Green Options

A US-built Tesla Roadster has broken the world record for the distance travelled by an electric production car on a single charge.

While competing in the Global Green Challenge, Australian Simon Hackett and co-driver Emilis Prelgauskas drove an incredible 313 miles before the batteries finally died in their Roadster.

Until now, the record has been held by another Tesla Roadster, after completing a 241 mile road rally on one charge.

Holland has announced plans to install five electric car charging bays, the first of their kind ever seen in the country.

To move to set up five Electromotive Elektrobays follows a government drive to improve air quality. The stations will be located at strategic points across the country, including Schipol International Airport and central Rotterdam. Another will be based at Amsterdam’s Centraal Station railway hub, where it will power-up the city’s spanking new fleet of all-electric Tuc Tuc taxi vehicles.

It seems we just can’t move these days for news of Nissan’s EV strategy. Well, today’s no exception, with news of Nissan’s plan to develop wireless charging technology to make charging electric cars easier and faster.

The system, based on the principle of inductive charging, employs the same electromagnetic field technology used to charge an electric toothbrush.

Nissan has already adapted the system for use in its Zero Emission Vehicle (ZEV) electric car, which can charge wirelessly in a suitable parking bay, but the latest report suggests that the major Japanese outfit has more expansive plans for its system. The Guardian reports that Nissan hopes to lay a series of plates into the surface of designated electric vehicle lanes on highways, enabling drivers to charge as they travel.

Researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) have developed battery cells capable of charging in under a minute, an astonishing 100 times faster than a regular rechargable battery.

The breakthrough could revolutionize electric car battery technology and pave the way for ultra-fast charging electric vehicles in as little as two years.

The discovery came when MIT researchers Byoungwoo Kang and Gerbrand Ceder found out how to get a common lithium compound to release and take up lithium ions in a matter of seconds. According to Ceder, the compound, known as lithium iron phosphate (LiFePO4), has a crystal structure that creates “perfectly sized tunnels for lithium to move through,” allowing the team to reach “ridiculously fast charging rates.”

Nissan have announced plans to roll out a ‘fast charge’ electric car network in Arizona, capable of topping up batteries in as little as 10-15 minutes.

The Japanese company has teamed up with EV charge-tech firm ECOtality and the Pima association of government’s, (representing the Tucson, Arizona region), to establish a pilot-scale network in readiness for the launch of Nissan electric cars in the US next year.

Last week, I reported on Shelby Super Cars (SSCs) plan to release what will become the world’s fastest electric car, the Ultimate Aero EV.

Since then, the company has been subject to intense speculation that some of it’s claims about the EVs performance were, how can I put this, a trifle over ambitious. In fact, a growing majority of critics have publicly ridiculed Shelby’s claim that the Aero’s battery will feature a 10 minute re-charge capability via a 110v outlet, saying that it simply defies the laws of the known universe.

if you’re like me, you’ve probably been caught numerous times with a dying cell phone and no outlet in site. That’s when a product like Freeplay’s ZipCharge comes in handy. You may remember Freeplay for inventing the world’s first hand-cranked wind-up radio in 1996. Now the company is back with a sleek hand-held rechargeable power stick. The ZipCharge, which debuted last week at the Consumer Electronics Show, takes only ten minutes to power up with enough juice for an iPod or cell phone.

Tremont Electric has launched a portable energy generator that allows users to charge handheld electronic devices simply by going for a walk.

The nPower PEG, launched at last week’s 2009 CES event, works on the principle of electromagnetic induction to create a 100% renewable energy source for everything from iPods to mobile phones. To get a charge, users simply connect the PEG to their mobile device and lay it vertically, either against their hip, or in a bag, while they go for a walk or a run.

Music fan Owen Louis was so concerned about the amount of energy used up by his iPod, that he figured out a way of charging it up … with nothing more than an onion.

Louis, 21, from Portsmouth in the UK, makes two holes in an onion, before soaking it in an everyday energy drink and connecting it to his MP3 via a standard USB cable. Incredibly, the technique (video) enables him to charge his iPod for a full hour. According to Louis, “A friend showed me the experiment as a laugh but I thought it was the greatest thing I have ever seen, and do it religiously every day.”

A team of young Korean designers have invented a battery charger that runs on 100% renewable energy. The Febot might look a bit like a torpedo that’s gone wrong, but the in-built propellors mean that each one can generate enough energy to top up a rechargable AA battery.

Now here’s the fun bit. The Febot comes with a suction cup that allows you to attach it to pretty much any flat surface or structure. In theory, you could attach it to the outside of your window, or even the top of your car. Just imagine—a tiny little wind farm all of your own.