By Jo Borras •
August 31, 2009
What would happen if your Chevy Volt’s battery pack got wet during a carwash? What if you tried to drive it through a foot of standing water after a rainstorm? What would happen if you lost control of your Chevy Volt and drove it into a canal?
Water and electricity do not go hand-in-hand, exactly, and despite the excitement and energy surrounding Chevy’s upcoming Volt EV, a number of people are still asking questions about the basic safety of the Volt’s powerful batteries.
GM took those concerns to heart, and released some rare “behind-the-scenes” commentary on the car’s underwater testing on GM’s VoltAge blog.
By Dave Harcourt •
April 30, 2009
An autonomous, underwater vehicle monitors ocean conditions and water parameters in treacherous, ice filled arctic waters. The information it collects supports the understanding of ocean and related climate changes.
This photo shows the seaglider clearing its antennae from the water to send off data and receive mission instructions before plunging back into the arctic waters. The photo below shows the complete glider, which is about 3 metres (10 foot) long.
By Andrew Williams •
November 24, 2008
Swiss company BKW has revealed that it plans to launch a 20-30 meter long solar-powered submarine. The vessel, to be used as a tourist attraction, will feature a huge ‘living-room’ style passenger area, as well as 60-70cm viewing portholes.
Under the plan, called Project Goldfish, a team of engineers will build a submarine, capable of carrying 20-30 passengers and two crew, at a depth of up to 300 meters across Lake Thun. Since it operates underwater, the team has figured that it’s pointless to attach solar panels on the sub itself. Instead, the vessel will fully recharge at a floating solar platform on the surface of the lake, decked out with 300m2 of solar collectors capable of supplying up to 30kW of renewable energy.
By Ariel Schwartz •
August 29, 2008
Vandergrift, PA is ditching its longtime reputation as a steel town to become a model of sustainability. First up in the transition: installing a grid of electricity-generating smart materials on the bottom of the Kiskiminetas River. The town hopes that the grid—along with a healthy dose of energy conservation efforts—will generate between 20 and 40 percent of the town’s electricity.
The underwater grid will consist of flexible strips of polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF), a material that generates electricity upon movement. In this case, currents in the river will provide the grid with the necessary undulations.
