Technology – Page 9 – Solar Magazine

DIN-Y: Solar-powered mobile conference unit

DIN-Y is designed as a mobile, private, tap-proof conference mobile. It is suited for trade exhibitions as well as for events at disused industrial plants or in the countryside.

An operating company provides for transport as well as catering. Once the last conference participant has taken a seat in DIN-Y, the vehicle is raised to ensure a better view and enhanced privacy.

DIN-Y has power cells and solar cells for an operating time of 6 hours. For intensive operation, however, it must be connected to the electricity network.

DIN-Y cannot be bugged or tapped, and provides absolute protection from external noise.

Source: www.ecofriend.com/entry/din-y-solar-powered-mobile-conference-unit-for-the-uber-secret-conference/

Energy provided by passing trains

Rail travel is one of the greenest means of traveling across the country, but it could be even more efficient if the infrastructure itself produced electricity. Companies have already come up with plans to harness energy from passing trains using piezoelectric pads, and now two designers have developed a device that could harness the wind energy produced by speeding trains.

Ale Leonetti Luparinia and Qian Jiang’s T-Box is a power generator that captures wind energy from passing trains. It is designed to be installed into the spaces between existing rail tracks – around 150 T-Boxes could hypothetically be installed over 1km of track.

A passing train travelling at 200 kph would produce a wind speed equivalent to 15 m/sec. The T-Box would be able to catch this wind and produce about 3,500 W of power. If the train was 200m long, going at a speed of 300 kph and travelled 1km in 18 seconds, the T-Boxes would be able to produce about 2.6 KWh. This energy could then be utilized to power remote areas that don’t have electricity or rail sub-systems.

Source:inhabitat.com/t-box-harnesses-wind-energy-from-speeding-trains/

MiraQua: the green car without carbon footprint

MiraQua designer, Chaoyi Li, has done a thorough job of designing this unique-designed small green concept car tailor-made for improving urban life quality. He had carried out through sketching, body storming practices, mock-up modeling in various media include styling foam, crafting clay and metal wire etc., and digital model making in Autodesk Studiotools. The name also refers to the smooth flow of the vehicle-traffic like that of a water stream.

With MiraQua being a totally electrical car, there are no carbon emissions. The very driving force behind the development of this car was the desire of its designer to reduce fossil fuel dependency and using optimally minimal road space for commuting and parking. This he has achieved with the creation of MiraQua.

It is heartening to see more and more efforts focused to contain the carbon print on our universe and reduce fossil fuel dependency. When individual transportation becoming a way of life, it is good to have a small car that will not hog road space. It is all the more better in having a green sensitive vehicle that will be eco-friendly and leave no carbon footprint.

Source: www.alternative-energy-news.info/miraqua-electric-car/

Today there seems to be more and more and yet more vehicles on the road than ever. Everybody wants to have their own transport and a smaller car with least carbon emission seems to be an ideal solution for this inexhaustible number of cars that seem to be coming up. Tiny cars electrically driven but looking unique in design and performance may be the ideal solution, according to Chaoyi Li, designer of the MiraQua car. Though he designed this as a solution for Australia and China’s excessive traffic congestion, this car can become popular all over.MiraQua designer, Chaoyi Li, has done a thorough job of designing this unique-designed small green concept car tailor-made for improving urban life quality. He had carried out through sketching, body storming practices, mock-up modeling in various media include styling foam, crafting clay and metal wire etc., and digital model making in Autodesk Studiotools. The name also refers to the smooth flow of the vehicle-traffic like that of a water stream.With MiraQua being a totally electrical car, there are no carbon emissions. The very driving force behind the development of this car was the desire of its designer to reduce fossil fuel dependency and using optimally minimal road space for commuting and parking. This he has achieved with the creation of MiraQua.It is heartening to see more and more efforts focused to contain the carbon print on our universe and reduce fossil fuel dependency. When individual transportation becoming a way of life, it is good to have a small car that will not hog road space. It is all the more better in having a green sensitive vehicle that will be eco-friendly and leave no carbon footprint.
Source: www.alternative-energy-news.info/miraqua-electric-car/

In five years iPods will be powered by our heartbeat

According to the American Chemistry Society, researchers including lead scientist Zhong Lin Wang, Ph.D. of Georgia Institute of Technology, have spent the last six years working on a commercially viable nanogenerator that uses the body’s movements to generate electricity. And they’ve finally hit a breakthrough. They’ve created a flexible chip that currently generates electricity when it is squeezed between two fingers (but will eventually use our very pulse) to create a charge.

“This development represents a milestone toward producing portable electronics that can be powered by body movements without the use of batteries or electrical outlets,” said lead scientist Zhong Lin Wang, Ph.D. “Our nanogenerators are poised to change lives in the future. Their potential is only limited by one’s imagination.”

Their latest iteration of the nanogenerator stores generated electricity in a capacitor, and was efficient enough to run LCDs, LEDs and laser diodes. The team is working on ramping up the voltage by 150 times so that it can be functional in daily life, charging MP3 players and other small handheld devices, environmental sensors powered by wind, and even devices in the medical industry like insulin pumps powered by heartbeats.

Source:www.treehugger.com/files/2011/03/ipods-powered-with-our-heartbeat-within-5-years-scientists-say-yes.php?campaign=th_rss_science

Using cerium oxide to create solar energy

Newer and more exciting devices are being invented to harness renewable energy – especially solar energy. One such device is a prototype which uses one of the rare earth metals – ceria, otherwise known cerium oxide – utilizing its natural propensity of alternatively exhaling and inhaling oxygen as it heats up or cools down.

Formulated by US & Swiss researchers, this prototype has a quartz window and a small cavity to focus sunlight on a ceria-filled cylinder. With water and/or carbon dioxide being pumped into the vessel, hydrogen and/or carbon monoxide are created. Hydrogen by itself is used in hydrogen cells and by mixing hydrogen and carbon monoxide, fuel syngas can be produced.

As against the conventional photovoltaic cells, hydrogen and syngas are fuels which can be stored, are portable and can be used any time. The metal ceria is abundantly available being the most commonly found rare-earth metal. Professor Sossina Haile, from California Institute of Technology, has claimed that ceria is most suited for this process and fit for massive-scale production of fuels like hydrogen and syngas. She also said that saying that this prototype mimics plants’ photosynthesis is too generalized and over simplistic though the basic ingredients and working may be the same.

Daniel Davies, from Solar Century, a British firm called the research as ‘exciting’. The possibility of large-scale production and portability of the fuel are the plus points of this device according to him. But Professor Haile strongly contends that making or marring of this and other such prototypes depends very much on national and state-level carbon policy.

Source: www.alternative-energy-news.info/ceria-mimics-plant-life/

High Capacity Solar Charger and Battery

With powerful 20,000 mAh battery and 29 unique adapter tips, this solar charger will power and charge of almost all portable electronic devices and is extremely easy to use: Just set the battery voltage, find your adapter tip, and connect! For even more convenience, the adapters are also quick-switch and interchangeable, meaning you can start recharging your laptop immediately after you finish charging your MP3 player!

The most popular devices include laptops and mobile phones, but it also works with MP3 players, MP4 players, portable GPS navigators, GPS trackers, digital cameras, HD camcorders, portable DVD players, portable video game players, and an endless list of other cool tech gadgets and electronics.

With its powerful 20,000 mAh battery, this Solar Charger and Battery will provide many more hours of usage for your electronic devices and will seem like an endless power supply thanks to the constant charging by the solar panels. Also included is a handy button to show the amount of power left in the battery and when it’s low, just use the car charger, wall plug, or even leave it out in the sun to quickly recharge.

At a Glance…

20,000 mAh Battery and Solar Charger

Battery itself can be recharged quickly via AC adapter, car charger, or even by solar energy

29 unique adapter tips, works with most electronic devices

Power and charge electronic devices on-the-go

Includes a free carrying bag

Brought by chinavision

Source: http://www.chinavasion.com/product_info.php/pName/high-capacity-solar-charger-and-battery-20000mah/