By Jerry James Stone •
August 15, 2009
LiveFuels, Inc. hopes to make a renewable fuel using processed algae-fed fish.
The company–who develops renewable algae-based biofuels–has a test facility in Brownsville, TX. At the location they have 45 acres of open saltwater ponds which will be used for optimizing the algal production.
Most algae-to-biofuel companies are limited to monomcultures of algae, but LiveFuels plans to grow a mix of regional species in low-cost, open-water systems. The algae will be “harvested” with filter-feeding fish and other aquatic herbivores.
By Jerry James Stone •
August 15, 2009
Car companies like Tesla, Toyota and Nissan are all scrambling for a piece of the EV market. Heck, even cities like San Francisco and Portland want some. But they all just got pwned by these kids. These vehicles run on everything from solar to soy!
Texas Teen Buys Car Off eBay, Makes It Electric
Luke Laborde turned a 32 mpg gas-burning Bradley GT II kit car into a [...]
By Jerry James Stone •
August 13, 2009
BMW’s new ActiveHybrid X6 promises to be the world’s most powerful hybrid with 480 hp (358 kW) and 575 lb-ft of torque (780 N·m).
The ActiveHybrid X6 will hit 60 mph in just under 6 seconds all while providing a 20-percent fuel savings according to the EU test-cycle. The EU also gave it a CO2 rating of 231 g/km. EPA numbers aren’t yet available.
By Jerry James Stone •
August 10, 2009
The number of large-diameter trees in Yosemite National Park have declined 24-percent between the 1930s and 1990s.
The findings are based on a study done by the U.S. Geological Survey and the University of Washington. Scientists compared tree densities from 1932-1936 to those from 1988-1999 where large-diameter trees are those with a diameter greater than three feet.
Along with large-diameter tree loss, they also found a shift to fire-intolerant trees. Amazingly, this shift was experienced in areas that hadn’t seen a wildfire in nearly a century. Trees changed from fire-tolerant ponderosa pines to fire-intolerant white fir and incense cedar. In burned areas, however, the pines remained dominant.
It’s an odd week for fuel sources. On the heels of a Mountain Dew powered engine, UK supermarket Tesco is getting flack for turning meat into energy–yah, you read that right.
The food chain is burning 5,000 tons of inedible meat for fuel. The biomass processing is being handled by the Cheshire-based PDM Group. The meat-energy is then used to power UK homes via the National Grid.
In fact, Tesco says they dispose of enough old meat to power 600 homes a year!
I’ll admit, never saw this one coming–using Mountain Dew as fuel. It surely makes the Mountain Dew Game Fuel much more appropriate!
Inventor Paul Patone has created the GEET (Global Environmental Energy Technology) Fuel Processor. A mod that allows you to run your car on about 80% water. Or possibly, just a nice cold Tab.
MIT students are developing an electric car that could easily compete with petro-based vehicles.
Using a 2010 Mercury Milan hybrid and 7,905 lithium iron-phosphate batteries, the car fully charges in about 10 minutes. Whereas most EVs require overnight charging to reach full capacity, this is clearly a game changer.
It’s official. Last week, German automaker Mercedes-Benz confirmed its intentions to build a fully electric version of the SLS AMG Supercar.
The AWD car will have separate transmissions for both axles and electric motors at each wheel. With a combined power output of 392 Kw–which packs 649 lb-ft of torque–the car will get a jaw-dropping 526 horsepower.
This will push the zero-emission car from 0 to 62 MPH in just 4 seconds! All of this is available the moment the motors turn. Are you drooling yet? I am.
Turkish students at Sakarya University have built a hydrogen car that gets 1,336 mpg. Well, sorta.
Called the SAHİMO, the vehicle’s current range is about 353 miles on a quarter gallon of fuel (568 kilometers on 1 liter). It travels such an obscene distance with so little fuel due to the vehicle’s uber-light weight: it weighs only 240 pounds (110 kilograms). The car’s made up of 90-percent carbon fiber.
Come July 14th, a new “green” McDonald’s will be opening in Cary, NC. It will be the first U.S. location for the fast food chain to offer electric car recharging.
The restaurant–located at 1299 Kildaire Farm Road in Cary–will be using a ChargePoint station to provide the service. ChargePoint is a private fee-based network of charging stations. They provide grid access and related services for owners of plug-in cars.
