Thanks.

Reminds me of the power outage in Chicago, I think, back in 2000. It was pretty miserable and a few people died as a result. I think that was the same summer when Bush signed (or vetoed) some sort of law regulating the power capacities of air conditioners.

Dangerous nuclear power? No one in the US has EVER died from a Nuclear accident on our soil EVER. The future, until fusion becomes feasible, is Nuclear power. Solar power cost way the hell too much, takes up way the hell too much room and it takes decades before you regain you investment.

this is a very rambling and silly video on a neat topic. should be edited down to at least 1/4th it's length.

Anyone else notice the Miss Teen South Carolina cameo?
"Also such as"

Too bad it takes a 10 ton system to cool a house.

Well, that building is hardly a small house. I have a three ton unit on my 900 sq ft home. Just so everyone is clear, the "tonnage" rating has nothing to do with the physical weight of the a/c system.

True that is a huge system, however that's not a house, it's a large complex and it's an early generation of this type of system. Remember the early computers filled huge rooms - now there is more computing power in laptop computers. If as much R&D were invested in something like this as the computer industry then I think it would be reasonable to say it could morph into a more compact unit. People used to say the same thing about computers.

"Even small air conditioners can consume thousands of watts per hour"

The narrator obviously has no clue about physics. One watt is one joule (unit of energy) per second. Total energy consumption would be measured in joules; the rate of energy consumption would be measured in watts; the rate of change of the rate of energy consumption would be measured in watts per (time).

Lithium bromide is no safer than other coolants used in air conditioners. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lithium_bromide
Bromide is harmful because it displaces Iodine and interferes with the production of thyroid hormone (among many other ways it can poison you). Lithium is used as a psychoactive drug. Lithium was used as a food additive in the USA until 1948 when manufacturers were forced to stop adding it to food. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lithium_pharmacology#Lithium_and_culture

The device in the video is far too bulky to be adopted in an urban area and provides the same net impact on the heat of the surrounding area as running an ordinary AC from solar panels.

jwray - you obviously have no clue about standard energy consumption terminology, the kW-hr is a commonly used metric for power consumption of consumer electronics http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Watt_hour Not exactly a watt per hour, but probably what he meant.

As for nuclear, it is a good candidate for a SAFE short term power solution, but it still consumes fuel and leaves waste, and really should be used as a transitory power source until a good renewable infrastructure can be built up (including solar, wind, water...heart?)

Back on topic, pretty interesting, particularly for those with the space to use them.

So how much does it cost?

"kilowatt hours per hour" is a very bloated phrase that should just be stated as "kilowatts"

"Solar power cost way the hell too much, takes up way the hell too much room and it takes decades before you regain you investment.

As to the cost, I think that has more to do with the current production quantity and methods; the more solar energy alternatives we produce, the more likely the cost will lessen and the methods grow more efficient.

As to the space, I think a slab of solar cells on the roof of every house would be as efficient as the common driveway.

The greatest obstacle to solar energy is that it will allow each building to generate its own energy, which is money out of the pocket of the power company.

If every home in the Southwest of America can generate its own electricity, there will be no more need for companies like Xcel.

My two cents.

Photovoltaic cells come in flexible thin films that can be attached to any roof, and they can generate about 200 watts per square meter in direct sunlight. Almost every house uses less energy than what would be generated by its roof covered in PVs. The trouble is that they cost hundreds of dollars per square meter, and storing 30 kilowatt hours as a buffer wouldn't be easy.

*engineering

Adding video to channels (Engineering) - requested by oxdottir.