Green tech finds (11/4/10)

Lots of electric vehicle news this week, plus mushroom plastics and watching watersheds with your iPhone… this week’s green tech finds.

• Sun-powered transportation… in the Sunshine State: Sarasota-area beachside community Pelican Bay will be using solar-powered trams to move people around the development. (via Cleantechnica)
  
  
• GE making massive EV purchase: General Electric will not only make components for electric vehicles, but plans to become the largest single purchaser of them.
  
  

Green tech finds (9/23/10)

Poop-powered lighting, a shipping container office building, and the trade-in possibilities for a Chevy Volt battery… your green tech finds for the week.

• The affordable EV: Lots of green tech news coming out of this week’s meeting of the Clinton Global Initiative, including GreenTech Automotive‘s announcement that it will sell the first 100,ooo of its MyCar neighborhood electric vehicles at a discounted price of $10,000. (via TMCnet)
  
  
• Dog-powered lamps: Specifically, dog poop powered… part artistic statement, part green tech, the Park Spark Project gives Cambridge, MA, dog walkers the opportunity to power a outdoor lamp with their dog’s “leftovers”…. (via Green Upgrader)
  
  

Green tech finds (9/16/10)

Sell your e-waste, build your own e-bike, and get your Fritos from electric vehicles… your green tech finds for the week.

• Green tech patent information goes online: The World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) launched its IPC Green Inventory today, which consolidates information on patents and patent applications involving “environmentally sound technology” into one database. (via eGov Monitor)
  
  
• Middle Eastern mud buildings: Arwa Aburawa at Green Prophet takes note of some of the phenomenal (and sustainable) mud buildings in the Middle East (like the one above).
  
  

Green tech finds (9/9/10)

A bee beard for David Cameron, subway energy harvesting, and using search technology to identify endangered species… this week’s green tech finds.

• The Wolverine solar cell: Researchers at MIT actually looked to plants, not the X-Men, when creating a solar cell that “heals” its own UV damage.
  
  
• Tweet for the honey bees: British marketing firm LBi has created a “twittition” (Twitter petition) to support honey bee populations in the UK. Each tweet added to the petition adds a bee to a “bee beard” on a likeness of Prime Minister David Cameron (shown above).
  
  

Green tech finds (9/2/10)

Lots of energy news and ideas this week, as well as another big green crowdsourcing project, and reviving wetlands with sewage… your green tech finds.

• Another cell phone sustainability study: Market research firm IDC came up with quite different results on cell phone sustainability from O2… but focused on companies vs. phones themselves. Apple comes out on top in this one, followed by LG and Nokia. (via The Boston Globe)
  
  
• Harnessing gravity power: Gravitational Energy Corporation claims its Feltenberger Pendulum works through hand-power and gravity. The company’s first product, a water pump, could prove indispensable for areas of the developing world, as well as post-disaster relief. See how it’s working in Haiti in the video above…

Green tech finds (8/19/10)

A zero-emissions race around the world, whiskey biofuel, and more… your green tech finds for the week.

• Energy efficient motors mean green jobs in Arkansas: Electrocraft, Inc. has announced it will start producing energy efficient electric motors for heating and air conditioning units in its Searcy, Arkansas plant. This means 55 new green jobs for the small town.
  
  
• Cell phone tech meets data centers: Data centers (aka server farms) suck up a lot of energy. Start-up Smooth-Stone thinks it can cut that power use by applying “low-power cell phone technology to servers…” A number of VCs think they can do it, and have provided $48 million in funding.

Green tech finds (7/29/10)

Lots of vehicle news this week… from greener AC to electric vehicles for rent. Here are your green tech finds.

• A new model for solar cells — blowfly eyes: A team of researchers at Penn State thinks blowfly corneas could provide a viable model for solar cells (via Discovery News)
  
  
• Climate-friendly air conditioning for your car: GM plans to roll out a new air conditioning refrigerant in 2013 which performs 99.7% better in terms of greenhouse gas impact than current HFCs. (via Green Tech Pastures)
  
  

Green tech finds (7/15/10)

Fishy iPhone apps, soy car parts, and another solar Air Force base… this week’s green tech finds.

• Sustainable seafood and wine? There’s an app for that… The Blue Ocean Institute and Brancott have launched the free Fishphone iPhone app, which not only provides sustainable seafood information on the go, but also suggest wine pairings.
  
  
• The eco-travel planner: The Rainforest Alliance has beta launched its new sustainable travel guide and planner, SustainableTrip.org. Currently focused on south of the border destinations, the site features tour operators, hotels, restaurants and other amenities that have been certified by reputable NGOs.
  
  

Green tech finds (7/8/10)

Industrial hemp… you can’t smoke it, but, apparently, you can run your car on it. That and more at this week’s green tech finds.

• Recycle your iPod, buy an iPhone 4: Apparently, that’s what a lot of people are thinking. UK recyclables buyer MoPay has seen a 70% surge in iPod recycling since the release of the new iPhone. (via IT Pro Portal)
  
  
• The solar smart phone: Puma’s new smart phone can run on solar power, and displays how much energy a user is saving when in sun power mode. Unfortunately, it’s only available in Europe right now… (via Springwise)
  
  

Green tech finds (7/2/10)

Summer’s here, it’s hot, and so, naturally, we’ve got lots of solar news in this week’s green tech finds…

• Fuel-efficient driving on your iPhone: Consumer Reports‘ new listing of smart phone apps for drivers includes Greenmeter, an iPhone app that “…monitors your driving and displays your car’s mpg, fuel cost, and carbon emissions.”
  
  
• Is that a secret for more efficient solar cells in your pants…? No, not a really bad, geeky joke: researchers at Cornell have discovered a specific molecule “in blue jeans and some ink dyes” that could be used to build frameworks for cheaper solar cells. (via Treehugger)
  
  

Green tech finds

Is the iPhone 4 green? That, and other questions answered, in this week’s green tech finds. Prize-winning biomimicry: Technology Academy Finland has awarded its biannual Millennium Technology Prize to Swiss scientist Michael Grätzel for his development of the dye sensitized solar cell, a cheaper alternative to photovoltaics that mimics photosynthesis. See the video above for details. (via [...]

Green tech finds (5/13/10)

AbundantWater.org [An Open Source Approach to Clean Drinking Water] from AbundantWater.org on Vimeo.

Cajun-style oil spill clean-up, solar powered iPod speakers, and beer cans that convert to cups… your green tech finds for the week.

• Low-tech oil clean-up: Louisiana shrimper Alex Pellegrin didn’t wait for others to come up with ideas for cleaning up the massive Gulf of Mexico oil spill. Using shrimp netting and “blue roof” tarp, he designed a prototype for an oil skimmer.
  
  
• Mayans were the OGBs: That’s “Original Green Builders.” Archaeologists, with help from NASA, “…have ‘unearthed’ a complete ancient Mayan city that employed a system of green urban architecture.”

Green tech finds (3/25/10)

Is the solution to carbon capture sitting in your conditioner bottle? This, and more, at this week’s green tech finds.

• Biomimicry and boat-building: We noted earlier this week that David de Rothschild set sail on the Plastiki. Designer Michael Pawlyn explains how biomimicry played into the creation of this boat made from plastic bottles.
  
  
• A greener web: Greentouch, a consortium of academic and corporate partners, is exploring methods to make the internet, and other computer networks, much more energy efficient.
  
  
• Another greener smart phone: Sprint has unveiled its LG Remarq at the International CTIA Wireless Show. The phone features some recycled materials, and meets RoHS standards; its charger is even ENERGY STAR certified. (via TFTS)

Green tech finds (3/11/10)

Homes wired for electric vehicles, artificial islands, and floating power plants… here are your green tech finds for this week.

• Dell’s new Optiplex — most efficient desktop ever? According to Jaymi Heimbach at Treehugger, the new 980 model is, as it features a 90% efficient power supply, meets ENERGY STAR 5.0 standards, and has earned an EPEAT Gold rating.
  
  
• No more downcycling for plastic? That’s what researchers at IBM and Stanford claim their new development in plastic production does: the material can be continuously recycled. See the video above… (via Green Inc.)
  
  

Green tech finds (1/21/10)

Glitter-sized solar panels, green electronics, and cow fat… your green tech finds.

• Lubing your engine with cow fat: Green Earth Technologies‘ G-OIL, a “bio-oil” created from cow fat, has been named the official motor oil of green racing series American Le Mans.
  
  
• Design your own electric vehicle: Trexa has created a concept platform for electric vehicles, which could allow specialty vehicle developers to create cars much like tech developers create iPhone apps (via Auto Blog Green)
  
  

Green tech finds (1/14/10)

We’ve still got a ways to go until Spring, but we do have baseball and beer for you at this week’s green tech finds:

• A green Mercedes on the way?: We’ll have to see, but Daimler, the brand’s owner, says it plans to challenge BMW’s supremacy in the “green luxury” market by putting half of its $6.4 R&D budget for 2010 into green tech.
  
  
• Rainwater recycling comes to baseball: The Minnesota Twins’ new stadium will feature a rainwater collection and purification system. The water will be used for washing down stands and irrigating the fields (see the video above). (via CNET Green Tech)
  
  

Sundance environmental films: energy

CAN YOU DO THIS WITH YOUR TAP WATER? from JOSHFOX on Vimeo.

Imagine receiving a lucrative offer from an energy company to drill for natural gas on property you own. Would you take it? What would that drilling mean in terms of environmental quality for the land itself and the surrounding community? Filmmaker Josh Fox received such an offer, and his documentary GASLAND, which has its world premiere at the 2010 Sundance Film Festival, explores the impact of gas extraction, especially the process of “fracking,” and the environmental consequences that can come from the quest for this “clean” energy source.

Green tech finds (12/31/09)

Your last green tech finds of ’09… enjoy!

• The obligatory New Year prediction: 2010 will be a banner year for clean technology, according to investment bank Jeffries, and Greentech Media. Places to watch include Finland and South Korea.
  
  
• Tetris meets SimCity meets urban planning: That’s the basic idea between new strategy game City Rain (and that’s a screenshot above). (via sustainablog)
  
  

Green tech finds (11/19/09)

Want your phone to sound like a woodpecker? Got’cha covered… that and more at this week’s green tech finds.

• Scots get paid to recycle: British supermarket chain Tesco has been testing out Tomra recycling machines (which “pays” recyclers with reward points) at one branch in Edinburgh, and is so happy with the results that its expanding its offerings to another store… with more planned.
  
  
• Research product sustainability right in the store: GoodGuide has released an iPhone app that “…lets you scan bar codes for what the guide calls “impartial” health, environmental, and social responsibility ratings of not only the products you are scanning but their companies, too.” (via CNET Health Tech)

Green tech finds (10/29/09)

Wind-powered techies, energy-capturing pavement, and DIY hybrid electric sports cars… it’s time for your weekly green tech finds.

• This light rocks: Literally… kinetic energy from rocking the Murakami chair powers an attached OLED lamp. (via Gizmodo)
  
  
• Plug-ins aren’t so weird: CNET editor Martin LaMonica takes note of the strides automakers are taking to make electric vehicles perform in a similar manner to their gas-powered counterparts.
  
  

Green tech finds (8/6/09)

Green tech galore… here are this week’s finds.

• Smart car charging comes to San Diego: If you envision freeloading friends trying to charge their cars up at your place in the future, fear not: as a part of its testing of car-charging stations, San Diego will have participants use a Plug Smart “intelligent charger” that makes sure the drivers get the bill for the electricity.
  
  
• Package delivery by UrbanMole: Both Fed-Ex and UPS (among others) are doing there best to green up their operations. Designer Phillip Hermes’ UrbanMole concept would take the trucks off of the street completely with a “capsule-like device … that travels through an underground pipe network that transports packages of all stripes.” (via Cleantechnica)
  
  

Green tech finds (7/30/09)

From Spain to Toledo, green tech stories are popping up everywhere. Here’s your round-up for the week.

• Electric vehicles are winners on CO2 emissions: DVICE crunches the numbers, and finds that, even when electricity comes from coal-fired power plants, EVs produce less CO2 than gas-powered cars. (via AutoBlog Green)
  
  
• Solar Mudhens: Rust-belt poster child Toledo, OH, is on its way to reinventing itself as a hub of solar manufacturing.
  
  

Green tech finds (7/23/09)

Beer and gas? Sound like a National Lampoon movie… but it’s your green tech finds for the week.

• Fart-powered fuel cells? Sort of… Danbury, Connecticut-based FuelCell Energy recently installed two fuel cell power plants at food processor Gills Onions that “…create electricity using old onions and a process that mimics how the human body expels gas”
  
  
• Solar-powered parking: Austin, Texas is replacing traditional parking meters with “pay stations [that] are solar-powered, take credit cards, debit cards and coins, and will replace the 3,800 outdated single-space parking meters around the city.”
  
  

Green tech finds (7/10/09)

Techies rejoice! Here’s your weekly run-down of some of the cooler green tech stories out there…

• Free energy? There’s a ton of it out there — 7 quadrillion BTUs — in the form of wasted heat. The Department of Energy has announced funding opportunities for R&D on how to tap this massive source of energy. (via Cleantechnica)
  
  
• NYC — the wind energy capital? It seems counterintuitive, but the Carnegie Institution and California State University have found that high-altitude winds, which are concentrated over the Big Apple (among other places), “contain enough energy to meet world demand 100 times over.” (via Green Living Ideas)