Eco Trees

The solar cells efficiency grow, and a number of projects based on solar panels rises everywhere in the world. In the following are some of the most interesting, including solar buildings and giant solar "plants". We hope that the their successors to be more larger and more efficient.

1. Dunster Castle, Somerset, UK

Approximately 15-20% of the energy used by Dunster Castle is generated by solar panels on its roof. Although the investment of 55,000 pounds which ended a few weeks ago is not very efficient in financial terms, but electric bills of the castle will be approximately 550 pounds less each year. This castle is the only building of 'Grade 1' which uses this technology.


2. Strizki House, New Jersey, United States

Today, many houses have solar panels on the roofs. What's different about the house from East Amwell belonging to the civil engineer Mike Strizki, is that this is a hybrid house (hydrogen and solar energy) - the first of this kind from the United States. Combined use of solar panels and fuel cells based on hydrogen stored in tanks, produces 100% of the energy it needs the whole house during the year. But the system, whose installation cost 500,000 dollars, is too expensive to be implemented on a large scale.

3. Telefonica building, Madrid, Spain

The Spanish telecommunications company, Telefonica, buy a new building that will contain 16,000 solar panels covering the entire surface of the roof. With a power estimated at up to 3 MW, the building is one of the largest buildings powered by solar energy. The company hopes to reduce about 15% of heating bills, and about 34% of air-conditioning bills.

4. Dana Building, Michigan, United States

Dana building, owned by the University of Michigan, is covered with solar panels that generating about 30 kilowatts-hour of energy. The project was at the beginning a research effort intended to compare two types of solar panels. The building also uses the methods of passive solar power, such as making the building more responsive to sunlight through its many windows.

5. Four 'Times Square', New York, United States

Four Times Square in the heart of the Manhatan incorporate solar panels in the building itself. The building, relatively new (completed in 2000), which has 48 floors has photo-voltaic panels integrated into external walls. On the south and the east side of the building are photo-voltaic panels with thin film.

6. U.S Capitol Building, Washington

In 2005, Capitol Building from Washington was renovated with 144 solar panels generating about 20,000 kilowatts-hour of energy per year - enough to supplies Capitol Dome and the street lighting every night.

7. Pocking solar park, Bavaria, Germany

One of the world's biggest columns of solar panels, Pocking solar park, produce 10 megawatts of electricity - enough to send electricity to 3300 homes. The allocated space is a former military bases, where solar panels covers about 16 km of land, and reduce carbon dioxide emissions by approximately 10,000 tonnes per year.

8. Beneixama solar plant, Beneixama, Spain

Beneixama, photo-voltaic plant, with 100,000 solar panels covering about 500,000 square meters of land, is another world's largest solar park. The plant, which generates 20 megawatts power, was completed in the second half of 2007.

9. Nevada Solar One, Nevada, U.S.

Since June 2007, Nevada Solar One produces 64 MW of electricity, supplying up to 40,000 houses from the Las Vegas area, in the hot days. Instead the solar panels, Nevada Solar One uses a parable of curved mirrors. In the center of the mirrors is mounted a tube filled with oil which is heated by the sun. Then the oil flows into a reservoir where the water is turned into steam, which operate a turbine that generates electricity.

10. Girassol solar plant, Moura, Portugal

This plant will be the world's second largest solar plant and will be finished in the near future. With an improvement in the second phase of design, it will generate 62 MW to maximum capacity with nearly 350,000 of solar panels. Located in one of the most sunny and less developed regions economically from Portugal, "the plant will supply electricity to more than 20,000 houses.

And one extra:

11. Victorian Solar Park, Victoria, Australia

Although it is still in the stage of the project, Victorian solar park will generate more than the double energy that generates Girassol. Australian company Solar Systems plans a solar plant with "heliostat" panels advanced, producing up to 154 MW of electricity at maximum capacity. Solar panels, developed initially to supply electricity to satellites, can increase the power of the sun by 500 times, according to company Solar Systems. The project of 420 million dollars will produce electricity for more than 45,000 houses when it will be finished in 2013.