Back here may possibly, Google announced its not sufficiently Box challenge, a $1 million prize on behalf of know-how with the purpose of can radically fall back the size and load of inverters. This week, it opened the contest to applicants, announced the IEEE in the role of a partner, and clarified solely how minute it’s on tenterhooks to get a hold with the next-generation power conversion technologies.
According to Google’s Tuesday blog forward, its goal is to fall back today’s picnic-cooler-sized DC-to-AC inverters, used to join solar panels, wind turbines, emotional vehicles and other grid limit campaign, into something “the size of a minute laptop, roughly 1/10th its current size.” here technical expressions, with the purpose of equates to a kilowatt-scale inverter with a power density greater than 50 watts for each cubic edge your way.
Google’s not sufficiently Box challenge specifications keep a record (PDF) offers a fortune new details, as well as smallest efficiency (95 percent), how oppressive to the touch a chord it can get a hold (60 degrees Celsius), and a slew of specs on behalf of how the campaign can act together with the grid. But all of these are new before with a reduction of standard solar inverter chuck -- it’s the size with the purpose of matters nearly all.
Getting today’s inverters down to laptop size long for require around revolutionary modern supplies and design concepts, according to MJ Shiao, director of GTM's solar examination. Today’s inverter manufacturers are pushing the superior bounds of efficiency, and "investing into the operational, denomination, characteristic characteristic of the inverter may possibly demonstrate new returns -- not with the purpose of there's veto denomination here investing here lesser route," he supposed. "Smaller, new efficient designs unmistakably give rise to around return. Right new power into the same footprint can chief to poorer electrical balance of systems and logistical outlay."
Google concedes with the purpose of it’s setting a towering excluding, and it’s enlisted the help of the IEEE Power Electronics Society to help guess and decide on the winners. Applicants give rise to until July 2015 to get a hold their submissions here. In the role of on behalf of why it thinks with the purpose of much lesser inverters are central, Google’s blog forward cited their convenience to “help create low-cost microgrids here remote parts of the earth. Before allow you to keep the light on at some point in a fainting fit via your emotional car’s battery. Before enable advances we haven’t even notion of yet.”
Of avenue, $1 million doesn’t spirit with the purpose of far here expressions of bringing a technical idea to lab demonstration, assent to deserted commercialization. But a liaison with Google might transpire worth a fortune new than with the purpose of, particularly set its up to date attention here power conversion know-how. On behalf of the precedent little months, Google has been hiring power electronics engineers on behalf of a project dubbed the “Bottom Up Grid,” with the pledge of getting to happen as expected on “advanced electrical power conversion and conditioning solutions with the purpose of object to fundamentally transformation the earth of power.” According to news reports, Google has plunk past area of Energy ARPA-E curriculum director Arun Majumdar here charge of a power electronics grouping in the company’s Energy Access team.
Somewhere might the breakthroughs show your face from? Modern wide-bandgap semiconductor supplies are serving power electronics reach better performance here lesser junk mail. President Obama fanatical $70 million to a power electronics manufacturing core here North Carolina ultimate day, and ARPA-E is funding a host of next-generation semiconductor examination pains.
Individual of them, Transphorm, has Google in the role of an investor, and is using gallium nitride in the role of a replacement on behalf of silicon here all way of power electronics components. Silicon carbide is any more material with the purpose of promises to allow major reduction here supplies load and cost. Google's not sufficiently Box trap bleep lists semiconductor companies as well as Transphorm, NXP, Cree and United Silicon Carbide in the role of chairs somewhere not sufficiently Box applicants be supposed to spirit on behalf of in sequence, and asks other large bandgap device manufacturers not on the make an inventory to add their names in the role of well.
Google’s attention here better power conversion know-how isn’t solely charitable. The company has invested new than $1 billion here solar and wind power projects here the precedent five years, and holds a 37.5 percent stake here the Atlantic Wind Connection, a $5 billion offshore wind transmission project designed on behalf of the East Coast. It’s plus laying the foundation on behalf of new effective participation here the grid. Here 2010, it acknowledged praise from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to play a part new like a convenience here expressions of onsite generation and power-purchase agreements. And, of avenue, it has been squeezing efficiency elsewhere of its data centers on behalf of years at this time, any more area somewhere tiny gains here power conversion efficiency can add up to giant savings.
TAGS: Energy storage, gallium nitride, google, inverter, little box, microgrid, power conversion, power electronics, semiconductor, silicon carbide, smart grid, solar, transphorm, venture capital, wind
没有评论:
发表评论