Green Options » NSF http://greenoptions.com/tag/nsf Posts tagged 'NSF' Sat, 21 Nov 2009 18:27:49 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.5.1 en Wave Energy Looking for Breakthrough — Using Aerospace Design http://cleantechnica.com/2009/11/21/wave-energy-looking-for-breakthrough-aerospace-design/ http://cleantechnica.com/2009/11/21/wave-energy-looking-for-breakthrough-aerospace-design/#comments Sat, 21 Nov 2009 18:27:49 +0000 Zachary Shahan http://cleantechnica.com/2009/11/21/wave-energy-looking-for-breakthrough-aerospace-design/
The oceans seem like a great potential source for clean energy. The force of the waves, the constancy, the size of the oceans — it all seems like something that could produce energy for humans without much harm. (I still have some concerns, though it seems like one of the best options these days). Some of the major problems with utilizing the force of the oceans, however, have been how to survive storms, the need to be anchored to the see floor, and efficiency.

Researchers from the US Air Force Academy have a new, outside-the-box idea for dealing with these problems — use an aerospace approach.

This is yet to be developed to full-scale and tested in that form, but early computer and model-scale tests are showing higher efficiencies than wind turbines, according to the National Science Foundation (NSF).

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]]> http://cleantechnica.com/2009/11/21/wave-energy-looking-for-breakthrough-aerospace-design/feed/ Robot Fish to Better Monitor Water Quality http://cleantechnica.com/2009/11/03/robot-fish-to-better-monitor-water-quality/ http://cleantechnica.com/2009/11/03/robot-fish-to-better-monitor-water-quality/#comments Tue, 03 Nov 2009 16:32:10 +0000 Zachary Shahan http://cleantechnica.com/2009/11/03/robot-fish-to-better-monitor-water-quality/
An ecologist and an engineer at Michigan State University are working together to create robot fish that can better monitor various factors in aquatic environments.

Combining the brilliance of nature with some top-notch engineering, these two scientists are on to something and getting the funding for it.

The researchers are breaking ground with this and looking to raise water monitoring to another level.

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]]> http://cleantechnica.com/2009/11/03/robot-fish-to-better-monitor-water-quality/feed/ Better and Cheaper Solar Cells: Gaining Control of Light-Harvesting Pathways http://cleantechnica.com/2009/10/12/better-and-cheaper-solar-cells-gaining-control-of-light-harvesting-pathways/ http://cleantechnica.com/2009/10/12/better-and-cheaper-solar-cells-gaining-control-of-light-harvesting-pathways/#comments Mon, 12 Oct 2009 17:37:41 +0000 Zachary Shahan http://cleantechnica.com/2009/10/12/better-and-cheaper-solar-cells-gaining-control-of-light-harvesting-pathways/

New research at the University of Florida (UF) has just brought to light a new method in the capturing and guiding of energy that may lead to cheaper and more efficient solar cells.

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]]> http://cleantechnica.com/2009/10/12/better-and-cheaper-solar-cells-gaining-control-of-light-harvesting-pathways/feed/ Scientists Researching How Plants Can Make Petroleum http://gas2.org/2009/10/02/scientists-researching-how-plants-can-make-petroleum/ http://gas2.org/2009/10/02/scientists-researching-how-plants-can-make-petroleum/#comments Fri, 02 Oct 2009 18:19:07 +0000 Nick Chambers http://gas2.org/2009/10/02/scientists-researching-how-plants-can-make-petroleum/

As part of a National Science Foundation grant program to examine cutting edge ways to make nature work for us, a team of scientists at Iowa State University have been awarded $2 million to unravel how some plants and algae can make hydrocarbons and discover if the genes that govern that process might be isolated.

“These plants are capturing solar energy and creating something that’s chemically identical to petroleum,” said Jackie Shanks, Iowa State’s Manley R. Hoppe Professor of Chemical Engineering, in a statement.

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]]> http://gas2.org/2009/10/02/scientists-researching-how-plants-can-make-petroleum/feed/ Journey into the “Great Pacific Ocean Garbage Patch” — Scientific Findings http://ecoworldly.com/2009/08/28/journey-into-the-great-pacific-ocean-garbage-patch/ http://ecoworldly.com/2009/08/28/journey-into-the-great-pacific-ocean-garbage-patch/#comments Fri, 28 Aug 2009 09:20:27 +0000 Zachary Shahan http://ecoworldly.com/2009/08/28/journey-into-the-great-pacific-ocean-garbage-patch/
The “Great Pacific Ocean Garbage Patch” lies about 1,000 miles from the coast of California. It is in the North Pacific Ocean Gyre, which is one of the oldest and most diverse ecosystems in the world. The garbage patch has gotten a lot of media attention in the last year. However, due to the fact that one must get on a boat and go all the way out to the patch to study it, there hadn’t been any in-depth scientific analysis of the patch,… until now.

The Scripps Environmental Accumulation of Plastic Expedition (SEAPLEX) went on an in-depth search of the “Great Pacific Ocean Garbage Patch” this month. Their findings were varied.

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]]> http://ecoworldly.com/2009/08/28/journey-into-the-great-pacific-ocean-garbage-patch/feed/ Expanded Funding for New Environmental Technologies http://ecopreneurist.com/2009/03/16/expanded-funding-for-new-environmental-technologies/ http://ecopreneurist.com/2009/03/16/expanded-funding-for-new-environmental-technologies/#comments Mon, 16 Mar 2009 15:44:46 +0000 Jennifer Kaplan http://ecopreneurist.com/2009/03/16/expanded-funding-for-new-environmental-technologies/ Eleven government agencies participate in the Small Business Innovation Research program which makes grants to science and technology-based firms.  EPA and NSF just announced the open proposal window for applications “for small businesses to grow, add workers, and expand into new markets.”

Both programs will be accepting applications for Phase I funding. These are small grants: A total of $70,000 is available in funding for each EPA Phase I award. The NSF’s SBIR Phase I solicitation funding is $150,000 per award. One expert told me that it probably means 5 awards from EPA and 6 awards from NSF for grants ranging from $15k to $25k each.

Under Phase I, the scientific merit and technical feasibility of the proposed concept is investigated…Through this phased approach to SBIR funding, EPA can determine whether the research idea, often on high-risk advanced concepts, is technically feasible, whether the firm can do high-quality research, and whether sufficient progress has been made to justify a larger Phase II effort.

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