September 25, 2012

Energy

China prioritises off-grid power

China may be the world’s biggest emitter of greenhouse gases but it’s also the biggest green economy.

Now Beijing has asked local governments across the nation to submit proposals for “non-grid-connected” (ie off-grid) solar power generation projects, whose total scale exceeds targets set under the current 5 year plan by 50%.
The development comes at a time when international demand for solar panels is weak and industry overcapacity and corporate losses are severe, said state-owned media. It would help domestic solar panels and parts makers, but analysts said implementation would bypass the powerful power distribution monopoly State Grid Corp.
The National Energy Administration this week,demanded all the provinces and municipalities to submit implementation proposals, the China Securities Journal reported, citing unnamed sources.

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Composting toilets – Everything you wanted to know,

For users seeking a toilet for an off-grid site rather than one which will clean itself and lower its own seat, a composting toilet could be just the ticket.

Modern composting toilets – also called waterless toilets – originated in Sweden in 1939. Engineer Rikard Lindstrom was looking for a toilet that wouldn’t pollute the Baltic Sea near his home in Sweden. He launched Clivus Multrum in 1962, and the company and others like it would eventually spread to the United States in the early 1970s. Today, composting toilets are used in a variety of home situations.

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Energy

Super-efficient generator

Watch out for Shannon Miller and her company EtaGen. Her generators may soon be providing a power solution in places with little sun or wind.

It’s hard to radically improve the internal-combustion engine. But Shannon Miller may have done it, by getting it to work at extremely high compression and expansion ratios. Miller’s engines use 33 percent less fuel than conventional gas-powered generators.

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Urban

Mitsubishi Smart House

Service promises to keep energy bills down and an eye on grandma

Is today’s smart home technology, which connects a household’s appliances to the Internet, ready for tomorrow? It’s getting there. Companies are now carrying out pilot projects to determine how much and what other kinds of utility these connections can offer consumers.

Mitsubishi is conducting an experiment to connect its HEMS with the Internet at its Ofuna Smart House, a white-and-gray detached house built near JR Ofuna Station in Kanagawa Prefecture.

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