Custom Search
Energy
Latest Energy News
£11.5m for aerospace & marine energy
Aerospace and marine energy are attracting more than £11.5m investment from UK government organisations, led by the Technology Strategy Board (TSB). The slant for aerospace is solving high risk challenges, while the angle in marine energy is the nitty, gritty of array technologies.
Whisky biofuel as water loses to wind
THE UK government's review of feed in tariff (FIT) energy payments is estimated to have stalled £100m of hydropower investment in Scotland, while a newcomer Celtic Renewable is to use whisky by-products for the production of biofuels.
Weir acquires valves & pumps, seismic sensors next?
The engineering group Weir has made its second acquisition in the US shale oil and gas sector with the acquisition of Dallas-based US valve maker Novatech for $176m (£113m). Perhaps it should also consider the seismic sensor market too.
Country to coast renewables
Beauly Denny power line upgrades to super pylons; consent for grid allows renewables to connect at Moffat; two consortia off the east coast to develop up to 4.8GW on top of 6.4GW from territorial offshore wind generation and talks to resolve grid generation link variation charges.
Superconductors: Essen & Prague
The RWE Group and its partners are to replace a 1-km-long high-voltage cable connecting two transformer stations in the Ruhr city of Essen with a state-of-the-art superconductor solution. It marks the longest superconductor cable installation in the world.
Superconducting: end to transformers?
For the first time a superconducting current limiter based on yttrium barium copper oxide (YBCO) strip conductors has been installed at a power plant in South Africa. The new technology, co-developed by Karlsruhe Institute of Technology and made by the French Nexans SuperConductors has been taken into use at the Boxberg power plant of Vattenfall.
Scottish global renewables ignore Europe
Scotland is undertaking considerable joint collaborative work with energy researchers across the world, encompassing Hong Kong, India, the Maldives, China and most recently Abu Dhabi. Renewable energy interest however is less solar energy, a market where China already dominates globally (with perhaps the exception of ultra thin solar), and more in wind, wave, tidal power, and second generation bio-fuel. Sadly Scotland seems disinclined to team or advance with its European neighbours, despite Napier nursing solar power research. The two early 2012 concentrated solar power conferences are held in Johannesburg and New Delhi.
One to watch: Process Technology Institute
January 2012 seen the launch of the new TU Delft Process Technology Institute. All Delft University of Technology (research in the field of process technology) will be integrated in this institute.
Infineon trials 300mm power semis
Infineon is expanding its in-house 300mm manufacturing capacity by acquiring land and manufacturing facilities in Dresden which belonged to its former subsidiary Qimonda which went into bankruptcy.
EMEC trials vital energy storage
The 100ft underwater turbine, the world’s first tidal power array has been successfully installed in the seas off Orkney, signalling just one more in an enormous portfolio of activities of in which the European Marine Energy Centre in Orkney is involved, and also involves energy storage trials.
Tug collision & technical failures
The Westminster government recently extended by three months the temporary contract for the two coastguard tugs stationed in the Western and Northern Isle, reports ForArgyll. It did so, while announcing from the end of this contract that the oil and gas industry agreed to provide coverage from its own ‘vessels’
Deep mediterranean KM3Net window
This year, Aberdeen, Strathclyde and Glasgow Universities scientists have played a part in the KM3Net consortium whose project is based on decades-long research projects known as ANTARES, NEMO and NESTOR that exist to monitor neutrinos.
Offshore Wind Supply Chain Conference
Rorward planning procurement strategies for far-shore wind developments is becoming increasingly hard to manage and have critical impact on the overall success of project deliveries moving forwards. The 2nd annual conference is specially tailored to protect future offfshore wind investments.
ABB scoops Newave
Newave of Quartino, Switzerland, founded in 1993 and going public in 2007 has been acquired by Asea Brown Boveri (ABB) which paid cash of CHF56/share to purchase all public shares.
Solar inverters: driving cost down
In its first-ever dissection of a solar power inverter, IHS has determined the bill of materials (BOM) of Power-One Inc's Aurora PVI-4.2-OUTD-S-US inverter, to provide a path-setting benchmark for cost reduction in a market expected to undergo rapid price erosion in the coming years.
Wolfson powers into tablet PC
The Amadeus Systems, which develops and produces low-cost embedded Linux systems has selected Wolfson Microelectronics WM8311 integrated power management subsystem to support its latest processor board, the APF51.
SPRing research on power
"Sustainability Assessment of Nuclear Power: An Integrated Approach" (SPRing) research shows nuclear power could contribute significantly to reducing greenhouse gas emissions in the UK. Interestingly nuclear power remains one of the safest sources of electricity, but its use would lead to considerable impacts on natural resources and the environment, claims the University of Manchester report.
Waving at pandas
Staff from the Orkney-based European Marine Energy Centre (EMEC) have agreed a contract with Ocean University of China to help establish a wave-testing centre.
Two roads to the ISLES
"The Irish Scottish links on Energy Studies" (ISLES) study, which also includes Wales and has a Northern and Southern ISLES link concept concludes that an offshore electric grid connecting Ireland and Britain is feasible within a decade at a likely cost of $8.7bn says the EU-funded report. Hot on the heels of the Marine Energy Science identification of potential new areas for offshore wind energy, the overall plan is beginning to come together.
© Compute Scotland 2010
Website : beachshore