The brainiacs over at MIT claim to have discovered a way of storing solar power. They have effectively built a sun battery.
In one hour, the amount of Sun which hits the face of the Earth would provide enough energy to power the whole World for one year.
To utilize all this ‘free and abundant energy‘, they have figured out a way of efficiently splitting water into hydrogen and oxygen using Earth abundant materials. MIT also claim they can safely and easily extract hydrogen using water at atmospheric pressure and room temperature.
Nine quadrillion, that’s (9,000,000,000,000,000) kilo watts of solar energy fall on the continental United States every hour. This is the equivalent energy available from 4.25 trillion barrels of oil per day. Utilizing just 0.001% of this renewable resource would satisfy all our energy requirements.
Read more solar facts
Daniel G. Nocera, the Henry Dreyfus Professor of Energy at MIT has developed a new catalyst, consisting of cobalt metal, phosphate and an electrode. When the catalyst is placed in water and electricity runs through the electrode, oxygen gas is produced. When another catalyst is used to produce hydrogen gas, the oxygen and hydrogen can be combined inside a fuel cell, creating carbon-free electricity to power a house or an electric car, day or night.
So what does all this mean?
It simply means it’s possible to store energy for use when the sun doesn’t shine. Home owners could use their solar panels during the day to power their home, whilst also using the energy to split water into hydrogen and oxygen for storage. At night , the stored hydrogen and oxygen could be recombined using a fuel cell to generate power while the solar panels are inactive.
For more information on the MIT Energy Initiative, click here.
Could this be the next phase in large-scale deployment of solar powered devices? Are we really be on the cusp of making the transition from fossil fuels to sustainable, renewable fuel sources such as solar power a reality?
Perhaps the oil barons will have their final say, making sure that this technology, like so many others (Tesla, Joe Cell Device, Stan Meyer, etc) are brushed under the carpet. We are left with no choice.
We are ‘forced’ into using the ‘black gold’ for as long as the fat cats dictate, or until their bulging pockets can’t take any more corrupt money.
What are your thoughts? Do you believe there is more to the oil crisis than we are led to believe?
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Tags: hydrogen | Solar power | sun battery
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6 Responses to “The Solar Power Revolution beckons”
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August 15th, 2008 at 11:25 am
Hi,
Amazing discovery by MITians and thanks for posting it here. I have one objection though - crude is not black gold, its black goo. Calling it gold is offensive to green lovers. You are right the barons will not let it go off so easily but its our duty to spread the word. So I am putting a permanent link to your blog on mine.
Harish’s last blog post..S&P 500 as on 15th Aug 2008
August 15th, 2008 at 12:11 pm
How we do hope that some sort of energy can be found that doesn’t hurt the planet any more than it has. Sadly due to our years already spent on our planet - I doubt we’ll see this in our life time - maybe the next. Thanks for some super info and good thinking.
August 15th, 2008 at 1:50 pm
Hey that’s a neat technology over there especially when it works to store the energy for use later part. I wonder why this hasn’t gone full scale just yet and introduce it to every parts of the world. I’m sure everyone needs it.
August 15th, 2008 at 5:56 pm
@Harish
MITians - ROFL good one. I apologise for calling oil - black gold. It certainly is black goo, but goo which makes the world’s economies turn, hence the reference to it being called black gold.
I am so glad you are helping spread the word Harish, keep up the great work.
@Starbright
Thanks for those kind words. I may have to disagree with you to a degree. You’re right in thinking we may never see this kind of technology in our lifetimes. However, we must stop this method of thinking. If enough people learn, read and educate themselves on the alternative energy sources available, then it will be much harder for the oil barons, Illuminati to control Us.
We must all learn the REAL truth for ourselves, only then will there be any chance of salvation. Spend some time researching the following Joe Cell device, Stan Meyer, UFO’s from the 1940’s. Let me know how you get on and we’ll go from there.
@green blog
In a word - Suppression. This is why such technologies aren’t prolific. Why should they? After all if there’s not a buck to made out of something then why bother.
This is the unfortunate way in which we all live. People think dollar not salvation, they think greed rather than hope.
WE HAVE TO CHANGE OUR MINDSET IN ORDER TO EVOLVE.
Learn, read and educate yourselves people, for the crunch time is rapidly approaching. Will you be ready?
August 15th, 2008 at 7:00 pm
WOW! great minds do think alike! Look how ingenius we really are when our backs are pushed to the wall by these greedy jerks. They cannot brush this type of creativity under the rug when the internet is alive and well and for the world to see. It would give me great pleasure to see the cosmic justice served upon them as they have bitten the hands that have feed them for years!
BTW, you are now the proud member of Forced Green’s blog roll…… fancy that!
Cheers!
August 15th, 2008 at 7:54 pm
Solar, or other alternate energy, are still brushed off under the carpet like you say. But I believe that one of these days, solar energy will become the main source of energy (I hope anyway).
In the mean time, thanks to people like you who keeps on educating the population.
TropiCat’s last blog post..To Buy or to Rent when Moving Abroad