or any other type of blood. 

The very component aids in creation of solar panels which can in turn tap solar energy, a senior scientist of the institute elaborated about the project financed by the Centre's Science and Technology Department. 

"Our main aim was to find out a component which would help to tap solar energy and would also bring down the cost of solar panels," Samir Kumar Pal, the lead scientist of the project, told PTI adding this project was set off years back. 

"This component is derived from a blood available from slaughter house. The solar panels built from these component of blood has the same ability as that of solar panels made from silicone. Rather they can work also under cloudy sky," Pal said. 

The solar panel or cells are one cm in breath and one cm in width.

Source : the business standard. 

Kerala University Goes Green with Solar Power

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM:  The biggest grid-connected solar power project by the Agency for Non-conventional Energy and Rural Technology (ANERT) was inaugurated at the Kerala University, Karyavattom campus on Tuesday.

 The power plant, inaugurated by Power Minister Aryadan Mohammed, is capable of generating 1.46 lakh units of electricity a year. The 100 kWp unit, fixed atop the golden jubilee building of the university, was set up under the deposit work scheme of ANERT as part of the university’s solar energy generation and energy conservation programmes, ANERT officials said. 

 Approved by the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE), the unit consists of 400 solar panels each of which has a capacity of 250 Wp. The project cost Rs 99,80,000 and was built with the assistance of an approved ‘channel partner’ of the MNRE. The Power Minister had said that Kerala requires 3700 MW a day, but hydel stations in the state are capable of generating only 1600-1750 MW. The rest is met through power purchases. By 2017, the daily demand would soar to 4670 MW, he said.

 Aryadan Mohammed pointed out that the 200 MW solar power park planned in Kasargode district would be a reality soon. This project is being implemented with the help of the Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI). Kerala University vice chancellor P K Radhakrishnan presided over the function. Power secretary M Sivasankar delivered the keynote address.

Mysuru Cheluvamba Park to be Lit up with Solar Power Soon

Mysuru's famous landmark, Cheluvamba Park, will soon stop buying power from government agencies, and instead, start harnessing solar energy to light up the 4-acre park in west Mysuru. This will be the second park managed by Mysuru City Corporation installed with a solar panel. MCC authorities installed solar panels at Nishat Bagh, popularly known as Kuppanna Park in the city centre in April 2014.…  read more Waaree Launches 'Sunbless' - Plug and Play Solar Park in Maharashtra.

Waaree Energies Limited has announced the launch of its first plug and play solar park in India. The 150-acre 'Sunbless Solar Park' at Murtizapur, near Akola, Maharashtra, has a capacity of up to 30 MW. This park provides land and evacuation facility to the nearest 132/33 kV GSS via double circuit transmission line. It offers facilities such as approach road, fencing, water supply, common infrastructure support and resources. The area receives a GHI of 1881.8 kWh/m² . The park location offers excellent connectivity by road/rail and provides great economies of scale resulting in reduced total cost of ownership. Presently, a 5 MW project is under construction and is set to be commissioned by September 2015.

Speaking at the occasion, Mr Hitesh Doshi, Chairman and Managing Director, said, "Commissioning a solar project within the deadline is critical for its profitability. At times our clients have faced challenges with land acquisition and securing evacuation facilities. Waaree's Sunbless Solar Park will mitigate such risks for our clients and significantly reduce the lead time from concept to commissioning." 

HSBC India To Launch Green Bonds Soon

The Indian subsidiary of international banking giant HSBC is planning to issue its first green bond issue in the country this year.

HSBC India Chairman Naina Lal Kidwai recently announced that the bank will launch green bonds to raise funds for environmentally sustainable projects, and noted that HSBC is the world’s fourth largest issuer of green bonds, and now looking to tap the Indian market as well.

Some Indian private banks have already issued green bonds, while several others are planning to do so. Yes Bank has already raised close to $200 million through two rounds of green bond issues. Yes Bank’s first issue launched in February this year, and was also the first green bond issue in India. The issue was a resounding success, as the bank managed to raise twice the capital it had targeted.

The Indian Export-Import Bank also issued the country’s first dollar-denominated green bonds and it remains the largest issue till date. The Bank managed to raise $500 million.

A number of other private, public-sector, and government institutions are expected to launch green and tax-free bonds in the coming months. Financial institutions in India pledged $57 billion investment in renewable energy projects over the next 5-7 years at a government investors summit in February, and bonds are expected to play a critical role in meeting a bulk of that target.

In addition to green bonds, Kidwai also advocated the creation of yieldcos that allow project developers to bundle up renewable energy assets that can generate predictable cash flows and provide sense of security to the lenders. The concept of yieldco would work perfectly well in India where lenders are still apprehensive about investing in renewable energy projects.