Bob's Solar Page

DailyTech - MIT Students Develop Revolutionary Solar Dish That is Hot Enough to Melt Steel

2008-06-23T00:48:00.000-07:00

DailyTech - MIT Students Develop Revolutionary Solar Dish That is Hot Enough to Melt Steel

The ZAP-X Crossover Electric Car

2007-01-31T01:33:00.000-08:00

The ZAP-X Crossover Electric Car - 155mph, 644 Horsepower, Based on the APX Technical Demonstrator Vehicle Designed & Developed by Lotus Engineering

Tuesday January 30, 4:00 am ET
ZAP-X features all wheel drive, 10 minute recharge time, a 350 Mile Range and will be the center piece of the NADA Exhibition, February 3rd to 6th.

LAS VEGAS, Jan. 30 -- Automotive pioneer ZAP (OTC Bulletin Board: ZAAP) today announced plans to display Lotus Engineering's advanced APX concept car at the North American Dealers Association (NADA) annual meeting and exhibition, February 3 to 6, 2007, confirming their choice to move ahead using Lotus' revolutionary platform and body structure design as the basis for the development of the high performance electric ZAP-X.

Sounds nice but what about something the general public can afford! //bob

EEStor unveils ultracapacitor-based battery system, Li-ion shudders in fear - Engadget

2007-01-24T00:34:00.000-08:00

EEStor unveils ultracapacitor-based battery system, Li-ion shudders in fear - Engadget: "EEStor unveils ultracapacitor-based battery system, Li-ion shudders in fear

Posted Jan 23rd 2007 7:09PM by Darren Murph
Filed under: Transportation
If relying on sunlight and downhill routes in Venturi's uber-green Eclectic doesn't exactly sound feasible for your everyday (and night) errands, and your ultraportable's five hours of battery life just isn't where you think it should be, EEStor is hoping to remedy those issues -- along with basically every other battery-related quandary -- in one fell swoop. In another case of 'this just can't be for realz,' an elusive Texas company is coming clean about what's been happening in its labs of late, and the proclamations are nothing short of sensational. The firm boldly states that its one of a kind system, a 'battery-ultracapacitor hybrid based on barium-titanate powders, will dramatically outperform the best lithium-ion batteries on the market in terms of energy density, price, charge time, and safety.' Moreover, this miracle-working solution is said to produce 'ten times' the power of lead-acid batteries at half the cost, sans the need for 'toxic materials or chemicals.' Additionally, EEStor is hoping to have its Electrical Energy Storage Unit (EESU) powering the wheels of Toronto-based ZENN Motor vehicles.

Danish Wind Industry Association

2006-12-27T13:06:00.000-08:00

The Danish Wind Industry Association (DWIA) is a non-profit association whose purpose is to promote wind energy at home and abroad.

The association was founded in 1981. DWIA today represents 99.9 per cent of Danish wind turbine manufacturing measured in MW and more than 140 companies with activities in the Danish wind industry.

Nanosolar - Home Page

2006-08-28T12:57:00.000-07:00

Nanosolar - Home Page: "Nanosolar has developed proprietary technology that makes it possible to simply roll-print solar cells that require only 1/100th as thick an absorber as a silicon-wafer cell (yet deliver similar performance and durability). "

Hopefully this technology will bring the cost of solar way down and be able to use it on all surfaces. //bob

Cyclean - The pedal powered washing machine

2006-08-07T21:41:00.000-07:00

Cyclean - The pedal powered washing machine: "This website contains more information about Cyclean, The pedal powered washing machine."

Pedal yer way to cleaner clothes!!! LOL //bob

ScienCentral Video News: Super Battery

2006-08-05T02:13:00.000-07:00

ScienCentral Video News: Super Battery: "Ever wish you could charge your cellphone or laptop in a few seconds rather than hours? As this ScienCentral News video explains, researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology are developing a battery that could do just that, and also might never need to be replaced. They turned to the capacitor, which was invented nearly 300 years ago. Schindall explains, "We made the connection that perhaps we could take an old product, a capacitor, and use a new technology, nanotechnology, to make that old product in a new way."

Green Wifi - The Solar Wi-Fi Grid Project

2006-08-03T12:07:00.000-07:00

Green Wifi - The Solar Wi-Fi Grid Project: "The Green WiFi Mission

Green WiFi is committed to providing solar powered access to global information and educational resources for developing nation K-12 school children striving for knowledge in a digitally divided world. There are approximately 3 billion people under the age of 15 living in developing nations. 42 percent of the developing world's population is below the age of 15. Green WiFi was founded on the principle that the welfare of our world is dependent, in large part, on providing these children with free and open access to the world's information."

Treehugger: 800 Watt Hours A Day! The Most Efficient Modern House?

2006-07-16T01:27:00.000-07:00

Treehugger: 800 Watt Hours A Day! The Most Efficient Modern House?: "800 Watt Hours A Day! The Most Efficient Modern House?
July 14, 2006 01:30 PM - Justin Thomas, Virginia
This house has the conveniences of a modern house, but consumes only 800Whr on average per day. Compare this to a typical U.S. suburban house that uses 45 kilowatt hours (kWh) per day. How is this reduction possible? It's through the strategic use of ultra-efficient appliances, daylighting, and passive solar design for temperature control and ventilation. But what's the secret of the house's amazingly low power consumption? Using solar power, the house generates 120V AC, but it's also wired for 12V. The living room has three 7W 12V compact fluorescent lamps, a 12V Widescreen LCD TV, a DVD player, and an efficient surround sound stereo system. The office has a Mac laptop acting has a desktop, and all other computer peripherals are switched off automatically when not in use. When not lit by daylight, the office uses compact fluorescents lamps, and 12V LED desk lamps."

Kind of sounds like my solar home out it the desert, but I use leds for lighting instead of compact fluorescents. I do dry my clothes with a Thermonuclear Device (Clothes line). About time folks start thinking solar power where less is even more! //bob

Blowing in the Wind - Global Business - MSNBC.com

2006-07-10T02:46:00.000-07:00

Blowing in the Wind - Global Business - MSNBC.com: "SkySails' system consists of an enormous towing kite and navigation software that can map the best route between two points for maximum wind efficiency. In development for more than four years, the system costs from roughly $380,000 to $3.2 million, depending on the size of the ship it's pulling. SkySails claims it will save one third of fuel costs"

Put them on ships to save fule. //bob

Wired News: LED Architecture

2006-07-09T11:14:00.000-07:00

Wired News: LED Architecture: "Light-emitting diodes, or LEDs, are reinventing the look and feel of skylines, bridges, facades and other architectural surfaces around the globe. The light bulb is being unscrewed by energy-efficient LEDs that are both environmentally friendly and cost-effective. The $10.2 billion industry is growing to provide new design options for architects and planners."

Lots of nice pictures to look at //bob

www.quasiturbine.com - English

2006-06-23T22:23:00.000-07:00

www.quasiturbine.com:
"Quasiturbine - A New Approach"
An engine for optimum efficiency and clean environment
under any load, torque, pressure, flow, power or RPM !
The piston engine has been dominant for over a century.
Have we abdicated to do better? And if better exists, are we going to give it a try?

Personal Tech Pipeline | 4 Out Of 5 New Home Buyers Want Solar Power

2006-06-22T02:32:00.000-07:00

Personal Tech Pipeline | 4 Out Of 5 New Home Buyers Want Solar Power: "4 Out Of 5 New Home Buyers Want Solar Power

By Mark LaPedus Courtesy of EE Times

SAN JOSE, Calif. — Eight out of ten Americans believe that homebuilders should offer solar power as an option for all new home construction, according to a new survey from the world's largest solar-cell producer, Japan's Sharp Electronics Corp."

Advanced Technologies & Energy Efficiency

2006-06-16T01:35:00.000-07:00

Advanced Technologies & Energy Efficiency: "Only about 15% of the energy from the fuel you put in your tank gets used to move your car down the road or run useful accessories, such as air conditioning. The rest of the energy is lost to engine and driveline inefficiencies and idling. Therefore, the potential to improve fuel efficiency with advanced technologies is enormous."

Treehugger: Solar Powered Air Conditioning Just Makes Sense

2006-06-16T01:28:00.000-07:00

Treehugger: Solar Powered Air Conditioning Just Makes Sense: "Solar Powered Air Conditioning Just Makes Sense
June 15, 2006 06:22 AM - Lloyd Alter, Toronto

Some concepts just make sense- like when the developer of a solar powered pontoon boat pointed out-'Since most recreational boating is done when the weather is nice, solar power is particularly well adapted to the task.' We were thinking that way while looking for a solar powered air conditioner- when do you need it? When it is hot and sunny. We looked at Justin's SolCool but we knew that natural gas fired AC units or propane fridges existed and thought heat is heat- there must be one somewhere, and put google to work. This is the first of a series- the Direct-Fired Absorption system.(DFA)"

Footprint

2006-04-23T22:09:00.000-07:00

Leave as little a footprint as possible on our environment so that others may follow your path.

EARTH DAY

2006-04-21T21:22:00.000-07:00

I remember the first Earth Day way back in April 22, 1970 and there was a rally held in a park next to the college I was attending at the time. The main speaker, a well dressed bearded scholar, was lecturing us poor uninformed folk about how bad pollution and our way of living was and how it was destroying our world. After the rally I had some questions to ask this knowledgeable leader of the environmental movement. So I followed him out to his car and tried to ask my questions, but he said he was in a hurry and couldn’t spend the time with me. He then drove off in a cloud of black smoke billowing from the tailpipe of his Mercedes diesel.
I learned a good number of lessons on that day. Practice what you preach. Even back in 1970, as it is today, it was hard to find anyone who does. And another lesson learned was Experts don’t know crap! You just got to keep an open mind and evaluate what knowledge you accumulate, because you're responsible for what you do and how you live. So on this Earth Day go and checkout what these Experts are driving! Oh and by the way, my homes electric is powered by solar panels.

What can you do right now? Get rid of those dang incandescent bulbs and use Compact fluorescent lights that use 75% less energy. Now go and yank them out of their sockets and toss them. Even if you have to be in the dark tonight!

Thin Car Travels Far

2006-04-20T21:47:00.000-07:00

This is real interresting, a car that gets 235 mpg!!

Forget power, space, and speed: Volkswagen AG's latest idea-on-wheels does not address the requirements of the average American family driver. What it can do is travel more than 100 kilometers on a single liter of fuel. Translation: 235 miles per gallon.

Now if we could get about a million of these on our roads.... //bob

Thin Car Travels Far

BLAME

2006-04-20T20:28:00.000-07:00

Seems to me everyone wants to blame everyone else for the predicament that we’re in with the high gasoline prices; Bush, Iran, Iraq, Exxon, and a whole bunch more. Well I got to tell you that you are wrong! To find the real scoundrel go look in the mirror, yes that's right it is you! We have been warned a whole bunch of times. Like back in the 70’s when we had the gas shortages and everyone had to wait in line for gas. People were buying smaller cars like the Ford Pinto and that Gremlin thing, in fact they converted a Gremlin to run on hydrogen back then. Then the prices of gas went down and it was business as usual, at least for some people.
I was talking to a friend of mine today and he said it is all Bush’s fault that gas prices are high, I told him that it didn’t help matters any that he drives an 8 cylinder gas guzzling truck that gets 11 miles to the gallon and he goes to town everyday for something to do. He consumes and wastes too much energy running his home and all his toys that it is a wonder that he doesn’t go broke. He laughs at my LED lights that I use to light up my house and the solar panels on my roof is an eyesore to him, that’s why he won’t put them on his house because they are an eyesore. During the Christmas season he has so much lighting on his home that it’s a wonder that airliners don’t try to land there.
What I am trying to say is that we have to take responsibility for our own actions and not wait for the Government to fix things or we may very well end up like those poor folks after hurricane Katrina. So what can you do? That will be on my next post. Thanks for reading //bob