- Title: ISRAEL: Israeli researchers hope solar energy balloons could power remote areas
- Date: 7th April 2008
- Summary: (SOUNDBITE) (English) DOCTOR PINI GURFIL, CONCEPT DEVELOPER, FACULTY OF AEROSPACE ENGINEERING, TECHNION, ISRAEL INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY, SAYING: "The idea is just to take advantage of the height dimension and when you do that you basically save lots of land resources and you generate a system which is much more green, it's much more sustainable, it's much more reliable and
- Embargoed: 22nd April 2008 13:00
- Keywords:
- Location: Israel
- Country: Israel
- Topics: Environment / Natural World,Energy
- Reuters ID: LVA4SZFFRI52C1OZOEIYUXJH2OVW
- Story Text: Israeli researchers are hoping balloons plastered with solar panels could be used to generate environmentally-friendly electricity.
Giant solar energy balloons floating high in the air may be a cheap way to provide electricity to areas lacking the land and infrastructure needed for traditional power systems, researchers in Israel say.
Worried about climate change, the world is racing to find renewable energy sources as an alternative to fossil fuels.
And with many of the earth's sunniest spots falling in the middle of the ocean or desert, the balloons, designed by a team from Israel's Technion Institute of Technology, could be used to harness the sun's energy in those remote areas.
The balloons, covered with thin solar panels, hover as high as a few hundred metres in the air, and are connected via a wire cable to an inverter below, said engineer Robert Zickel. The panels can generate up to 70 volts of electricity, he said.
Joseph Cory, the research team's architect, said the final balloons will have an aerodynamic design to cancel out the wind effect and maximise sunlight. The largest balloons could be the size of zeppelins, he said.
Pini Gurfil, the concept's developer, said using balloons enables researchers to save land resources, and also provides energy in remote areas.
It will be about a year before the system is ready, Gurfil said, but initial research, both computerised and using a crude prototype, showed that a balloon with a three metre (10 ft) diameter could provide about one kilowatt of energy, the same as twenty-five square metres (269 square feet) of traditional solar panels.
That's about enough energy for an average person to use a washing machine and dryer for a year.
"It requires a very sophisticated aerodynamical design in order to avoid winds but nevertheless we think that it's quite right and it can be implemented in the next year of so as an operational system," said Gurfil.
And while 25 square metres of traditional solar panels may cost about 10,000 U.S. dollars, the target cost of a tantamount balloon is less than 4,000 U.S. dollars, with most of the savings coming from the minimal structural support needed, Gurfil said.
John Loughhead, executive director at the UK Energy Research Centre, said there was no reason the solar balloon system could not work, but it would be practical only in a few specific circumstances.
The balloons, made from durable material used in meteorological balloons, are filled with helium and insulated on the inside by silicon to reduce leaks, allowing them to stay afloat for up to a year, Gurfil said.
They are lined with solar panels, about 0.2 mm (0.008 inches) thick, and a three metre balloon weighs about 2.5 kg (5.5 lb).
While land-based solar panels, usually pointing only in one direction, are affected by the sun's position in the sky and can be shaded by taller structures, the balloons' circular shape ensures they always receive direct sunlight, Gurfil said.
But since the balloons are easy to transport, require little infrastructure and can be inflated on site, the system could be used for emergency power in regions blacked out by natural disasters, he said.
Gurfil also hopes to one day make the solar balloons more accessible for individual use and available at any hardware store.
"Our ultimate vision is to see systems of lightweight solar affordable arrays all over, in forms of power stations on top of roofs, in rural areas and whenever, wherever the energy resources are scarce or you can imagine someone going to Walmart and getting one of these," Gurfil said. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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