The findings, published 11 September in the online edition of the journal Science, shed further light on the fluctuations in greenhouse gases and climate in Earth’s past, and appear to confirm the validity of the types of computer models that are used to project a warmer climate in the future, researchers said.

We’ve identified a consistent and coherent pattern of carbon dioxide fluctuations from the past and are able to observe the correlation of this to temperature in the northern and southern hemispheres. This is a global, interconnected system of ocean and atmosphere, and data like these help us better understand how it works.

—Prof. Ed Brook, Oregon State University

The analysis was made by studying the levels of carbon dioxide and other trace gases trapped as bubbles in ancient ice cores from Antarctica.

In the last Ice Age, as during most of Earth’s history, levels of carbon dioxide and climate change are intimately linked. Carbon dioxide tends to rise when climate warms, and the higher levels of carbon dioxide magnify the warming, Brook said. These natural cycles provide a “fingerprint” of how the carbon cycle responds to climate change.

The level of atmospheric carbon dioxide today is about 385 parts per million, or more than double that of some of the lower levels during the Ice Age. These changes have taken place at a speed and magnitude that has not occurred in hundreds of thousands of years, if not longer. Past studies of ice cores have suggested that Earth’s temperature can sometimes change amazingly fast, warming as much as 15 degrees in some regions within a couple of decades.

Before humans were affecting the Earth, what we are finding is regular warm and cold cycles, which both began and ended fairly abruptly. This study supports the theory that a key driver in all this is ocean currents and circulation patterns, which created different patterns of warm and cold climates depending on the strength of various parts of the global ocean circulation system.

—Ed Brook

One of the primary circulation patterns is the meridional overturning circulation. When that current is moving large amounts of warm water from the equator to the north, it helps to warm the high latitude parts of the Northern Hemisphere, and particularly the North Atlantic region. When the system stops or dramatically slows, as it has repeatedly in the past, Greenland and Europe get much colder while the Antarctic regions become warmer, Brook said.

In every historic sequence we observed, the abrupt warming of Greenland occurred about when carbon dioxide was at maximum levels. And that was during an Ice Age, and at levels of atmospheric carbon dioxide that are far lower than those we have today.

—Ed Brook

Resources

• Jinho Ahn and Edward J. Brook (2008) Atmospheric CO₂ and Climate on Millennial Time Scales During the Last Glacial Period. Science DOI: 10.1126/science.1160832

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The waivers were granted by EPA, in coordination with the Department of Energy, at the request of Ohio and Virginia, and will allow greater flexibility for fuel distribution systems in these areas.

The Virginia waiver will allow certain areas to use available conventional gasoline instead of reformulated gasoline.

The Virginia waiver, which will be in effect starting immediately, expires on 26 Sept and applies to the following towns and counties: Alexandria; Arlington County; Fairfax; Fairfax County; Falls Church; Loudoun County; Manassas; Manassas Park; Prince William County; Stafford County; Charles City County; Chesterfield County; Colonial Heights; Hanover County; Henrico County; Hopewell; Richmond; Chesapeake; Hampton; James City County; Newport News; Norfolk; Poquoson; Portsmouth; Suffolk; Virginia Beach; Williamsburg; and York County.

The Ohio waiver, which will be in effect starting immediately, expires on 15 Sept., and applies to the following counties: Butler, Clark, Clermont, Clinton, Greene, Hamilton, Miami, Montgomery, and Warren.

The Ohio waiver allows for the sale or distribution of fuel that exceeds summer requirements for volatility. These standards are imposed during summer months to help control emissions from motor vehicles. Temporary suspension of these standards will allow for the sale of available supplies of conventional gasoline with higher volatility.

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Drawing from over 650 data sources, GoodGuide is building a database that figures out what is physically healthy, socially healthy, and environmentally healthy, so that people can compare products and make their priority decisions. It is a great sibling site to the new Wikia Green.

GoodGuide is also implementing ways you can get the info while you’re standing in a isle staring at your options. You can get text messages right now, and soon there will be an iPhone app available. The site is in beta now, yet still has over 61,000 products already listed. Good to know that while we’re staring at 15 different kinds of toothpaste, we have someone to help us pick one.

Via Wired

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The real clincher for greenies is that the report shows that green investing will create four times as many new jobs as the same amount of investment in oil. The amount of investment analyzed was $100 billion, which isn’t outrageous considering the hundreds of millions already going into clean tech by different companies, foundations, and even the DOE. The report notes that this could also include auctions of carbon permits with the cap-and-trade system.

The jobs would be nationwide in fields that already exist – construction workers would be employed to set up wind and solar farms, engineers would be employed for site and product design, etc.

Two millions jobs and serious investment in clean energy tech are both deeply needed. The report shows it’s an awesome possibility. Hopefully politicians and leaders are listening.

Via AmericanProgress

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Their new C-Class will have a C 250 CDI BlueEFFICIENCY Prime Edition that will help drivers save fuel by telling them when to switch gears. A display will inform the driver of the best time to shift to maximize mileage. We’ll be able to see this in action this fall, when about 5,000 of these models exit the factory. The model is part of the BlueEFFICIENCY series that will have various green-ish measures such as reduced weight, better aerodynamics, and improved fuel consumption. All rather ho-hum measures, but it’s something.

Via SmartPlanet, CarScoop

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We talked awhile ago about San Jose’s drive to become the greenest city around. We’ve also covered some excellent green initiatives coming out of San Francisco. Well, there’s more to it than just introspection and self-improvement for these two cities. They represent some significant Keeping Up With the Jones’ syndrome for cities, which is some of the best news the green movement can get right now.

SF Mayor Gavin Newsom and SJ Mayor Chuck Reed are both actively working on one-upping each other, with Newsom joking about how he daily scans San Jose’s news and website for info on what the city has done to green up. Both are working on getting clean tech companies to call their cities home, and both are pursuing greener options for everything from transportation to renewable energy.

Both mayors pointed out how great it is to compete for green status at the Silicon Valley Leadership Group’s Clean & Green conference yesterday, noting that all major cities are beginning to take similar steps. Since San Francisco and San Jose are only an hour apart from one another, the result may be a very clean Bay Area.

Via Earth2Tech

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Busses get a ridiculously bad gas mileage, and the hybrid version will boost that from 2.5 mpg to 3.4 mpg. While that’s still horrible, it is definitely an improvement. More efficient busses are a concern of many cities, especially as a way to jump much closer to carbon cutting goals. Ann Arbor grabbed a few last year, and companies are working on better hybrid versions to further clean up city transportation. Perhaps we’ll someday see a version of Toyota’s wireless electric hybrid pulling into city stops.

Via GoodCleanTech

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The future promises to be green only if we shift our mode of transport from fuel guzzling cars to eco-vehicles like human powered bikes. Hence, we need to introduce our kids to the most eco-friendly mode of transport right from their toddler days. However, in this day and age locating a uber-green bicycle seems to be a task. The market is flooded with two-wheelers constructed from non-eco materials like plastic and metal. The Early Rider Chopper rides in to break the monotony and at the same time render a sense of eco-living even at playtime. Crafted out of birch ply from supervised resources and sporting kid-friendly shades, this pedal-free chopper helps kiddos to develop their balancing skills by propelling and halting the bike with their tiny feet.
For about AU$250, any brat or doll will love to steer it around.

Dark Side:
The parents need to be eco-conscious to introduce such a woody bike in early years and also make the kids understand why such a bike is more beneficial than its non-eco counterparts. Also, such bikes can only serve for a couple of years. Later they should be either resold or given to deserving young tots and not thrown into landfills.

Via: Growingupgreen

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Time and again, Ecofriend has been bringing artistic sculptures crafted out of cast-off stuff to your notice. Be it art forms made out of used plastic, old newspaper or worn-out electronic parts, any form of eco-art never fails to find its place here. Today I wanna bring to your notice the sculptures shaped out of found objects or junk. Mechanical artist Nemo Gould has come up with a range of recycled robot sculptures that are up for sale too. Trying to unburden the ill-effects of electronic-dependent lifestyle, Nemo has not only put junk together for still sculptures but added more life to it by animating them. The image above shows the Little Big Man, with a smaller robot visible in its guts. Now, this sort of animated stuff isn’t for chicken-hearted folks, as it can put up an eerie show.


The Octovarius seems to be calling out for attention to the distressed marine-life with its moving tentacles, and I wouldn’t mind buying The Big Game 2007, which is up for $2,500. Ideal to place it on the corridors to frighten your friends. It seems to have an interesting long list of junk elements.

The Dark Side:
Prices are high and hence, the items are beyond the reach of many eco-art seekers. Also, many of the sculptures are actually fit for a Halloween-themed décor or horror show.

Via: Gearfuse

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Eco Factor: A lightweight carbon-fiber composite aircraft that uses solar panels to give you a clean and noise-free trip to the clouds.

The Deus Ex Machina is a twin-boom, lightweight aircraft that aims at giving the adventurers that take to the sky a ride that is clean, green and without the deafening noise of lightweight planes powered by conventional engines. Its cockpit is the size of a standard sailplane. It’s designed to be upgraded to a two-seater. Power comes from an electric motor that is supplied juice by the solar panels on its wide wings. The solar panels will provide 80% of the energy while the remaining is gained by conventional power.

The Deus Ex Machina can reach a top speed of 120 mph and could stay in the sky for good 8 hours at a speed of 60 mph. The Deus will not last too long at its top speed in the sky, but it is designed as a recreational vehicle, so that is not much of a drawback. The aerodynamic design further increases efficiency while the clean energy not only means zero-emissions, but also makes sure that the pilots will not have to deal with horrible engine noise and vibrations. Peter Shearer calls it the Prius of the skies and we believe him.

The Dark Side:

Being a recreational vehicle and lightweight aircraft for two, the technology is not very effective on a commercial basis. Hopefully, designers will find ways to take this technology to a commercial scale that benefits both the aviation industry and the planet. Also, one would like to see the Prius of the skies go all solar very soon!

[Thanks: Peter Shearer]

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Eco factor: Enables us to produce biofuel that is both cheap and does not rely on food crops.

Producing biofuel from food crops has given way to a major argument about how wise it is to try and produce fuel from food crops when we are struggling to feed hungry mouths. There is no doubt that the question raised needs to be addressed in a hurry. But the problem remains that scientific progress does not happen at the pace we want it to. Despite that, researchers at Dartmouth’s Thayer School of Engineering and Mascoma Corporation have found a step toward cheap and sustainable biofuel that does not depend on food crops.

Cellulosic Ethanol is produced out of materials that are often discarded as waste. This includes wood, grass and various waste materials that could be transformed into biofuel. The problem with this process is that current cellulose enzymes that trigger and help the process of conversion are just way too expensive. This makes the biofuel non-competitive in the market in terms of its price compared with fossil fuel energy sources. But the new thermophilic bacterium is designed genetically, triggering the process of conversion without additional heat and is a cheaper alternative. The process also appears to be carbon neutral.

The Dark Side:

While it would be great to have this technology as soon as possible, the research team themselves say that this is only the first step toward producing cheap biofuel from materials other than food crops. The technology has a long way to go and many more eco-hurdles to clear before being commercially available.

Image

Via: ScienceDaily

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Eco factor: Growing greens at home gets more high-tech and user-friendly.

I love to keep my den surrounded with lots of greens but hate the idea of being responsible for taking care of them regularly. Occasional attention cannot promise your plants to be in the pink of health. So here’s a high-tech pot that helps to grow greens without much fuss. Dubbed the Power Plant, it uses a NASA-proven technology that enhances the overall task of growing plants. It promises healthy plants as it is fine-tuned to protect them from parasites. Generous enough to house any seed of your choice, it can shoot out basil, dill, salad greens and many more green options. You can even try flowering plants or even fruits and veggies that you love to munch on.

All you got to do is sow the seeds, feed it with water and watch it grow faster than you can imagine. The product site says that the plants can grow 50% faster on the Power Plant. For just $40, you can place many of them all around your house. Floral ones can go in the bedroom or living room, while the herbs can settle in your kitchen.

The Dark Side:

The company should bring out such pots in a variety of sizes to accommodate bigger plants too. Also some self-watering feature can help in reducing the liability of watering it regularly.

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To support the expansion, Jatco will open a new plant in China, and boost the efficiency of three Japan factories. In August, Jatco’s Mexico plant produced its one-millionth CVT.

The moves come in response to plans to expand sales of CVT-equipped vehicles by Nissan, for which Jatco is the exclusive supplier of this type of transmission. Suzuki Motor Corp., which acquired a stake in Jatco last year, is also looking to increase sales of CVT vehicles.

CVTs offer about 10% higher fuel economy than conventional automatic transmissions. Amid high gasoline prices, Nissan and others intend to lift sales of CVT vehicles. Jatco will also increase supply to such other customers as Mitsubishi Motors Corp. and Chrysler LLC.

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Dutch researchers led by a team from Eindhoven University of Technology suggest that low-cetane C₆ cyclic oxygenates—which could be derived from biomass—could perform well as cellulosic diesel blending fuels. A paper on their work was published online 10 September in the journal Energy & Fuels.

The heavy-duty diesel industry is facing a challenge in maintaining fuel economy while meeting more stringent emissions legislation (such as EPA 2010 and Euro 6), the team noted.

Measures used to meet emissions targets such as aftertreatment and exhaust gas recirculation (EGR) systems increase pumping loses and lead to lower engine efficiency. Retarded combustion phasing, while it can reduce engine-out NO_x emissions, further lowers the thermodynamic efficiency of the engine.

Beyond 2015, the authors of the paper wrote, trading off fuel consumption for emissions reduction will be unfavorable because the industry will face stringent CO₂ legislation as well. Alternative pathways to achieving regulated emissions levels without a fuel consumption penalty are using conventional CI engines with an oxygenated fuel or choosing more revolutionary approaches, such as premixed charge compression ignition (PCCI), at modest engine loads.

While a large number of studies have shown that blending oxygenated hydrocarbons with petroleum diesel can be a very effective route for PM reduction, there is no consensus on the influence of fuel cetane number on
the influence of soot emissions.

Michael Boot and his colleagues proposed that low cetane number (CN) oxygenates—specifically cyclohexanone—should hold an advantage over their high CN counterparts via enhanced mixing as a result
of both the extended ignition delay and longer FLOL (flame lift-off length).

To test their hypothesis, they prepared a total of 15 blends between various base fuels and neat oxygenates, with fuel oxygen levels ranging from
5 to 15 wt%, for testing in a DAF 9.2L engine with EGR. They found that the difference in PM performance between the various oxygenates (e.g., at 25 wt % EGR) was nearly 2 orders of magnitude.

It can be observed that, the greater than 40% difference in fuel oxygen wt % notwithstanding, the DB-9 and X1-5 [cyclohexanone] blends share a similar PM performance. These results suggest that not only fuel oxygen content but also oxygenate reactivity or CN play a significant role in the PM lifecycle, especially at high EGR levels. For the oxygenated blends at 25
wt% EGR, smoke opacity increases more or less proportionately with the CN.

The X1-5 cyclohexanone blend had a CN of 22; the DB-9 blend a CN of 46.

Smoke opacity (solid line) and NOx (dashed line) vs. increasing ignition delay because of EGR. All blends display a similar reaction to EGR with respect to NOx, but the negative impact of EGR on smoke is not observed for the cyclohexanone blend. Click to enlarge. Credit: ACS

Based on the good results with the cyclohexanone blend, the Eindhoven University of Technology filed three patents on the use of cyclic oxygenates in the combustion process, and is seeking to develop a commercially viable production route for C6 cyclic oxygenates such as cyclohexanone from biomass.

Production. Cyclic paraffins are the most abundant (30-60 wt%) chemical compounds in crude oil, 6 carbon atom rings the most dominant species by far. Distillates contain from about 20 to about 40 vol% of such paraffins.

In other words, an economically viable feedstock for X1 is available at any neighborhood gas station. Even on-site and/or on-board refining is within the realm of possibilities.

Even more ambitious is the production of cyclic oxygenates (e.g., X1) from a biological feedstock, more specifically, from lignocellulosic biomass (also known as plant waste/residue). Principal components of such biomass include cellulose (35-50%), hemicellulose (25-30%), and lignin (15-30%)…all of which are five- and six-membered cyclic oxygenates. Unfortunately, these compounds are large polymers with molecular weights 2-4 orders of magnitude higher than conventional fuels. The production of liquid cyclic oxygenates from such heavy molecules is not straightforward.

—Boot et al. (2008)

Boot and his co-authors noted that several researchers have reported several pathways for the production of cyclohexanone, such as the isolation of phenol from lignin and subsequent conversion (rates in excess of 80%) conversion, or the isolation of guaiacol—the model component from lignin—and its subsequent direct hydrogenation to cyclohexanol.

Resources

• Michael Boot, Peter Frijters, Carlo Luijten, Bart Somers, Rik Baert, Arjan Donkerbroek, Robert J. H. Klein-Douwel, and Nico Dam (2008) Cyclic Oxygenates: A New Class of Second-Generation Biofuels for Diesel Engines? ASAP Energy Fuels, doi: 10.1021/ef8003637>

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The country currently sells 5% ethanol blended gasoline (E5) and has a number of pilot projects underway with biodiesel. The ethanol component is due to double next month to 10% (E10), but availability of sugarcane for ethanol feedstock may hinder achieving that deadline.

The new policy scraps taxes and duties on biodiesel, and confers “declared goods status” on both—meaning that they will be taxed at a uniform central rate rather than varied sales tax rates prevalent in states.

Blending will use standardized protocols and certifications, which the industry and oil marketing companies (OMCs) will jointly establish.

Importing of free fatty acid is prohibited, as that would hinder indigenous development of plantations of non-edible oil seeds (e.g., jatropha) which provides employment in rural areas.

While biodiesel plantations on community or government wastelands are encouraged, the government is discouraging planting on fertile or irrigated land areas.

The Cabinet also approved establishing a National Biofuel Coordination Committee to be chaired by the Prime Minister and have seven member ministers, while also approving the establishment of a Biofuel Steering Committee.

The Steering Committee will be chaired by the Cabinet Secretary which, along with the National Biofuel Coordination Committee will be serviced by the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy.

A sub-committee, comprising the Department of Biotechnology and the Ministries of Agriculture, New and Renewable Energy and that of Rural Development under the Steering Committee will aid research on bio-fuels.

A minimum support price (MSP) for oil seeds will be determined and ensured with provisions for its periodic revision to provide a fair price to farmers, which would be looked into by the Steering Committee.

Consumption of gasoline in India as indicated by sales has climbed 56% over the past 8 years, from 6.613 million tonnes in 2000-2001 to an expected 10.327 million tonnes (approximately 3.8 billion gallons US) in 2007-2008, according to statistics from India’s Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas.

Sales of high speed diesel oil (HSDO) are expected to decrease slightly to 42.847 million tonnes (about 13.1 billion gallons US).

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The House originally passed the bill, HR 6532, on July 23. Senators approved it by voice vote Wednesday evening, amending the legislation to make it effective upon the president’s signature rather than on Sept. 30. The House today concurred with the Senate amendment and sent the bill to the White House.

Rep. James Oberstar, D-MN and chairman of the House Transportation & Infrastructure Committee, said approval of the bill restores to the Highway Trust Fund $8.017 billion that was siphoned off in a budget deal 10 years ago.

Following Bush’s expected approval of the bill, states will be able to restart hundreds of millions of dollars of construction projects that were put on hold this week as a result of the announcement last Friday by the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) that it will not only reduce the distribution of payments to the states from twice daily to once a week, it will also proportionately reduce the amount of those payments, based upon available revenue.

US Department of Transportation (DOT) officials said states may receive only 70% reimbursement of their claims, or less.

According to DOT officials, the FHWA on an average day transfers $185 million to the states, increasing to $250 million a day in the busy summer construction season. Under the FHWA’s plan, transfers would decrease by $55 million daily, or $277.5 million per week.

Secretary of Transportation Mary Peters had urged Congress to appropriate more money to resolve the crisis by the end of this week. She said the trust fund faces a zero balance sooner than originally expected because Americans have sharply reduced driving and gas purchases this year because of high prices at the pump. That in turn has led to a drop in gas-tax collections because the fee is assessed per gallon purchased.

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The transgenic corn plants produce these enzymes only in their leaves and stalk, and store them in sub-cellular compartments (the vacuoles).

The most recent version of the MSU engineered corn developed by Professors Mariam Sticklen—Spartan Corn III—now uses three enzymes from different sources: the thermophilic Acidothermus cellulolyticus E1 endo-cellulase; the fungal Trichoderma reesei (CBH1) exo-cellulase; and, the most recent addition, the microbial Butyrivibrio fibrisolvens H17c beta-glucosidase.

Edenspace expects to use the MSU technology to release biofuel corn varieties directly to growers as well as sublicensing the technology to other companies that want to add the gene to their corn varieties. The company also will investigate using the technology in other biofuel crops such as sorghum, switchgrass and sugarcane.

We’re excited to start commercializing this technology. We’ve been collaborating with Dr. Sticklen on this research for the past four years. This is a very productive extension of that work.

—Bruce Ferguson, president of Edenspace

Because of the regulations surrounding the release of transgenic crops, Ferguson estimated that it would take at least three years before the new biofuel varieties were available commercially.

In June, Edenspace received a two-year, Phase II Small Business Innovation Research grant from the US Department of Agriculture to support continued Edenspace development of enhanced switchgrass varieties with traits such as endoplant enzyme expression that reduce the cost of producing ethanol and other biofuels from plant leaves and stems.

Begun in 2007, the project has a total budget of $645,000 that includes funding from the Kansas Bioscience Authority.

The company is developing enhanced varieties of corn, sorghum, switchgrass, and other crops to enhance their energy performance by incorporating genes that express cellulases, thereby reducing the cost of producing biofuels from plant biomass.

Producing enzymes in the plants themselves, rather than in microbial bioreactors, is expected to substantially reduce pre-treatment and enzyme costs. Integrating high-efficiency endoplant enzyme crops with biofuel production and distribution systems is projected to double per-acre ethanol yields, reduce the cost of cellulosic ethanol by 20%, increase farm income per acre by 25%, and relax pressures on farmland availability and water use.

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This is an effort to find a new niche away from cellulosic and municipal waste conversion, which has seen a flood of interest the last couple years. ForeverGreen feels that all this other junk has potential, and no one else is really going after it…yet.

Construction is set to start at the very beginning of 2009, and in about 22 months, the plant will hopefully start turning hazardous materials into useable substances using a combination of International Power’s waste-heat-to-energy process and ForeverGreen’s gasification process. The byproducts will include scrap steel and silicates – among other things?

Details are still vague while the companies work to find financing to cover the full project, but we’ll follow this one as construction time approaches.

Via Cleantech, Photo via andynahman

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This lamp is truly one of the oddest things I’ve heard of, but could be kinda cool…kinda. During the day, you flip the lamp upside down so that the solar panels located on the bottom can charge up. Then at night, you flip it right side up and turn it on. It then connects to your Wi-Fi and changes to a certain color to show what your energy consumption is at compared to your monthly goal. The indicators are red, yellow and green and you can guess what they mean.

After about 3 seconds, the light turns to white and you can use it as a lamp. So it is an interesting little check-in device…that is only available in Sweden and that I don’t expect will become very popular. Yes, it is more multipurpose than a regular old solar powered light, but still. It would take some interesting planning on where to place the lamp in order for it to get needed sunlight to charge. It might prove to people that just jumping online is an easier way to check your energy consumption.

Via Cleantechnica

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The Solar Stik was born in Key West during the winter of 1997-98 out of necessity. Three small boats, including Bosley’s, were in need of a power generating system that could supply enough energy for fridges, long-range communications and lights. The original design used a free-standing system and after several thousands of voyaging miles testing the system, the original inventors, who put the first units together late at night, were surprised at how well their make-shift on-the-go solar system worked.

A tripod was added on and more tests were done. Eventually the design developed as more components were added. The solar panel lifting arms have three attachment points that act as a lateral stabilizing mechanism, preventing damage during rough seas or high winds. Once the system mount is secured, it can be left outside indefinitely. It takes just minutes to set up and the system can be easily disassembled for transport and to power down when storms arrive.

The military has already taken notice of the usefulness of the Solar Stik in certain regions where power may be off-the-grid and some local governments have purchased the units as part of their emergency response plans. Prices for the units start at $150 for marine systems and go up to $350 for its most high-tech units.

Via Solar Stik, First Coast News

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Researchers have added unique green solvents (ionic liquids) to an explosive called TATB to improve the crystal quality and chemical purity of the material.

“Improving crystal quality and purity leads to explosive materials that are safer (less likely to react violently) when subjected to mechanical impact or heat,” said Larry Fried, the project’s principal investigator.

The researchers looked for a green alternative to the general class of materials called molecular crystals in which most explosives belong. The materials are bound together by a network of hydrogen bonds and the materials are nearly insoluble in common organic solvents, leading to poor quality limited size crystals, which in turn hinders progress in many technological applications.

The alternative the scientists have come up with is ionic liquids, which are a type of molten salt that becomes liquid under the boiling (100 degrees Celsius) point of water. Ionic liquids are solvent with little vapor pressure and do not evaporate under high temperature conditions. Improving the quality, stability and precision of explosives using new ionic liquids means they’re less likely to react violently under heat and impact pressure. These types of explosives are also purer and less polluting.

Greener bombs.

All I can think of is WTF?

So upon further reading, I realized that there may be some other applications rather than using this process to make bombs more, well, ummm, eco-friendly. The researchers say the ionic liquids could also lead to more effective ways of dissolving cellulose in plant fibers that could lead to more bio-renewable polymeric materials. In addition, the greener explosives could help the mining industry.

Via Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, Science Daily, Tech Radar

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The Driving Standards Agency, which examines new drivers, is beginning to test not only proper ways to stop and go, and how to park and shoulder check, but also how efficient a driver should be. Efficient driving, such as not speeding too much and avoiding sudden brakes, could save motorists a whole month’s worth of fuel each year, according to the government agency.

New drivers will be tested during their examination on the proper way to gear up or down and how to look further down the road to reduce stops and starts. The motto for new drivers to absorb is: Gears are for going, brakes are for slowing.

Other lessons new drivers will be taught is to remove unnecessary clutter from their cars and not to regularly use roof racks to improve their fuel efficiency. The plan is to get driving instructors to help new drivers learn how to be greener while on the road.

While no one will be failed for not knowing how to improve their fuel efficiencies, the driving agency hopes that the next generation of motorists will be better eco-drivers.

Via BusinessGreen, Telegraph, photo via svonog

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One of the key elements to the success of ethanol as a fuel in Brazil has been the requirement for all filling stations to have at least one ethanol pump and it looks like the U.S. Congress may finally be pushing for this as well. Currently, only about 1,700 of the nation’s 170,000 gas stations have an ethanol pump and so many of the millions of flex-fuel vehicle drivers out there couldn’t use E85 even if they wanted to. However, while mandating more ethanol availability is a good idea in principle, until cellulosic ethanol becomes commercially available, it would be counter-productive to have so many ethanol pumps. There isn’t enough ethanol to feed that many outlets anyway right now. A separate Senate bill introduced by Charles Grassley, R-Iowa, and Max Baucus, D-Mont, also addresses energy policy. The bill would apparently cut back on the tax breaks that big oil companies get and use at least some of that money to fund consumer tax credits of up to $7,500 for plug-in vehicles. Meanwhile House speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) has committed to inserting funding for $25 billion in federally guaranteed loans to automakers to help pay for the transition to more efficient vehicles. That funding will be attached to some bill that is guaranteed to pass and be signed by the president.

[Source: Detroit News]

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Oregonian politicians, including Governor Ted Kulongoski, have met with BYD Auto representatives in a bid to persuade the Chinese automaker to use Portland, Oregon as a home for its North American headquarters, distribution hub, and possibly even a site for vehicle manufacturing. Eventually. For now, BYD wants to sell its hybrid and electric cars in North America and is casting about for a place to set up shop to accomplish that. Portland has the advantage of being on the coast closest to China and also possesses the type of sustainable image that the company finds attractive. The manager of their automotive sales division, Henry Li said, “The top factor is a place that is environmentally friendly, where people have a green mind-set,…That’s very important.”

According to a Portland Tribune article discussing the meeting, BYD wants to launch their F3DM and F6DM for $25,000 and $30,000 to begin with. These are plug-in serial hybrids like the Chevy Volt but have a 60 mile all-electric range before the motor kicks in to supply the battery with additional energy. The Volt all-electric range is 40 miles. BYD is the world’s largest cell phone battery maker and prides itself on its lithium iron phosphate (LiFePO4) formulation. The company apparently wants to wait until their is more of a high speed battery-charging infrastructure before launching their gas-free versions of these models. They hope to have decided on an American test-market location by the end of this year.

[Source: Portland Tribune]

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We’ve heard consistent rumors since last year that BMW was considering entering the tiny car market with a new electric car. This entire time, BMW was to decide on the fate of the city EV by the end of the year, and it seems that they have. BMW CEO Norbert Reithofer has confirmed that the Bavarian automaker will indeed go smaller, though we are not so sure it will wear the blue and white badge. Rather, the new vehicle could wear the Isetta badge made popular on microcars from the past. “It’ll be a car with a completely new look, with two engines available. One will be a very efficient combustion engine and the other will be a purely electric model,” says Reithofer. Speculation is that the electric model will get over 200 miles per charge. We don’t know what internal combustion engine is slated for the Isetta, but BMW has plenty of experience with small and efficient engines from its Motorrad division. We like the way this is going.

[Source: Autocar]

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