Monthly Archives: February 2009
In an idea that could profitably be copied everywhere, the Ottawa Public Library has made 75 Kill-a-Watt meters available for residents to borrow. A Kill-a-Watt meter is a small electronic device that you plug into a power outlet and, when you plug an appliance into it, you get a reading of how much electricity is being used.This feedback can allow you to cut your energy use, discover which appliances drain energy even when they appear to be turned off and get rid of any appliances that are draining too much energy.
The CSIRO has developed a way to network household and commercial fridges together in a way that lets them ‘negotiate’ with each other the best time to consume electricity. According to Sam West, an engineer at the CSIRO. “A lot of people don’t realise that fridges cycle on and off regularly, which means you’ve got a bit of discretion about when they use power”. The controller enables communication between other fridges on the network and also the power source. It has the potential to smooth out fluctuations in electricity demand by enabling fridges to manage available power. Simulations have shown … Continue Reading
Videos
Renewables News- New Aussie Technology to Clean Polluted WaterScientists from Deakin University, together with French colleagues, say that they have manufactured a lightweight and reusable material that can absorb up to 33 times its weight in a wide range of spilt oils, chemical solvents and dyes, while repelling … Continue Reading → […]
- Aussie Researchers Make Efficient Solar Cells from Low-grade SiliconResearchers at the University of New South Wales have found a way to make very high efficiency solar cells out of cheap, low-grade silicon. It has been known for several decades that hydrogen atoms can be introduced into the atomic … Continue Reading → […]
- First Aussie “Hot Rocks” Power Plant Begins ProducingThe first power plant in Australia to produce electricity using an enhanced geothermal ("hot rocks") system has begun producing electricity in the far north-east of South Australia. The one-megawatt Habanero pilot plant near outback Innamincka is operated by Geodynamics. Geodynamics … Continue Reading → […]
- New Aussie Technology to Clean Polluted Water
