Huge solar tower in Nevada to generate power for household users

A Federal government-funded massive solar tower is under the final stages of construction in the desert north of Tonopah, Nevada. The 600 foot solar cell-studded skyscraper is meant to produce power for the nearby houses. Situated in the deep desert the huge concrete shaft looks quite striking.

 As it turns operational, the tower will be surrounded by an ocean of mirrors to concentrate more light and heat to the tower.

The solar power plant, called the Crescent Dunes, will utilize the intense heat and unobstructed sunlight in the desert to generate power. Thanks to 10,000 mirrors, also called the heliostats around the location, light from sun will be highly concentrated on the tower. As a result, it can produce a huge amount of power, says Brain Painter, the manager of Solar Reserve Construction.

The intense heat from sun will be traveled through some tubes, which are stuffed with molten salt. As a result, the tower can generate enough amount of power even if the sunlight is not available. Indeed, this innovative technique overcomes the major challenge of making power using solar cells. Since the streams of lava-like salt act like huge batteries, it is easy to create power even if the sun is not shining overhead.

The billion dollar solar tower was constructed in help of federal funds for bringing more reliable and green alternatives for power. As per reports, the government program has now expired and so it will be the last solar project made of federal funds. Anyway, Crescent Dunes is the largest of its kind of solar panel towers for the production of electricity in big amount.

The First Solar-Geothermal Hybrid Plant in the World Begins to Work in Nevada

Enel Green Power (EGP), a subsidiary of the renowned Italian company, will take over this combination of solar and geothermal in the first hybrid plant in the world.  

The first geothermal power plant and solar is from May in Fallon, Nevada, and is a project that uses the latest technologies to combine solar energy installation and provide 59 MW of combined capacity to power more than 50,000 homes.

 Although he has completed a few months, will now that hybrid technology is launched.

The combined energies will be offset their weaknesses. Solar power only works when there is sun, while geothermal energy is independent of time of day or weather. In 2011 solar energy has grown by 54% to 28 gigawatts. 

 In addition, solar energy produced at times of increased consumption (when people are awake) but leaves supply the night hours or cloudy days, so the combination of geothermal energy is always interesting as well, its initial cost is considerably less.

Nevada intends to reach 25% of renewable power generation in 2025 and in fact, northern Nevada and is in 24%, while the national average remains at 13%.



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