wiredinUSA January 2013

INDEX

Hurricane Sandy prompts upgrade

Power line through Alberta

Copper slides on fiscal cliff

Fiber meets solar

Verizon Communications Inc is replacing copper wire damaged by Hurricane (later Superstorm) Sandy with fiber optic cable, a move that will allow the company to sell more services to its customers. The accelerated installation of fiber cable in stormdamaged areas lowers the maintenance costs for the company while providing an almost instant increase in revenue from customers, Verizon chief executive Lowell McAdam revealed at a UBS conference in New York. As a result, the company expects to exceed its target of 200,000 customers converted to fiber from copper in 2012 with conversion being "substantially more" in 2013, Mr Mc- Adam said. Verizon is aiming to transfer as many services as possible away from the older, slower copper lines and onto its faster FiOS network.

The Alberta Utilities Commission (AUC) has approved a $1.5 billion high voltage power line project through the Edmonton–Calgary corridor. The 500kV direct current Western Alberta Transmission Line will be built by Canadian transmission firm AltaLink. Over 60 percent of the route parallels existing power lines to minimize the visual and environmental impact of the project. AltaLink CEO Scott Thon commented: "This project is absolutely 100 percent for Albertans and it is about reliability in our system and making our generation sector more competitive." The AUC, a quasi-judicial agency of the province of Alberta, regulates the utilities sector, natural gas and electricity markets.

On 7 th December, thewebsiteCopper Investing News reported that copper prices had dipped, due to concern that US lawmakers will be unable to agree a deal to avoid the fiscal cliff – spending cuts and tax increases that are set to automatically come into effect in 2013. Copper had been boosted earlier in December by hopes that a deal could be reached, and by signs that demand for copper is improving in China, the world’s largest consumer of the metal. ThomasKeller,CEOofChile’sCodelco, the world’s largest copper producer, said that China’s commitment to urbanization and industrialization should give the copper market a “healthy boost” in the coming years. Keller also said that even if China’s economy only grows by a single digit, “there’s still a lot of tonnage adding to the demand globally.”

An international team of engineers, physicists, and chemists has created a fiber optic solar cell. The cells are thinner than human hair yet produce electricity, and theUSmilitary is already interested in the possibility of weaving the threads into clothing that could provide a wearable power source for soldiers. The optical fibers are made from glass. Using high-pressure chemical vapor deposition, n-, i-, and p-type silicon is injected into the fiber, turning it into a solar cell. These silicon injected fiber optic threads are identical to conventional solar cells, and generate electricity using the photovoltaic effect. Unlike other solar cells, these fiber optic solar cells have a 3D cross-section and retain the glass fiber’s intrinsic flexibility.

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wiredInUSA - January 2013

wiredInUSA - January 2013

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