NewNergy

Scientists at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory have revealed that they have driven a car 650 miles on one tank of liquid hydrogen. In a recent test, the team installed a super-insulated hydrogen gas tank in a standard Prius hybrid that was able to keep a full load of the liquid without evaporating for six days, setting a new world record.

The 300-pound tank removes a lot of obstacles to the development of hydrogen-powered cars. Current versions, such as the fleet of hydrogen-electric Toyota Prius’s used by various city governments across Southern California, run on compressed hydrogen gas, and have a limited range of around 80 miles between fill-ups. Even a fairly modest three-gallon tank fills the entire trunk of a Prius, but still only allows a range of around 200 miles, not really enough to compete with gasoline-only vehicles. One way to overcome this limitation is by using liquid hydrogen, which takes up around a third of the volume of compressed gas. However, it is much more difficult to handle, mainly because it must be kept at very low temperatures (around -420oF) and extremely high pressure to prevent it from evaporating as the engine heats up.

More from here - Breakthrough Hydrogen Car Gets 650 Miles Per Tank

Labels: autos, hydrogen, inventions

If you've ever rushed to save your files before your laptop battery gave out, or scrambled to recharge your iPod, or wished out loud for the resurrection of the electric car ... relief is in sight.

Yet another battery breakthrough is on its way to market, taking its place alongside improved hybrid-electric vehicles, the promise of ultracapacitor systems and even better AA power cells. Next-generation batteries could well last several times as long as current power packs, thanks to nanotechnology.

More from here - A 'Revolution in Batteries'

Labels: batteries, inventions

A retired Queensland scientist says he has developed technology that could fast-track the widespread use of electric cars.

Peter Rays - from Stanthorpe - says he has been able to create super-conduction at room temperature, allowing more electrical current to flow through a substance.

He says the discovery has significant uses in computer and microwave technology and could see electric cars recharged in less than five minutes.

More from here - Retired scientist claims electric car breakthrough

Labels: electric-cars, inventions

Advances in lithium-ion battery technology will boost the range of electric vehicles to 400 kilometers (248 miles) by 2015, the head of research and development at Nissan Motor Co. said Wednesday.

Mitsuhiko Yamashita, Nissan's executive vice president for research and development, said advances in lithium-ion battery technology will dramatically boost the operating range of electric vehicles, potentially broadening their appeal. The breakthrough will come with so-called fourth-generation lithium-ion batteries that will be ready by 2015, he said.

More from here

Labels: autos, batteries, electric-cars, hybrids, inventions

Two Japanese companies, Mitsubishi Chemicals and Sumitomo Chemical, are working on spreadable electronics, an idea that has nothing to do with margarine and everything to do with potentially making electronics that doesn't have to be plugged in.

The molecular soup mixture would have organic light-emitting diode (OLED) and solar cell building blocs that can be spread or even sprayed like paint in an ultra-thin layer that is only 100 nm thick. By combining both technologies, it may be possible to have displays on the market that don't even have to be plugged in but charged using solar panels. The companies even say it could be sprayed onto the back of cell phones to charge up the device.

More from here

Labels: inventions, solar

As a child, you might have used magnifying lenses to focus sun's rays onto anything you wanted to burn. Even if you haven't, you'd be well aware that it's possible to do so. IBM takes it to a whole new level and used a magnifying glass to significantly improve solar energy output.

According to test results, IBM was able to capture 230 watts of energy on just one centime of solar cell which would then be converted to 70 watts of usable electricity. That is FIVE times the usual output of typical PVs. So, if just a small surface area could generate electricity which could power whole structures, for example, this means there'd be a decrease in the needed quantity of photovoltaics, thereby lessening installation costs.

More from here

Labels: efficiency, inventions, solar

There are a lot of cool gadgets out there, but there’s a fine line between what’s cool and what’s useful. This is a green list of gadgets that are useful, but boast the extra-cool factor of using renewable energy. No batteries required!

Nice list from this Clean Technica post

10. A solar-powered LED mounted on suction cups.

9. A portable solar water heater.

8. Fridge without Power

7. Solar Cookers

6. MP3 player that you can charge by hand.

5. Personal Wind Turbine that you can strap to your house.

4. Sunlit self-sufficient Gadgets

3. Natural sunlight (sans UV and infrared) for your home or office, that comes from fiber optic cables

2. Solar-powered cap for your water bottle.

1. Solar Battery Recharger

Labels: inventions

Researchers at Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory and the University of California, Berkeley, have found a way to use ordinary silicon to convert heat to electricity. The technique could mean that some day you will be able to recharge your cell phone with electricity produced by your own body heat, and enormous amounts of energy that is now wasted could be recycled

Labels: inventions

A nice dwelling upon on various alt energy technologies and ideas...can't say this is exhaustive, but some of the ideas discussed are cool and there are lots of web resources for sure

Labels: inventions

Lithium batteries ready for the 3rd Gen. Prius

Toyota's lithium batteries ready to go - May 11, 2007

The biggest issue regarding the third iteration of Toyota's Hybrid Synergy Drive has been the lithium-ion batteries, and how soon those batteries could be available...
A Toyota executive recently announced today that Toyota's lithium-ion battery, under development with Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., was technically ready to be mounted on hybrid cars "any time"...

Read the full report from here @ Hybrid Car Blog

Labels: batteries, electric-cars, hybrids, inventions

Hydro Power Invention - No Reservoirs Required

April 11th, 2007 - Alternative Energy Info

A new hydro power technology is being developed by Sarfraz Ahmad Khan of Pakistan. In theory these hydro plants would not require a reservoir and would have a minimal impact on the environment. They could be run side-by-side in rows and would be much cheaper to build, operate and maintain. Sarfraz has high hopes that his ideas could revolutionize hydro power in his country and across the globe. He is currently seeking expert confirmation of his ideas; this article provides a brief summary of his ideas along with some of the 3D images he has created. You can help him by leaving your comments at the bottom of the page, or by joining the discussion that inspired this article.

Read more from this page @ Alternative Energy Info

Labels: hydro-power, hydroelectricity, inventions, research

Vertical Axis Windmill Invention

April 26th, 2007 - Alternative Energy Info

Toronto Inventor Tom J. Gilmour recently published his conceptual designs for what he is calling Tom’s Whirligig. Patent applications have been made, and Tom hopes to reserve all rights and worldwide patents for his design. Tom believes his windmill plans to be the most complex ever devised. While he is not yet sure of the workability of this concept, he is optimistic about its feasibility and hopes to soon find the time to build a working model.

This new design is based around a continuously rotating carousel, which houses eight symmetrical airfoils. The entire carousel is mounted on a fixed vertical shaft. A top mounted central weather vane keeps the cam shaft pointed at the wind.

Read more from this report @ Alternative Energy Info

Labels: inventions, research, wind

Hybrid Hydrogen-Carbon Process - A New Biofuel Breakthrough?
March 14, 2007
By Rene O'Deay

A new process of creating biofuels could lead to the US becoming an exporter of oil, instead of an importer, according to Purdue University Scientists.

The new process is called H2CAR for "hybrid hydrogen-carbon process." This process (H2CAR) can be used to provide a sustainable fuel supply to meet the needs of the entire U.S. transportation sector...

H2CAR will enable us to use our current fuel delivery system and internal combustion engines. The method can also be used to produce liquid gas from coal without the production of CO2, eliminating the need for carbon dioxide sequestering.

Read the full post from here @ Alternative Energy Products

Labels: inventions

Plasma process converts garbage into clean energy

February 23rd, 2007

With an eco-friendly technology called Plasma Gasification, one can produce clean energy which in turn powers the process, along with commercially useful byproducts.

Recently a company has developed this interesting device that can handle pretty much any type of waste put into it and turn it into a clean source of energy.

This process creates two byproducts; one is a synthetic gas composed mostly of hydrogen and carbon monoxide which can be converted into a clean fuel. The second byproduct is a form of vitrified glass that can be used as inert fill for construction in roads, building blocks or other uses.

The process produces enough synthetic gas to power the unit, as well as a surplus which could be sold directly or used to generate excess electricity, providing an additional source of revenue for the facility.

Read more from this post @ Green Geek

Labels: environment, inventions, waste

Twirling Tower Could Power Itself, Ten Others

By Hank Green - 13 May 2007

An architect has designed a wind-powered rotating skyscraper. While the technical details of the wind-power system are not fully known, the architect, David Fisher, claims that the tower could power itself and ten other similar sized buildings. Though the claim appears unbelievable, if it is even able to produce just it's own energy, it would be a significant achievement.

The architect has proposed that towers be built in a new way, basically by stacking platters on a central concrete core. This will allow for two unique and awesome features. First, a wind turbine between every floor (see image above) and, second, rotating floors.

Read more from this post @ EcoGeek

Labels: green-buildings, inventions, wind

Agrichar for Better CO2 Sequestration & to Reduce Global Warming?

May 07, 2007

The first meeting of the International Agrichar Initiative convened about 100 scientists, policymakers, farmers and investors with the goal of birthing an entire new industry to produce a biofuel that goes beyond carbon neutral and is actually carbon negative.

Agrichar is the term not for the biomass fuel, but for what is left over after the energy is removed: a charcoal-based soil amendment. In simple terms, the agrichar process takes dry biomass of any kind and bakes it in a kiln to produce charcoal. The process is called pyrolysis. Various gases and bio-oils are driven off the material and collected to use in heat or power generation. The charcoal is buried in the ground, sequestering the carbon that the growing plants had pulled out of the atmosphere. The end result is increased soil fertility and an energy source with negative carbon emissions.

Interesting, read the full story from here @ Truthout

Via: Madison Peak Oil Group post

Labels: climate-change, environment, inventions

Higher Air conditioner efficiency using solar power

You may have probably heard of Solar Air Conditioner. It can produce cooling effect by absorbing heat from Sunlight. Normally, these types of ACs are absorption type refrigeration systems using Ammonia cycle, salt and vapor pressure stuff. But these are still limited to research labs with few commercial applications.

In this post the author talks about using electricity (from solar) to get some extra points of efficiency from your existing AC.

Interesting post, read more from here @ A Sun Energy World

Labels: efficiency, inventions, research, solar

Research Shows Segway(R) PT Tops the List of Most Energy-Efficient Transportation

Press release

BEDFORD, N.H., April 18 /PRNewswire/ -- The findings of an in-house analysis conducted by Segway Inc., show the environmental benefits of the Segway(R) Personal Transporter (PT) compared to traditional transportation options like cars and sports utility vehicles (SUVs). The research evaluates a variety of vehicles relative to their impact on the environment, both in emissions created and energy consumed, proving that the Segway PT can substantially decrease greenhouse gas emissions and is the most energy-efficient alternative to short-distance, single-occupancy car journeys.

Read the full press release from PR Newswire

Labels: conservation, efficiency, environment, inventions, transportation

EcoSmart Fire eco-friendly heating systems available

EcoSmart Fire The EcoSmart Fire is a re-invention of the old spirit stove. Using renewable energy and utilising new design and technology, the EcoSmart Fire is environmentally friendly, aesthetically pleasing, highly efficient and cost effective. EcoSmart Fire also fits into a vast array of architectural environments.

Read the full report from here @ Info Link, Australia

Labels: design, efficiency, environment, inventions

Sugar-fuelled battery soon to juice up portable electronics

New technology uses any sugar source from soft drinks to tree sap for fuel

Liz Tay (PC World) 26/03/2007

Fuel cell technology that is currently in development boasts the ability of extracting energy from virtually any sugar source to power portable electronics like cellular phones, laptops, and sensors. The new technology is expected to be biodegradable, environmentally friendly and more energy efficient than current options, providing a green alternative to current Lithium-ion batteries.

The cell operates at room temperature and uses enzymes to oxidize sugars, hence generating electricity. So far, researchers have run the batteries on glucose, flat soft drinks, sweetened drink mixes and tree sap.

Read the full news story from here @ Computer World, Australia

Labels: batteries, efficiency, electricity, inventions

New biodiesel production method created

NASHVILLE, March 21 (UPI) -- A new Nanocatalyst developed at the U.S. Department of Energy's Oak Ridge National Laboratory might replace a costly process in biodiesel production.

Scientists at the laboratory's Nanoscience Center say the technology might replace the biodiesel manufacturing process that consumes chemicals, water and energy.

Read the full report here @ Science Daily

Labels: biodiesel, inventions, research

Could crops support biofuel need? Breakthroughs needed?

March 26, 2007, By Jerry W. Jackson, Check Biotech

Scientists and researchers are grappling for more breakthroughs before ethanol, biodiesel and other fuels of the future are produced in large enough quantities at prices low enough to revolutionize the country's energy independence.

But a concerted effort could enable farms and forests to eventually generate more than 100 billion gallons of biofuel a year, enough to replace the amount of gasoline the United States imports annually, was the opinion from the National Agricultural Biotechnology Council (USA). Read more from this news report @ Check Biotech

Labels: biofuels, ethanol, inventions

Researcher develops bioplastic as a disposable source of biodiesel

Posted by Giles Clark, London

23 March 2007

In an effort to develop a new source of sustainable energy, researchers at Polytechnic University, the premier New York-based technology and engineering higher education institution, have bioengineered a fuel-latent plastic that can be converted into biodiesel. Commercialization of this technology will lead to a new source of green energy.

The team made a new plastic from plant oils that has remarkable properties, which includes being tougher and more durable than typical polyethylenes. Additionally, the bioplastic can be placed in a simple container where it is safely broken down to liquid fuel.

REad the full report from here @ Biofuel Review

Labels: biodiesel, biopolymers, inventions, research

Making geothermal energy cheaper

22 March 2007

The US Geothermal Resources Council has awarded the ‘best paper award’ to a study by associate professor Dina Lopez from the Ohio University. She studied silica scaling which tends to clog up geothermal plants.

Lopez hopes the study will help guide efforts to control silica scaling, which may help reducing the maintaining costs of geothermal plants.

Read the full report from here @ Green Prices

Labels: geothermal, inventions, research