green

The University of Delaware has inched up the record for solar cell efficiency with a new device that can convert 42.8 percent of the light that strikes it into electricity.

That beats the old record of 40.7 percent hit in December. The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, or DARPA, has been funding research to get efficiency up to 50 percent.

The cell, created by Christina Honsberg and Allan Barnett of UD, splits incoming light into three buckets: high energy, low energy, and medium energy light. The light is then directed to different materials, which then extract electrons out … Read more

Technology Partners, one of the first VC firms to get into clean technology, announced it has raised $300 million for its eighth fund.

The firm will use the funds to invest in clean tech companies as well as life sciences and health/lifestyle companies (i.e. obesity and hair removal. It's big business.). The proceeds in the fun will be split evenly between clean companies and health companies. And who knows, it could also overlap as a handful of companies are promoting technology for purifying food and increasing crop yields for organic farming.

Among other companies, Technology Partners has … Read more

Teens who are most active online and influential with peers are also the kids most concerned about the environment, according to a study published Monday by research firm JupiterResearch. So-called green teens are slightly more engaged in a number of activities than the average 13-year-old to 17-year-old, according to the report. (Of the teens surveyed, 38 percent said they were worried about the environment, and 15 percent said they were highly concerned about it.)

Green teens are more apt to listen to music, post a personal page online, respond to an online poll or converse in a chat room, according … Read more

Within the next decade, you might take calls and surf the Web on a diamond-laced handset that would put the iPhone to shame. Unlike high-end, gem-studded cell phones, no bling would sparkle on the shell. But inside, diamond-covered components would enable crisper, faster communications.

Advanced Diamond Technologies is bringing diamond down to size for potential usage in a vast array of products, including wireless phones and medical implants. The company announced last week that it can make the first diamond coatings ideal for use in microelectromechanical devices, such as "tuning forks" in cell phones. The grains in ADT'… Read more

The wind power industry made big strides last year, according to a Worldwatch Institute report released late Thursday.

15,200 megawatts of new wind turbines were installed around the world last year, representing a 26 percent jump in global wind power capacity, according to the study.

By year's end, total wind power capacity exceeded 74,200 megawatts, enough to offset 43 million tons of carbon dioxide, the institute said.

Germany, Spain and the United States are currently the world's top wind power producers, putting out 60 percent of the global total, but the report says the alternative energy … Read more

For those with an eye on green tech, PopSci.com has published an interesting article outlining the steps designers can take to produce a more eco-friendly laptop. Honestly, one thing that really caught my eye about this was the photo--the proposed laptop's sleek design put my boring, black IBM to shame. Although this super laptop has not yet been built, the article's proposed solutions illustrate a device that could marry tech genius and environmental consciousness.

The piece breaks down eight major ecological issues with these ubiquitous gadgets, including the materials used to make them, and then offers solutions. … Read more

Next week, Greenest Host in San Diego is going to start offering carbon-free Web services to consumers.

The company plans to start selling Web hosting services for about $14.95 a month. The trick is that its servers and other systems are powered by solar panels or batteries charged by solar panels. In rare instances, a propane-based generator will kick in, but for the most part the services will not contribute greenhouse gases into the atmosphere.

The solar-powered server center is the creation of Affordable Internet Services Online (AISO), which has been offering environmentally friendly Web hosting for a few … Read more

Flying enthusiasts around the country are descending on Oshkosh, Wisconsin for AirVenture, the biggest annual air show in the United States. It's being held July 23-29 this year and is sponsored by the Experimental Aircraft Association. Hundreds of thousands of aviation fans are expected to view about 10,000 aircraft parked at Oshkosh's Wittman Regional Airport.

At the show, Sonex Aircraft and AeroConversions Products unveiled their "E-Flight Initiative" for driving alternative energy research and development for sport aircraft. They showed off a proof-of-concept prototype electric powerplant that was installed in a Waiex airframe.

For a gallery … Read more

Tesla Motors, the guys with the all-electric sports car, have set a goal of manufacturing 800 cars in their first production year.

The company has already taken deposits for more than 560 2008 Tesla Roadsters, according to a spokesman. The cars sell for $98,000 after a recent price hike from $92,000. If they sell all 800, that will lead to revenue of around $76 million, by my math (average price of 95K x 800).

The company has raised more than $40 million in venture funding.

The Roadster runs on lithium ion batteries and can go from zero to … Read more