Issue link: http://cp.revolio.com/i/356
49 WWW.hPLUSMAgAzIne.CoM 49 WWW.hPLUSMAgAzIne.CoM GEOTHERMAL: WE'RE GENERATING STEAM HEAT geothermal energy might conjure images of geysers, hot springs, and Iceland. but the cutting edge is with engineered geothermal, taking advantage of the natural geological heat available just about everywhere (no nearby volcanoes required). Also known as "hot rock" geothermal, the process pumps water to around fi ve kilometers underground, where the pressure keeps temperatures high. It turns out that the costs aren't all that high for setting up an engineered geothermal generator, and that the system can even be used for limited carbon sequestration. What could it offer? A 2007 MIT study argued that hot rocks geothermal could meet a signifi cant percentage of US energy demand -- in principle, up to 100%. Proximity: Possible now, but probably fi ve to ten years from serious testing. Prognosis: Could end up being the replacement "base-load" power for areas using a lot of intermittent wind and solar. SOLAR: FLEXIBLE AND UBIQUITOUS glass-plate solar panels, using silicon or germanium, remain the highest-effi ciency solar power technologies. Unfortunately, these panels are still typically big, brittle, and expensive. but a real solar breakthrough is just around the corner — and will come not through effi ciency, but through ubiquity, driven by both reduced costs and wider applicability. Welcome to the world of fl exible solar. Flexible plastic photovoltaics and paint-on solar dyes will allow previously non- energy-producing surfaces — such as walls and windows — to become micro-sources of power. new production techniques, such as those developed by nanosolar, get away from glass plates, and can cut production by 90%, immediately making solar competitive with even cheap coal power. on the horizon, carbon-nanotube solar promises to add energy production and storage to nearly any manufacturing material. Proximity: Possibly this year, but last-minute glitches may mean an early 2010s emergence. Prognosis: The technology is coming together, but the real question is how long it will take product, building and urban designers to take advantage of the new materials. HYDROKINETIC: THE MOTION OF THE OCEAN hydrokinetic power is undoubtedly the dark horse energy technology. Despite studies from energy think tanks showing that it could provide upwards of 30% of power needs in seaside nations, cleanly and at low cost, few people have heard of it. but wave power is already starting to… well, make waves. Simply put, hydrokinetic power turns the regular, predictable motion of waves, tides and currents into electricity. Some designs just bob up and down, while others act like undersea wind turbines. one design, still in its early stages, takes advantage of a technology developed for Cold War submarines — the magnetohydrodynamic drive — to produce potentially vast amounts of power. And most of these aren't just engineering prototypes — working wave power systems are now being deployed along the oregon and Portuguese coastlines, delivering hundreds of kilowatts of power — with more to come. Proximity: It's here. get used to it. Prognosis: Funding for it remains low, so it will take awhile before people really notice its potential.