homehome Home chatchat Notifications


The PowerCube disaster-relief solar system serves electricity, purifies water and WiFi signal anywhere

The PowerCube looks like any other shipping container, but after it unfolds its ‘wings’ you start realizing there’s more than meets the eye. Designing for humanitarian relief efforts, the PowerCube is meant to deliver electrical power, purify water and offer WiFi signal to disaster inflicted areas all through harnessing solar power. While the idea is […]

Dragos Mitrica
June 26, 2014 @ 10:16 am

share Share

ecosphere

Photo: Ecosphere Tech

The PowerCube looks like any other shipping container, but after it unfolds its ‘wings’ you start realizing there’s more than meets the eye. Designing for humanitarian relief efforts, the PowerCube is meant to deliver electrical power, purify water and offer WiFi signal to disaster inflicted areas all through harnessing solar power. While the idea is noble and sounds very good, there are still a lot of problem that the system has yet to meet and which, unfortunately, might keep it from becoming a success.

Ecosphere Technologies, the company behind the PowerCube, says its system designed as a flexible solution that delivers solar power to off-grid areas. So far, it comes in three models: 10-foot, 20-foot, and 40-foot shipping containers. The largest installation can provide up to 15KW of power or enough to supply multiple missions, from hospitals and sleeping quarters, to providing water treatment or internet.

ecosphere1

Photo: Ecosphere Tech

Obviously, it’s a really neat idea since you get free power anywhere in the world and you don’t have to rely on a diesel supply, in the case of the generator alternative. Anywhere, but not anytime unfortunately. When the sun doesn’t shine powerfully enough or during night time, the system can’t be used. And it doesn’t come with any included batteries either. That’s alright if you’re buying a flashlight, but maybe not that convenient when you need to buy and install your own energy storage 15 Kw system.

Photo: Ecosphere Tech

Photo: Ecosphere Tech

This is only scratching the surface. An equivalent diesel generator power system in size would supply anywhere between 600kW and 1.7MW – that’s almost 100 times more power density. It’s unclear for now, what the company’s business strategy is, considering a diesel generator is more reliable, cheaper to buy (excluding gas) and a lot more powerful. The only plus you get from the PowerCube is free solar energy and no emissions or fumes, neither of which cause much concern during a disaster situation. This being said, the concept truly sounds interesting, and I guess there are some particular situations where the PowerCube is the most convenient solution (no gas supply, high solar flux areas). Looking forward to an upgraded version!

share Share

If you use ChatGPT a lot, this study has some concerning findings for you

So, umm, AI is not your friend — literally.

Miyazaki Hates Your Ghibli-fied Photos and They're Probably a Copyright Breach Too

“I strongly feel that this is an insult to life itself,” he said.

Bad microphone? The people on your call probably think less of you

As it turns out, a bad microphone may be standing between you and your next job.

This AI Tool Can Scan Your Food and Tell You Exactly How Many Calories and Other Nutrients It Has

Knowing what's inside your food has never been so easy.

Astronauts Can Now Print Metal in Space and It’s a Game Changer for Future Missions

ESA’s metal 3D printer aboard the ISS could revolutionize space exploration by enabling self-sufficient missions.

This Tiny Robot Swims Like a Worm — and Could Explore Alien Oceans

Marine flatworms have perfected smooth, undulating motion over millions of years of evolution. Now, scientists have taken inspiration to create a highly agile robot.

Sam Altman said it was "hopeless" for smaller AIs to compete with OpenAI. DeepSeek proved him wrong

It’s hard to overstate just how impactful DeepSeek has been. In a couple of days, it rattled the entire AI industry, shattering the aura of invincibility that OpenAI (and American tech companies in general) had built around themselves. DeepSeek’s new AI is the number one most downloaded free app on the Apple Store, and it’s […]

A paralyzed man just piloted a virtual drone using his brain

This new brain-computer interface offers a glimpse into the future for millions with motor impairments.

Single-Crystal Batteries Could Power EVs for Millions of Miles

A battery with this technology has been constantly charging and discharging for 6 years and it's at 80% of capacity.

Godfather of AI says there's a 10-20% chance AI wipes out humanity in 30 years

AI could bring an industrial revolution-level change, but at what cost?