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Posted by Xeno on March 8, 2008
300 MPG! Forget the Prius. I want one of these puppies. I’m tempted to reserve one now for $500, but I have a few questions. How much space is there in the trunk on the hybrid model? How is the handling and acceleration? What does it feel like to have only the rear view cameras and no rear view mirrors or windows?
from www.youtube.com posted with vodpod
Here it is with the doors open.
Posted in - Video, Alt Energy | 2 Comments »
Posted by Xeno on March 8, 2008
Here’s another look at the 300 MPG Aptera:
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Posted by Xeno on March 8, 2008
This is a very nice start for people researching new energy developments, but I believe this is just the tip of the iceberg. The following is taken from peswiki.com which states:
Since April, 2006, the New Energy Congress has been systematically voting on the following energy technologies, reviewing a new technology every few days, and weighing it against the criteria they established.
The list is a working draft document by the New Energy Congress (NEC), designed to come up with a listing the top 100 clean energy technologies, continually updated to reflect new developments and innovations.
- Validated | Available for Commercial Purchase | Directory:Solar >
Stirling Energy Systems utility solar – 20-year purchase agreement between Southern California Edison and Stirling Energy Systems, Inc. will result in 20,000+ dish array covering 4,500 acres capable of generating 500 MW, at a cost competitive to grid power. (http://stirlingenergy.com)Validated | Directory:Thermal Electric >
ENECO Chip Converts Heat to Electricity – Utah company claims to have invented and patented a “solid state energy conversion/generation chip” that will convert heat directly into electricity or alternatively refrigerate down to -200 degrees Celsius when electricity is applied. (http://eneco.com) (NEC Specialist: Richard P. George)Plasma / Waste to Energy / Engines >
W2 Energy Birthing Affordable, Renewable Petrol – Imagine a gasoline and diesel source that is CO2 neutral, sulfur-free, derived from renewable sources, superior in its power performance to fossil-based fuels, and costs less than 1/7 of fossil-based fuels. The company has also built an engine to optimize use of the syngas portion of the product. (http://www.w2energy.com)Available for Purchase | Directory:Concentrated Solar Power >
SolarCube™ by Green and Gold Energy – Award-winning solar technology uses Fresnel lenses to focus sun’s energy onto photovoltaic cells. 5.8 cents per kWh. (http://www.greenandgoldenergy.com.au) (NEC Specialist: Richard P. George)Validated | Available for Commercial Purchase | Directory:Wind >
Wind Farms – Wind farms present an economy of scale, enabling them to produce electricity in the price range of grid power.Solar > Concentrated >
Cool Earth Solar – Company has developed an inflatable solar concentrator technology that slashes materials costs, making solar farms competitive with commercial electricity generation systems within three years. (http://www.coolearthsolar.com) (NEC Specialist: Jon Bonanno, investor, board member)Directory:Storage > Directory:Batteries >
EEStor Ceramic “Battery” – Texas company is working on an “energy storage” ultra-capacitor device made from ceramics. It’s not technically a battery because it doesn’t use chemicals. It can allegedly charge within 5 minutes (from a substation) with enough energy to move a car 500 miles on about $9 worth of electricity — about 45 cents a gallon.Directory:Batteries >
Nanotube Super Capacitor Battery – MIT researchers are developing a battery based on capacitors that utilize nanotubes for high surface area, enabling near instantaneous charging and no degradation. Estimating ~5 years to commercialization.Directory:Solar >
DayStar Technologies’ Silicon-Free Solar Cells – Daystar’s unique metal foil design is not vulnerable to silicon shortages. Striving to “make free energy affordable”, production of this thin film design is being ramped up to 20 MW per year. (http://www.daystartech.com/)Theoretical | Directory:Solid State Generators >
Sines Reluctance Generator (Potomac Energy Projects) – Electrical generator involves thin film superconductivity, vortices and magnetic flux gates. (http://www.potomacenergyprojects.com – NEC Specialist: Eddie Sines, Inventor)Nelson Scientific’s Electron Capture – Developing commercial method for capturing electrons for electricity. Device catches free electrons in a vacuum, where they are redirected to conductors, yielding electricity. (http://nelsonscientific.com)
Validated | Directory:Hydrogen from Water / Solar Hydrogen / Waste to Energy >
Solar Hydrogen Energy Corporation (SHEC) – Has developed a process that will convert landfill and other waste methane into clean hydrogen, using the power of the Sun for the reformation, at a price comparable to traditional hydrogen production methods. (http://www.shec-labs.com/) (NEC Specialist: Tai Robinson)Validated | Directory:Solar >
Enviromission Solar Tower – Enviromission Solar Towers are like an inverted funnel, with a wide skirt to collect air to then turn a turbine in the tower. (http://www.enviromission.com.au/) (http://www.solarmissiontechnologies.com)Directory:Nuclear >
Colliding Plasma Toroid Fusion – Electron Power Systems Ltd. is developing a process that remains stable without magnetic confinement, by using background gas pressure for confinement instead, could provide clean, non-polluting energy technology at one-tenth the cost of present energy generation. (http://electronpowersystems.com)Directory:Solar >
International Automated Systems – Utility scale solar presently in process of being commercially installed for first time; alleged to produce electricity at 3-5 cents per kilowatt-hour. Highly-efficient bladeless turbine has wide range of waste-heat-harnessing applications. Methanol production technique will draw CO2 out of the environment, reversing global warming. (http://IAUS.com)Solar > Thin Film >
AVA Solar to Mass Produce Low Cost Solar Panels – AVA Solar will start production next year on cadmium telluride thin film solar PV modules developed at Colorado State University. Produced at less than $1 per watt, the panels will reduce the cost of generating solar electricity to roughly the same as the conventional grid.Directory:Fusion >
Energy/Matter Conversion Corporation – Dr. Bussard and his team at Energy/Matter Conversion Corporation, after close to 20 years of hard work, have developed a revolutionary radiation-free fusion process that takes boron-11 and fuses a proton to it, producing, in its excited state, a carbon-12 atom. This excited carbon-12 atom decays to beryllium-8 and helium-4. It was developed under a DOD contract and has recently been made public.Directory:Solar >
SA thin film solar eclipses others – South African solar panels consist of a thin layer approximately five microns thick (a human hair is 20 microns thick) of a unique metal alloy that converts light into energy at a fraction of the cost. The photo-responsive alloy can operate on virtually all flexible surfaces. Expected in market in 2007.Validated | Available for Purchase | Directory:Wind >
O’Conner Hush Energy Turbine – Arthur O’Conner of Australia has international patents on a wind turbine design that is very quiet, can operate a low speeds while tolerating high wind speeds, with a price tag that makes energy generation comparable to grid energy cost for residential and commercial applications. (http://www.hushenergy.com)Validated | Available for Commercial Purchase | Directory:Wind >
Offshore Wind Technology – Winds are stronger and more stable; economy of scale. (GE)Directory:Home Generation:Cogeneration >
Kokhala: Electricity from Low Temperature Heat & Storage in PCS – Technology harnesses 120+ degrees from a wide variety of sources to generate electricity, for reliable, affordable, clean power for residential, commercial and industrial applications.Validated | Available for Commercial Purchase | Waste-to-Energy / Plasma >
StarTech Environmental Corp Plasma Tech – Startech is the only publicly traded waste-to-energy plasma arc technology company in the world. They presently have three 5 ton/day installations in operation, with a number of other plants in various stages of implementation. A 200 ton/day plant being scheduled for Panama will be the largest such plant in the world. (http://www.startech.net)Theoretical | Directory:Thermal Electric >
Rauen Environmental Heat Engine – The Superclassical heat engine of Ken Rauen is designed to be able to tap the heat of the environment for energy generation. It is based upon the experimental evidence of the Proell effect, a macroscopic Maxwell’s Demon. (NEC Specialist: Ken Rauen [Inventor])Directory:Engines >
StarRotor continuous-cycle engine – Highly efficient process could eventually replace present internal combustion design. Five U.S. Patents. Several prototypes. (http://starrotor.com) (NEC Specialist: Richard P. George)Directory:Nuclear >
Focus Fusion – Purports to be a far more feasible and profoundly less expensive approach to hot fusion, in contrast to ITER. Lawrenceville Plasma Physics’ is developing the Plasma Focus Device for hydrogen-boron nuclear fusion. 4-7 years to commercial. 1 cent / kWh anticipated energy generation cost. (http://www.focusfusion.org) (NEC Specialists: Thomas Valone)Directory:Electrolysis >
Kenarev’s Electrolysis – Professor Kanarev holds five patents, has written several books about how water can be the main power carrier of future power engineering. Some processes described resemble those being attributed to the Joe cell. (http://Kanarev.innoplaza.net)Directory:Nuclear >
Blacklight Power – Randell Mills “hydrino” device – New field of novel hydrogen chemistry. BlackLight Process generates light, power, plasma, and a vast class of new compositions of matter. (http://www.blacklightpower.com/)Validated | Available for Commercial Purchase ? | Batteries >
Vanadium Redox Batteries – Low cost, low environmental impact battery that has a superior deep cycling life and can be mechanically refueled in minutes. Suitable for green energy storage, backup power, electric vehicles and utility load leveling / peak shaving.Validated | Available for Commercial Purchase | Directory:Tidal Power >
Blue Energy – Company now implementing its technology commercially. Turbine design, which acts as a highly efficient underwater vertical-axis windmill, could product energy for as cheaply as two cents per kilowatt hour, well below commercial grid energy wholesale prices today. (http://bluenergy.com)Validated | Available for Purchase | Electric Vehicles >
Tesla Motors Inc. Nears Launch of First Vehicle – Tesla Roadster is 100% electric, not hybrid. Four wheel drive (in-wheel motors) make it faster than most sports cars; and it has a 250+ mile range. Major VC backed ($40 million) company debuted the car July 19, 2006 in Santa Monica. (http://teslamotors.com) (NEC Specialist: Noah Seidman)River / Vortex >
Zotloterer Gravitational Vortex Power Plant – Mini-power plant is simple to construct, has a turbine efficiency of 80% but is safe for fish due to low turbine speed. The gravitational vortex hydro technology can be applied with water drop as little as 0.7 meters. The cost for installation of the prototype was close to $1/watt capacity. (http://home.tele2.at/gravitationswirbel)Validated | Directory:Electromagnetic >
Flynn Research — Magnet Power Motor/Generators – Technology deals with flux fields within a core increasing motor output by 3.5x, and much more. Possible solid state generator applications according to patent. All motors henceforth should employ this technology. (http://flynnresearch.net/) (NEC Specialist: Terry Sisson)Tidal / River >
Verdant Leads River/Tide Energy Pursuit – Verdant Power is a world leader in commercializing low-impact kinetic hydropower solutions, harnessing the energy from river, tide, and man-made channels. Prototype array is presently producing power for customers. (http://verdantpower.com)Fuel Efficiency > Vehicles / Hydraulics >
Valentin Technologies – The 130 MPG Car is a medium size 5-seat passenger car, driven by a Hydrostatic Powertrain. The free-piston internal combustion engine pumps hydraulic fluid into the accumulator that drives the wheelmotors in each wheel. The wheelmotors are reversed during braking and become pumps to recuperate the entire braking energy. (http://www.valentintechnologies.com)Validated | Available for Commercial Purchase | Wind > Vertical Axis >
TMA Global Wind Energy Systems – Vertical axis wind turbine design creates pull on the back side contributing to 40%+ wind conversion efficiencies, doesn’t kill birds, runs more quietly, doesn’t need to be installed as high, blends better with landscape. Cost-competitive with the best horizontal axis propeller designs. Going commercial. (http://www.tmawind.com)Directory:Aether >
Correas’ Aetherometry – The PAGD produces about 1 kW DC electricity from a large, cold cathode vacuum tube with support circuitry that includes a substantial storage battery and and some diodes and other circuit components. They say the energy source is the vacuum continuum of space. (http://Aetherometry.com)Validated | Available for Residential Purchase | Wind > Home Generation >
Skystream 3.7™ – The first fully integrated wind generator designed specifically for the grid-connected residential market. The output would provide 40 to 90 percent of an average home’s energy needs. In states like Hawaii, where the cost of energy and wind speeds are both high, Skystream 3.7 can pay for itself in less than 4 years.Engines >
Cyclone Technologies Schoell Cycle Engine – The Cyclone Engine is designed around the principles of an external combustion engine, to efficiently use any liquid or gaseous fuel and create more power and significantly less emissions than current gasoline or diesel powered internal combustion engines. (http://cyclonepower.com)Validated | Available for Commercial Purchase | Directory:Engines >
Engineair’s Ultra-Efficient Rotary Compressed-Air Motor – Elegant minimalist design eliminates most of the working parts traditionally associated with internal combustion engine; offers close to 100% energy efficiency for a variety of transport and stationary applications. (http://engineair.com)Fuel Efficiency > Retrofits / Hydraulics / Hybrids >
Hydristor to convert vehicles into green hybrids – This infinitely variable vane hydraulic pump/motor is basically a simplified automatic transmission with no gears, with regenerative storage capability. Aiming to retrofit existing vehicles, it is projected to double or even triple mileage, while drastically cutting emissions (to 1/4) and boosting performance. (http://hydristor.com)Wind >
MagLev Wind Power Generator Unveiled in China – Permanent magnetic levitation wind power generator is expected to boost generation capacity by as much as 20% over traditional wind turbines, dropping operational costs by as much as 50%. (http://magturbine.com)Validated | Available for Purchase | Directory:Wind > High-Efficiency Horizontal >
MotorWind’s Pastic Micro Wind Turbines – Two of the biggest hurdles for using wind power have been cost and the need for strong winds. A Hong Kong businessman/inventor has found a way to overcome those problems with plastic, bringing the generation cost down to around 1 cent per kilowatt-hour. (http://www.motorwavegroup.com/)Validated | Available for Commercial Purchase | Batteries >
A123 Systems lithium-ion battery technology – A123 replaces the cobalt oxide in lithium-ion cells with nanophosphate, enabling a quick charge, while delivering high power density, with a long life-time. Is used in power tools, and is process of breaking into hybrid vehicle market. (http://www.a123systems.com)Directory:Engines >
Gun Engine – Canadian inventor, Kazimierz Holubowicz, has come up with an environmentally friendly and transmission-free engine based on the same mechanics as how a bullet is shot from a gun. Initial test results showed 92% efficiency.Validated | Directory:Engines >
Massive Yet Tiny (MYT) Engine – Internal combustion engine features multiple firings in one cycle to give 40 times higher power to weight ratio, low parts count, low maintenance, high mechanical efficiency, and low pollution. (http://www.angellabsllc.com/index.html)Engines >
Quasiturbine Engine – This four-chamber Wankel-like engine is capable of burning fuel using photo-detonation, an optimal combustion type. The design can also be used as an air motor, steam engine, gas compressor, hot air engine, or pump. (http://quasiturbine.com)Validated | Available for Commercial Purchase ? | Batteries > Utility Scale >
Plurion Systems – Zinc/Cerium Redox technology for renewable or grid electrical storage provides the highest power density of any battery on the market. The environmentally benign organic electrolyte is maintenance-free, making it possible to engineer sealed battery modules in the range of 250kW – 5MW, which can be connected to meet larger power requirements. (http://plurionsystems.com/)Directory:Ocean_Wave_Energy >
SDE Wave Power – S.D.E. Energy Ltd. is a Tel Aviv, Israel manufacturer and marketer of Sea Wave Power Plants – utilizing sea wave energy to produce electricity economically, and in an environmentally-friendly manner claiming that their system can generate electricity for 2 cents per kWh.
Thermal Electric >
Nansulate Paint May Soon Generate Electricity from Thermal Differences (http://pesn.com/2007/10/01/9500493_Electricity-Generating_Thermal_Insulation/) – With the application of a paint coating, the thermal difference between inside and outside temperatures could be used to generate electricity, in addition to saving energy through its insulating properties. (http://www.industrial-nanotech.com and http://www.nansulate.com)Wind > High Altitude >
Laddermills – The Laddermill is a high altitude wind power design which consists of a series of wings or kites all connected to the ground via cable, forming a huge rotating loop.Efficient Vehicles >
MDI Air Car – The MDI Air Car uses compressed air to push its engine’s pistons, can hit 68 mph, has a range of 125 miles, and can be refuelled in a few minutes with custom air compressors at a cost of around $2. Tata Motors of India is planning to produce these zero-emissions cars in 2008. (http://www.theaircar.com)
Update via email 3/9/08: The new website is http://www.mdi.lu/eng/affiche_eng.php?page=accueilValidated | Available for Commercial Purchase | Sea Wave Energy >
AquaBuOY based on long-proven technology – The AquaBuOY technology, which has been independently evaluated and found commercially viable, has potential to generate electricity at a cost that is competitive with onshore and offshore wind farms and some fossil fuels, in the near to mid-term.Validated | Thermal Electric / Solar >
Ergenics – Developing a metal hydride heat engine that converts solar hot water into electricity for an estimated cost of less than 1¢ per kilowatt hour. The solar panels produce hot water which is pumped to a hydrogen compressor, that compresses a gas that is then expanded in a hydraulic motor-generator set that produces electricity. (http://ergenics.com)Validated | Directory:Ocean Wave Energy >
“Bobbing” Device for Harnessing Wave Energy (http://pesn.com/2005/10/06/9600184_Manchester_Bobber/) – The Manchester (UK) Bobber, a patented new wave energy device, passed Phase One in January 2005, testing of 1/100th scale working model. Phase Two will now involve testing a 1/10th scale device.Directory:Nuclear / Engines >
Joseph Papp’s Noble Gas Engines – A nuclear process may be involved whereby inert nobel gasses can be used to generate tremendous energy. (NEC Specialist: Kenneth M. Rauen)Directory:Magnet Motors >
Walter Torbay’s Magnetic Transgenerator – Inventor from Argentina presents a free energy device via the repelling power of magnets, the deviation of the lines of magnetic force, and a complex mechanical system for controlling the acceleration, speed and power.Solar / Thermal Electric / Nanotech >
Advanced Diamond Solutions’ amorphous nanostructures – Semiconductor industry company serendipitously developed thermionic solar cells using amorphous diamond nanostructures that offer potential efficiencies of 50% at half the cost of silicon solar cells. Also has good promise as a thermal electric generator. (http://www.advanceddiamond.com)Engines / Thermal Electric >
Deluge Inc’s Thermal Hydraulic Engine Generates from Low Heat Input – Utilizing low level heat energy, 180°F (82°C), the Natural Energy Engine™ is suitable for solar, geothermal, or any other heat source, including waste heat from existing processes. The engine requires no combustion, operates virtually silently, and generates no emissions. Now ready for commercialization. (http://www.delugeinc.com)Directory:Wind >
Norsk Hydro floating wind turbines (http://pesn.com/2005/11/03/9600200_NorskHydro_deep-off-shore-wind/) – Captures off-shore winds, while sparing expense of footing. Norwegian utility expects production prototype in 2007. (http://hydro.com) (Stansbury Resources (http://pesn.com/2005/10/31/9600198_Offshore_Wind_Hydrogen/))River / Wind > Vertical Axis >
Neo-AeroDynamic Wind/Water Turbine – The patent-pending turbine for wind and water, invented by Phi Tran, employs lift on the leeward edge, harnessing the turbulence that usually impedes efficiency. The price point is expected to be better than fossil-fuel-generated electricity, even in low wind areas, making it ideal for city/urban roof top and back yard settings.Validated | Directory:Tidal Power / Directory:River Energy >
Underwater Electric Kite (UEK) Corporation – Low impact hydrokinetic turbines harness tide and river flow, without harming aquatic life, requiring no dam or impoundment. (http://uekus.com )| Electrolysis >
Ecowatts Thermal Energy Cell – The Ecowatts Thermal Energy Cell (TEC) is an electrolysis based energy cell that converts electrical power into heat at an efficiency significantly greater than that of a conventional immersion heater. (http://www.ecowatts.co.uk)Directory:Fuel Efficiency > Directory:Fuel Efficiency Retrofits / Directory:Ethanol >
Tectane’s Aquahol – By injecting a water-ethanol mixture that can be used on most any vehicle, and by producing ethanol from the prolific and multi-use sweet sorghum plant, Tectane’s net result is no added emissions to the environment, at a cost savings. The H2O injector increases mileage by 20-40%, reduces emissions by 20-60%, while increasing horse power by 10-15%, and the lifetime of the engine by 50%. (http://Tectane.com)Validated | Available for Commercial Purchase | Directory:Geothermal >
Converting Abandoned Oil Wells to Geothermal Plants – Drilling costs have made many geothermal projects uneconomical. A solution is found in the fact that among the over one million abandoned oil and gas wells around the world, many contain hot water that can be used to generate electricity or hydraulic power.Validated | Available for Commercial Purchase | Directory:Solar >
SkyBuilt aims to be the Dell of renewable energy systems – Uses rugged shipping containers as foundation for made-to-order designs for quick deployment in off-grid applications. (http://SkyBuilt.com)Directory:Wind >
Magenn Power’s Floating Wind Generators (http://pesn.com/2005/12/23/9600211_Magenn_Floating_Wind_Generators/) – Inflatable, rotating balloon, wind turbine design scheduled for market readiness in 2007/8; at a price close to grid power. (http://www.magenn.com)Directory:Thermal Electric >
Matteran Energy produces electricity and refrigeration from near ambient heat – An experimental small scale power plant is producing electricity and refrigeration temperatures fueled simply by the heat in warm water – typically 150 degrees Fahrenheit. (http://MatteranEnergy.com)Hydrogen from Water
John Kanzius’ Fire from Water using RF – John Kanzius invented a radio wave machine in an attempt to kill cancer. While trying to desalinize salt water with the machine, the water started burning. The machine breaks down the hydrogen-oxygen bond in the water, igniting the hydrogen.Directory:Nanotechnology >
Nanogenerator Provides Continuous Direct Current (http://pesn.com//2007/04/07/9500466_DC_Nanogenerator/) – Researchers at Georgia Tech have demonstrated a prototype nanometer-scale generator that produces continuous direct-current electricity by harvesting mechanical energy from such environmental sources as ultrasonic waves, mechanical vibration or blood flow.Directory:Solar >
Sliver Solar Cells – New manufacturing process developed at the Australian National University uses as little as one tenth the amount of hyper-pure silicon as in square solar PV technology. First product line put on hold; commercial manufacturing expected in two years. (http://solar.anu.edu.au)Directory:Levers >
Milkovic Two-Stage Mechanical Oscillator – Serbian inventor, Veljko Milković, shows how leveraged secondary oscillations evince around twelve times more energy than the input energy supplied to the primary pendulum. Highest scientific rating of “original scientific work” granted the patented technology. (http://www.veljkomilkovic.com)Thermal Electric / Solar >
Closed Loop Ammonia Turbine – The return of Tesla’s solar (and other low heat input) design for home and commercial power systems using inexpensive technology discarded last century due to then cheap oil prices.Searl Effect Generator (SEG) – SEG generator is allegedly capable of cheaply and safely producing electricity without fuel, pollution, friction, or noise. Anti-gravity effects also involved. Recent mock-up completion marks the first time since 1963 that a roller has rotated about a ring continuously. Next step, full 15 kW SEG generator. (http://www.searlsolution.com)
Solar > Silicon >
Solar Silicon Solution Wins MIT Energy Plan Contest (http://pesn.com/2007/05/02/9500469_RSI_Silicon_wins_MIT_contest/) – RSI Silicon debuts a far more inexpensive method of producing solar grade Silicon, winning “Poeple’s Choice” award and first place in the Energy Business Plan contest held by MIT. (NEC Specialist: Jim Dunn)Fuel Efficiency > Electric Vehicles >
XPVehicles’ Whisper (TM) inflatable electric vehicle (http://pesn.com/2007/09/15/9500498_WhisperT_inflatable_electric_car/) – Low cost inflatable electric car is announced as world’s first crash-proof, long range, flat-pack vehicle.Validated | Available for Commercial Purchase | Directory:Fuel Efficiency Retrofits >
PowerPlus retrofit water overspray system – The UK’s Power Generation Technology (PGT) has announced the development of PowerPlus, retrofit water overspray system for power station gas turbines that it claims can reduce emissions by 40 per cent. This equipment also dramatically reduces turbine fuel consumption and increases power generation.Directory:Engines >
Crower’s Six-Stroke Engine – Achieving a means of harnessing engine heat, Bruce Crower’s internal combustion engine adds two strokes involving the injection of water, which immediately turns to steam, expanding the chamber for another cycle. Process keeps engine running cool.Validated | Available for Commercial Purchase | Directory:Waste to Energy >
MagneGas Plasma Arc Flow Reactors – MagneGas Technology has been developed to process liquid wastes into a clean burning fuel known as magnegas, plus heat and other usable byproducts, said processing occurring without noise, liquid, gaseous or other pollutions. New discoveries of science involved. (http://magnegas.com) (NEC Specialist: Tai Robinson)Thermal Electric >
Acoustic Stove, Fridge, Generator – The “Stove for Cooking, Refrigeration and Electricity,” or SCORE, could help improve the health and quality of life for the two billion or so people in the world who cook over open fires. The SCORE thermoacoustics technology promoted by a multi-institutional project converts heated gas into sound waves which can be used to cook, cool, and/or generate electricity. (http://www.score.uk.com/research)Directory:Fuel Efficiency Retrofits >
Green Diesel Injector System – This award-winning invention is a pump-less, hydraulically operated, super-high-pressure diesel injector system allegedly results in 30% higher power, 30% less fuel consumption and a dramatic reduction in pollution.DaySwitch™ Adjusts Lighting Per Daylight Availability (http://pesn.com/2006/04/25/9600264_DaySwitch_Adjusts_Lighting/) – The DaySwitch™, developed by Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, consists of a photosensor that measures daylight levels and sends a signal to the microcontroller that adjusts the power going to the lights. (PESN; April 25, 2006)
Wind / Directory:Water >
Max Whisson’s Gust Water Trap Apparatus – The Whisson vertical windmill cools the air passing through the whirling blades. As it does so, a proprietary process collects condensate, yielding fresh water from the air.Validated | Available for Purchase | Directory:Fuel_Efficiency_Hydrogen_Injection >
Get Hydro Power (.com) – Next generation hydrogen boost technology announced, with present performance in range of 15% to 50% improvement in fuel economy. Latest innovation may boost that to between 50% and 100% mileage improvement. Many companies are currently involved in the production and distribution of such technologies including #7 on the not yet ranked technologies listed below. The primary critical requirement of such systems is the adjustment of the air/fuel mixture after fuel enhancement is achieved. (http://gethydropower.com)Directory:Solar Tower >
Down-Draft Energy Tower – Bi-directional Energy Towers exploit the differences in air density and the earth density to generate electricity with passive solar collection.Directory:Engines >
Linear Combustion Electromagnetic Engines – Index of designs and companies promoting designs in which a linear two-piston system drives magnets by induction coils to generate electricity, so that the output energy of combustion is electricity, not torque.Directory:Electromagnetic >
Magnetic Power Inc – Company claims to be close enough to have some demo devices, which extract energy from the vacuum of space. Claims have never been realized since initial public statements over five years ago. (http://magneticpowerinc.com)Directory:Engines >
Green Steam Engine – Advantages of invention by Robert Green (US 6647813) include: the ability to run on very low steam pressure and volume, inexpensive to build, few moving parts with low lubrication requirement, lightweight. Site includes instructions on how to build it. (http://www.greensteamengine.com/)Directory:Engines >
Revetec cam-drive engine – The Revetec cam-drive engine uses a pair of counter-rotating scissor cams instead of a crankshaft. The result is three times more torque than a conventional engine, and an overall engine efficiency up to 50% more. (http://www.revetec.com)Electromagnetic >
Energy By Motion (EBM) – The company’s present prototypes measure close to unity, according to the measurement instruments and methods used. However, the output/input ratio is insufficient to cycle back to keep the unit running, as a self-runner. (http://www.gammamanager.com)Validated | Available for Commercial Purchase | Directory:Home_Generation:Hot_Water >
Edwards Heat Pump for Hot Water – The Edwards Heat Pump is like a solar water heater without collector panels. It operates like a refrigerator only in reverse; transferring the heat in the surrounding air to the stored water. It is extremely energy efficient – using approximately one third the energy of a conventional electric water heater. (http://www.edwards.com.au)Directory:Wind >
WhalePower Corp – WhalePower Corp features a blade design that mimics the aerodynamically efficient design of a humpback whale’s flipper, allowing a turbine to capture more of the wind’s energy, and at much lower speeds.Directory:Electrolysis >
Sully Direct Current – In process of discovering new ways to do electrolysis, inventor John Timothy Sullivan claims to have derived a new current type: not DC, not AC but SDC — Sully Direct Current. Critics say it is not new and it is not a third type of current.Validated | Available for Residential Purchase | Directory:Water >
Brac Systems Grey Water Recycling – Collects water from shower drains, bathtubs and laundry, then filters and pumps it through a dedicated supply line to the toilet tanks for flushing, reducing average household water consumption by a third. It is designed into the plumbing of new construction and existing residential homes.Atmospheric Electrostatic Energy > Pyramid power >
Pyramidal Electric Tranducer – A California researcher, Peter Grandics, shows how an antenna, modeled on the Great Pyramid of Giza, can transfer the power of atmospheric electrostatic discharge impulses into a resonant circuit that converts the random impulses into an alternating current as a potential source of renewable electric power.Batteries >
Brown engineers build a better battery — with plastic (http://pesn.com/2006/09/14/9500236_plastic_batteries/) – It’s thin, light, flexible — and plastic. Brown University engineers have created a prototype polymer-based battery that packs more power than a standard alkaline battery and more storage capacity than a double-layered capacitor.
Waste-to-Energy / Alt. Fuels > Diesel >
CPD Process Turns Trash into Diesel Fuel – Green Power Inc has developed a catalytic pressureless depolymerization (CPD) process they call “NanoDiesel” that inexpensively converts biomass and municipal waste into high quality diesel fuel, which could solve the world’s energy and waste problems at the same time, without upsetting the CO2 balance.Nuclear >
Toshiba Builds Household Nuclear Fusion Reactor – Toshiba has developed a new class of nuclear reactor 100 times smaller than a standard reactor. These micro sized nuclear reactors could be used to power large houses, apartment blocks or some city blocks.Batteries / Lighting >
Litrospheres provide inexpensive, continuous light – A glow-in-the-dark paint company, MPK Co, has come up with self-luminous micro particles called Litrospheres which they say are inexpensive, non-toxic, and will stay on for 12+ years (half-life point) continuously. (http://www.glopaint.com)Thermal Electric / Solar >
Johnson Electro Mechanical Systems – Thermal energy system invented by the person who came up with the Super Soaker can achieve a conversion efficiency rate that tops 60 percent with a new solid-state heat engine. It uses temperature differences to create pressure gradients that are used to force ions through a membrane, instead of moving an axle or wheel. Inventor has also come up with an ambient energy conversion system as well as an electric heat pump.Tidal / River >
Venturi System Optimizes Water Flow Harnessing – Patented venturi containment system increases turbine efficiency 3.85 times what the turbine would produce without the system, making this a world leading design. The company is now commencing the commercialization stage, with an expected price that competes with coal in the range of 3.5 to 6 cents per kw-h.High Altitude Wind Power >
Makani Aims to Harvest High Altitude Wind – “Makani Power is seeking to harness high-altitude wind energy to produce energy at an unsubsidized real cost significantly below that of the least expensive coal-fired power plants, the current benchmark of the lowest cost source of power.” Google has invested $10 million in Makani. (http://www.makanipower.com)Biomass / Clean Coal >
Biomass-based “Coal” Makes Coal Plants Renewable and Clean – NewEarth Renewable Energy, Inc. produces a “coal” equivalent from biomass sources. The pellets do not smoke, and produce virtually no pollution, yet have the same BTU content as coal, but at a lower price, ultimately. (http://newearth1.net)Directory:Fuel Efficiency >
330 MPG Aptera Hybrid – The Aptera prototype, which is halfway to completion, will go for up to 330 miles on a gallon of gas thanks to an aerodynamic design and the lightweight composites that make up the chassis. (http://www.aptera.com)Biofuels / Concentrated Solar / Clean Coal >
GreenShift’s CO2 Bioreactor – Patented process uses algae to consume greenhouse gas emissions from fossil-fueled power plants, giving off pure oxygen and water vapor. Light from concentrated solar panels is conducted into the algae chambers via fiber optics. Once the algae grows to maturity, it is harvested for conversion into ethanol and biodiesel fuels.Validated | Cold Fusion >
JET Energy is Developing Cold Fusion Technology – Having brought cold fusion through many generations of advancement, Mitchell Swartz’ company is in process of developing the technology to the point that it could be commercialized. They made history in 2003 by running a large public demonstration for five consecutive days at MIT.
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Posted by Xeno on March 8, 2008
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Posted by Xeno on March 8, 2008
My unit should be no bigger than a trash compactor. It must be safe and clean. Quiet would also be nice too. Power output: 2,000 Watts of electricity per hour would work.
“When Bob Hammond built a house near Prescott, Arizona, he decided to get off the utility grid. To do so, he designed a home that uses only about 885 kWh of electricity a year, a fraction of the 9,300 kWh of neighboring homes. He turned to photovoltaic (PV) solar panels to generate electricity from direct sunlight, designing a 1,400 W system that is totally independent of the utility power grid.” – hypertextbook
I may need one of these, some batteries, and then a way to charge them. Ha! According to this, our California Civil Code Sections 714 and 714.1 say Home Owner’s Associations MUST allow you to put solar panels on your roof, but they can restrict what kind you get. That’s they way I read it anyway.
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Posted by Xeno on March 8, 2008
More research for the Xenophilia Energy Company. My idea is to sell small clean power producing units for personal use, but I’m not sure which technologies to use yet.
With the help of Russian scientists, Israeli firm Environmental Energy Resources (EER), has … a reactor that converts radioactive, hazardous and municipal waste into inert byproducts such as glass and clean energy. …
“In the beginning, nobody believed that we could do it,” says Itschak Shrem, chair of investment company Shrem, Fudim and Keiner representing EER at a press briefing announcing the innovation last week in Tel Aviv.
Shrem, himself an invoker of small miracles through the founding of one of Israel’s most lucrative venture capital funds – Polaris (now Pitango) – points to a chunk of black, lava-like rock sitting on the table in front of everyone’s coffee cups.
The journalists cautiously eye Shrem as he assures them that the shiny dark material, emitted from EER’s pilot waste treatment reactor near Karmiel in the north, is safe to touch.
“It also makes a good recyclable material for building and paving roads,” he assures them. Earlier, Shrem told ISRAEL21c that EER can take low-radioactive, medical and municipal solid waste and produce from it clean energy that “can be used for just about anything.”
Using a system called plasma gasification melting technology (PGM) developed by scientists from Russia’s Kurchatov Institute research centre, the Radon Institute in Russia, and Israel’s Technion Institute – EER combines high temperatures and low-radioactive energy to transform waste.
“We go up to 7,000 degrees centigrade and end at 1,400 centigrade,” says Moshe Stern, founder and president of the Ramat Gan-based company.
Shrem adds that EER’s waste disposal rector does not harm the environment and leaves no surface water, groundwater, or soil pollution in its wake. The EER reactor combines three processes into one solution: it takes plasma torches to break down the waste; carbon leftovers are gasified and inorganic components are converted to solid waste. The remaining vitrified material is inert and can be cast into molds to produce tiles, blocks or plates for the construction industry.
EER’s Karmiel facility (and its other installation in the Ukraine) has a capacity to convert 500 to 1,000 kilograms of waste per hour. Other industry solutions, the company claims, can only treat as much as 50 kilograms per hour and are much more costly.
According to the journal Research Studies (Business Communications, Inc.), “The production of nuclear weapons/power in the United States has left a 50-year legacy of unprecedented volumes of radioactive waste and contaminated subsurface media and structures… Nuclear waste generators include the national laboratories, industrial research facilities, educational and medical institutions, electrical power utilities, medical diagnostics facilities, and various manufacturing processes.”
In the United States alone, Research Studies predicts that this year’s market for radioactive waste-management technologies in America will cap $5.5 billion.
EER was founded in 2000 and has maintained a low profile until revealing its reactor last week. “We spent our time on R&D and building up the site in Israel which we started constructing in 2003. We realized that nobody was going to believe us unless we started doing the process physically. They always said it sounded too good to be true, so we had to prove it to them,” said Shrem.
Back in 2004, the Ukrainian government put out a tender searching for a solution that would provide safer hazardous waste disposal methods. At that time, the country was looking for a way to treat its low-radioactive waste zones resulting from the Chernobyl explosion. EER sent in their proposal, and their technology won the bid.
According to Stern, the former Soviet Union was the first to build nuclear plants. Over the years they have generated “huge amounts of low-radioactive waste. They came to us looking for a solution,” he said.
The Chernobyl nuclear meltdown on April 26, 1986, was beyond a doubt the largest civil nuclear explosion in the world and one still linked to thousands of deaths. More than 20 years after the explosion, the area around the reactor is still highly radioactive; and some 30,000 radioactive homes remain buried along with household appliances, food and clothing, explained Stern.
“The European community is afraid of what is happening there,” notes Stern, warning that it is time for the cleanup to begin, even if it means making only a small dent in the massive pile. “The low-radioactive waste is slowly contaminating the water and will continue to do so over the 300 years it takes to break down.”…
StarTech illustration of a Plasma Converter that reportedly goes for $250 million per unit. Startech is installing six units for U.S. Energy on Long Island. Joseph Longo, Startech founder and CEO, promises to make a relic of the landfill by turning trash into clean energy. – jcw
With a strict eye over its operations by Israel’s Ministry of Environmental Protection, EER revealed its proof-of-concept to Israeli and foreign dignitaries in Aeblin, near Karmiel last week, showing how it can take mountains of municipal waste and reduce it to a pile of black rubble.
“We are not burning. This is the key word,” Shrem said. “When you burn you produce dioxin. Instead, we vacuum out the oxygen to prevent combustion.”
EER then purifies the gas and with it operates turbines to generate electricity. EER produces energy – 70 per cent of which goes back to power the reactor with a 30 per cent excess which can be sold.
“In effect, we are combining two of the most exciting markets in the United States – the environment and clean energy,” says Stern, “We also reduce the carbon footprint.”
The cost for treating and burying low-radioactive nuclear waste currently stands at about $30,000 per ton. The EER process will cost $3,000 per ton and produce only a 1 per cent per volume solid byproduct.
In the United States, EER is working to treat low-radioactive liquid waste and recently contracted with Energy Solutions, the largest American company in the field with 75 per cent of the United States market. – freenergy.ca
Some other links:
http://www.tech-faq.com/plasma-gasification.shtml
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Posted by Xeno on March 8, 2008
I’m starting to research ways to produce energy so I can become the Xenophilia Energy Company (XEC). What I’d like to do is produce clean power for people in apartments with very little space. Ideas? Email me.
Here is one I haven’t seen yet:
A new way to produce electricity using helium balloons coated with solar cells has been devised by researchers at the Technion Israel Institute of Technology in Haifa.
Scientists from the Department of Aeronautical Engineering, Architecture and City Construction have already installed two models, one in the city and one in a desert area that lacks power.
Dr. Pini Gurfil, who heads the environmentally friendly project, said that to produce electricity from solar energy, one needs a large area – about 400 dunams – for a power station large enough for commercial use. “Therefore, the balloons should be used at a low altitude in the sky,” he explained.
Gurfil and doctoral student Yossi Corrie developed a technique of using helium-filled balloons coated with solar energy cells to provide electricity. The same cable that brings the helium to the balloon will also carry the electricity to the ground.
The Technion researchers estimate that each home or apartment would need only two balloons. If they were mass produced, their cost could be reduced below the estimated $700 per square meter of today’s solar cells.
The pair filed a patent application for their invention and hope the technology will compete with existing power producers.
Coated helium balloons could be used, at first, to supply electricity to ships and homes in jungles, deserts and other isolated spots off electricity grids. Beyond that, Gurfil and Corrie hope that homes in cities around the world will get their electricity from such balloons.
Source: Jpost
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Posted by Xeno on March 8, 2008
Review: “Why Lie I Need a Drink” was one of the best and most interesting movies I’ve seen in a long time. In fact, it was so well done that I will be very surprised if it is not picked up by HBO for distribution. I’m not just saying this because I know Keith. It was funny as hell, honest and sad. See it if you can!
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Synopsis: We’ve all heard the urban legend of the panhandler hopping in his nice car and making his way to a comfortable home after a day of begging on the freeway off-ramp.
Sacramento comedian Kieth Lowell Jensen, decided to find out just how hard it really is to make money holding up a cardboard sign. Luckily for us, he took along a film crew who captured the highlights of his roughly 47 hours of panhandling and interviews with local police, other panhandlers and average people on the street.
Can you really make a good living begging? I found out tonight at the world premier of the documentary “Why Lie? I Need a Drink.”
Here is my Podcast interview with Keith right before his very well attended world premier at the Crest Theater in Sacramento.
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