Author: gavril

We’ve probably heard of The Schaeffler Group’s eco-friendly Porsche Cayenne V8 before. Well, that was just a concept car. Now the automobile company, Porsche themselves have decided to have their bulky SUV go hybrid. The upcoming Cayenne S Hybrid SUV will be Porsche’s most gas-efficient vehicle around and will account for around 15 percent of the model’s volume. That’s one out of everyh Porsche Cayennes sold.

The car’s V8/electric motor powertrain produces 380 horsepower with an average of about 28 mpg. The hybrid version will cost around $4000 more than a standard Cayenne S. The hybrid Porsche will hit the asphalt sometime later this year. Hopefully, more gas-guzzling SUVs around look up to the example set by the new Porsche Cayenne S Hybrid.

[LeftlaneNews]

The US military is all set to go green, greener than their camouflages that is. The US military will save up around $1.6 billion if they adhere to more energy efficient standards. The military has already taken a few steps towards energy efficiency. Spraying foam insulation on military tents in Iraq and Afghanistan, soaking in the suns energy with solar panels, and HVAC upgrades are a few of the efforts the military is taking to be a greener force. Environmental benefits, in hand with national security are the cause of these measures being undertaken.

Besides this, the military is also setting up and offering green jobs to its veterans with green job training programs. With advancement in electric vehicles and hybrids, maybe the US military could replace some of its gas-guzzling vehicles for cleaner electric powered ones in future too! Just a thought, might take a few years for that though.

[MNN]

If you’re health conscious and worried about putting on wait on your next Scandinavian visit, make sure you reside at the Danish hotel, The Crowne Plaza Copenhagen Towers; you’ll probably help generate some electricity by doing so. Confused are you? The hotel had an innovative brainwave and installed to exercise bikes that guests are invited to use after meals or whenever they feel the need to exercise. These bikes are hooked up to an energy generation system to generate electricity.

That’s not all. Produce 10 watts or more of power, and you win yourself a free meal, probably so that you hop on the bike after your meal again to burn off calories and produce more energy. And no, they weren’t talking about a snack bar meal. The meal you could win yourself is worth $44, according to hotel spokeswoman Frederikke Tommergaard, though only offered to people residing at the hotel and not passers-by. Sounds like an innovative vicious trick to get the health conscious produce electricity.

[Reuters]

In the next few decades, by the year 2050, you probably won’t see fossil fuel plants and nuclear energy plants in Europe anymore that currently satisfy 55% and 30% of electricity needs respectively. What you probably will come across though are vast solar plants in Southern Europe and Africa’s arid desserts, hydro energy plants of Scandinavia and the European Alps, onshore and offshore wind farms in the Baltic and North Sea and biomass generation across Europe.

This overhauling of the European grid, a plan referred to as the SuperSmartGrid, will have Europe completely powered by renewable energy sources in the next few decades. If all works out as planned, the continent of Europe will go a shade greener and will be a truly eco-friendly place to live in.

[Techvert]

We’ve heard of Wal-Mart’s efforts to go green with solar panels before at Apple Valley. The retail giants have done it again, this time with recyclable stores! Now we aren’t talking about PET made stores or Wal-Marts mad from cardboard. Lee Scott, chairman of Wal-Mart’s executive committee stated at the Fortune’s Brainstorm Green conference, that the retailer was looking to have its buildings built from materials that can easily revert to earth once demolished. A spokesperson also stated that Wal-Mart, known for trampling over local businesses, is planning to use more recyclable materials for future builds.

Currently, the buildings use rubber in store baseboards that is made partly from old diapers, steel containing recycled components and concrete composed of 20% fly ash (a byproduct of burning coal). If these statements aren’t just rumors or dreamy imaginations of Lee Scott, Wal-Mart’s pros will soon outdo its cons.

[Good]

Do you love the environment? Are you scared that your pizza delivery guy will probably burn a load of fuel on his way to your doorstep? Well, you won’t have to worry anymore about how much fuel your pizza guy uses. He might simply show up on the EV-neo electric scooter by Honda! The Japanese motor company, Honda, unveiled a prototype of their electric scooter, the EV-neo in Tokyo. Powered by a lithium-ion battery, powerful enough to match up to a 50cc petrol engine, this scooter can go 19 miles on a single charge, noiselessly, at a speed of 30kmph. The scooter’s battery can be rapid-charged up to 80% in just 20 minutes by plugging it into a regular power socket.

Honda is currently targeting business customers like pizza delivery services. Hopefully, this clean, noiseless and non-fuel-guzzling scooter sees a lengthening of its ride-able range in future.

[Physorg]

We’ve heard of the XOF1’s adventures before. Well, this solar powered flying-saucer-lookalike car has jumped yet another hurdle on its solar powered journey. Driver and project leader, Marcelo da Luz, drove across the treacherously frozen Arctic Ocean on a biting cold journey that lasted around 9.5 hours.

Travelling at 70kmph over smooth ice, the solar powered car had to slow down to 30-40kmph though over the Arctic Ocean stretch, due to terrible road conditions. A 1.5-2 meter ice layer was all that separated the XOF1 and Marcelo da Luz from the chilling Arctic Ocean beneath. Powered by 900 solar cells, this 20 kilogram car has broken the record for the longest distance covered in a solar vehicle, by travelling 15,000km in 140 days. Hopefully, the Arctic sun behaves like it is expected to on the cars journey back to Inuvik from Tuktoyatuk.

[EnergyMatters]

The Disney Store is doing its bit towards spreading environment awareness with its new line of “Save Planet Earth” products. In commemoration of the 40th anniversary of Earth Day, the line includes a bunch of stuff made out of recycled products. The aluminum bottles by Disney Store can be reused, doing away with the possibility of them ending up in your bin. Made out of seven recycled bottles each, the “Save Planet Earth” tote bags are up for sale too.

The “Save Planet Earth” journals are made of recycled paper. And if that’s not enough, the Disney Store also has a hoard of T-shirts made of 100% organic cotton, sporting slogans like “Love” and “Save Planet Earth”. To top it all, Disney’s very own delightful three-eyed alien from the “Toy Story”, will mascot these products. Disney sure thinks it’s about time we realize the need to save planet earth.

[Disnology]

Usually, shoeboxes are either thrown away, or end up being used for science projects or at times for making Formula 1 car models. The next time you buy yourself a pair of Pumas, remember that the shoebox in your hands took 3 years to design and is eco-friendly! The guys at Puma and Fuseproject racked their brains and came up with this ingenious packaging that has helped the sportswear brand save up on material costs.

Tightly secured in a bag, the shoebox decreases the use of cardboard by 65%. Doing away with tissue paper, plastic bags and the laminated cardboard exterior, the Puma box uses the PET made bag instead, making it easily recyclable. The company estimates the new box-bag will help save up on energy, water, fuel consumption during manufacturing by a sweet 60% (8,500 tons of paper, 20 million mega joules of electricity, 264,000 gallons of fuel, and 264 gallons of water). Expect this shoe packaging on store shelves from next year. Who’d think modifying packing material could help save so much!

[Fastcompany]

No-one knew what a solar panel was 60 years ago. The concept of turning the sun’s energy into electricity was never heeded to before. One man came up with the technology though, a British science teacher. This contraption he developed based on the junction semiconductor still works today! If exposed to direct sunlight, the device can generate 1.5 volts of energy, which may not be a lot, but come to think of, this was the first solar panel! Forgotten thru time and snuggly left behind in a box, this device was finally stumbled upon and displayed at the ‘Antiques for Everyone’ show at Birmingham’s NEC.

Sadly though, the inventor of this awe-inspiring antique isn’t known. It uses a mineral called selenium that converts the solar energy into electricity. He probably wouldn’t know that the same contraption he used to prove to his friends that solar energy could produce energy, would be used on such a wide scale all over the world today.

[Dailymail]

Someone at the PJM Interconnection had a brainwave and came up with the idea of having postal trucks, school buses and garbage trucks connected to the grid in America. How will this help? Well, electric vehicles like these could help store grid in their lithium batteries when not in use. With wind and solar energy being dependent on weather, steps like these would help increase grid reliability.

In existing grids, the energy generated must be simultaneously used. Using vehicle batteries to store this energy instead for use later could help increase the applicable use of renewable energy. This will also help increase a balance between load and generation. The struggling US postal service will also reap benefits if all its 144,000 vehicles were plugged in for 12 hours overnight. This will increase income by $237 million to $378 million a year and if 3000 postal vehicles go electric, the government will save $1,500 per vehicle in gas costs each annually! If all goes well, these fleets will be energy store-houses in future.

[Inhabitat]

Powering up drones for longer journeys has remained a matter of concern before. However, this may soon be easier, with technology being developed by Aurora Flight Sciences, which has been awarded a contract by the Pentagon for the project. The firm is currently developing a drone platform known as the Skate which you can unfold out of a backpack (easily portable) and launch instantly for navigation.

To power this up, lithium batteries incorporated in the wings with solar panels on the top and infrared photovoltaic cells for night-time recharging on the lower panel will soak in the sun’s energy. Solar energy will satisfy 95% of the Skate’s power needs. The remaining 5% will be powered by thermal energy. The company also plans to integrate a navigation system similar to the sonar systems bats use. When developed, these drones will help navigation technology with a push forward.

[Popsci]

Not a lot of us are interested with what mankind will be like, some 1000 years later. But designer Mario Pitsch has spared a thought for the future nomadic human tribes and has designed a vehicle for them too! Known as the Nomad RV, this Easter-egg-shaped vehicle can transport a family of four. Besides traveling in them, future humans can also use the Nomad RVs to grow food, collect water for drinking and produce their own electricity with solar panels.

Using technology like “algae reactors”, a “foil shell” covering and a “fog collector” to collect fog to be used as drinking water, this vehicle will help a family sustain itself while on the move. Maybe we won’t see an earth-rover like this around anytime soon, though we could incorporate some of these ideas and come up with technology we can use in RVs today.

[Designlaunches]

The Lotus Elise has left all its peers in the dust, a clean CO2-free dust that is. The Elise petrol sports car has the lowest CO2 emissions in the world among the many others around. The entry level 2011 Lotus Elise has a miniscule emission of 149g/km. This awesomely low emission for a car like this has taken the world by surprise.

The emission level of this car is 16% lesser than the Lotus Elise S and has overshot the company’s own expectations of a car with emissions slightly below the 155g/km mark. Bundled with a Toyota 1ZR-FAE 1.6litre engine, the car boasts a 46.7mpg performance. Weighing just around 876kg, the new clean Elise with improved aerodynamics and a maximum torque of 160Nm at 4,400rpm, this clean green sports car will set a new standard in the automotive industry.

[TheGreenCarWebsite]

Camping equipment is turning greener with every new innovation, making sure you don’t burn a hole in the atmosphere while enjoying nature. Here’s another addition, the BioLite stove. What you probably don’t know is, toxic smoke from cooking indoors using solid fuel kills around 1.6 million people annually and causes a significant amount of harm to the environment too. The BioLite stove reduces emissions by 95% and uses half the fuel required by a regular fire. It also boils water faster than a normal petroleum stove. This portable, efficient and eco-friendly stove can burn a load of substances you’d come across while camping and weighs just a pound and a half.

On connecting it to a thermoelectric generator, the stove powers a small fan that blows air to improve combustion. It also creates enough energy to power up a USB device through its USB port. You can buy yourself one of these for just around $80.

[Ohgizmo]

We see them every where, warning us about upcoming “dangers” and “hurdles” that we should stay away from while driving. If taken seriously, traffic signs can keep away those shocking moments of being taken unawares and hitting a speed breaker. Keeping a look out for the speed limit sign will also save up on your monthly pile up of tickets. Well, here’s a bunch of traffic signs that you’re bound to look at. These illuminated signs will grab attention on the most crowded street. These traffic signs power up using solar energy and were unveiled by the company ENLIGHT at the Green Energy Expo 2010 in Dae-gu, South Korea. Packed with a battery to store the energy collected in the day time, these signs will help keep drivers informed during the night too!

The last time we heard of illuminated road information displays was the Solar Roadways innovation, also powered by solar energy.

[Aving]

The Boston Logan International Airport goes green, and no, we aren’t talking about a green painted landing strip. Joining the league of the Le Castellet International Airport in the South of France and the Page Field General Aviation Airport in Southwest Florida, the Boston Logon in East Boston will be one of the most energy efficient airports in the US. The airport is now powered by a 200kW solar system that will save around 3,500 barrels of oil annually. 1,000 solar panels power up the Terminal B garage, which will also be the first airport garage to be lit with LEDs.

This is just one of the upgrades that Massport, the airport’s operating authority have taken up, spending around $1 billion in all for around 379 projects. More green hearted airports springing up around the globe will be a welcome sight.

[Getsolar]

Solar-cell technology will acquire an energy boost with this new development by the Wake Forest University in North Carolina. The university was granted a patent for their brainchild, a solar-cell technology with a double electricity output than the flat solar cells available today. These fiber-based solar cells received patents from the European Patent Office. The University has also applied for a patent from the US Patent Office.

Raised from millions of tiny plastic fibers, these new cells collect solar energy from oblique angles. It soaks in sunlight during sunrise and sunset too! With an increased surface area as compared to flat solar cells, these cells can produce twice the amount of kilowatts everyday. Solar technology will get its well deserved push with an increased applicability, thanks to this new better efficient technology.

[Energymatters]

The 2010 Common Wealth games get a shade greener with the Thyagaraj Stadium in New Delhi, India going solar powered. Indian energy giants, Reliance Industries, have commissioned what will be the countries first one-megawatt solar plant that will juice the stadium with the sun’s energy. The stadium to be used for the games will have the solar plant on its roof.

The Thyagaraj Stadium covers an area of 16,000 square meters and can accommodate a capacity of around 4494 people. It will host the Netball competition during the upcoming games. Solar power will also be used to power up the Tokyo Olympic Stadium, being built for the upcoming 2016 Olympics. Looks like the upcoming Common Wealth Games and the Olympics are destined to be a green affair!

Need to display your work of art outside the four doors of your home and out in the open? The Solar Blossom, a temporary outdoor gallery lets you do just that. And it lights up your work, with energy from the sun. The brainchild of DeMarco Architecture, the Solar Blossom is inspired by the Bluebonnet flower. Using the suns energy, this outdoor gallery also educates visitors about solar power and its potential to power up our lives.

With a blue curvy surface, like that of a petal, the Solar Blossom has a white interior just like the insides of a flower petal. The flexible solar panels on the roof provide for the lighting and multimedia displays. Also, a set of batteries store energy to power up the Blossom in the dark. With a framework of recycled steel and thermoplastic panels, this outdoor gallery is sure to grab an audience if placed in gardens and community spaces.

[Ecofriend]