Chevrolet Volt - Until 2010 Will Be On The Roads

31 August, 2008
Posted by Mike



General Motors officials have said that the car without polluting emissions could be available before November 2010, as had been originally announced.

The hybrid concept from General Motors, with an autonomy of up to 1,000 kilometers, is expected of more than 30,000 buyers. General Motors will launch official the series concept Chevrolet Volt the next weeks, write Motor Authority. Announcement was made by one of GM officials, according to the electric car could be available earlier than November 2010.

The concept hybrid version of GM was launched in January last year, when the manufacturer announced that in 2011, over 100,000 such cars will operate on the throughout the world.
The model presented in January 2007 has suffered a series of changes so far, but the new form has not been made public yet. Company representatives have stated that the changes were determined that the original was not enough aerodynamic.


Chevrolet Volt will have an autonomy between 65 and 80 km, if use only electric batteries LI-ION, loaded about four hours. The model dispose of a diesel engine or on gasolene that will charge the batteries providing a vehicle autonomy up to 1,000 kilometers.

General Motors representatives argue that the hybrid will not compete with the Prius model from Toyota, because we are talking about two cars "completely different".

The price announced by officials for a Chevrolet Volt reach up to 40,000 dollars for buyers of the United States. As regards European countries, GM announced recently that could build the Chevrolet Volt electric vehicle at the plant from Ellesmere Port, both under the Opel brand, and under the Chevrolet brand, without specifying the price for Europe.

A neurologist from New York, a fan of this car, has made recently, a list of alleged purchasers of Volt model. Most potential buyers are from the United States (California, Texas, Florida, Michigan), but also from other 46 countries. More than 33,000 people have declared their intention to purchase the electric car.

The model Volt fan intends to convince the people from General Motors to treat seriously unofficial list that he made.

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A Sustainable Life In a Hobit Eco House

29 August, 2008
Posted by Mike


A fan of hobit stories has built a ecological house in which to living close to the nature with his family. Simon Dale from Wales, Great Britain has raised a house only from clay, stones and rocks that covered these with grass and muscle. Besides the fact that this is a imitation of a hibit houses, the little house is perfectly functional.

Solar panels produce needed energy for electrical equipment, and water flows, with gravity help from a nearby river. The toilet is ecological, composting type, characterized by the ability to transform the garbage in rother. The stored air in clay help to maintain low temperature of the refrigerator. In addition, the house looks sensational.

This type of low cost houses that are not only sustainable but are comfortable and allow people to have access at clay to grow vegetables or fruit, showed Simon Dale. He said about him that is not a builder and has no experience in this field, but that such a building is accessible to anyone.

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Tires That Reduce Fuel Consumption

Posted by Mike


ExxonMobil Chemical Company has completed the developments at the technology system from Pensacola, Florida, which will produce a new type of tires, Exxcore DVA, aimed to reduce fuel consumption. The new technology is based on improving the process of holding pressure in the tires (infaltion pressure retention - IPR).

The company claims that this new technology has the ability to achieve a degree of permeability from 7 to 10 times greater, and to improve the tires sustainability with over 50%.

If all the cars tires from the U.S. streets would have an IPR of 1.5 percent, a goal which the company claims that could reach, this would represent a annual potential efficiency of fuel consumption of 2500 tons and a reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by over 6 million tonnes per year (which assimilate with the removal of one million cars from traffic).

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Formula 1 Race With Zero Emissions

28 August, 2008
Posted by Mike


The first Formula 1 race cars based on hydrogen was held last weekend, at Rotterdam. At the competition named Formula Zero Championship, have competed teams from five countries into a karts race with zero emissions. The cars from each team went on hydrogen cell.

A Dutch team won the competition while a Spanish team received the award for the highest speed.
Formula Zero was founded by the dutch Godert van Hardenbroek and Eelco Rietveld. The competition consists in a series of events, in which teams from Great Britain, the United States, the Netherlands, Spain and Belgium compete for the big prize, with zero emissions.

"The teams that adopt this technology as early will have success and those who are not interested will have to lose in the next 10 years, when these competitions will disappear if they will not engage in a program with zero emissions," said a competitor.

The next edition of the Formula Zero Championship will take place in the United States, in March 2009.

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A Charger That Will Powered By Kinetic Motion

27 August, 2008
Posted by Mike


Next year, the company M2E Power will launch a charger that works with kinetic energy. It can capture enough energy generated by the movement of the user running, such as to recharge the mobile phones batteries.

The company officials said that six hours of movement can generate energy for calls of 30-60 minutes for a mobile phone. The user can keep the charger rucksack or in a bag and leave it to recharge, explained Regan Rowe, M2E Power representative. When is full charge, the device stores enough energy to recharge a mobile phone, with a speed comparable to that of an ordinary charger, connected to a receptacle.

Inside the device is a lithium-ion battery and a series of carbons and magnets. When it move, around the carbons is created an electromagnetic field which generates electricity.

The device can be charged to a receptacle. Those from M2E Power presented the idea of several phone manufacturers to incorporate the charger direct in mobile phones.

The company test now and the level of energy that the device can get from the vehicles vibrations, said Rowe. The energy level that a generator can get varies greatly depending of the motion.

In the long term, the company intends to place devices that are charged single. In electric cars and hybrids. Placing such a device near the windscreen wiper or doors could significantly reduce the need for a rechargeable battery and would increase the movement autonomy, explained Rowe.

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Mitsubishi Invests 450 Billion Dollars On Solar Energy

Posted by Mike


Mitsubishi Electric Corp. wants to invest billions of dollars in production of photovoltaic cells to profit by the huge demands for solar energy, caused by higher fuel prices.

The company announced that it will invest 458 billion dollars in solar energy, intended to raise the production capacity to 600 megawatts until 2012. At present, Mitsubishi has a total capacity of energy generating of 150 megawatts. In March, the company announced that it wants to increase this capacity to 500 megawatts until 2013.

Mitsubishi plans to build a new factory in Nagano Prefecture, Japan, which will be provided with solar installation on roof.

Company officials say that by combining the silicon crystal technology with the solar one, will reach an energy efficiency rate of 97.5%. Mitsubishi will sell solar systems throughout the world.

Last year in October, Mitsubishi announced a plan to reduce one-third of the emissions associated with the use of its products. This plan includes the use of a production equipment more efficiently in factories and reducing the quantity of materials used in its operations by 30%.

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The Indians Conquered The U.S. With The First Diesel-Hybrid

26 August, 2008
Posted by Mike


The Indians want to conquer the United States with the first diesel-hybrid vehicle entered on the American market. Mahindra & Mahindra will reveal between 14 and 17 april at Detroit a pick-up hybrid that would enter on the American market in 2010.

The pick-up Appalachian is equipped with a diesel propellant and a electric motor. According to Indian officials, the diesel engine of 2.2 litres and four cylinders will develop between 140 and 150 power horses.

According to Mahindra, the company distributor, Global Vehicles USA, the new pick-up will enter on the American market with the price of 20,000 dollars, followed by that amount to grow by nearly 5,000 dollars in the case of a hybrid motorization. The vehicle will be available both in the version with two doors, as well as four.

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General Motors Factory Becoming More "Green" With Solar Panels

Posted by Mike


A solar installation of 1.2 megawatts will be installed on the roof of a General Motors plant from White Marsh. The company recently announced that add solar panels on the one of the biggest factories of assembling cars from Spain.

Solar plant from White Marsh will generate approximately 1.4 million kilowatts and will replace 20% of the electricity that the plan it buy. According to the contract made with SunEdison, the insurance services of solar system, the installation and maintenance will be done by it. The system will be ready until the end of 2009, and will consists in more than 8,700 solar panels installed on approximately 100 square kilometers of roof.

General Motors is one of the 10 car automobile manufacturers who have enrolled in the EcoDriving program launched by the Manufacturers Alliance of Automobile. Also, the company is in partnership with various utilities to speed the marketing of electrical cars.

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A Solar Plane Has Beat The Air Resistance Record Without Pilot

Posted by Mike


A plane that goes with solar energy, built in Britain, has set a world record of resistance in air for a flight effectuated without pilot.

Known as the Zephyr-6, the unit has resisted in air more than two days, at night it has flight with batteries charged during the day from the sun. The flight was a demonstration for the United States army which is looking for new flight technologies on automatic pilot.

The Zephyr device has flew nonstop for 82 hours and 37 minutes. This time beat the current official world record for a flight without pilot set by the U.S. plane named Global Hawk, 30 hours and 24 minutes.

At first glance, Zephyr looks like an ordinary model of plane. But this device without pilot with long wings 18 meters incorporated the highest technologies from the world. It is very easy because it is made from carbon fiber materials.

It flight based on solar energy generated by huge solar slabs of silicon, these are very thin as a sheet of paper which are attached to the plane wings.

The flight device Zephyr has demonstrated that it can resist at the extreme temperatures, from a heat of 45 degrees Celsius in the Sonoran desert from Arizona, and to very cold temperatures of -70 degrees Celsius at altitudes exceeding 18 km.

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The Hybrids From Chrysler Enters Into Production

25 August, 2008
Posted by Mike


The first hybrid vehicles from Chrysler, Dodge Durango and Chrysler Aspen are now finally in production at the factory from Newark Delaware, followed to providing a consumer with 25% less than the gas version.

Both models have a Hemi V8 engine of 5.7 litres and a hybrid system of two-mode type to maintain the interest of Americans for SUV's, despite the high oil prices.

This system, developed together of GM, Daimler and BMW, allows the vehicle to operate either on gas or with electric component, either using the both at the same time.

Regarding the SUV's prices, these are somewhat accessible, considering the technical complexity and the costs of production rather large, Americans asking 45,340 dollars on the Durango and $ 45,570 on Aspen.

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Nano Batteries Get Their Energy From Viruses

23 August, 2008
Posted by Mike


Instead to be exterminated, viruses are used to build cheap and simple small sources of energy. In their initial experiments, the engineers of the Technology Institute from Massachusetts (MIT) have genetically modified viruses and obtained a protein that attracts the pieces from metal. Now, they have used this feature to build key components of microscopic batteries.

Batteries are consist of four basic components: an anode and cathode, which forming positive and negative poles, an electrolyte that transfer the electrical charge between them and a separator between the anode and cathode. In the MIT experiment, two layers of polymer, which serves as the electrolyte and separator, were placed at the top of a pillar of four micrometers.

Then, the genetically modified viruses were allowed to grow on the two layers, which began to draw the metal. Researchers have not yet found a virus for the cathode construction, this is the next step of the project, which became attractive for its simplicity and low costs involved.

Currently, there are no devices that require batteries as a tenth of a grain of hair. Nevertheless, in future, these micro-batteries could serve as a primary source of energy for a variety of devices from the nanotechnology world.

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Neenah Paper Company Produces Paper With Green Energy

22 August, 2008
Posted by Mike



Neenah Paper Company, a manufacturer of premium paper, intends to produce electricity for its largest factory from wood waste and fibers starting next year.

Neenah Paper contacted the company Power Vision to build a biomass energy system for the factory Whinting of Wisconsin. The system on biomass is scheduled to be ready until the end of 2009. It will replace the boiler on gas of the factory.

The system will use the remaining waste from factory processes, which represents more than half of the paper production of Neenah company. Also, the company uses biomass for other one-factory, along with hydro power, solar and wind for electricity needed for other operations.

Besides the fact that Neenah will "green" its energy resources, the company sells eco-friendly products, certified by the Forest Stewardship, 100% made from recycled products without chlorine.

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Hybrid Locomotives For North America

21 August, 2008
Posted by Mike


The company Bombardier has won a tender worth of 485 million dollars to provide hybrid engines for public transport in New Jersey and Montreal. The new locomotives able to work both with fossil fuels as well as electricity are a premiere in North America.

New Jersey Transit Corporation will receive 26 locomotives for passenger trains. The new acquisitions have cost 262 million dollars with the option that will buy another 63 locomotives.

Metropolitan Transportation Agency from Montreal ordered 20 locomotives for the amount of 223 million dollars, in the future having to buy another ten.

In July, Bombardier space division from Northern Ireland announced that reduced carbon dioxide emissions by 69% from 2001 until now.

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Peugeot is Launching a New Hybrid Concept

Posted by Mike


Peugeot showed some photos of the new hybrid concept that the French have made for the Auto Salon from from Paris. The car s called RC ..., the full name followed to be known only at the official presentation from Auto Salon.

The new Peugeot RC ... presents itself as a coupe with four doors and four seats, accessible and versatile, also benefiting from newest hybrid technology. The French announces that the maximum power of the car will be 313 horse power, and emissions of pollutants will be included in the value of 109 g / km when the car goes using conventional engine and zero in electric mode.

It is not known for sure if those from Peugeot have the intention to produce a series model based on this concept. They say only that RC ... will be a technological showcase that show the manufacturer possibilities at the design level, technologies of hybrid propulsion and performances.

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Australian Geothermal Springs Can Produce Energy For 26,000 Years

20 August, 2008
Posted by Mike


Australian researchers have estimated that only a percentage of unexplored national resources of geothermal springs may produce during the 26,000 years clean electric energy.

Australian Government announced a project worth of 43 million U.S. dollars for develop technology to convert geothermal energy in electricity. "Geothermal energy, which is known as hot rocks, has a huge potential for Australia, so that solution against climate change but also in terms of national energy security," said Martin Ferguson, Minister for Resources.

Australia is the world's biggest exporter in coals, and the coals ensure the 77% of national energy consumption. Despite this, Australia had proposed that until 2020 to use 20% electricity from renewable sources.

To produce electricity from geothermal energy, the water is pumped from he underground where is hot and the heat energy is used to generate energy.

The Organization Geoscience Australia has created a national map with geothermal energy, using records of temperatures from several years of drilling for energy and minerals, sometimes more deeply than five kilometers.

The temperature of hot rocks should be 150 degrees Celsius to produce electricity, which is met at a depth between one and five kilometers , explained Anthony Budd, the organization Geoscience.

The organization estimated that it needed an investment of approximately 12 billion U.S. dollars for the development of 2,200 megawatts of energy, but added that the cost of electricity generation ill drop to an acceptable level when the commercial project will work.

The government project of drilling for geothermal energy will use different technologies in various locations from Australia in order to determine the best technology for hot rock energy conversion in electricity.

Australia produces around 1.5% of global carbon emissions. The coals dependence for the electricity generating turn it in the world's biggest polluter per person, generating five times more emissions per capital against China.

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Pilot Island DSe Hybrid - The First Hybrid Yacht

Posted by Mike


Following the cars trend, a different green means of transport is the yacht. Island Pilot DSe Hybrid is the first green vehicle on the water, long of 12 meters which combines fossil fuel, solar energy and electricity.

It is equipped with a photovoltaic solar panel of six kw plus a battery of 20 kilowatts / hour and can travel with a maximum speed of almost four kilometric per hour with zero emissions, using only electricity. Using the diesel engine, the maximum speed at which it can reach is seven kilometers per hour. DSe model needs a total of six kilowatts to navigate six marine knots and 10 kilowatts to eight marine knots.

The yacht design is convenient to change depending on the need for alternative fuels. When diesel engine works, it becomes, at the same time, generator for the yacht battery, providing a total of 10 kilowatts.

The eco yacht will be presented in the Lauderdale International Boat Show.

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World's First Formula 1 Wind Vehicle

Posted by Mike


A British engineer has invented a wind vehicle of high technology that intends to reach in the records book for the highest speed generated by wind on land.

Richard Jenkins hopes that his high-tech invention to reach a speed of approximately 190 kilometers per hour. If successful this thing, his explorations of 10 years will end and these will also convince that could achieve a larger goal.

Jenkins makes now the last preparations for setting the wind speed record generated by the wind energy on land. He chose to make his demonstrate on the place of a ex lake from Australia.

The device borrow technology from Formula 1 cars and is like a airplane than a land vehicle. This is provided with a vertical wing that generates the momentum. "Top speed is really scary " said Jenkins.

It is the fifth version of the wind vehicle on which is trying Jerkins. The ambitious engineer and his team will start to work from September to a wind vehicle on ice because, according to Jerkins, the device can achieve a higher speed on the ice because the sliding force is greater. Jenkins said that on ice the vehicle ould reach a speed of 240 km per hour.

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Ambitious Project For The Most Green IT Centre From India

12 August, 2008
Posted by Mike


More and more buildings from India will adopt environment-friendly technologies, but the ambitious project Cyber Park IT Hub is intended to be the greenest building from the Asian country.

The complex will be located in the sector 67 from the city Guargaon,
The complex will be located in the city Guargaon of 67, the newest destination and business center. The park will be built on an area of 500 square kilometers and will have technical assistance for wireless networks, on optical fiber connectivity and power generatorfor the entire building in case if the current is down.

Also, the park design will facilitate the implementation of several environmental strategies. The building will be efficient in terms of energy, which will significantly reduce energy costs. Natural light will come in areas with offices without to warm the structure, which reduces energy consumption during the day.

These environment friendly measures will reduce energy consumption by approximately 35%. The complex was created by Christopher Charles Benninger Architects, a prestigious architecture firm.

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Clinton Foundation Built the World's Largest Solar Project in India

Posted by Mike


The world's largest solar project will be built in India and will generate 5 gigawatts energy. The project is in the planning phase, and when it's done will be extended on an area of five times larger than the current world's largest solar project.

The project construction will cost 475 million U.S. dollars, and the production phase will take place in the same location, using workers from the area and local materials, so that generated energy to be as cheaper. The project is being carried out by the Clinton Foundation and will be located in Gujarat state in western India.

The largest solar project from the present generates 900 megawatts energy and is located in the Mojave dessert from California, being developed by the BrightSource company.

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A Solution For The Low Noise Produced by the Electric Cars

Posted by Mike

It seems that the low noise produced by electric cars is a problem that can translate into the most unhappy case in the road accidents caused by those who do not notice at time such cars.

The producer Lotus make considerable efforts to remedy this problem, the prototype presented soon is a sort of audio system placed outside the vehicle, the system connected to various sensors from the car, which emits noise outside , similar to those of cars with an combustion engine.

It stipulated that the price of such a module will be around the value of $ 300, followed by a decrease along with the entrance in mass production.

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The Paint Which Reflect Heat Could Replace the Air Conditioner

11 August, 2008
Posted by Mike


The air conditioning is one of the largest domestic consumers of electricity. A company from Japan has made a point to paint roofs that reflect in a certain measure heat sun rays, thus decrease the temperature inside the house, the use of air conditioning being reduced.

The new type of paint is 30% more expensive than normal paint, but can decrease the roof temperature with 15 degrees by 50-80.

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Honda Launches a Hybrid Car

Posted by Mike

Japanese company hopes that the new model to have a success more than the competitor Toyota Prius. Honda Civic hybrid version failed to impose on the market. Nevertheless, Honda Motor move ahead. The company will launch at the beginning of next year, a hybrid car that will sell in the United States with 18,800 dollars, according to Motor Authority.

At the global level, Honda Civic Hybrid sales were high last year at 55,300 units, far below market leader, Toyota Prius, which sold in 2007, 429,000 hybrid cars. The new model Honda will have a hybrid engine which will cost 50% less than the current model. Company representatives hopes that in this way, the car would become the market leader.

The price of hybrid cars :

Lexus hybrid is sold approximately 66,000 euros.

Toyota Prius can be purchased with 25,000 euros.

Honda Civic Hybrid costs about 23,000 euros.

The new Honda hybrid model will cost only 12,000 euros.

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A Vehicle That Goes With The Wind Energy

10 August, 2008
Posted by Mike


A team of students from Stuttgart University in Germany have built the Ventomobile, a vehicle that goes on wind energy. The Ventomobile has three wheels and a rotor diameter of 2 meters. Efficiency of this invention has proved to be extremely high. On 23 august students of the team InVentus which build this vehicle will participate in the Aeolus competition from Den Helder, Netherlands, in a three-kilometer race with five teams from different universities and research institutes from Europe.

In the first edition of the Racing Aeolus competition a unique event in the world, participating teams will must to battle in a race with vehicles which go only on wind energy.

The Ventomobile is another proof for the use of renewable energies," said Professor Martin Kuhn of the University of Stuttgart recalling the times when solar vehicles were in the first stages of development.

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Tokyo Will Have 200 Rechargeable Stations for Electric Cars

Posted by Mike


The Japanese company Tokyo Electric Power (TEPCO) intends to establish over 200 rechargeable stations for electric cars in the capital of Japan next year, according to Nikkei newspaper.

TEPCO has developed a device that power an electric car enough to traverse 40 kilometers after it was charge for five minutes and 60 km after a load of 10 minutes.

Auto manufacturers Nissan Motor and Mitsubishi Motors are preparing to launch electric cars this year. According to the newspaper, auto dealers Subaru and Mitsubishi Motors have agreed to have rechargeable TEPCO stations in their stores, while the supermarket chain Aeon-intends to admit the stations in several facilities. Also, TEPCO will set up rechargeable stations in parks, in the front of profile stores, banks and post offices until 2010. The company intends that in three years the number of power stations to reach 1,000.

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Nissan has Launched Two Prototypes of Ecological Cars

09 August, 2008
Posted by Mike


The Japanese manufacturer from Nissan Motor Co. Ltd. has launched a electric vehicle prototype and another electric hybrid, both powered by lithium-ion batteries last generation. Within the Nissan GT 2012 plan, the Japanese manufacturer has committed to become a leader in the cars segment with zero emission and has announced his plans to launch on the market an vehicle 100% electric in 2010.

Nissan EV electric vehicle is powered by a lithium-ion battery last generation, has traction on the front and is equipped with a 80 kw engine, recently developed by Nissan.
The prototype is powered by a lithium-ion battery with a compact configuration , installed under the floor, so as not to limit the space for passenger or freight transport. Serial production of the vehicle will be launched in 2010 and the body will have a unique design, which is not based on any existing Nissan model.

Nissan has a long experience in developing electro-propelled vehicles, starting with the first EV "Tama Electric Vehicle" in 1947. The company has used for the first time in the world lithium-ion batteries on the Prairie Joy EV in 1996, followed by Hypermini, an electric vehicle ultra-compact, launched in 2000. In 1999, Nissan introduced in Japan Tino Hybrid - the first authentic hybrid vehicle, which in the upcoming 2006 in North America Altima.

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