Posted on 07/31/2009 12:08:23 PM PDT by LuxMaker
Trial deployment being started to test the waters
Interest in solar power remains high -- as do the costs associated with deploying the technology. The field is an interesting case; costs have been progressively dropping as efficiencies have been rising. However, there's also concerns about materials and potentially easier to harvest alternatives such as wind and nuclear energy to consider. Ultimately, major adopters could help to tip the scale in solar power's favor by offering the kind of funding needed to create mass production on the massive scale needed to drop cost.
One such major adopter may soon commit to solar power -- Walmart. Known for its financial savvy and cutthroat competitive nature, Walmart has started a trial deployment at a few stores. If it deems the results acceptable, it plans to roll out solar panels on the roofs of all its stores.
That makes for a deployment of approximately 35 square miles. That in turn would result in -- estimating conservatively 3 watts per square foot -- about 3 GW of total capacity.
(Excerpt) Read more at dailytech.com ...
From the standpoint of the interconnection (the grid, if you will), it's not significant as a generating source until it starts reaching the megawatt level. I don't mean megawatts of reduced load, I mean megawatts of energy in excess of load being pushed back into the grid. Then, a simple tabulation system, a modem, and a moderately good internet connection are all that are required.
We've been telemetering energy-generating industrial customers using 1200 bps modems for years. Only in the last 10 years or so have we started using broadband.
Cool - extra power bonus in a thunderstorm! :-)
I find it doubtful that this will ever be economically feasible. Shell recently got out of solar, saying that it would take a quantum leap in technology for solar energy to be profitable.
I hate shopping at WalMart since they’ve gone green.
Unless it is full sun thru their skylights it is too dark in there now to see what I’m buying. And I HATE the new low-flow mens room. It makes hand washing a 20 minute adventure.
Land? Have you seen the roof area of a typical Wallyworld? The land is already spoken for, but the roof is, well, open and available. It could also have the added benefit, depending on how it's installed, of shading the roof from direct sunlight, possibly helping to reduce cooling requirements during summer months and in areas of the south year round.
I mean, yea, solar has it's issues, but it's Wallyworld's money, and if they feel they can justify it, and it will provide them some benefit, let them have at it. And if it helps lower solar costs for anyone else in the process; what's to complain about?
“It is simply outrageous that residential solar is given huge subsidies”
Yep and I won’t take that money. Who knows what kind of strings are attached and I won’t steal my neighbors money that way.
Solar has its uses. But residential or even commercial for Walmart isn’t one of them.
Google spent an enormous amount of money on solar for their data centers. It give them about 20 seconds of electricity each year.
/johnny
“Pretty sure I want them with solar or wind, not fissionable material.”
I’d rather they provided customer support and let the energy company worry about providing electricity.
I'll be adding a wind generator (free, all I have to do is remove it) to the system this fall for winter use.
I'm also building my own house, and it is VERY energy efficient. I don't have lots of big appliances, and NO TV.
If you decide to play with it, use Trace or Outback equipment. They are bulletproof and generally have an upgrade path.
/johnny
I’m completely solar too...off the grid for energy, water, waste (composting toilets), wood stove heat (air tight, energy efficient, very minimal pollution). Paid for it myself—no subsidies—over the course of five years. Great investment and I feel that I have some semblance of control over my life.
/johnny
Actually, it could be a great business decision.
If a whole area loses power, and people still need to buy things, guess where they are going to go? To the one (or few) place that has power and lights, and working registers.
It’s not a terrible idea from that point of view. Plus their perishables will still have refrigeration.
Until they mandate your evacuation at gunpoint.
When I say that solar is a niche producer, I think this is the niche I'm talking about. So I don't think we're in disagreement here.
What I don't agree with are the big solar farms. There are two near me, one is 9000 acres to produce 500 megawatts, the other is 4500 for 250 megawatts. 13000 acres to produce what a natgas plant could produce on 40. Wind power is similarly wasteful of land.
But rooftop panels to supplement, to handle day-time peaks such as your HVAC load, that has promise as the costs come down.
They can't replace the big power plants, but they can take the edge off the daytime peaks.
Algore wants 10,000sq miles of desert for a solar farm. That's absurd!
Green fad or not...it is a great feeling being off the grid. The word ‘independent’ immediately comes to mind. And what’s boring about solar energy?
I'm not asking antagonizing questions, believe it or not. I have an interest in the potential for electric substitution in the transport sector, and energy storage and portability are one major issue, along with range and environmental controls (heating in winter and A/C in summer). I see those as the major challenges right now for EVs. I really believe that costs can be brought down, but performance compared to gasoline-fueled vehicles is a tougher nut to crack.
I would like to pick your brain. I am writing a How-To book with a supporting website on designing, building, and living off grid, but from a purely practical (conservative) point of view. I think that with the upcoming cap and trade legislation and the “Smart Grid”, off grid living will start to be a bit more popular.
I have found it difficult to find people that have done it on practical principal versus carbon foot print thinking.
Didn't see any antagonism in your questions. They were all legitimate engineering questions.
Remember that as a geek, I also use low cost, low energy consumption tech on the consumption side. The smaller the average power requirement, the smaller the PV system.
/johnny
Ask away, but maybe on the freepmail side, so we don't clutter the forum.
/johnny
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