Breakthrough in solar photovoltaics [Company says it can make solar electricity for 5c/kwh]

The Hindu ^ | Feb 03, 2005 | N.N. Sachitanand

[Principled]

...CEO Martin Roscheisen (listed by Fortune in 2003 among the top ten U.S. entrepreneurs below 40 years of age), has some top-notch Indian technologists assisting it.

I wonder if they call the US with technical questions... and complain about our accent?

[norwaypinesavage]

I have read the "primer" and I still believe that putting a 110 million pound satellite, supplying hundreds of millions of watts of power, into geosynchronous orbit and servicing it with a yet to be built orbiter, receiving the power in a 100 square Km yet to be built antenna array that passes cows and light is a theoretical (pipe) dream.

[BRITinUSA]

So could a smaller version fit on the roof of a car and connect to a rechargeable battery (for when the sun goes in)? If so would this provide a reasonable vehicle ?

[Porterville]

sweet- And I thought I was going to have to rely on aluminum tinfoil warming water on a sunny day.

[RightWhale]

This is a bogus number. The real number is dollars per watt. The cost has been $5 per watt, at least. To light a 100 watt lightbulb costs $500, just for starters. Forget the watthours BS.

[savedbygrace]

Oh yeah...we need one more thing...some State to volunteer to be covered with solar panels. Preferably a sunny one.

Mister Chairman, I nominate California . . .

[Salgak]

110 million pound structures are everywhere.

No, it's not something we could start doing today. But if we wanted to, we could start the project, have the first powersat online in about 15 years, and have financial payoff inside of 30 years. . .and also have the capability to produce an infinite number of additional powersats. Not to mention a full industrial capability in high orbit and on the Moon. And the technology required is old and proven. Sounds like a win-win to me. . .

[Donald Rumsfeld Fan]

That was tongue in cheek. the 2.4 mega watts is insane.

The 120 watt per sq inch is probably off by three orders of magnitude. Just a guess but it might be a typo. 120 mWatt in*2 sounds more realistic to me. That would yield an output for the 140 ft*2 module of 2.4 kWatt. About enough to power about 20 120 watt light bulbs.

[mdmathis6]

the must mean milliwatts....bet the MSM scum reporter got it wrong!

[anymouse]

I suggest that you do a little research on the subject. Significant research and development has been done on the ground side of microwave power transmission over the last couple of decades. The Japanese have a long-term exposure research facility testing the affects on plants and animals under a typical active rectenna. The radiation flux levels are realatively low - so you won't get pre-cooked beef nor limp lettuce.

But hey, if you want to live in fear and ignorance of microwave power transmission, who am I to stop you? :)

[js1138]

It's really amazing how ignorant reporters and editors are, that they could let this slip past. It's like saying the sun sets in the East.

[norwaypinesavage]

"if you want to live in fear and ignorance of microwave power transmission, who am I to stop you? :)"

I live in no fear of microwave transmission. I prefer to spend my near term dreams on feasible technology. The ability to continuously beam thousands of watts of power, hundreds of miles has not been demonstrated, much less the ability to beam hundreds of megawatts of power, thousands of miles. We are scores of orders of magnitude off in technology for this technique to be feasible. My problem is not fear, nor ignorance, it is reality.

[Toddsterpatriot]

Mercury?

[Ditto]

The flagship product, Nanosolar SolarPly, is a 14 feet x 10 feet solar electricity module delivering 120 watts per square inch at 110V.

If this isn't a misprint, it is total BS. Quick calculations say it would be 17,280 W per sq. ft.

But the solar constant at the very upper level of the earth's atmosphere is only 1376 W per square meter, or 127.4 W per sq. ft.!

This is saying they can collect more than a 1000 times more energy than the sun even delivers before it is reduced by 80 miles of atmosphere.

[finnigan2]

I make it a point to never, ever invest in projects run by Indian or Pakastani interests, no matter what their qualifications or claims. I've been stung several times by these operators. They're not as shady as the Nigerian scammers, but they do seem to specialize in over promoting their "inventions" and then quietly folding their tent with all the investor's funds.

[Rakkasan1]

put them all over on top of blue state houses. that way they can suffer from P.E.S.T and S.A.D. at the same time.

[expatpat]

How many of these hypes have we seen in the last 30 years? This is another failure in progress.

[Fast1]

LMAO

[BurbankKarl]

There is a Canadian company coming out with solar paint in 2006.

[festus]

Now all we have to do is eliminate nighttime and cloudiness,

No silly. All you have to do is plugin the lamp and shine it on the photocell......... ;-)