Minnesota town tapping thermal energy of sewer pipes for heating and cooling

The town of Brainerd in Minnesota will develop a renewable energy system that will tap the thermal energy potential of sewer pipes for cooling and heating, the Minnesota Public Radio News reported. With temperatures between 42 to 66 degrees Fahrenheit, the sewers where the city’s hot showers, dishwashing water and organic matter all end up can be maximized to generate heat energy, it was found out.

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Renewable energy to grow 40% in five years – I.E.A.

Despite economic uncertainties, global power generation from renewable sources of energy is seen to grow by more than 40 percent to almost 6,400 terawatt-hours over the next five years, or roughly 1.5 times the current electricity production in the United States, according to a report from the International Energy Agency. Renewable energy generation from 2011 to 2017 is expected to be around 1,840 terawatt-hours, 60 percent more than the registered growth of 1,160 terawatt-hours in 2005 to 2011.

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BP: Renewables only 2 percent of global energy consumption

While the fastest-rising in terms of global energy consumption, renewable energy still only accounts for 2.1 percent of the global total as fossil fuels take up 87 percent, according to a review from BP released early this month.

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Next-generation can proves not everything goes to waste

Scientists from Singapore's Nanyang Technological University invented a breakthrough toilet system that might just change the way we look at human waste. The system is called the No-Mix Vacuum Toilet which, according to its inventors, can generate electricity and fertilizer at the same time.

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Renewables saw $257 billion in investments in 2011 – REN21

The year 2011 was a strong one for the renewable energy market, with new investment in renewables reaching $257 billion despite the recent economic downtrend. The recently released 2012 edition of REN21’s Renewables Global Status Report found that the sector has continued to grow steadily, with 16.7 percent of global final energy consumption coming from renewable sources in 2012.

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Eurozone countries can reduce debt with renewable energy – group

Giving concessions to creditors for large-scale renewable energy investments and projects would give debt-riddled Eurozone countries like Greece, Italy, Portugal, Spain and Ireland an opportunity to reduce their debts by 30 percent, according to a group of economics and energy professors.

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N.R.D.C. ranks G-20 nations on renewable energy

The Natural Resources Defense Council, a nonprofit environmental advocacy organization based in New York, released its 2012 renewable energy scorecard, a report ranking the G-20 countries based on their renewable energy production and investment from 2011 to 2012.

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Low-temperature water-splitting process could run on waste heat

Chemical engineers at the California Institute of Technology have come up with a low-temperature process to enable water-splitting, the process by which hydrogen is extracted from water. Thermochemical water splitting requires the heating of water to trigger a reaction that splits it into its component molecules of hydrogen and oxygen. So far, the most effective methods require high temperatures, above 1,000 degrees Celsius.

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Malaysia’s first geothermal project gets $11.5 million grant

The Malaysian government awarded a grant of about $11.5 million to Tawau Green Energy Sdn. Bhd. for the development of a geothermal project in Sabah. The Apas Kiri geothermal site is in the southern portion of the Malaysian state near the city of Tawau. It will be the country’s first geothermal energy facility. It is expected to come online by early 2015 with a rated net capacity of 30 megawatts.

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Deadline for Request for Information for H-Prize extended to May 20

The United States Department of Energy Fuel Cell Technologies Program has extended the deadline for the Request for Information for topics and criteria for a potential second Hydrogen Prize competition. The Request for Information, originally released on March 20, 2012, is addressed to industry groups related to the technology development areas of production, distribution and utilization. The original deadline was April 20, 2012. The extension is until May 31, 2012.

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