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To: Sam who wrote (136120)	4/8/2010 12:23:19 AM
From: Sam	Respond to of 541952

And talking about desalination.... I.B.M. and Saudi Researchers Collaborate on Solar-Powered Desalination Technology By TODD WOODY April 7, 2010, 8:33 am A researcher tested I.B.M.’s ultra-high-capacity photovoltaic technology in New York. I.B.M. and a Saudi Arabian research institute are collaborating to develop a desalination plant powered by a new type of solar technology. The goal is to build a desalination project in the Saudi city of Al Khafji capable of producing 7.9 million gallons of water a day that would supply 100,000 people. Desalination is an energy-intensive process, which has limited the deployment of such plants outside desert regions like the Middle East. But I.B.M. and the Saudi research institute, the King Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology, plan to dramatically reduce the electricity costs by building a 10-megawatt solar farm that deploys ultra-high concentrator photovoltaic arrays. The technology will concentrate the sun 1,500 times on a solar cell to boost efficiency. That’s about three times the solar concentration of most concentrating photovoltaic panels currently in operation. Sharon Nunes, vice president of I.B.M.’s Big Green Innovations division, said in an interview Tuesday that the key to increasing the solar panels’ efficiency was a device called a liquid metal thermal interface. A legacy of Big Blue’s mainframe computer work, the liquid metal thermal interface acts as a heat sink to cool the extreme temperatures generated by concentrating photovoltaic systems. “The solar component is something we’ve been implementing and that we have done testing on for the past two years,” Ms. Nunes said. “We’re quite confident with the results.” I.B.M. has not yet revealed the efficiency of such a solar system at converting sunlight into electricity. But Jenny Hunter, a company spokeswoman, said it was expected to be a significant increase over current concentrating photovoltaic technology. I.B.M. has had discussions with solar developers about using the technology, Ms. Nunes said. The researchers are still exploring options to run the plant when the sun is not shining, looking at technologies to store solar electricity as well conventional power sources. To further cut energy costs, the company and Saudi researchers said they had developed a nanomembrane that desalinates water and removes toxins while using less electricity. Ms. Nunes said the company expected that a pilot version of the desalination plant will be built later this year. If all goes well, I.B.M. will enter talks with plant builders about rolling out the technology to other parts of the world. greeninc.blogs.nytimes.com

To: Sam who wrote (136120)	4/8/2010 12:36:58 AM
From: Wharf Rat	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 541952

"Bob Colson, a Palm Desert resident who participated in the study, encountered some bumps along the way. Initially he cut back watering his lawn from twice a day nearly every day, to several times a week." Hello? Anybody in there? == Did you mention this? Cadillac Desert: The American West and Its Disappearing Water enotes.com == If you google image Palm Springs Golf Courses, images.google.com you can find This community is famous for its golf courses. For the traveling golf enthusiast, there are over 80 public and private golf facilities, including many of the finest works from the world's best known architects & designers. The Golfers Guide to California figures there are more than 240 miles of fairways in the greater Palm Springs area, (that's probably enough for any hacker to keep it on the short grass). golfguideusa.com