Articles Archive for Year 2008
Posted in Solar, Technology on 16 December 2008
After an array of solar windows flourished in the solar market, new transparent photovoltaic-glass windows from Rainbow Solar are here to make their mark. In a recent study done by the NTUST (National Taiwan University of Science and Technology), the windows have proven their efficiency through energy savings of about 50%. Now, that seems a practical option!
Posted in Architecture, Green on 16 December 2008
Hello folks! We took a long break, isn’t it? I’m happy to be back here and bring you an amazing energy neutral residential tower in the city of Almere, Netherlands that bagged an award at the latest design competition for urban villas and a residential tower for the Cascade Park. This unique tower is the brainchild of Faro architecten bv housing about 57 residences.
Posted in Eco-Friendly, concept on 9 November 2008
With people all around the world distressed due to water crisis, efforts are on to create ways to conserve it. Nimbus was wise enough to take an initiative towards this and came up with this washbowl concept which is estimated to use just sixty times less water compared to the present washbasins.
Posted in Eco-Friendly, Energy on 8 November 2008
The enormous energy stored in the Earth’s interior will now power over one-third homes in Utah. Raser Technologies has finally announced the completion of the first geothermal plant in Utah over 20 years. Built over the countries largest geothermal hotbeds that have been exposed since the past 25 years, this project took just 6 months to complete.
Posted in Energy, Environment on 3 November 2008
In a quest to find alternative sources of energy, researchers have continued their efforts in and out of laboratories and nothing concrete has come out yet. Though there are many alternate sources of energy, they are expensive, unmanageable, or simply not friendly enough for lay users to use, to charge small gadgets. Now, a researcher and professor from Taiwan have claimed to create the world’s first chlorophyll organic battery. Though it’s not clear how the battery works, Chungpin Hovering Liao claims that it can practically use any liquid to generate charge and that within just 10 seconds. Even urine could be used, says he. Apparently, the storage capacity is a lot more than traditional water-powered fuel cells and consumes very little power.
It would also cost only 3 to 6 cents to manufacture one biodegradable unit. The fact that the battery is biodegradable makes it more environmentally friendly. It would be interesting to see if his claims can be substantiated with batteries that can truly use any liquid and help people charge their gadgets. If so, I must say this is a brilliant invention.
Via Gizmodo
Posted in concept, water on 1 November 2008
‘Water Scarcity’, the most commonly heard complaint all over the world, especially the developing countries where people struggle to get water even for drinking. The governments of all these countries have introduced ideas like rain water harvesting to make this problem a little easier, but these projects didn’t click- blame corruption or cost, people are the sufferers.
Posted in Architecture, Designer on 31 October 2008
Dubai, the land of fascinating skyscrapers will decorate its skies with its avant-garde Anar Towers very soon. The British company Atkins, which had in the past given Dubai other such beautiful buildings like Iris Bay will be the creator of this huge mixed-use project.
Posted in Architecture, Eco-Friendly on 30 October 2008
Germany will see a new fleet of modern green houseboats this spring. Schwimmhaus was designed by a company called confusion-direction. Who wouldn’t want to live in an attractive home in the middle of water at a price that is less compared to a house on land? The pictures just show the model of these homes.
Posted in Agriculture, Electricity on 29 October 2008
Chip Ransler and Manoj Sinha, founders of the Husk Power Systems (HPS) have found a way to give electricity to parts of India which still manage without one of the most essential energies today. This company focuses on providing power to the people in villages using rice husk (rice being abundantly grown here) through a small, off-grid system. The company already has five such projects operating in various parts and hopes to increase the number to a hundred.
Posted in Bikes, Electric on 26 October 2008
After electric cars that have created hype in the automobile industry, it’s the bike now. GPR-S is an electric motorcycle manufactured by a small electric vehicle spare-parts company Electric Motorsport. The bike comes with an elective speed charger which can charge it up within 1.5 hours, which would otherwise take up to 4 hours using an on-board charger.