TechBlog

In a revolutionary leap that could transform solar power from a marginal, boutique alternative into a mainstream energy source, MIT researchers have overcome a major barrier to large-scale solar power: storing energy for use when the sun doesn’t shine.

Until now, solar power has been a daytime-only energy source, because storing extra solar energy for later use is prohibitively expensive and grossly inefficient. With this announcement, MIT researchers have hit upon a simple, inexpensive, highly efficient process for storing solar energy.

Continue reading ‘Major Discovery - From MIT Primed To Unleash Solar Revolution’ »

The recent energy crisis and soaring oil prices have compelled the human race to look for alternate energy sources, such solar, wind, geothermal, nuclear and bio fuels. Harnessing of nuclear power is getting new impetus.

Continue reading ‘Solar Cell Growth Flaring’ »

In industrial applications, a digital-to-analog (D-to-A) interface may be rather straightforward but the analog-to-digital (A-to-D) converter (ADC) can be a challenge. The capacitive input stage of both delta-sigma and successive approximation register (SAR) interfaces used for the ADC requires signal capture within a limited time frame. An improper signal chain can cause ringing and oscillation and result in inaccurate readings. However, this is just one of many factors to consider when selecting an ADC.

Signal Chain

High-performance ADCs convert the output of an analog sensor to a digital format for a microcontroller or digital signal processor. The selection of the ADC must be part of a systems approach. “When somebody starts a design, you start with the sensor, you see what kind of output impedance it has and you choose an amplifier and resistors around the amplifier and you choose that configuration based on your sensor,” says Chuck Sins, applications engineer, National Semiconductor. “Based on the accuracy of your sensor and what you are ultimately trying to achieve, then I choose the resolution of the ADC.”

Continue reading ‘Signal Conditioning Issues’ »

It’s one of those everyday annoyances, finding yourself with a flat battery in any one of the gadgets we carry around constantly now. I would love the option of charging your phone or your ipod while you’re out and about. And it looks like that may be possible soon, with a recent report in Nature on power production from nanotextiles (watch me carefully avoid the use of the pun ‘power dressing’!) The textiles consist of zinc oxide nanowires which generate electricity by the piezoelectric effect, in other words, produce electricity when under mechanical stress. The zinc oxide nanowires are embedded around a Kevlar fibre to produce something looking like a bottle-brush. Some are then coated in a nanolayer of gold, to act as an electrode. These are aligned and the ‘bristles’ rub past each other, creating the electrical current (see picture). Once optimised, this nanotextile should provide a simple and cheap way to convert energy of walking into electrical energy. This report follows an earlier report of a knee brace designed to harvest energy from walking. Maybe one day we will be able to throw our old chargers out and simply plug in and go for a stroll!