electricity

Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger

- Adam Clare

No this is not a post about that Daft Punk song, this is about car batteries. Wired is reporting that the next generation of car batteries that are currently in development are going to be better, work harder, allow for faster cars, and hold a stronger cars. Essentially car battery technology is improving thus opening up more possibilities for electric cars.

Firefly has replaced the lead plates found inside conventional batteries with a lead-impregnated foam made from carbon graphite –- one of the few materials that can withstand the highly corrosive sulfuric acid inside batteries. The foam increases the surface area of lead inside the battery, delivering more power and slashing the recharge time, says Firefly CEO Ed Williams.

Equally important, Firefly’s approach eliminates the crystals that can build up inside lead-acid batteries. Over time, those crystals reduce the amount of electricity a battery can hold, one of the major reasons electric and hybrid automakers have favored lithium-ion or nickel batteries, even though lead acid is less expensive.

Tesla Motors Humming Along

- Adam Clare

Tesla makes electric cars that go fast, real fast. Auto Blog Green is wondering if we’ll soon see “gas stations” for electric cars in California.

The company won a grant to develop recharge stations to power the electric vehicles in an effort to encourage people switching from infernal-compustion engines to more environmentally friendly alternatives.

When CARB solicited proposals this year, they said that, “Electric fuel vehicles have the largest potential to reduce climate change emissions and petroleum dependency relative to any other alternative fuel vehicle under consideration.” The awards list shows more money being sent to biofuels ($12 million for ethanol and biodiesel) than EVs and PHEVs ($5 million), though.

Previously on Things Are Good.

Kiwis Know Solar Power

- Adam Clare 1 Comment

Some New Zealand researchers have created a dye for solar power generation that mimics photosynthesis in plants. The dye is cheaper to use than standard photovoltaic solar panels.

Cam says:

Dr Wayne Campbell and researchers from the Nanomaterials Research Centre at Massey University in New Zealand have developed a range of coloured dyes for use in dye-sensitized solar cells. Synthetic dyes solar cells that can be used to generate electricity at one tenth of the cost of current silicon-based solar panels.

The synthetic dyes are made from simple organic compounds closely related to those found in nature. The green dye Dr Campbell is synthetic chlorophyll derived from the light-harvesting pigment plants use for photosynthesis. Other dyes being tested in the cells are based on hemoglobin, the compound that give blood its color and blue derived from blueberries. Apparently, dark-colored berries outperform most other plant species when it comes to spectral absorption of sunlight.

From the linked article:

Solar cell technology developed by the University’s Nanomaterials Research Centre will enable New Zealanders to generate electricity from sunlight at a 10th of the cost of current silicon-based photo-electric solar cells.
…
Dr Campbell says that unlike the silicon-based solar cells currently on the market, the 10x10cm green demonstration cells generate enough electricity to run a small fan in low-light conditions – making them ideal for cloudy climates. The dyes can also be incorporated into tinted windows that trap to generate electricity.

Switch’n It Up!

- Vanessa King

ure-2.pngThe World Wildlife Fund started a great new campaign in 2006 called ‘Powerswitch’. The initiative has been working to eventually help the world’s power sector become completely CO2-free. The goals achieved thus far include more than 600,000 actions taken by individual PowerSwitch! supporters. They’ve even stopped the construction of new coal power plants and have pushed legislation that puts tough caps on CO2 emissions and boosts clean and efficient renewable energies.

How do I switch to clean energy from where I live?? It’s actually not as hard as you might think! In many countries, including Canada, you can choose to buy energy from green resources at a very comparable cost. There are many other ways you can work to decrease your global footprint as well.

In only one year the WWF’s campaign has effectively established networks and initiatives on different continents, which are longlasting and are continuing to grow even further. The more people learn about how they can help, the more alternatives to dirty, non-renewable energy sources will become popular and readily available. It all starts with us!

House of the Future

- Agasel 1 Comment

Students at the University of Nottingham are moving into a new, futuristic house.  This three-storey home is being built as an example to the world on how people can cut carbon dioxide emissions.  Over a period of 20 years, students will live in the house and monitor heat, light, and water consumption.  The goal of the experiment is to cut CO2 emissions by 60 percent.univhouse.jpg

The house features an earth-air heat exchanger for heat; a grey water management system to reuse shower water for the toilet; a rainwater-harvesting system to collect water for the washing machine, shower and gardens; solar heating; and a ventilation / heat recovery system.

Mike Hinman of Stoneguard, the company building the house, states, “This building is, quite simply, 44 years ahead of its time.”

Scroll To Top