howard mcsweeney1- Location: Dover
- Registered: 12 Mar 2008
- Posts: 62,352
#1
listening to the news this morning i heard that president obama is giving a 2 billion dollar loan to a company to build the worlds largest solar power plant in arizona.
this is intended to create 5000 jobs and power 70,000 homes.
seems like very bad business to me.
#2
Solar power is folly, the tech is still several decades away from actually being any good. Funny enough I was actually speaking to a solar energy engineer the other day through work and he told me some interesting facts about it. If you spend 20k on solar power for your home it can take almost 20 years to recover your costs before you start making savings. What the hell is the point in that? Where is the incentive? When it comes down to it, who really cares THAT much?
Guest 655- Registered: 13 Mar 2008
- Posts: 10,247
#3
Does that take into account maintenance, or just the initial installation cost Rick. I suspect that you would never get all your investment back.
howard mcsweeney1- Location: Dover
- Registered: 12 Mar 2008
- Posts: 62,352
#4
everyone i know that has enquired about solar power says much the same, by the time you reach break even point they would have moved on somewhere else and the new owners would reap the benefits.
#5
Solar power installations need to cost roughly the same double glazing or a new roof to be viable. Not only that, but it merely reduces your main consumption, it doesn't replace it totally. Even with a full roof panel you will still need fossil fuel / nuclear energy to keep your household going. The systems are still very much in their infancy.
Mark my words, it won't be too long before wind farms are revealed as the waste of time and money that they are. They've barely finished installing the sites and already they are causing problems with broken gearboxes and long periods of inactivity, and even when they are active the don't actually generate that much power.
We're a long, long way (probably 50 - 100 years) from clean renewable energy, but I guess at least we've started somewhere.
Guest 651- Registered: 12 Mar 2008
- Posts: 5,673
#6
They need to focus on the constant free energy supplies like tidal power, it never stops and we aren't short of coast in the UK !
Been nice knowing you :)
DT1- Location: Dover
- Registered: 15 Apr 2008
- Posts: 1,116
#7
Photovoltaic panels are very poor, especially if we are talking about cost efectiveness. At a domestic level, heat transfer panels are far more efficient in this country (although still not astounding in return).
It would be nice to see a more sustainable approach to contruction in this country. People should be more concerned with these issues than wanting to live in Wimpy mock-Georgian semi. It's well and good knocking these technologies but without wanting to sound like a tree-hugger, we have to do something!
Guest 700- Registered: 11 Jun 2010
- Posts: 2,868
#8
DT1 -
yes, a more definite sustainable approach is necessary, and clear-cut ideas.
Hydro-electric power seems to be an excellent source, why can't they use more of that.
We definitely have to do something, even a combination of policies.
And people can still use a lot less energy than they do if they have the mind to, and give it due thought, but a lot of them have the attitude 'why should I bother'.
K.
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Lincolnshire Born and Bred
#9
Yes totally agree about the Solar stuff.
Some of the smaller wind turbines are quite well priced now, and can produce a fair amount of power to recharge a leisure battery, and in turn power either low consumption 240v items, or low power lighting.
This is ideal for backup power, or power in shed, caravan etc. I know someone in Capel that has one, and it charges the battery well, and provides him with lighting. (its a place there there is no mains power)
However, this wont power your house! but interesting none the less...to me anyway i am a geek i suppose!!!!
Matt
#10
Why not turn off street lighting nationally at 2am? It serves no real purpose for 99% of the country at that time.
howard mcsweeney1- Location: Dover
- Registered: 12 Mar 2008
- Posts: 62,352
#11
would be a licence for muggers and rapists in a town like ours.
docks and ferry companies and others keep strange hours that mean their staff struggle home from work at unearthly hours.
don't forget that we have no night busses and hardly any evening busses.
#12
As I said, 99% of the country. The other 1% can have lights at that time. We are constantly being told to turn things off, yet those who rule us don't take what is a very simple action to save money.
Incidentally, Lagos is a violent place allegedly, but crime at night, when the lights are off, is no worse than during daylight hours. Perhaps the muggers and murderers are fast asleep, or there is no-one around at that time of night to mug or murder, except ladies of the night who haven't been too successful earlier in the evening.
Guest 700- Registered: 11 Jun 2010
- Posts: 2,868
#13
There is a lot of wastage through lights on in the daytime, must use a lot of energy. Even in people's homes.
K.
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Lincolnshire Born and Bred
#14
I reckon the answer lies in perpetual motion. Although the laws of thermodynamics make such a machine extremely difficult to achieve, I do believe that various scientific studies are continuing all over the world into this fascinating field. I don't fully understand the complex science behind it but as a theory for providing endless amounts of clean, free energy, it does seem the most credible - pending the little matter of whether such a generator is actually possible to build of course!
#15
'I reckon the answer lies in perpetual motion. '
Must tell son to give up PHd in Physics (Imperial).
Research Achievements
Increasing the power conversion efficiency of organic solar cells will require new materials.
The current lack of understanding of the relationship between chemical structure
and device performance limits rational material design. My research is developing computational
modelling methods to understand this relationship, and to apply these novel
methods to the development of new materials.
I have developed a quantum chemical technique to accurately predict the electron
acceptor energies of fullerene adducts. These methods also allow an explicit calculation
of the implicit energetic disorder in isomeric mixes, which is believed to be a major factor
limiting the electron mobility in higher adduct acceptors and thus solar cell performance.
Initially validating the calculations against existing materials, I built an experimental
setup for differential pulse voltammetry. This was used to investigate the effect
of isomeric disorder on higher adduct fullerenes, including an alternative acceptor synthesised
by Plextronics and used in state of the art efficiency devices. The measurements
went beyond those currently published in the literature.
I then extended the calculations to a combinatorial sift through hypothesised structures,
adapting and developing computational combinatorial chemistry techniques in their
first application to organic electronic materials. Over 500 candidate fullerene based adducts
were assessed, identifying a promising chemical family that was chosen for synthesis by
the Heeney group in the chemistry department at Imperial College. Only analytic quantities
of the material have so far been produced, but experimental voltammetry indicates
that they indeed display the increased acceptor energy level predicted by calculation.
Other promising candidates and being synthesised by collaborators in SCUT in
Guangzhou.
I have developed new empirical force fields to describe interactions between the polyfluorene
family of semiconducting polymers based on detailed quantum chemical calculations.
This family of polymers displays large variations in behaviour which have been
linked to micro-phase morphologies. In particular, a set of side-chain substituted polymers
made by Sumitomo Chemical Co. Ltd display large orders of magnitude increase
in electrical conductivity upon small structural changes. Molecular Dynamics studies of
these materials have directly informed on the nature of this structural relationship, and
1
offer direct assistance in the design or improvement of new organic polymers.
In a recent and ongoing collaboration with Konarka and Cardiff University I have been
working on modelling methods to explain variations in crystal structure and solar cell
performance of a high mobility bridge dithiophene polymer upon a single heteroatom
substitution. Understanding this effect will suggest possible chemical modifications in
other materials which may increase their performance.
Research Plan
I plan to extend my methods of design and development of new fullerenes. This will
consist of extending the methods to analyse solubility, exciton splitting energy and electron
mobility through molecular dynamics and charge transfer simulations. Validation of
these simulations will be achieved by collaborations with experimental groups and companies
with novel fullerenes. I will extend my combinatorial sift to look at a greater range
of more exotic chemistries, and disseminate this knowledge through talks, papers and by
fostering collaborations with synthetic chemistry groups to look at promising new materials.
I will publish these methods as an open source code for use by other research groups
and companies and as a graphically friendly teaching tool for out reach.
I will contribute to a tool to simulate X-ray diffraction spectra used to aid solution
of organic electronic polymer structures with Cardiff University. Additional validation
of molecular dynamics simulations will be made against neutrino scattering data from a
collaboration with Universidad Politecnico de Cartagena.
I will extend my molecular dynamics work on the Polyfluorene copolymers and bridged
dithiophene polymers to explain the observed effects of side chain structure on mobility.
This will lead to suggested side chain modifications for other organic electronic materials
to optimise packing and charge transfer performance.
Research Skills & Abilities
I have written simulation codes in C and C++. Based on the large and complex GROMACS codebase,
I have written significant molecular dynamics analysis tools and simulation set up
tools. I have written my own tools for the creation, monitoring, manipulation and analysis
of quantum chemical calculations. I have supervised new students in the use of quantum
chemical and molecular dynamics packages and methods.
Languages C, C++, Python, BASH scripting, R, PHP, make
Packages GROMACS, Gaussian 03/09, Turbomole, TINKER
Systems Linux (Desktop, Server, High Performance Computing Clusters), SGI Altix
Experimental Differential Pulse Voltammetry experimental setup & use,
Time of Flight sample preparation, experimental setup & preamp construction
Clean Room, Glove Box, Class 4 Laser user
Polarised light microscopy, varying temperature microscopy
2
Public Engagement
As a member of the Thomas Young Centre for materials simulation I gave a winning lay
audience talk for the student day in December 2009. Following this, I have been interviewed
by the BBC's Gareth Mitchell for the Imperial podcast discussing organic electronics.
I am currently collaborating with the Naked Scientists on a future special web & radio
programme on photovoltaics.
Research Collaborations
Plextronics Inc. Calculations and voltammetry on novel electron acceptors. Research conducted 2010-
on new materials provided by the company under MTA.
Konarka GmBH Investigating relationship between structure and molecular packing of bridged 2009-
dithiophenes. Part of a formal collaboration funded by Konarka and the Carbon Trust.
Universidad Politecnico de Cartagena Neutron Scattering modelling 2009-
Cardiff University Modelling polymers for X-ray structure solution 2009-
ECUST, Shanghai, China Design of novel fullerenes. Chemical structures provided for synthetic 2008-
effort.
ICIQ, Tarragona, Spain Modelling of novel fullerene acceptor. Research and measurement on ma- 2008-
terial provided.
MPIP Mainz Empirical force fields through quantum chemical calculations, included a two week 2007-
visit funded by MPIP.
Sumitomo Chemical Co. Ltd Polyfluorene derivatives for organic laser applications. Research 2007-
conducted on new materials provided to Imperial under MTA.
Bath University Method development for charge transfer simulations in polymers 2005-2007
Grants & awards
Award for best presentation, Thomas Young Centre student day 2009
EPSRC DTA Studentship (50%) supplemented by research scholarship from BP Solar 2007-2010
Scholarship for UROP research project. Funded via research grant from BP Solar to Jenny 2005
Nelson and Donal Bradley.
Publications
I have so far published 7 peer reviewed papers. According to a Web of Science citation
report, my papers have been cited 24 times so far in 2010 and 25 times in 2009. Overall I
have been cited 66 times, with an h-index of 5. A full list of publications appears below.
In Preparation
These are based on chapters in my PhD thesis
Apart from that he has been doing bugger all as far as I can understand?
(Oh. N.B. The Open source code bit. Way to go!)
Guest 645- Registered: 12 Mar 2008
- Posts: 4,463
#16
Impressive stuff Bob.You must be very proud of your son. My only wish is that they make the Windmills far more attractive...similar to those in Holland..
Marek
I think therefore I am (not a Tory supporter)
#17
Marek.
Don't do pride. One of the deadly sins!
Glad he (and other siblings) have done something worthwhile during their short time on the planet.
Guest 645- Registered: 12 Mar 2008
- Posts: 4,463
#18
Bob
You've committed the other 6 so a bit of pride won't go amiss.
How many sprogs have you sired?
Marek
I think therefore I am (not a Tory supporter)
#19
Marek,
To the best of my knowledge four in total. (It's a bugger this DNA thingy)! Hopefully the vasectomy is sorting it out!
(Plus, at the age off 22 he sailed my boat single handed back from the Azores, which IMHO is a fairly cool thing to do!)
Take care.
Bob
Guest 665- Registered: 24 Mar 2008
- Posts: 345
#20
Solar lights are great for lighting up my garden though! lol!
