Electical Contractor

Comparing PV Technologies

| March 2005

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Systems

The most focused on and visible part of a photovoltaic (PV) installation is the technology used. PV technology usually takes the form of rigid PV panels mounted on a building's roof, which represents another independent building system that needs to be installed.

| February 2005

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Your Business

There are a number of photovoltaic (PV) technologies available for converting sunlight into electrical energy. For building applications, technologies that are commercially available are predominately silicon-based and can be categorized as either crystalline silicon or thin film.

Why PV Now?

Wind Generation—Trends and Issues

| January 2005

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Your Business

Photovoltaics (PV) are semiconductors that convert sunlight directly to direct-current (DC) electric power. Photovoltaic technology has been used for years in specific applications where conventional utility service is not readily available or practical.

Lewis Tagliaferre

| November 2004

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Systems

In 1993, government researchers concluded that a group of 12 states in the midsection of the country have enough wind energy resources to generate nearly four times the amount of electricity consumed nationwide in 1990.

The Emerging DG Market

| November 2004

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Your Business

Distributed generation (DG) refers to the practice of locating small-scale electric generating units at or near the load served. With distributed generation, individual buildings or complexes can have a local electric power supply that provides some or all of the facility's electric energy needs.

The Nano Revolution

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Your Business

Small, Mobile, Powerful Solid oxide fuel cells may be among the first to benefit Nanotechnology is a hot topic in dozens of industries, including the medicine, environment, public health markets.

Boom or Bust?

Darlene Bremer

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Systems

Are there jobs for you in the nuclear power market? According to the World Nuclear Association, a recent study determined that nuclear energy incurs about one-tenth of the financial cost of coal to produce electricity.

Here Comes the Sun

Jeff Griffin

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Systems

Outdoor solar lighting has a bright future With little fanfare, solar lighting systems are being installed on a growing number of projects, and lighting powered by sunlight has quietly evolved into a mature technology with widespread acceptance.

Thinking Small

Stanimira Z. Stefanova

Certification as Separation

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Your Business

In the world of alternative power, “the next big thing” is really small—and you don’t want to miss it. People are racing to become part of a revolutionary craze that boasts the strong potential to change the way we live.

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Codes & Standards

Photovoltaic (PV) modules convert sunlight into electrical energy that can be used to provide power for specific loads within a building in a standalone system or as a supplement to the building’s utility power supply in an integrated system.

Supply & Demand

To Go Where No Man Has Gone Before

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Systems

Fuel Cells are in demand where power is in short supply Fuel cell technology is turning up in unusual places. As the utilities—as well as commercial and residential customers—seek energy alternatives, fuel cells are emerging wherever government assistance or reliability needs are the greatest.

Ed Lawrence

| February 2004

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Your Business

Can you imagine what it would be like to be the first person in the world to flip a switch actuating what could become revolutionary technology? A switch powering a device that will assist in reducing our dependence on imported fuel while at the same time decreasing emissions into the universe?

The Little Engine that Could

Building Integrated Photovoltaics

| January 2004

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Systems

Ask most electrical contractors about the latest cogenerating technology—microturbines—and you’re likely to get silence, or possibly: “micro-what?” This technology, which has only been on the market a few years (Capstone Turbine’s C30 model was introduced in December 1998), may still be relatively u

Alternative Power Source Generation

| January 2004

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Your Business

Distributed generation (DG) is the term used to describe the placement of small-scale electric generating capacity at or near the load that it serves.

Fuel Cells––Power Source for the Future

| August 2003

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Systems

Advances in small-scale generation technology coupled with growing environmental concerns, a changing energy market, evolving public policy and customer need for reliable and economical electric power supplies will provide a new growth market for electrical contractors.