Super Soaker Inventor Cuts Solar Power Costs - Johnson Thermoelectric Energy Conversion System - Heat Engine - Popular Mechanics

Super Soaker Inventor Cuts Solar Power Costs - Johnson Thermoelectric Energy Conversion System - Heat Engine - Popular Mechanics: "Solar energy technology is enjoying its day in the sun with the advent of innovations from flexible photovoltaic (PV) materials to thermal power plants that concentrate the sun’s heat to drive turbines. But even the best system converts only about 30 percent of received solar energy into electricity—making solar more expensive than burning coal or oil. That will change if Lonnie Johnson’s invention works. The Atlanta-based independent inventor of the Super Soaker squirt gun (a true technological milestone) says he can achieve a conversion efficiency rate that tops 60 percent with a new solid-state heat engine. It represents a breakthrough new way to turn heat into power."