energy

Renewables: The once and future energy source

In the old days, renewable energy was the best option available. Then it became a social statement. Now with fits and starts, it's creeping toward the mainstream.

To give CNET readers some perspective on renewable energy, we've assembled a slideshow on renewable energy through the ages, its present form, and some ideas as to where it's going.

The history of using the wind, sun, and water reaches back to antiquity. But what's remarkable about many renewable-energy technologies being pursued today--solar, wind, geothermal, and bioenergy--is that today's product ideas often have roots in research begun after … Read more

At ARPA-E, energy meets innovation

The ARPA-E Energy Innovation Summit is a showcase for startups and research organizations that have made advances in the path to cleaner energy. Speakers include Bill Gates, Energy Secretary Steven Chu, Xerox CEO Ursula Burns, and former President Bill Clinton.

Five things we learned at the ARPA-E Summit Scientific research and entrepreneurship in clean energy is alive and well at the ARPA-E Summit. (Posted in Cutting Edge by Martin LaMonica) February 29, 2012 7:05 AM PT

Bill Gates: U.S. energy research underfunded Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates laments the state of funding for energy research and development in the … Read more

Airborne Laser hits the off switch

It was supposed to be a weapon of the future. Now the Airborne Laser is communing with the ghosts of aircraft past.

Earlier this month, the Airborne Laser, a seriously tricked-out Boeing 747-400 Freighter, arrived at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base in Arizona, where it has been consigned to a sprawling and dusty final resting place known as the "Boneyard" (the Air Force's Aerospace Maintenance and Regeneration Group, under its formal name).

Officially on the books as the YAL-1A Airborne Laser Test Bed, the big aircraft with the bulbous nose was designed to shoot down ballistic missiles. The … Read more

Clean-tech startup GreatPoint scales up in China

GreatPoint Energy has completed a $1.25 billion deal to build the first large-scale plant for converting coal to natural gas in China, a sign of how U.S. energy technologies are often being commercialized overseas.

The Wall Street Journal on Friday reported that China Wanxiang Holdings will invest $420 million in Cambridge, Mass.-based GreatPoint Energy, the largest equity investment by a Chinese company in a venture-backed U.S. company. Wanxiang will finance construction of the plant, with the first phase to be completed by 2015, according to the Journal.

The project in China, which the company has been … Read more

MySpace got its groove back

HTC plays with streaming music, psychiatrists study Internet addiction, and MySpace beats on with the MySpace Music Player.

Links from Wednesday's episode of Loaded:

MySpace Music takes off HTC working on streaming music Apple releasing monthly labor reports Another solar company bankruptcy Internet addiction an official affliction? Subscribe: iTunes (MP3) | iTunes (320x180) | iTunes (HD) | RSS (MP3) | RSS (320x180) | RSS HD

Sony envisions future with pay-as-you-go power

Sony is looking to revolutionize the inefficient way in which we consume power.

A new concept video from the electronics giant shows how we could use power more efficiently in the year 2030 by switching to smart outlets with authentication and wireless charging on a broad scale, assuming we survive the zombie Mayan apocalypse.

The prototype power outlet, integrated with a short-range wireless FeliCa transmitter (and a new RFID over power line technology), allows the user to swipe a pay card across the faceplate and pay for energy on the spot. What makes it truly interesting is if humankind keeps progressing towards alternative energies (such as wind, solar, and biomass), then our outlets could give us options as to what source from which we obtain our power. The video description notes that with this outlet, "the user can actively control and manage power consumption on a user basis as well as on a device basis." … Read more

Startup takes wood pellets in, turns out 'biogasoline'

For a new crop of biofuel companies, ethanol is out and "biogasoline" is in.

One of them is Primus Green Energy, which plans to open a demonstration plant by the end of the year that will convert wood pellets into high-octane gasoline. The Hillsborough, N.J.-based company intends to raise $50 million to $100 million this year for a commercial-scale plant that would start producing at higher volumes in 2015.

Many companies break down biomass into sugar through different methods and then ferment that to make ethanol or speciality chemicals. Primus Green Energy and others are seeking … Read more

Engineered carbon gives batteries, ultracaps a boost

To build a better energy storage device, startup EnerG2 is making better carbon.

The company today flipped the switch on a factory in Albany, Ore., that will turn out a resin used in the manufacture of batteries and ultracapacitors. Its engineered carbon material improves the performance of existing energy storage devices, promising lower prices for hybrid vehicles or grid storage.

The first customers for EnerG2's product are ultracapacitor makers who can expect 25 percent to 30 percent better energy storage capacity, said company COO and CFO Chris Wheaton. Lithium ion and lead acid batteries can get a three times … Read more

Solar tower will power Las Vegas at night

SolarReserve has completed the central point of a solar project that uses molten salt storage to deliver power to the grid well after the sun has gone down.

The startup company today said it has completed the 540-foot tower of the Crescent Dunes Solar Energy Project near Tonopah, Nev., which is expected to start delivering 110 megawatts by the end of 2013. When it comes online, it's projected to have 10 hours of storage, the longest full-load storage capacity for a solar plant.

Adding storage turns solar into a continuous power source and allows project developers to earn more … Read more

Nest vows to fight Honeywell thermostat suit

Nest Labs today said it will "vigorously defend" itself from a patent infringement lawsuit filed by thermostat giant Honeywell.

The startup issued a statement two days after it got hit with the suit along with Best Buy, which sells its smart thermostat. The lawsuit seeks damages and an injunction to halt the sales of Nest's Learning Thermostat.

Nest Labs' statement from today is:

"We at Nest are proud of creating products that bring true innovation to home efficiency and we are continuing to innovate and bring products to market. The Nest Learning Thermostat is already making … Read more