Eco Factor: Hi-tech bus stop powered by solar energy.
A simple way to reduce your personal carbon footprint is making use of services such as buses and trains to go to your office and back home. However, tempting car owners to leave their luxuries at home and wait for a bus to their destination to arrive seems a tough ask. MIT architects are envisioning a future where people won’t only be encouraged to travel by a bus, but will also ensure that their relationship with the most modern of technologies is not disturbed in any way.
Passengers waiting for a bus at the “EyeStop” would be able to check their mailboxes, get the latest updates on weather, watch news and even get in touch with their Facebook friends. Other than this, riders can also plan a bus trip on an interactive map and monitor their real-time exposure to pollutants.
The EyeStop also keeps the riders aware of the current status of the bus they’re waiting for and glows at different levels of intensity to signal the distance of an approaching bus. The best feature of the EyeStop is that all those hi-tech features don’t consume a single watt of electricity from the grid as it is powered by electricity generated from the rooftop solar panels.
Eco Factor: Outdoor umbrella generates power for recharging portable devices.
Konarka Technologies, an innovator in development and commercialization of Power Plastic (a material that converts light to energy), is working to make sure that power for your portable devices is available anywhere. The firm entered into a technology partnership with SKYShades one year ago and lately, SKYShades received its first shipment of Konarka Power Plastic thin film. SKYShades is one of the global leaders in supplying shade and tension membrane structures. This lightweight thin film, which converts light to energy, will be used by SKYShades to create the Powerbrella, an innovative way to charge your laptop, cellphone or other portable devices outdoors.
Designed for use at outdoor venues such as cafés and restaurants, hotel and resort swimming pools and outdoor lounges, the Powerbrella incorporates the Power Plastic on the surface of SKYShades’ retractable and fixed architectural SKYbrella. Testing for the Powerbrella has been done in 2008 at Lake Highland Preparatory School in Orlando. Physics students at Lake Highland checked the effectiveness of the Powerbrella to withstand the elements, its ability to generate clean green energy and the amount of resulting power that could be stored in batteries for reuse.
Other than generating energy from the solar panels, the Powerbrella will also offer people coverage from the sun. The Powerbrella is expected to go on sale by Q3 of 2009.
Eco Factor: Energy-efficient Air Conditioning system from Ice Energy.
Ice Energy has developed an energy-efficient way to reduce the energy required by air conditioners installed in small to mid-sized commercial buildings. Ice Bear, as the system has been named, stores off-peak power in the form of ice to reduce daytime energy consumption, which isn’t green and is obviously expensive.
Taming the jungles in your backyard definitely requires some patience, especially if you’re doing that during summers. Those who don’t want to leave the comfort of their air-conditioned living rooms for the sake of a clean garden must try the Southern RobotX. Equipped with tank-like treads, the lean machine can tackle just about any terrain and with the effective cutting units, the system promises you clean lawn in just minutes.
The unit is operated by a remote control, which features an easy-to-use joystick. The feature that attracts us most is its self-charging system that approximately consumes 40% less fuel than a conventional ride-on lawnmower. The system is powered by an electric motor, the batteries of which are recharged by the gas motor which is used to power the cutting unit, so you don’t always have to worry about a dead battery leaving the mowing job half done.
Eco Factor: Cold storage facility powered by solar energy.
Perpetual Power has announced the completion of a 416KW DC solar installation on a Budweiser cold beer storage facility in Contra Costa County, California. The 2,240 panels, which cover about 60% of the 110K-aquare-foot building’s energy needs generate about 600,000KWh of energy which would result in an annual savings of approximately $100,000.
Eco Factor: Zero-emission car powered by electricity.
BRUSA Elektronik has developed a new electric roadster, The Spyder, which offers speed, performance and styling without polluting the environment with even a gram of CO2 emission. The Porsche 550-inspired roadster comes with two real-wheel-mounted 100KW electric motors which churn out an amazing 270HP and 324 foot-pounds of torque.
The car, with a 16KWh lithium-polymer battery pack, does zero to 62 in less than five seconds and can power the car for 100KM on a full charge. The company claims that its enormous battery pack can be recharged in just four hours when plugged into a 16-amp 220V line. Since the car’s power house is mounted on the rear wheels which eliminates the need for a differential lowering the weight of the car to just 2,000 pounds for maximum efficiency.
Eco Factor: Unmanned aircraft powered by solar energy.
Aurora Flight Sciences has announced that the company successfully flew their latest solar powered UAV, the SunLight Eagle. The flights took place at the Unmanned Aircraft Systems Flight Test Center operated by the Physical Science Laboratory of New Mexico State University. The news came just days after the company announced the successful completion of a solar aircraft from DARPA’s Vulture Program.
Eco Factor: World’s largest solar energy plant planned for Australia.
Australian Prime Minister, Kevin Rudd has said in a statement that the government is ready to invest $1.05 million (USD) to build the world’s largest solar power plant with an output of 1000MW. The plant will have three times the generating capacity of the current biggest solar energy plant which is in California.
The project is intended to exploit Australia’s biggest natural resources, the Sun. The plant will help Australia become a leader in the renewable energy sector. The project should eventually lead to a network of solar-powered stations across the country. The government stated that the country doesn’t want to be a renewable energy follower but a renewable energy but a clean energy leader in the world. Tender details will be announced later this year and successful bidders will be named in the first half of 2010.
Image Credit: Flickr [Under a Creative Commons License]
Eco Factor: Energy-neutral greenhouses produce 20 times more fruit per acre than conventional farms.
With the land available for farming being used to develop modern residential and commercial complexes, environmentalists around the world are worried about the future, where the lack of land might leave millions hungry. Like always, scientists have tried to find an answer to this growing threat in the latest in technology.Houweling Nurseries, a Canadian farming company, has developed hi-tech greenhouse facilities which generate renewable electricity, harvest rain and runoff water and above all produce 20 times more fruit than conventional farms.The $50 million complex is a completely self-dependent ecosystem in which nothing is wasted. The facility has five acres of photovoltaic solar cells to supply it with 2.1MW of electricity, which is used to run water pumps and climate control systems. Thermal systems collect solar heat and warehouse refrigeration exhaust to warm the greenhouse on cold evenings. Workers of the facility have dug a four-acre pond that collects rainwater which is then filtered and re-circulated back to the facility for irrigation.Plants in this greenhouse are fed through tubing and crops are grown without the use of any herbicides and almost no pesticides. Since there is no dust or germs inside the facility, fertilizer use is also limited. The 20-acre facility has 450 workers who are constantly keeping an eye on all the critical systems and ensure that the production is the best.
Eco Factor:Harnessing the movement of the sea for uninterrupted green power.
Australian energy company Atlantis Resources Corporation has planned to harness the movement of the sea with a new underwater generator, which they claim is the world’s most efficient turbine. The turbine, known as the Solon Turbine, was designed by 28-year-old Dr John Keir. Atlantis believes that 500 Solon turbines can harness the sea movement to provide uninterrupted green power to a million homes.
Atlantis is currently testing the technology in San Remo in Victoria. The company also stated that the Solon turbine works best when submerged more than 40 meters and could generate two megawatts of power. Since water covers about two-thirds of the surface area of our planet, the turbine could do wonders for the modern world.
The Dark Side:
Skeptics such as Scottish Engineer Tony Trapp believe that tidal power is not at all reliable and the numbers quoted by Atlantis could never be achieved.
