| THE SEPTEMBER 2006 ISSUE OF SCIENTIFIC
| |
| | miles from rocket-science - in fact it's
|
| AMERICAN was dedicated to exploring the
| |
| | the simplest of the bunch in this edition
|
| future of energy beyond the carbon era.
| |
| | of a magazine that was pitched at
|
| The editors share a sobering outlook:
| |
| | everyone between novice constructor and
|
| 'Decades may pass before hydrogen-powered
| |
| | electronics professional.
|
| trucks and cars relegate gasoline-and
| |
| | Someone with barely any experience could
|
| diesel-fueled vehicles to antique auto
| |
| | have thrown a demonstration version of
|
| shows.' Until that happens, we'll
| |
| | this circuit together in fifteen minutes
|
| 'muddle-through' somehow. (Scientific
| |
| | flat. And all the parts were available
|
| American: 3)
| |
| | from specialist suppliers in London and
|
| But why does it take so long for some
| |
| | south-east England.
|
| energy technologies to get from the lab
| |
| | The listed supplier for 'assorted
|
| and industrial applications to the
| |
| | selenium and silicon cells' is
|
| service of consumers? Take solar panels,
| |
| | International Rectifier. I contacted the
|
| for example.
| |
| | company to find out how much a similar
|
| A high-street electronics chain in London
| |
| | solar-cell cost at the time Bollen wrote
|
| now sells educational solar-power kits
| |
| | his feature.
|
| for around the £20 mark. Serious,
| |
| | A single cell measuring about a
|
| roof-dwelling solar panels that will
| |
| | centimetre by two centimetres cost four
|
| power equipment in your home sell in DIY
| |
| | dollars, right up to 1966. In his
|
| superstores at around £2,500.
| |
| | feature, Bollen describes various
|
| That's a price-tag for the wealthy or
| |
| | combinations between one cell and four,
|
| very committed, but at least consumers
| |
| | so the most expensive part of his circuit
|
| can push their trolleys past the
| |
| | cost between four and 16 dollars, or
|
| technology
| |
| | about $25-100 dollars in today's money.
|
| SOLAR PANELS HAVE ONLY RECENTLY APPEARED
| |
| | World's first solar-powered car: 1912
|
| on the shelves of retail outlets, so
| |
| | But what came back from International
|
| you'd forgive them for posing as new
| |
| | Rectifier (IR) proved far more
|
| technology. But they're not. While
| |
| | interesting than price information. It
|
| England was priming itself for what was
| |
| | turns out that the company had
|
| to become its most famous World Cup, a
| |
| | demonstrated the world's first
|
| contributor to the July 1966 edition of
| |
| | solar-powered car - a 1912 model of the
|
| Wireless World faced a copy deadline for
| |
| | Baker Electric - as early as 1958. They
|
| the magazine. His name was D. Bollen, and
| |
| | achieved the stunt by making a
|
| he provided a circuit for a solar-powered
| |
| | high-output solar panel - less than two
|
| battery charger.
| |
| | metres long and just over a metre wide -
|
| As he put it: 'The ability of solar cells
| |
| | from a whole bank of little solar cells.
|
| to convert sunlight directly into useful
| |
| | Commercial, industrial and military
|
| electrical energy has been well
| |
| | customers went on to buy solar panels
|
| demonstrated in satellite applications.
| |
| | from International Rectifier.
|
| An advantage of the solar battery is that
| |
| | SO WHY HAS IT TAKEN ALMOST FIFTY YEARS
|
| is allows true, unattended operation in
| |
| | for solar panels to reach our shops?
|
| locations remote from a power supply
| |
| | Southface, a non-profit,
|
| and...promises an outstanding degree of
| |
| | sustainable-living organisation based in
|
| reliability.' (Wireless World: 343)
| |
| | the USA, point out that solar-cell
|
| Over four meticulously-illustrated pages,
| |
| | technology has had been uselessly
|
| Bollen goes on to provide a blueprint for
| |
| | competing against the relative fall in
|
| a circuit that will trickle-charge a
| |
| | price that occurred in the fossil-fuel
|
| battery from a solar cell. Bollen shows
| |
| | market in the nineties.
|
| that you can run something that uses one
| |
| | But Southface believe that major orders
|
| milliamp of current for '2.74 hours' in a
| |
| | of consumer solar cell units in countries
|
| 24 hour period. He leaves us guessing
| |
| | such as Japan may finally signal the
|
| what application he had in mind for this
| |
| | start of an era when solar cell
|
| tiny current, but the rig could also have
| |
| | production will benefit from economies of
|
| powered the bulb of a toy torch for a few
| |
| | scale.
|
| seconds a day.
| |
| | I hope so. In the meantime, it's anyone's
|
| Still, the circuit is there and the date
| |
| | guess how long will it take for the
|
| is mid-1966. Don't be distracted by
| |
| | consumer-led technology revolution to
|
| Bollen's talk of 'satellite
| |
| | swat our energy problems.
|
| applications'. His circuit is a million
| |
| |
|
