Abstract
GENERATION of electrical energy direct from the sun's rays has been feasible for many years, but in most cases the price is quite prohibitive. Up to a few years ago, such installations took up so much space and required such a high expenditure per horsepower on apparatus that projects suggested were not inviting. Most engineers took this view and regarded them as only of academic interest. Recent advances in the treatment of aluminium, in vacuum jacketing, in flash boilers and in mechanism for following the sun on its daily course have put a different aspect on the problem of solar steam-raising plant. Dr. C. G. Abbot, secretary of the Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C., who is well known for his solar investigations, now states in the course of an article covering some six pages (J. Amer. Inst. Elect. Eng.) that power from the sun can be obtained at 0˙5 cent per h.p., which is the pre-War equivalent of one farthing. He estimates that at this price such schemes can give a good return on investment. Even if we apply the corrective factor which is usually necessary in estimates by enthusiasts and raise the farthing to ½d. or ¾d., sun-power is obviously becoming a business for hot climates, and developments are worth watching.
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Utilization of Sun Power. Nature 146, 744 (1940). https://doi.org/10.1038/146744a0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/146744a0