Category Archives: Emerging Tech

Smart-Charging Pilot to Begin

By Kate Weinkauf  
November 6, 2008 – 11:17 am

Advanced Energy, a non-profit based in North Carolina, is partnering with Duke Energy, Progress Energy and V2Green to test the positive impacts of smart-charging 12 Toyota Prius’. The Pruis’ have been converted by V2Green to incorporate specific charging management technology that will communicate to and interpret from the grid. Advanced Energy will lead the design and implementation of various charge scenarios. Both Progress Energy and Duke Energy will allow the trial to explore the billing and operational requirements of supporting plug-in vehicle roaming between adjoining utility service areas. This pilot program will also help assess the potential of plug-in vehicles to enhance electric grid operations and evaluate how well PHEV’s can really “give back” to the grid.

For more information about this demonstration, jump here.

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Ericsson’s Tower Tube Cell Tower Gets A Vertical Wind Turbine

By Michael d'Estries  
October 9, 2008 – 7:37 pm

vertical axis turbine ericssonEricsson already has an environmental winner with their Tower Tube Cell Towers (which use 40% less energy than traditional towers), but they’ve taken the idea one step further with the integration of a vertical-axis turbine.

The wind-powered version comes with a four-blade turbine with five-meter blades. The vertical advantage allows the blades to turn around the tower resulting in less noise and less visual impact than typical wind turbines. Ulf Ewaldsson, Vice President and Head of Product Area Radio at Ericsson, says: “Combining wind power with Ericsson’s Tower Tube brings further opportunities to support mobile communication in both urban and remote areas with no or limited access to the electricity grid. Ericsson’s wind-powered Tower Tube research initiative reflects our ambition to use our technical leadership to drive sustainable, telecom expansion and deliver communication for all.”

Very cool — and it’s great to see Ericsson working hard to combine different elements of sustainable tech with their towers. The addition of the vertical-axis turbine is still in the trial stages, so stay tuned to see how quickly these come to market.

Check out the full press release here.

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Solar Wind Power Generator Combines Best Of Both Technologies

By Michael d'Estries  
October 2, 2008 – 1:49 pm

One of the more interesting aspects of the renewable power revolution is watching how designers are taking advantage of the technology to create efficient and practical accessories for the home. Take for instance the “Flow” — which is a collection of six photovoltaic panels crafted as a vertical turbine. It’s the brainchild of designer Wang Yigang, who managed to grab top honors with his creation at the National Exhibition of Arts.

From the article,

“This dual power generating system consists of arciform photovoltaic cells that absorb all the goodness of the sun. A collection of six photovoltaic cells sums up as a shell that is used as wind concentrator. The accelerated speed of the wind enhances the performance of the rotor. Also the joints on the solar cells help to adjust them at optimum angle so that maximum solar energy is soaked up.”

Nice looking, right? I’ve no idea how much energy a system like this might generate, but it’s great to see designers thinking outside the box. Now, can we please see one turned into reality?

More photos available at Ecofriend.

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The Energy Efficiency Summit East to be held in D.C.

By Kate Weinkauf  
July 31, 2008 – 1:59 pm

The Energy Efficiency Summit East 2008 will explore the current status and future direction for energy efficiency and demand programs, technologies, and finance. Held in Washington, D.C. from September 8-10, this conference will bring utilities and energy service companies together with emerging customer groups to explore opportunities for expanding the use of energy efficiency and demand response technologies.

This Summit provides the occasion for government regulators to examine how to implement energy efficiency while investors and technology developers will provide an overview of new technologies that reduce energy usage. The Summit will also include an Executive Forum on Sept. 8, ‘08, “Overcoming the Market Barriers to Commercializing Demand Management & Energy Efficiency Technologies”. Hopefully putting all of these great minds together will begin a solution to our renewable energy needs and set in motion, at the very least, a dialogue for solutions.

For more information, please visit the official site here.

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V2GREEN=V2G

By Kate Weinkauf  
July 25, 2008 – 9:34 am

Currently there is no way to store large scale energy. If energy is sent to the grid and goes unused, it is wasted. However, if there was a way to utilize electric vehicles (EV’s) as energy storage units that returned energy to the grid during peak hours, less energy would be wasted (as many of you know, this is called vehicle-to-grid or V2G technology), and V2Green has become a V2G innovator.

V2Green is a company that offers, as the CEO John Clark states: a “technology [that] establishes intelligent, two-way communication between the electrical grid and distributed power resources.” The V2Green System also allows utilities to manage the flow of energy back to the grid when necessary. This is especially valuable because intelligently managed electric power helps to reduce petroleum use and greenhouse gas emissions.

And don’t worry—this technology is not some mirage of the future. This year, Xcel Energy deployed the V2Green System in the first real-world successful trial of V2G technology, demonstrating both its capabilities and economic value, putting us on the path toward more efficient energy usage.

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Google Throws $2.75 Million At Aptera Motors

By Michael d'Estries  
July 24, 2008 – 12:35 pm

Green automaker Aptera Motors is benefitting from Google’s green investment division with the recent gift of $2.75 million. The move comes from the search engine giant’s RechargeIT, a philanthropic investment and research program aimed to expedite the adoption of plug-in electric vehicles.

Aptera is planning on launching their all-electric $30,000 vehicle this coming October. Initial tests show the Jetsons-style aerodynamics giving drivers an amazing 230MPG. You can check out a guided tour of the vehicle in a video here.

In addition to the automaker, Google also gave $2.75 million to ActaCell, a battery company that hopes to help make electric cars both cheap and safe. Their main focus right now is on lithium-ion technology — as well as improving the life cycle of the batteries and the cost. The company hopes to commercialize their tech sometime in 2010.

The next decade is looking pretty exciting for automotive tech!

via smashgods

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Solar Powered Table Turns Treehuggers Into Executives

By Michael d'Estries  
June 23, 2008 – 7:58 pm

solar table

The world of solar-powered tables is growing. Over on Earth First, I wrote earlier about a table — that besides charging your gadgets — is apparently also an aphrodisiac. At least, that’s what the advertising tells us.

This new photovoltaic-endowed table, created by Oakland-based design-building studio Because We Can, was commissioned by solar manufacturer SunPower. Apparently, they were looking for some new office furniture for the executive areas and wanted to make a statement. From the site,

“The surface of the panel is a smooth plastic, and the solar panel drops into the steel frame of the table. The panel is fully functional and collecting power as it sits in this sunny office.”

We’ll take one, please!

via CasaSugar

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Floating Ecopolis Perfect For Yacht Clubs, Luxury Retreats

By Michael d'Estries  
June 11, 2008 – 3:28 pm

Architect Vincent Callebaut was so inspired with the story of Noah’s Ark that he decided to come up with his own vision of a 22nd-century vessel for the masses. Dubbed the “Lilypad”, but also called the “Floating Ecopolis for Climate Refugees”, these giant, fully recyclable, “green” islands are self-sustaining wonders integrating solar, wind, and other renewable technologies. From the article,

“The lower half of the floating community is submerged, while the top extends upwards to soak up solar energy. The goal of this true amphibian, half aquatic and half terrestrial city is to create a harmonious coexistence of the couple Human / Nature and to explore new modes of living the sea by building with fluidity collective spaces in proximity, overwhelming spaces of social inclusion suitable to the meeting of all the inhabitants – denizen or foreign-born, recent or old, young or aged people.”

We’d love to live in one, but with an expected launch date of 2100, we’ll be too dead to truly consider it.

Check out additional photos over at Ecofriend. 

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Exclusive: eTec Interview Sheds Light On Future “Fast” Charging Devices, Hydrogen Generation

By Michael d'Estries  
May 29, 2008 – 5:22 pm

etec.gifWelcome to a new series exploring the different technologies and companies that are a key part of Ecotality’s vision for a greener and more sustainable future. First up is eTec, a company that specializes in next-generation energy storage and alternative-transportation testing.

Tell us a bit of what eTec specializes in — and where the company is positioning itself over the next couple years.

eTec is focused on technologies and solutions surrounding Energy, Transportation and the Environment. Initially focused on electric vehicle infrastructure, ETEC has expanded into areas of battery research, energy storage, advanced vehicle testing, and hydrogen technologies. eTec has strong fast charger branding in the airport, industrial lift-truck and low speed electric vehicle markets and is well positioned to develop charging products for the emerging plug-in hybrid electric vehicle and pure electric vehicle on-road markets.

The Minit-Charger appears to be an excellent fast-charging accessory for electric and plug-in vehicles. Can you describe how it works and it we might one days see these things in our garage?

Minit-Charger utilizes patented charging methods that allows faster charging wthout the destructive effects of over-charging and un-controlled temperature rise. The eTec Minit-Charger fast-charge system will more likely be deployed at commercial facilities where people spend at least 10-15 minutes such as restaurants, malls and in fleet applications. It is typically not necessary to fast-charge at home, the residential home could have an eTec overnight charge system that typically would complete the charge in 6-8 hours.

The “Hydrogen Future” is generally expected to be 10-15 years away. In your experience working on technologies to make a hydrogen infrastructure a reality, does this ring true? Could it happen faster?

We believe we could get to a cost effective solution pretty quickly with the hydrogen ICE vehicle conversions, but the hydrogen supply is still an expensive proposition. We are conducting a study for the US DOE looking at utilizing existing off-peak nuclear energy to see if an economic solution can be achieved in the near term for bulk hydrogen production. There are several other such studies underway to better understand what the best approach would be for hydrogen generation. It’s very difficult to predict what advancements might take place to get us there.

Click here to continue reading the interview…

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The Solarial: Floating Mobile Solar Power For Disaster Relief

By Michael d'Estries  
May 17, 2008 – 9:33 am

blimp.jpgWith so many disasters appearing in the news over the last 10 days, something like the Solarial should be made a reality as soon as possible. According to the creator, this unmanned airship provides “mobile support infrastructure for disaster relief and remote communities, generating renewable energy and supplying communications links where they are needed most.”

The outside is coated in thin-film photovoltaic cells (something Nanosolar is working on to boost from a current efficiency of 14%) and also has a reversible drive propeller/wind turbine. As blimps themselves have a 80%-90% lower environmental impact than jets, such transport would also be earth-friendly. From the article,

“Once at the site, the airship then lowers the power box (which contains anchoring mechanisms). The energy generated while the airship is aloft is then transmitted to the ground to power field hospitals, water pumping and purification, lighting, communications, and computer equipment necessary to sustain the operation. At average latitudes and atmospheric conditions, Solarial should be able to produce about 125 kWh per day between its solar cells and the wind turbine.”

It should also be noted that his blimp uses hydrogen, instead of the fossil fuel helium to achieve buoyancy. Hydrogen is cheaper and renewable — but is also highly flammable; something the author takes note of and points to the unmanned characteristic of his invention as a positive in this case.

For more, (including additional photos) please visit the official site here.

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