If somebody tells you that adding a little bit of water to your engine can get you 40% better mileage, they’re probably blowing a lot of hot air. If Bruce Crower, winner of the 2007 Popular Science Invention Award tells you it’s possible, be prepared to be blown away.

In today’s gasoline and diesel engines, the four strokes of the piston – intake of air, compression of the air/fuel mixture, combustion of fuel, and exhaust of the resulting fumes – generates temperatures above 1500°F. Crower’s new engine design harnesses this otherwise wasted heat by injecting water onto the blazing hot piston. The water instantly vaporizes  and expands in volume 1,600 times to power the piston through another two strokes. The resulting steam is then recaptured and fed through a condenser to be used again.

Not only does this increase the amount of power produced by the engine by about 40%, it cools the engine as it operates, completely eliminating the need for a cooling system. No radiator, no coolant, no water pump… it could shave as much as 1000 lbs off the weight of semi-truck engines.

Best of all, the technology could be used in any kind of internal combustion engine. Gasoline, hybrid, series hybrid, biodiesel, and it would always save huge amounts of fuel.

No word yet on when we might see this in passenger cars, but the designer’s credentials and a working prototype mean it’s not more than a few years off.

via Popular Science

Last Wednesday Google registered ClimateSaverPC.com and .org. And, since then, rumor and speculation have been somewhat rampant. I decided to wait it out, and am now, after some extra news has come in, letting you all know what I think is going on.

First, we all know that Google owns hundreds of thousands of computers. These, of course, are mostly servers, not PCs. And Google has worked very hard to ensure that these servers are extremely energy efficient in order to decrease their costs.

Second, Urs Hoelzle, Google’s Senior VP of Operations has recently been working on the issue of PC power supply inefficiency. The reality is that this is a huge problem. PCs power supplies are extremely inefficient, and there really is no good reason for this. Check out our stories on the 80 Plus initiative for more on that.

Third, Urs Hoelzle actually, himself, registered ClimateSaverPC.us. Linking Google’s buy directly to Urs.

Fourth, Urs told Nic Carr at Rough Type that they weren’t thinking of building their own PC, had never thought of building their own PC, and were likely never going to build a Google PC. Urs referred to the purchase of ClimateSaverPC as a "personal matter."

Fifth, other search engines (Snap and Yahoo) have been working on ways to engage their users in the climate crisis. Yahoo by allowing people to pledge to decrease their carbon footprint. Snap by offering their users a tiny application that greatly decrease the power consumption of their PCs.

SO! What do we know? Well…not very much.

But we can speculate that Google would like to get in on the climate change PR game. And, as Urs is linked to this whole thing, it’s possible that Google is working on a new power supply standard that will allow for a large increase in PC efficiency.

While I doubt that Google is going to be starting up a power supply manufacturing plant, I wouldn’t be surprised if they created a PR campaign that would outline steps for folks to make sure that their machines are as efficient as they can be. And / Or possibly to encourage component makers to adopt a new power supply standard.

All I can say is, it seems like the sort of thing they’d do.

Via ZDNet

In a recent inteview with Time Magazine, Apple chief Steve Jobs declared that there was no question in his mind that Al Gore would win if he ran for President of the United States.

Al and Steve are two of our favorite EcoGeeks, and we’ve been pleased to see them standing together. Gore is a member of Apple’s Board of Directors and reportedly played a large part in Apple’s new plan to green-up their business.

Jobs speculated that Gore’s experience in 2000 is keeping him from realizing his current potential. Frankly, I wouldn’t blame him…I had a hard time voting after the pain of the 2000 elections. But I sure would like to see that EcoGeek in the White House again, as President or in the newly created office of "Secretary of the Climate Crisis."

Via MacNN

We’re currently experiencing the rise of the compact fluorescent…and soon after will come LED lamps. But what comes after LEDs? The Organic LED of course. OLEDs are already used as cell phone and MP3 displays and futurists have them pegged in everything from wearable displays to photovoltaic windows. But the technology is a long way off, which is why we’re happy to announce that the University of Bath is leading a $1.7 million research effort to lay the groundwork for the OLED revolution.

OLEDs are so versatile because they are both thin and flexible. And they’re ecogeeky because they’re extremely efficient and can be reversed.

"What’s that?" you say? What I mean is that OLEDs, which generally use electricity to create light, can be reversed to use light to create electricity, basically making them a photovoltaic cell.

OLEDs still require a lot of research before they will be a viable, economical lighting technology. But it’d be nice if my solar powered shirt could display RSS feeds on my arm. And maybe OLEDs are going to get us there.

Via Physorg.com

BMW MINIs are surprisingly inefficient. You’d think that such a small car would have some impressive stats, but city / highway ratings for Mini Models top out at 23 / 31. BMW is working on the problem, however. The MINI Cooper D will be receiving the same treatment as a few other BMW models: regenerative braking systems and Auto Start-Stop functionality that will as much as double mileage of the vehicle.

BMW’s regenerative braking system uses an Intelligent Alternator Control (IAC), which improves upon traditional alternators "by only engaging when required to charge the battery", and collecting energy when the car is coasting or slowing down.

Other technologies used are an Auto Start-Stop Function and a Switch Point Display. The former turns the engine off when at a stop, and restarts automatically when the clutch is used, while the latter lets the driver know which is the most efficient gear after analyzing the "speed, road situation and accelerator pedal position".

With their previous and current ventures into regenerative braking, BMW seems to be going not for an eco-stance, but for their mainstay of a premium driving experience. It’s not as awesome as an all-electric MINI, but it seems like a pretty good deal for BMW owners as well as the rest of the world.

Via: Green Car Congress.

Dallas, TX – (Market Wire) – May 15, 2007. Central Freight Lines, Inc.
is a leading LTL carrier and one of the largest intrastate carriers in
Texas. With 65 terminals, a great environment for Company and Owner
Operator Drivers, and over 80 years of experience in the business,
Central Freight sets its goals high and achieves them everyday.

The Texas Motor Transportation Association (TMTA) recently announced
that Central Freight is the winner of the Truck Safety Contest – Line
Haul, in the Intercity – Over 20 Million Miles Class. TMTA bases this
prestigious award on performance in the following categories: Safety
Program Organization; Employee Driver/Independent Contractor Selection
Procedure; Training; Supervision; Accident Investigation; Inspection
& Maintenance of Equipment; and Outside Activities & General
Highway Safety.

VP of Line Haul at Central, Phil Nelms, said, “We are deeply
honored to be recognized for our safety practices. It is an indication
to our entire team that our efforts to improve our internal processes
are paying off, as well as our continued emphasis of ‘safety first’.”

“Our Line Haul drivers have the experience and capabilities to
provide safe and first class service every day,” Tom Briggs added, VP
of Operations…

The world’s first commercial air-powered vehicle is rolling towards the production line. The Air Car, developed by ex-Formula One engineer Guy Nègre for Luxembourg-based MDI, will be built by India’s largest automaker.

The Air Car uses compressed air to push its engineÂ’s pistons. It is anticipated that approximately 6000 Air Cars will be cruising the streets of India by 2008. If the manufacturers have no surprises up their exhaust pipes the car will be practical and reasonably priced. The CityCat model will clock out at 68 mph with a driving range of 125 miles.

Refueling is simple and will only take a few minutes. Just stop by any gas station equipped with custom air compressor units. The cost of a fill up is approximately $2.00. Drivers will also be able to plug into the electrical grid and use the carÂ’s built-in compressor to refill the tanks in about 4 hours.

The streets of North America may never see the Air Car, though; it’s light-weight, glued-together fiberglass construction might not do so well in our crash tests. However, that does not mean the Air car is confined to the sub-continent. MDI has signed deals to bring its design to 12 more countries, including Germany, Israel and South Africa.

A variety of videos on this technology can be found on YouTube, or after the jump.

Via: Popular Mechanics

A backpack that recharges your gadgets isn’t even news anymore, but what if it could also turn into a bike? Frag Woodall, a student of University of Technology Sydney, has designed a backpack, called the Everglide, that amazingly is a backpack bike than can charge your iPod.

The backpack can be carried normally, wheeled like luggage or, converted into a bicycle. Instead of utilizing photovoltaics, it charges handheld devices by using "frictionless magnetic dynamo technology." Carbon fiber and aluminum materials make it lightweight and durable. His inspiration for the Everglide came from wanting to address the problems of bicycles being heavy and difficult to store and carry after the user is done riding.

Despite it looking like a funky scooter, there definitely is a need for a convenient bike like this. In any case, it could always be a fun way to power a lightbulb during a power outtage… or your iPod.

Intel has recently announced
that their newest chips (and all future chips) are going to be lead-free.
And this is not 99.99% (like we see for batteries and some other
applications for various materials) but 100% lead free. 

Intel on Tuesday said its future microprocessors will be lead
free, a move that coincides with the tech industry trend toward more
environmentally friendly products. The chipmaker said its "green"
processors would start with its next generation Core 2 Duo, Core 2 Quad,
and Xeon products. Production of the 45-nanometer processors is set to
begin the second half of this year.

There are a number of unpleasant chemicals inside the case of the average
PC. But things are starting to get better. European RoHS
standards (which we’ve mentioned before) require reductions
or elimination of many of these chemicals. 

Unforunately, lead is not the most egregious of these chemicals, and the CPU
chip is not the greatest source of contamination inside a PC case.
Brominated fire retardants among other chemicals inside the case are
more worrying to us than lead is. We’re generally more excited about
announcements of new processors with lower energy demands,
because those have a bigger impact than the relatively tiny amount of some
elements in the chips. But it’s good to see manufacturers continuing with
these incremental steps, as well as the bigger ones.

Yet another EcoGeek 3 wheel wonder, the Aerorider is “the ultimate single seat hybrid: sensational, comfortable, sporty and relaxing”.

The Aerorider is a hybrid – human and electric powered vehicle that can achieve 45km/h (28 mph) cruise and the ability to overcome hills without breaking into a sweat. The single bucket seat supports your entire body placing you in a position to comfortably focus on pedaling. Pedaling efficiency is maximized by the “recumbent” position where you are seated with the pedals out in front.

In the United States the Aerorider is considered a bicycle and can go wherever a bike is permitted.

Battery range, usually the Achilles Heel in an electric vehicle, depends on how the Aerorider is used and on the terrain. The more you pedal the greater the range, slopes and frequent acceleration reduce it, so range varies between twenty and eighty kilometers. Various battery options allow the Aerorider to be tailored for your needs. The battery charger can be plugged into a standard household outlet. The more advanced batteries, which are lighter and smaller, can be removed from the vehicle.

The Aerorider is currently under development in Amsterdam.

It’s amazing the difference good design can make. Yeah, those stupid little lawn lights we see all around nowadays are solar powered. But they’re not very attractive or versatile.

Which is why we love The Corona. The Corona is very attractive and can do pretty much anything. They can be staked into a lawn, hung from a wall or placed on a table. They’re water-proof, use high-efficiency LEDs and look as if they belong in the natural environment.

The materials, design, and idea of the Corona are all completely conscious of the environment. And that environmental consciousness has resulted in a stunningly attractive design. Solar lighting looks to be ready for the big leagues. Who could argue against these gorgeous little things.

Via NextLust

Using hydrogen as a vehicle fuel is one of the possible solutions being
touted as a replacement for oil-based fuels. Hydrogen fueled vehicles
would be preferable because their emissions are merely water vapor, rather
than CO2. But carrying around hydrogen in fuel tanks makes people
twitchy. And there is no national infrastructure to distribute hydrogen
the way we currently distribute gasoline.

Researchers at Purdue University have developed a process that
produces hydrogen gas when water comes in contact with special
pellets made of aluminum and gallium. Normally, aluminum quickly forms a
skin on its surface which inhibits this process from taking place (which is why aluminum cans don’t dissolve into clouds of hydrogen gas when filled with liquid). But the gallium
prevents the skin from forming, and allows the aluminum to remain
reactive.

Of course, refining aluminum in the first place is an incredibly energy
intensive process, so the production of these gallium-aluminum pellets
won’t be cheap. But the ability to produce hydrogen as it is needed and
in a transportable form is an interesting prospect. Those of you who are patiently waiting for the hydrogen economy now have a little bit less to wait for.

Via Physorg