solar power generation. (Austin, El Paso, Abilene: city hall, coop, credit)

[Trainwreck20]

Actually, the FutureGen coal plants will use the CO2 for oil field use to extract additional oil out of formerly 'dead' fields. The real cost of sequestering is in the piping infrastructure, and the pipe construction would be offset by the oil production. Once the pipe are completed, they can be used to also inject into brine fields below ground that will react with the CO2. The ongoing cost of sequestering will be minor compared to initial construction.

The whole intent of FG is to demonstrate that coal can be used for power generation cleanly and cost efficiently, and, personally, I think it is going to work - at least along the gulf coast, where brine areas are plentiful. The resulting power generation will be almost zero emission.

[loves2read]

ZERO ENERGY HOMES -- Depends on what you consider "zero" energy--most people consider 0 energy to mean using minimal amounts of electricity to power home's needs--where there might be solar gens that can sell back to electric provider grid---
they built one in Frisco about 3-4 years ago in Parade of Home show that cost over a million dollars...
unless it is a custom build where people could afford to spend whatever to pay the electric--no ---
some people are trying to do more but most people can't afford to go outside metroplex to buy land where there are few zoning restrictions---

most developments with homes costing 300+ WON"T let homes put solar cells on their roofs due to buiding constraints---think it is an eyesore...

[starfields]

Originally Posted by loves2read

...most developments with homes costing 300+ WON"T let homes put solar cells on their roofs due to buiding constraints---think it is an eyesore...

The link to the California solar homes development near Sacramento I shared near the beginning of this thread includes a video which shows solar roof tiles which are practically indistinguishable from the other roof tiles: no more clunky rectangular collectors.



~~~


On an entirely different note, I just watched a very interesting Google Tech Talks video on electric fusion recorded Nov 2006 which readers of this thread might appreciate. I believe the speaker may be best known for the Bussard Ramjet space engine.

(click to open page with video)

Google Tech Talks November 9, 2006

ABSTRACT This is not your father's fusion reactor! Forget everything you know about conventional ... all » thinking on nuclear fusion: high-temperature plasmas, steam turbines, neutron radiation and even nuclear waste are a thing of the past. Goodbye thermonuclear fusion; hello inertial electrostatic confinement fusion (IEC), an old idea that's been made new. While the international community debates the fate of the politically-turmoiled $12 billion ITER (an experimental thermonuclear reactor), simple IEC reactors are being built as high-school science fair projects.

Dr. Robert Bussard, former Asst. Director of the Atomic Energy Commission and founder of Energy Matter Conversion Corporation (EMC2), has spent 17 years perfecting IEC, a fusion process that converts hydrogen and boron directly into electricity producing helium as the only waste product. Most of this work was funded by the Department of Defense, the details of which have been under seal... until now.

Dr. Bussard will discuss his recent results and details of this potentially world-altering technology, whose conception dates back as far as 1924, and even includes a reactor design by Philo T. Farnsworth (inventor of the scanning television).

Can a 100 MW fusion reactor be built for less than Google's annual electricity bill? Come see what's possible when you think outside the thermonuclear box and ignore the herd.



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[starfields]

.



Americans Discover the Allure of Off-Grid Living

"In the 250-home Oregon community of Three Rivers, everyone gets most of their power from solar panels on their rooftops or on nearby structures positioned to more efficiently capture the sun."




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[johnrex62]

Originally Posted by texasdreamin

This is where my interest is, as well. I am hoping to build a solar home with an electrical backup. Hoping also to have a rain catch system, for irrigation. I'm just hoping the costs go down by the time I retire. Right now, solar runs somewhere around $40K...and not very popular in Texas, as of yet. I figure it would pay for itself in about 8 years of use, or close to it. Really, really interested in this, so I hope to hear more from Texans as to what they are hearing about it.

I have loosely examined an off-grid solar system and calculated it would cost about 40-60K depending upon battery storage or no battery storage for a 2500sqft home (4 bedrooms, 2.5 baths). I cannot afford that kind of expense unless there is a fairly quick payback, which I do not see at present. At my level of energy usage/costs, it would take over 25 years to break even on startup costs vs electric bills. If you can break even after 8 yrs you must be spending over $400 per month on electric! I am looking at a summer average under $150 and a winter average closer to $90.

[texasdreamin]

As I understand it, $400 would be easy to spend on electricity in Texas. I intend to be comfortable and do not want to have to worry about how much electricity I'm using. In the subdivision I will be building in, there is no gas...only electric.

[Trainwreck20]

I guess you COULD spend $400, but we have never gotten a utility bill over $320 (in the hottest months), and that was garbage, water, waste, and electricity. We live in a 1999 construciton 2,300 sqft 2-storey house in Austin (COA power). Our thermostate is programmable, but when we are home it is usually at 74F, which is quite comfortable (actually, a little cool for me, but the wife has jurisdiction in that area ).

[cdelena]

Originally Posted by texasdreamin

As I understand it, $400 would be easy to spend on electricity in Texas. I intend to be comfortable and do not want to have to worry about how much electricity I'm using. In the subdivision I will be building in, there is no gas...only electric.

It all depends. Size, construction, and usage habits make a huge difference. New construction usually has features to hold consumption down.

Extremes are easy to find in Texas because there can be many cooling hours through the summer and rates are relatively high.

I am familiar with a number of older all-electric homes that have summer time bills in the $.275/ft range so monthly bills over $800 are not uncommon, but at the same time newer construction may see bills half of that.

Obviously this will vary with rate and usage changes.

[texasdreamin]

I figure my consumption will be high as I intend to stay cozy warm in the winter and comfortably cool in the summer. The sun is out there, it is free to use as much as we want ...so I'll fork over the one time $40k to stay comfortable to my liking, without having the need to worry about my monthly bill. Yep, I'm sure it will pay for itself in about 8 years.

[mrhinman]

Originally Posted by irwin

The reason Texas doesn't give the inducements is two-fold:

One is that Texas is an energy producing state and the energy industry is big here. They are skeptical of other, newer energy technologies gaining a foothold. Therefore, there is a lot of pressure on the state to not provide such incentives. Thankfully, I read recently that this is changing with wind generation as there are some new wind turbine manufacturers popping up in Houston. But, in the end, Texas is still an oil and gas state.

Second is that people in Texas have a different mindset in terms of the environment as compared to California. It is simply less of a concern and they don't see a whole lot of need to fund things like solar power. This, thankfully, is changing slowly but many people still look on concern with the environment with skepticism.

Well, that's not entirely true. I do business with three wind-turbine companies. More wind farm-based power is produced in Texas now than ANY other state combined, including California. Wind power in Texas is expected to provide over 25% of the entire nation's power needs by 2010, and grow from there.