I have never seen this before: http://www.engadget.com/2014/05/07/solar-wind-energy-tower/?ncid=rss_truncated
The potential drawback is the need for water, which is more scarce in the SW than before due to the extended drought
Bright Future There is progress being made in other areas as well. Excerpt:A scientific advance could help bring a new class of solar cells to market.The recipe involves solar cells that use the mineral perovskite as a key ingredient. Until now, researchers had been working with a semiconductor built around a blend of lead and perovskite. The new recipe blends tin with perovskite, an approach that uses cheaper materials than many of today's generation of solar cells and carries far less environmental and regulatory baggage.During the past few days, two independent groups have reported encouraging results from their initial experiments with this new tin-pervoskite solar cell.Granted, the efficiency of this new cell is a bit underwhelming at the moment, but the potential seems pretty impressive. It's theoretically possible to make these cells cheaply and still acheive efficiencies better than 30%. Even though solar power may not be feasable in the higher latitudes, any 'free' electricity in one area is bound to lower costs for everyone, since the total demand for fossil fuels should drop as this type of technology gains acceptance. Free, endless energy and no CO2 gasses released in the process! Sure sounds good to me.
I haven't read how much they need. All I saw was the need for mist to create a cooling process to let the air drop through the tunnel.
Yes, but any water is a premium in most of the region now. http://www.azwater.gov/azdwr/statewideplanning/drought/DroughtStatus2.htm
