14 DAY TRIAL // Nowadays, solar industry is considered to be one of the most viable green options to replace the dirty polluting options commonly used in power plants all across the Globe.
A recent poll revealed the fact that 9 out of 10 Americans support the industry and blame the Obama administration for not properly exploring the potential of this field of activity.
The lack of support is one of the factors that made the solar thermal industry grow by only 9% in 2010.
Experts say that this expansion is quite significant, more than the growth of the entire US economy, but also a smaller progress compared to the numbers reached by the solar PV industry that managed to boost its profit margins by up to 69%.
Scientists suggested that there are several trends that point to a future considerable growth of solar energy usage.
First of all, solar thermal energy is mostly residential, having a capacity of up to 79%.
Second, we are talking about a method that has been proven to be efficient and cheap for centuries.
The entire system works in about three minutes. Solar thermal collectors rely on sunlight to increase the water temperature and afterwards the water goes through a furnace or boil, without making the entire process depend on fuel power.
The benefits experienced after implementing such a simple system have captured the attention of a few players on the energy market, like RedCo Power and Skyline Innovations, which seem interested in investing a great deal in solar thermal power.
Another advantage provided by this permanently growing industry is the fact that solar thermal energy can contribute to air conditioning, a feature which, once exploited will most likely fill the pockets of major companies that might want to explore the potential of this strategy.
As we speak, researchers try to find efficient paths of using heat produced by solar thermal systems to provide new methods of cooling down entire commercial buildings.
Climate Well, an important company on the European market struggle to implement and expand this new technology and its efforts have eventually paid off, since its activity has been awarded $200 million during the smart grid competition organized by GE.
Needless to say that using solar thermal to provide cooling solutions has increased their profit margins, since bringing air conditioning to industrial and residential facilities has turned out to be a very profitable business.