It has been awhile since we talked about hydrogen cars. In fact, auto manufacturers the world over seem to have pushed hydrogen vehicles to the side of their plate (next to the spinach and garbanzo beans). There are of course exceptions, such as Mazda and Mercedes, but electric cars are all the rage right now, and hydrogen arguably has more infrastructure issues to overcome. The biggest issue; where does one get hydrogen?
A Connecticut company called SunHydro wants to deploy 11 solar-powered hydrogen fueling stations (SunHydro, get it?) along the East Coast, creating the area’s first hydrogen highway.
By Susan Kraemer •
January 20, 2010
Whenever plants are subjected to extreme stress, such as very high or low temperatures, they do not flower and grow because they divert their food to their embryo. “Their instinct is to protect the next generation,” said Wigge.
Plants are better adapted to survive, than people are, in that respect. But then they have had a million or so more years to learn that clever trick. They might outlive us.
By Zachary Shahan •
December 5, 2009
Hudson Clean Energy Partners (HCEP) set a $1 billion target for its first fund, a new clean energy investment fund, and just announced this week that it has reached its target despite the difficult economic conditions worldwide.
Led by two industry veterans with much individual success, HCEP is looking to help spur and capitalize on a great global push for clean tech and clean energy (including renewable power, alternative fuels, energy efficiency and storage). The firm seems to show a lot of faith in solar power technology, in particular.
By Andrew Williams •
October 19, 2009
A major new survey has revealed that nearly 50% of all US consumers would consider buying a ‘green’ cell phone, but only if key factors such as the price, features, and performance were equivalent to other phones.
According to the poll of 1,000 American adults carried out by ABI Research, just 7% would be willing to pay a premium to go green, a figure that may cause cell phone companies to think deeply before investing heavily in environmentally friendlier models.
Speaking about the findings, industry analyst Michael Morgan said, “These survey results mean that almost half of those surveyed were at least committed in principle to use of a green handset. However the public is largely uninformed about their availability: only 4% said they were ‘very familiar’ with green handsets.”
By Andrew Williams •
July 28, 2009
A team of Japanese scientists have developed a new type of lithium-air battery cell with an ultra-large capacity, and say that it holds great potential for the next-generation of electric cars.
Researchers at the country’s National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST) predict that at a filling station, the driver of a vehicle equipped with the new battery could make use of a revolutionary new cassette refill system, and then continue driving without waiting for batteries to be recharged.
By Tina Casey •
March 20, 2009
A new piece of thin film manufacturing equipment with the unlikely name of Viper (TM) could help bring solar energy to the masses. Viper (TM) was developed by Sencera, a North Carolina company that got its start supplying thin film hardware for manufacturing transistors and integrated circuits.
By Matthew Phelan •
February 20, 2009
According to a new study conducted by the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, The average installed costs for photovoltaic cells (in real 2007 dollars) went down from $10.50-per-watt in 1998, to $7.60-per-watt in 2007.
What’s most amazing about this report is that it appears to validate a whole slew of state and local solar initiatives. The researchers found that—despite the many, many reported advances to solar cell efficiency—most of the savings during this nine year period came from reductions to installation and external hardware costs.
By Matthew Phelan •
February 20, 2009
Sun Well Solar—a subsidiary of the notoriously poor CD and DVD manufacturer, CMC Magnetics—has announced today that it is one month ahead of schedule in the ramp-up of its new photovoltaic production line.
By Ariel Schwartz •
February 11, 2009
Attention, farmers: New Holland introduced the world’s first fuel cell tractor today in Turin, Italy, and it looks like a fun ride. The tractor’s fuel cell generates 106hp, and its hydrogen tank can hold enough to power the tractor for 1.5 to 2 hours.
By Michael Ratliff •
February 9, 2009
Solar collectors found on butterfly wings are being investigated as a means to improve the efficiency of a type of thin-film solar cells.
By Ariel Schwartz •
January 23, 2009
US chemical engineers have built the world’s smallest fuel cell, clocking in at only 9 cubic millimeters. While the hydrogen-fueled cell is currently a prototype, it could one day replace batteries in portable electronics.
