The Renewable India

Simulating with Proteus

2022-01-09T18:31:00.003+05:30

https://youtu.be/GDxYzqvTcnI

My Youtube Channel For Engineering, Physics and Mathematics.

2021-06-23T11:46:00.003+05:30

https://youtube.com/c/MrMainFrame

SOLVING PROBLEMS ON DIGITAL ELECTRONICS USING K MAP

2021-02-19T10:49:00.001+05:30

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iXiJUpnGG6A

Delhi Cabinet Approves Electric Vehicle Policy

2020-03-10T13:08:00.001+05:30

Delhi government has approved the electric vehicle policy which mainly focuses. On electric two-wheelers, shared transport vehicles such as three-wheelers and buses, and goods carriers or freight vehicles. According to the policy, the government is targeting 500,000 new EV registrations in Delhi by 2024. These EVs are estimated to cut down approximately INR 60 billion (~842.08 million USD) in oil and liquid gas imports an 4.8 million tons of carbon dioxide emissions. A dedicatedEV cell will also be established within the transport department for the effective day to-day implementation of the Delhi State EV Policy.

European Commission Launches Consultation on the Establishment of Smart Readiness Indicator for Buildings

2019-10-06T13:52:00.006+05:30

The European Commission has launched a consultation on the Smart Readiness Indicator to help ensure that building owners, occupants and other interested parties are made aware of the significant benefits that smart technologies and ICT can bring to buildings, particularly in terms of improved energy performance and enhanced comfort and well-being. The Smart Readiness Indicator is a new instrument to ate the smart readiness of buildings, to be established under the Energy performance of buildings directive (EPBD) 2018/844. The aim of the consultation is to collect abroad feedback on some of the structuring factors of the SRI scheme, in order to inform and orient the policy making process.

Net Metering Regulations for Solar Projects

2019-10-06T13:38:00.001+05:30

The Joint Electricity Regulatory Commission (JERC) for the state of Goa in India and

union territories has finalized the net metering regulations which will be applied to grid-connected roof top mounted, ground-mounted and floating solar PV power projects

in Goa and the union territories of Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Chandigarh, Dadar

& Nagar Haveli, Daman & Diu, Lakshadweep, and Puducherry. Under the new regulations, the group net metering framework will apply to all the consumers. The

consumer will pay the developer for all the energy generated at a mutually

agreed tariff. The commercial arrangement between the developer and the prosumer will be submitted to the DISCOM for records, and the DISCOM will not have any role in such a commercial agreement.

Electric Buses to be deployed across 64 Indian Cities

2019-10-06T13:37:00.001+05:30

Department of Heavy Industry (DHI) under the Ministry of Heavy Industry and Public Enterprises, has granted the approval for 5,595 electric buses comprising of 5095 buses for intracity operation, 400 buses for intercity operation and 100 buses for last mile connectivity to Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC), to be deployed in 64 cities under the Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of Hybrid and Electric Vehicles (FAME-II) program. The buses will run 4 billion kms during their contract period and are expected to save nearly 1.2litres of fuel will in turn help in reducing 2.6million tons of carbon dioxide emissions

EV Charging Stations in India

2017-12-12T15:18:00.001+05:30

The year 2017 will be remembered as a significant one for defining India’s mobility architecture. From big ticket announcements on the marque Ahmedabad-Mumbai high-speed rail project to Hyperloop, India has seized its moment in the sun to announce big plans for finding next generation transportation solutions.

But nothing has caught the imagination of the industry and policy makers quite like the government’s ambitious plans for a mass scale shift to electric vehicles (EVs) by 2030 so that all vehicles on Indian roads by then—personal and commercial—will be powered by electricity. While the transformative push for electric vehicles has become a cause célèbre for India and the world, it presents challenges along with opportunities.

With Volvo’s July announcement that it would phase out the internal combustion engine and manufacture only electric or hybrid vehicles by 2019, many believe India’s EV moment has arrived. It won’t be long before major automakers in India follow Sweden-based Volvo’s lead in phasing out internal combustion engines and electrifying their line-ups to meet the 2030 deadline.

Silver bullet

There are multiple narratives in this fast evolving scenario. From solar power developers and lithium ion battery makers to automobile manufacturers of marque badges, everybody seems to have thrown their hats in the ring. India’s Maharatna and Navratna companies such as NTPC Ltd, Bharat Heavy Electricals Ltd (Bhel) and Power Grid Corp. of India Ltd, all want a piece of the EV pie in order to remain relevant in the uncertain and evolving energy landscape of the country.

For energy firms, setting up a charging infrastructure is an attractive prospect, given the lucrative market potential projected to be around 90 billion units (BU) of electricity. For comparison, India generated 1,107 BU in 2015-16.

Electric vehicles are also expected to help generate fresh demand for electricity —the lack of which is weighing down the entire power sector—and also help in resolving the stressed assets conundrum.

Any uptake in demand for power will help improve the financial viability of these stressed power sector projects. This in turn would improve the per capita power consumption of around 1,200 kWh—one of the lowest among the large economies.

“In a world in which renewable energy has a very high penetration, India has the opportunity to be independent and provide cheap power to its people in ways that are quite different than say in an economy that is built upon oil and gas,” David Sandalow, fellow at Center on Global Energy Policy at Columbia University, said at a conference in New Delhi in September.

India, the world’s third-largest energy consumer after the US and China, is working towards building a green economy and plans to achieve 175 gigawatt (GW) of renewable energy capacity by 2022 as part of its commitments under the global climate change accord. Of this, 100GW is to come from solar.

“This industry (EV) is starting to take off. And it’s still a tiny percentage of the overall vehicle market but it’s starting to reach an inflection point where it can have I think a very significant impact globally,” said Sandalow, who was acting under secretary of energy during former US President Barack Obama’s term.

Such a shift to renewable energy makes imminent sense for India which paid Rs4.16 trillion to buy 202.85 million tonnes of crude oil in 2015-16. “Particularly in a high solar resource country like India, it is a very good strategy for providing transportation,” Sandalow said.

EVs as a storage

The fates of solar power and electrical vehicles in India are likely to be closely interlinked, given that EVs have batteries that can offer a storage solution to India’s clean energy push.

Solar power generated during the day needs to be stored in batteries. The storage capability of EV batteries could help with grid balancing, complementing the National Democratic Alliance government’s push for solar power.

With lithium battery prices having nose dived from $600 per kilowatt-hour (kWh) in 2012 to $250 per kWh in 2017, the solution is becoming economically viable. The EV industry is betting on a further drop to $100 per kWh by 2024.

Bioplastics

2016-07-16T09:23:00.000+05:30

Bioplastics are plastics in which all carbon is derived from renewable feedstocks. They may or may not be biodegradable. Biobased plastics contain both renewable and fossil-fuel-based carbon. The percentage of biobased ingredients and the conditions under which the biobased product may biodegrade, if at all, vary widely.

According to the American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM), a biobased material is:

an organic material in which carbon is derived from a renewable resource via biological processes. Biobased materials include all plant and animal mass derived from CO2 recently fixed via photosynthesis, per definition of a renewable resource.

Products on the market are made from a variety of natural feedstocks including corn, potatoes, rice, tapioca, palm fiber, wood cellulose, wheat fiber and bagasse. Products are available for a wide range of applications such as cups, bottles, cutlery, plates, bags, bedding, furnishings, carpets, film, textiles and packaging materials. In the US, the percentage of biobased ingredients required for a product to be referred to as biobased, is defined by the USDA on a product-by-product basis. ILSR has recommended that the USDA set a minimum threshold of 50 percent biobased content for products to be considered biobased.

to read more click on the Sorce link below

http://plasticsindustry.org/files/Bioplastics%20Simplified.pdf

Bijli Project Connects 58,000 People in India to Clean Energy.

2015-08-25T10:00:00.004+05:30

NEW DELHI: The Climate Group project, Bijli – Clean Energy for All has now officially provided energy access to 58,000 people across India. The new milestone results are well over the initial target of 50,000 people in India.

As the roll-out phase of the project comes to an end this September, The Climate Group will continue to connect people in India to clean, cheap solar power, together with local partners and companies.
Bijli project, principally funded by the Dutch Postcode Lottery, is creating a model of renewable energy access, with over 58,000 people now impacted positively. The model could be scaled up, allowing potentially hundreds of millions of people – many of whom have to rely on expensive and dirty kerosene lamps for lighting – in India and elsewhere in the world to access affordable, low carbon, solar powered electricity.
For instance, a transition to efficient off-grid lighting in the whole of South East Asia would have an equally significant benefit for the almost 500 million consumers in the region who are not connected to the grid. Replacing all the kerosene, candles and battery-powered torches with solar LED lanterns would save US$5.6-7.6 billion in fuel costs and avoid 23.3 million tons of CO2 emissions each year.

The project’s progress was welcomed at the first ever India Off-Grid Energy Summit this week, which saw top off-grid energy practitioners, policymakers and entrepreneurs agree that sector collaboration is the most effective way to lead India’s flourishing renewables market.

In most poor rural parts of India, electrical power is a rarity. When night falls, whole families and villages rely on kerosene and diesel lamps. These are dangerous, expensive and bad for the environment.
Approximately 400 million people in India still have no connection to the main electricity grid. Even those who do, suffer from regular blackouts. In 2012, 600 million were plunged into darkness because of outages on the main grid – the biggest power failure in human history.

There’s a much better energy source available, one that’s getting cheaper and cheaper to access. The average 300 days of sunshine in India makes it the perfect destination for solar energy. Solar powered lighting outshines a kerosene wick lamp 10 times over, and is less than one fourth the cost.
Together with local organisations in India, The Climate Group is providing clean, cheap solar power to poor rural villages in the states of Maharashtra, West Bengal and Uttar Pradesh.

Being connected to clean and cheap electricity means having access to more safety, security, being able to expand your business, studying at night and improving the quality of your life.
These new solar electricity innovations can literally light up the lives of people in rural areas. Implementing them lowers carbon emissions, improves public health, creates jobs, and provides a reliable, long-term energy supply at low, stable prices.

Wind Turbines to Dot Vijayapura District in Karnataka Soon.

2015-08-25T09:58:00.001+05:30

Soon, one might see innumerable fans spinning from far away in Vijayapura, with the district, like Chitradurga, gradually foraying into large-scale harvesting of wind energy in order to effectively tap the abundantly available natural resource.

Though the district is neither located on a higher altitude nor has too many hills, it has vast open and elevated areas where wind turbines are being installed to generate power.

According to sources, the district would soon have enough wind turbines to generate nearly 700 MW of power in the months to come, as several private firms including Hyderabad-based Greenko has obtaining contract to generate wind power.

Greenko has already started generating some 180 MW of power by installing turbines in Ingaleshwar village of Basavanabagewadi taluk, the sources said.

The company plans to generate 50 MW of power in Kumatagi village in the first phase, and an equal quantum of power from the same village in the second phase. In Shivanagi village, the company plans to generate 200 MW of power.

The company is reportedly establishing substations with the help of Hubli Electricity Supply Company (HESCOM) to supply electricity to the power grids.

Other projects

Three other private companies besides Greenko have together proposed to generate around 303 MW of power in the district by installing hundreds of wind turbines. According to reports, the companies are using the high-end technology in the wind energy sector by importing machines and units from the Netherlands.

The sources said that each turbine could generate from 1.2 MW to 2 MW of power. Since barren land is often used for installing turbines, the cost of unfertile land in the district has increased substantially, bringing cheers among the farmers who have such land.

Though the generated power is directly supplied to the central grids for distribution, the sources believe that since the power would be generated in the district itself, it would, to a great extent, mitigate the power crisis in the district.

This Super-thin OLED Desk Lamp will also Charge our Phone

2015-08-24T09:49:00.002+05:30

Do you take your desk lighting seriously? Really seriously? You'll want to look at Aerelight's just-shipped A1 desk lamp, then. The eye-catching design uses an OLED panel to illuminate your room, which both makes it wafer-thin and produces a natural-looking, energy-efficient glow that should last as long as the lamp itself. You shouldn't have to touch anything but the controls for the next 20 years, according to Aerelight. And did we mention that it'll wirelessly charge your phone? In a seeming bid to one-up IKEA, the A1 can top up mobile devices using either the Qi or PMA charging standards.
You're going to pay a premium for this ultimate light, mind you. It's available in both the US and Canada for $299, which could easily make it more expensive than the furniture it's sitting on. Look it this way, though: if you work from home or otherwise spend hours at a time in poorly-lit spaces, this could be considered an investment in your eyes.

Road Trials of Electric Buses to Start Soon

2015-08-24T09:47:00.000+05:30

In a bid to provide eco-friendly and cost effective intra-city bus services, the Union ministry of road transport is set to provide 30 electric-powered buses to select cities across country soon. After months of lab trials by Bangalore Road Transport Corporation, the government wants to start trial of these buses on the road to find out the cost of operations and practical feasibility of the concept.

Of the 30 buses, seven will ply in UP at Agra, Meerut, Lucknow, Varanasi, Allahabad, Gorakhpur and Kanpur. Speaking to TOI, UPSRTC general manager Vineet Seth said, "The idea is to replace fossil fuel technology with eco-friendly technology, where buses will be recharged at terminals during the night and run the entire day without recharging."

Seth said, "At an International Conference and Exhibition on Public Transport Innovation held in Delhi on August 13 and 14, Union road transport minister Nitin Gadkari announced that electric-powered buses would be provided to some proposed smart cities across the country."

Speaking on the occasion, organized to mark the golden jubilee celebration of the Association of State Road Transport Undertaking (ASRTU), which was established on August13, 1965, Gadkari laid emphasis on the use of bio-diesel and other alternative fuels to reduce emission and hence air pollution. He said bus service providers should adopt new technologies such as GPS-based systems, passenger information systems, CCTV cameras, automatic fare collection system and electronic ticket vending.

If UPSRTC sources are to be believed, the corporation is eager to replace CNG and diesel-run city buses with electric-powered buses before 2016-end. This would not only reduce pollution levels, but will also cut the overall cost of operation in the long run. In June, the corporation had sent a group of nearly 20 officials from different regions to European countries like Italy, Switzerland and France to study public transportation systems in those countries and gather knowledge about new and eco-friendly technologies.

Ravinder Singh, service manager of Agra roadways and the man behind this idea in UP, said, "At present, we have to spend about Rs 25 a km to run CNG buses. If we use electric buses, the cost will come down to Rs 7 a km. A feasibility study in this regard was done in Bangalore and it proved effective. The idea is to remove carbon footprints and at the same time use minimum power to run our vehicles. The buses will be charged at stations during the night or at bus stops during the day. This way we would not require overhead wires or electric tracks on roads." Source : TOI

Fuel Stations may be Rebranded to Service E-cars

2015-08-24T09:45:00.003+05:30

Fuel stations across the country may soon be rebranded to provide specialised services for electric run cars and autos as government looks to promote the use of these eco-friendly vehicles in cities facing rise in pollution levels from vehicular emissions.

Top sources in the heavy industries ministry said that select fuel stations state-owned oil marketing companies (OMCs) such as Indian Oil, Hindustan Petroleum and Bharat Petroleum would be provided with solar powered charging points that could be used by electric vehicles on payment of nominal fees.

“We have already held discussions with OMCs over this initiative. It would be launched after a successful run in the pilot project slated for New Delhi,” the official quoted earlier said.

As part of the programme to support electric vehicle initiative, the heavy industries ministries has already asked Bharat Heavy Electricals Ltd (BHEL) and Rajasthan Electronics to develop prototype of electric vehicle charging stations based on solar power panels. The prototype is expected to be ready in next couple of months after which the pilot project would begin in Delhi.

The national roll out of the scheme may start from next financial year onwards depending on the proliferation of electric vehicles in the country. One of the issues faced by electric vehicles is lack of proper battery recharging facility. This has given birth of entry of hybrid vehicles that run both on conventional fuel and electricity.

At present only Mahindra, Toyota and BMW have introduced electric/hybrid passenger cars in the country. In addition, Lucknow-based public sector undertaking Scooters India Ltd (SIL) is running SIL its electric vehicle – Vikram EV – on a trial basis in Delhi and Lucknow while Hyundai launched and electric variant of its i10 car.

Ford Motors, Tata Motors and general Motors are planning to launch electric vehicles in the country. Besides, a few smaller makers are manufacturing e-rickshaws and companies like Hero, BSA and Electrotherm are making electric two-wheelers.

“The market for electric vehicles is very small in the country. But with government support both in terms of fiscal incentives and creation of infrastructure by way of increased number of charging stations, it can soon become popular mode of transportation,” said an official of Scooters India asking not to be named.

As per industry estimates, electric vehicle comprise mere 1 per cent of total two-wheeler market and 2-3 per cent of car market in the country. Optimistic estimates suggest that this would go up to 6 per cent level over next 5-7 years.

Government on its part has launched a new scheme - Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of (Hybrid &) Electric Vehicles in India or FAME—to promote use of electric vehicles in the country. FAME was announced in the budget this year with a provision of Rs 75 crore.

The scheme takes forward the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government’s National Electric Mobility Mission Plan (NEMMP) that aimed at putting seven million electric and hybrid vehicles on Indian roads by 2020.

Under FAME, the government has proposed incentives on hybrid and electric vehicles of up to Rs 29,000 for two-wheelers and Rs 1.38 lakh for cars. It is also offering discount support amounting to one-third of the difference between the price of an electric two-wheeler and a comparable petrol model.

Eveready Launches the Brightest Ever 8W LED Bulb

2015-08-20T12:31:00.000+05:30

Eveready Industries, a market leader of dry cell batteries, flashlights and a leading lighting solution provider, has launched India’s brightest ever 8W LED bulb. The latest addition to Eveready’s bulb portfolio offers the highest lumen efficiency at 120 lumens per watt.

The company brand has always stood for the best in quality and endeavors to offer value for money products keeping the Indian consumer in mind.

The new launch is a result of the company’s endeavor to be ahead in a fast changing dynamic lighting industry with focus on innovation, R&D to develop the best in class products. This new range of lamps will continue to be energy efficient thus resulting in lower electricity bills for the Indian consumer. Keeping the ultimate consumer in mind, the product has been positioned as a value pack of 2 having MRP of Rs. 799/- being offered to the consumer at Rs. 599/- (including of all taxes).

The company’s 8W (960 lumens) LED Bulb is being launched on snapdeal to ensure that consumers across the country. The product will also be available on all leading online/ modern retail formats as well as traditional forms of retail.

Eveready is the market leader of dry cell batteries selling more than 1.2 billion units annually. Apart from dry cell batteries, Eveready is also the market leader in flashlights selling in excess of 26 million units per year.

New Technology may Reduce Wind Energy Costs

2015-08-20T12:29:00.005+05:30

London: The efficiency of wind turbines can be increased and repair costs reduced through a new technique developed by engineers from the University of Sheffield.

The novel technique can predict when bearings inside wind turbines fail which could make wind energy cheaper.

Unexpected bearing failures are a common problem in wind turbines.

"By removing the risk of a loss of production and the need for unplanned maintenance, it can help to reduce the cost of wind energy and make it much more economically competitive," said co-author of the paper professor Rob Dwyer-Joyce.

The method, developed by mechanical engineering research student Wenqu Chen, uses ultrasonic waves to measure the load transmitted through a ball bearing in a wind turbine.

The stress on wind turbine is recorded and then engineers can forecast its remaining service life.

When a bearing is subjected to a load, its thickness is reduced by a very small amount due to elastic deformation, and the speed of sound is affected by the stress level in the material. Both these effects change the time of flight of an ultrasound wave through a bearing.

The new method is the only way to directly measure the transmitted load through the rolling bearing components.

It uses a custom-built piezoelectric sensor mounted in the bearing to measure the time of flight and determine the load.

This sensor is less expensive and significantly smaller than currently available, making it suitable for smaller turbines.

It can also provide a better prediction of the maintenance needed, saving money in servicing, researchers said.

The study was published in the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society.

Now, Hippo Innovations focuses on clean energy

2015-08-20T12:28:00.000+05:30

Hippo Innovations, a mobile e-commerce player, funded by Amit Gupta, partner and CEO at NewQuest Capital Partners, Hong Kong, and Nitin Jindal, MD at Morgan Stanley, Greater NYC area, is now set to create a brand for an online clean energy marketplace.

Branded as SolarHippo, the first such platform will introduce a wide array of solar products such as solar lights, solar fans, solar heaters, solar inverters, solar power banks and solar accessories. They are also looking at raising $2 million in the next round of funding.

“The new government’s thrust on development of solar energy sector coupled with ‘make in India’ campaign offers a tremendous potential in Indian market for solar energy products. SolarHippo envisages tapping the growing potential of the solar energy sector in India and promises to provide best-in-class solar energy products with the help of this branded online store,” said Rajiv Kumar, CEO of the Gurgaon-headquartered Hippo Innovations.

With consumers becoming increasingly brand loyal, there was an urgent need to have a branded market place for clean energy products so as to ensure delivery of quality items.

The firm has a proven track record of building niche marketplaces by using its flagship mobile e-commerce platform StoreHippo. The company helps small and medium entrepreneurs to launch online stores. In the first tranche, the company had received seed funding at a valuation of Rs 20 crore from NewQuest and Jindal to build mobile ready architecture and highly advanced technology stack.

“SolarHippo is the result of our vision that we must find ways to protect our environment for a sustainable future with use of a clean and safe energy source. In keeping with this vision, SolarHippo aims to be an exclusive marketplace selling distinguished, top quality and high performance products related to solar energy,” said Kumar.

Cochin International Airport to Inaugurate 12MWp PV Project.

2015-08-17T15:37:00.000+05:30

An airport in the Indian state of Kerala will become “absolutely power neutral” when it inaugurates a 12MWp solar power plant onsite next week.

Cochin International Airport will unveil its green initiative on 18 August with Kerala’s chief minister, Ooomman Chandy, in attendance, according to local reports.

The commissioning of the PV plant is the third and biggest move so far in this direction by the airport, which installed a 100kWp rooftop plant in 2013 and another shortly after that with 1MWp capacity. According to the airport this was the first megawatt-scale solar PV plant in Kerala.

The latest move adds 45 acres of ground-mounted array, using 265Wp modules by Chinese manufacturer ReneSola and 1MW inverters by ABB India. The project was executed by German engineering company Bosch.

Cochin International Airport’s press release said that the array, when combined with the existing 1.1MW of installed capacity will “technically” make the airport “’absolutely power neutral’”, meaning the PV plants will produce as much electricity as the entire facility demands.

Other significant airport PV installations in Asia include an 11.6MW PV plant at Kansai Airport in Japan, commissioned in March 2014 and a 19MW plant in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

Indian Oil Proposes Setting up Solid Waste Plant in Varanasi

2015-08-17T11:13:00.000+05:30

The Indian Oil has expressed desire to set up a solid waste processing, treatment and management plant in the suburban area to dispose of tons of waste generated in the Prime Minister Narendra Modi's constituency in a more scientific manner and in a bid to cater to the growing population of the city.

A proposal for the same was put forth by the representatives of the commercial enterprise to mayor Ramgopal Mohley during a meeting with various organizations to discuss scope of work under corporate social responsibility (CSR) in the presence of officials of ministry of urban development at Varanasi Municipal Corporation (VMC) on Tuesday evening. For this, the enterprise has asked for an eight-acre land and resources for carrying the collected waste to the treatment plant.

Considering this a need of the hour, Mohley had asked them to prepare a written proposal which needs to be submitted to municipal commissioner Shrihari Pratap Shahi within two days. Notably, the total quantity of waste generated in the city is about 650 MT per day assuming that locals generate solid waste of about 425 grams per person per day on an average.

During the meeting, while representatives of various organizations including Airport Authority of India (AAI), Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC), Hindustan Petroleum Limited (HPL), Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited (BHEL) and Power Finance Commission (PFC) proposed various ideas on development works to be conducted in the city, others shared the progress of ongoing works with the mayor and other officials.

While reviewing the progress of beautification of ponds and setting up of water ATMs, Mohley asked the representatives to ensure no harm is done to the water sources of the kunds including Soniya, Lakshmi kund, Durgakund and Sarangnath pond while the beautification drive is carried out and stressed on maintenance of attraction quotient of the kunds keeping the tourist angle in mind. Mohley further asked them to begin the work of setting up water ATMs by August 20.

He also reviewed the report of construction of five toilets by Indian Oil, proposal on cleanliness and disposal of garbage by AAI and a presentation on use of advanced machines for cleanliness in serpentine lanes of the city. Following this, the officials of PFC proposed the idea of plying of 100 Eco-friendly e-rickshaws in the city.

The mayor acknowledged the idea and asked them to prepare an effective road map of city where no-vehicle zone could be developed.
Source : TOI

Thondamuthur in Coimbatore Imposes Plastic Ban

2015-08-17T11:11:00.002+05:30

Rural areas in the district have woken up to the need for effective solid waste management. Taking cue from the city, Thondamuthur town panchayat, abutting the city, announced on Thursday that plastic carry bags would be banned in its limits from August 15.

The civic body has decided to prohibit plastic cups, thermacole plates and cups, disposable plastic plates and such materials made of polypropelene from Independence Day. Panchayat president T A Ravi has warned that in addition to the plastic ban, severe penalty would be levied on people and commercial establishments dumping waste in water bodies.

"We would strictly implement the ban across 15 wards in the town panchayat. We have decided to conduct a rally to create awareness among the public. Super stockists of plastic polythene bags below the permissible 40 micron size will face the highest penalty of Rs1lakh," said T A Ravi. Retailers found using plastic bags would be slapped a fine of 1000 while roadside vendors would have to pay 200 and the public 100. "Many people live below poverty line in panchayat limits. Hence, we have plan to focus on grocery shops to implement the ban initially," said Ravi.

District collector

Archana Patnaik said that the district has 44 town panchayats and 227 village panchayats. All local bodies would be asked to enforce the ban, she said.

"All town and village panchayats have been asked to curb plastic usage. Panchayat level officials have been instructed to visit every shop and check if they use plastic bags," said Archana Patnaik. While manufacturers of banned plastic bags should also be dealt with severely.

The city corporation had implemented the ban way back in January 2014. The civic body initially decided to collect fine of Rs200 from public if they were found to use banned plastic carry bags. However, they failed to penalize the manufacturers of plastic bags.

According to corporation health officials, many roadside eateries were using plastic carry bags below 20 microns in thickness. Many hotels do the same but no action has been taken against them.
Source: TOI

New Materials Could Provide High-density, Energy-efficient Memory Sorage

2015-08-17T11:10:00.004+05:30

A team of scientists from Rice University have designed a new technology for solid-state memory storage, using tantalum oxide, which could potentially be a dramatic improvement on current technologies in terms of both the density of storage and the efficiency of energy consumption. The journal Nano Letters, of the American Chemical Society, has the details.

Two platinum electrodes sandwich layers consisting of multi-layer graphene, nanoporous tantalum oxide, and tantalum. The tantalum oxide loses its oxygen ions over time, turning from oxygen-rich at the top of this layer to oxygen-poor at the bottom of the layer. When all the oxygen ions are lost, it turns into pure tantalum.

The lead-author Gunuk Wang explained that, “The exchange of contact barriers causes the bipolar switching”.

In contrast to flash technology used at present, this design only requires two electrodes for each circuit, rather than three.

Rice University's professor of materials science, nanoengineering, and computer science, James Tour, said, “This tantalum memory is based on two-terminal memory systems, so it's all set for 3D memory stacks,” adding, “And it doesn't even need diodes or selectors, making it one of the easiest ultradense memories to construct.”

According to the researchers, this design could store up to 162 gigabits (approximately 20GB) using crossbar array memories, and could use one hundredth of the energy required by devices currently in use. If these claims were to be realised consistently on a large, commercial scale, this would be a significant breakthrough in the field of memory storage.

Gunuk Wang cites certain obstacles such as the need to control nanopore size, and the need to make a crossbar device which is dense enough for individual bits, as concerns which will have to be addressed before the technology gets to that point.

However, while a few details still need to be ironed out, this design sounds, at least in theory, very promising.

Tantalum oxide, or strictly speaking tantalum(V)oxide, otherwise known as tantalum pentoxide, is used in capacitors in a range of electronic equipment, including computers, mobile phones, DVD players, and game consoles. It replaced aluminium oxide in this capacity, thus allowing the 'brick' phones of the 1980s to be replaced by smaller, lighter mobile phones.

Some may see potential ethical issues surrounding the sourcing of the rare element tantalum. One of the sources of tantalum is the mineral known as coltan, found in relative abundance in the Democratic Republic of Congo (formerly known as Zaire). While Congo represents a only small proportion of the world tantalum market, coltan mining is significant in terms of the country's economy. The coltan trade has been linked to ongoing warfare in the region, leading to tantalum being viewed as a conflict resource.

However, there's hope for such ethical questions regarding tantalum from the Congo to be resolved. One initiative, aptly named the Solutions for Hope Project, aims to preserve the coltan mining trade's contribution to the local economy, while ensuring that it doesn't fund the conflict.

Source: the stack

Mangaluru Firm Installs 2 Solar Power Systems

2015-08-17T11:08:00.003+05:30

The Mangaluru-based Solar Trade Links has set up two rooftop solar power generation systems in the city.

Kumble Narasimha Prabhu, Managing Partner, said his firm had installed and commissioned rooftop solar plants of 10 kw and 12 kw capacity at Ramanath Enterprises at Karangalpady and at Ajith Enterprises at Baikampady Industrial Area in Mangaluru, respectively.

Stating that these are the first two net-metering rooftop solar projects in coastal Karnataka, he said both units save 2,700 units of power a month and ₹2.58 lakh a year in electricity bill.

He said these two independent solar power producers have power purchase agreements with Mangalore Electricity Supply Company (Mescom) at ₹9.56 a unit for the next 25 years.

These two enterprises now meet their power requirements through solar plants. The excess power is supplied to Mescom, Prabhu said.

Terming it as a small step towards the energy self-sufficiency of the city, he said another four rooftop solar power installations of a combined capacity of 50 kw would be commissioned by October.

He told Business Line that the target is to set up a combined capacity of 100 kw in Mangaluru by the end of December.

Prabhu said that industrial units and hospitals can make use of rooftop solar power plants, as these power plants are also eligible for tax benefits.

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