KMB Design Group, a Solar Engineering Company, delivers the latest news on all things solar and alternative energy. Our goal is to provide information, knowledge and resources in the exciting and constantly evolving solar power industry. Take a look at the photovoltaic developments trending today.
National Lab Helps Establish New Quality Standards for PV Modules
For the past five years, researchers at the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) have worked toward helping establish an international quality standard for manufacturing photovoltaic (PV) modules. PV manufacturers will use the new standard to increase the level of confidence, investors, utilities, and consumers have in solar panel safety and reliability. This in turn should decrease the costs of financing for solar projects. Find out more about the standards, known as IEC 62941.
Renewable Energy Market Forces: Driving a Need for Change in Strategy in 2016
The growing pains of a quickly transforming alternative energy industry were prominent throughout the past year. “While the trending growth in renewable energy is increasingly clear, major energy companies are evaluating, if not outright struggling with, the most effective strategies to navigate in a changing landscape.” See more at Renewable Energy World.
Alphabet’s solar-powered wi-fi balloons are deploying this year
The plans to bring internet access to remote regions via fleets of solar-powered balloons is becoming a reality. Project Loon is starting a testing service with carriers in Indonesia.
“The concept would involve mounting solar panels on high-altitude polymer balloons, which could be tethered to the ground or float free. During the day, electricity would be sent back to earth via cable or transmitter, with a portion of the current producing hydrogen from an attached fuel cell. At night, the fuel cell takes over, providing 24-hour energy.”
New technique for turning sunlight into hydrogen
A new photoelectrode, inspired by the way plants convert sunlight into energy, boosts the ability of solar water-splitting to produce hydrogen. This simple system may serve as an efficient platform for solar energy conversion, utilizing the whole UV-visible range of solar spectrum based on two-dimensional plasmonic photoelectrodes.” Find out more about this multilayered photoelectrode at Science Daily.
Alternative Energy Evaluation: Net energy analysis should become a standard policy tool, scientists say
It takes energy to make energy. Net energy analysis has allowed researchers to evaluate the long-term sustainability of technologies by comparing how much energy they produce over a lifetime with the energy required to build and maintain it. Science Daily reports on why net energy is important and how it can identify potential costs and barriers to technology development that a traditional financial analysis might not.
Alternative Energy & Engineering Services
KMB Design Group is considered a leading alternative energy consulting firm in the solar industry providing photovoltaic design and engineering services. Our Solar engineers will give you full analysis and let you know how much photovoltaic can be drawn with considerations such as location, obstructions and orientations. We will also provide you with the best alternative energy designs to give you maximum output. Licensed in 49 states, we have the ability to work nationally without limitations.