This Week in Free Energy -- 2008 Notes

Featured: Videos > Conspiracy > Zeitgeist: Economic Collapse from Scarcity Mentality to be replaced by Abundance via Free Energy, etc. - Latest Zeitgeist movie attempts to point out the root causes of pervasive social corruption, while offering a solution. This solution is based on a modern, non-superstitious understanding of what we are and how we align with nature, to which we are a part. (PESWiki; Oct. 11, 2008)

• Human-Powered / Hybrids >
  Imagine PS Power Station Electric Hybrid Vehicle - HumanCar (video) - Fred Flintstone, move over. See how the HumanCar hits 60 mph on pure elbow grease and zero fossil fuel. To be made available on Earth Day, 2009. (CNN; Oct. 8, 2008)

• Conservation >
  Non-equilibrium chips could avoid overheating laptops - Researchers are re-examining the Second Law of Thermodynamics in a bid to manage heat from laptops and other miniaturised electronics. (ITNews; Oct. 2, 2008)

• Batteries / Magnets >
  New spintronics effect could lead to magnetic batteries - Researchers in Japan have discovered that heating one side of a magnetized nickel-iron rod causes electrons to rearrange themselves according to their spins. This so-called "spin Seebeck effect" could lead to batteries that generate magnetic currents, rather than electric currents. (PhysOrg; Oct. 10, 2008)

• Human-Powered >
  Self-Powered Light Switch Has No Wires - You flip the switch made by Enocean, and a tiny generator creates a tiny charge. There is enough energy in operations or actions like this to transmit wireless signals over a distance of up to 300 meters. (EcoGeek; Oct. 1, 2008)

• Solar > Largest >
  Army Looks to Build World's Strongest Solar Array - The US Army declared that it would "partner with the private sector to construct a 500-megawatt solar thermal plant at Fort Irwin, California, in the Mojave Desert, that will provide renewable power on the grid and provide the sprawling Army post with added energy security against disruption of power supply." (Wired; Oct. 7, 2008)

• Fuel Efficiency Alternative Fuels > Bell Bio-Energy, Inc >
  Army to turn biowaste into diesel - The US Army is going forward with 7 test sites with Bell Bio-Energy to turn biodegradable waste into diesel fuel via a bacteria that will naturally change plant material into hydrocarbons to fuel cars and trucks. (World Net Daily; Oct. 8, 2008)

• Fuel Efficiency Vehicles >
  7 Gas Guzzling Military Combat Vehicles - According to NPR, all the tanks, planes and ships of the U.S. military burn about 340,000 barrels of oil per day, making it the "single-largest purchaser and consumer of oil in the world." If the DOD were a country, it would rank ~38th in the world in oil consumption, behind the Philippines, population: 90.5 million people. (TreeHugger; Sept. 23, 2008)

• Nuclear > Thorium Reactors >
  Sens. Hatch, Reid support thorium nuclear power - Passage of the Thorium Energy Independence and Security Act of 2008 would provide $250 million over five years to create a new oversight arm under the Nuclear Regulatory Commission and Department of Energy. Will it ever become law? (Deseret News; Oct. 4, 2008) (BusinessWire)

• Global Warming > CO2 Sequestration >
  Canadian scientist creates atmosphere-saving CO2 scrubbing machine - David Keith and a team of researchers working out of the University of Calgary believes they are close to developing a relatively simple machine that can capture, or “scrub” the trace amount of CO2 present in the air at any place on the planet. (The Tech Herald; Sept. 30, 2008)

• Global Warming > CO2 Sequestration >
  New Zealand Company Locks Away CO2 in Charcoal -Carbonscape, a company based in New Zealand, sequesters carbon dioxide using microwaves to transfer CO2 into charcoal. (EcoGeek; Oct. 3, 2008)

October 5, 2008

OS: Magnet Motors > Achilles Ligeras' Magnetic Engine (ALME) - After building a working prototype, "Archie" is now open sourcing the design here at PESWiki. He claims that his prototype (now broken) reached upwards of 1500 rpm for 45 minutes, and ran continuously at a lower speed for 48 hours. (PESWIki; Sept. 29, 2008)

Auto XPrize: Turbines / Engines > Perfect Motor Corp Claims 80% Efficiency in Turbocombustion Engine - Los Angeles company's system is said to be able to generate the combustion force outside of the cylinder in a separate combustion chamber and then apply it directly to a rotor that is rotating around the engine constantly at the best possible pressure angle. (PESWiki; Sept. 30, 2008)

Clean Energy 2030 Initiative by Google - The energy team at Google has been crunching the numbers to see how we could greatly reduce fossil fuel use by 2030, suggesting a potential path to weaning the U.S. off of coal and oil for electricity generation by 2030 (with some remaining use of natural gas as well as nuclear), and cutting oil use for cars by 40%. (PESWiki; Oct. 2, 2008)

Top 100: Solar > Inverters > Interview with Enphase about their Micro-Inverters - Enphase Micro-Inverters turn solar panels into modular systems, optimizing each, increasing the net energy harvest by 5 to 25 percent. One of the biggest advantages is that this enables a person to install just a few solar panels (even just one), then add to the system later as they can afford more, without worrying about having to match system components. (Free Energy Now; Oct. 6, 2008)

Fuel Efficiency > Electrorheology Leads to Efficient Combustion - Rheology is defined as the science of the deformation and flow of matter. Researchers at Temple University have published a method by which their electrically charged tube is attached to the fuel line of a car's engine near the fuel injector, creating an electric field that thins fuel, or reduces its viscosity, so that smaller droplets are injected into the engine. (PESWIki; Oct. 1, 2008)

Featured: Algae for Oil > Valcent Vertigro Algae Farms Making Biodeisel - Valcent has developed a high density vertical bio-reactor for the mass production of oil bearing algae while removing large quantities of carbon dioxide (CO2) from the atmosphere. This new bio-reactor is tailored to grow a species of algae that yields a large volume of high grade vegetable oil, suitable for blending with diesel to create a bio-diesel fuel. (PESWiki; Sept 29, 2008)

Store: DIY > Biodiesel > from Algae > Making Algae Biodiesel at Home - Downloadable 650-page book provides detailed instructions on how to sustainably produce clean oil from algae -- in your back yard -- enough to supply your transportation and home power needs. This is not a simple, afternoon venture, but a serious, long-term commitment.

• Ocean > Tidal >
  Tidal power scheme to launch in Scotland - ScottishPower Renewables has identified the Pentland Firth, the Sound of Islay, and the North Antrim coast off Northern Ireland - as the most suitable for the underwater Lànstrøm tidal turbines to be built by Strom UK. (Telegraph.co.uk; Sept. 29, 2008)

• Ocean Wave > Buoys >
  Portugal opens pioneer commercial wave power plant - The world's first commercial power plant converting the energy of sea waves into electricity started working off Portugal's coast on Tuesday (Sept. 23) in a project that should be expanded nearly 10-fold over the next few years. (Video) (Reuters; Sept. 23, 2008)

• Solar >
  Solar Cell Sets World Efficiency Record At 40.8 Percent - Researchers at the U.S. National Renewable Energy Laboratory have set a world record in solar cell efficiency with a photovoltaic device that converts 40.8 percent of the light that hits it into electricity -- the highest confirmed efficiency of any photovoltaic device to date. (Science Daily; Sept. 30, 2008)

• OS / Solar > Vehicles >
  Solar-electric car generates power and excitement - Kyle Dansie has distilled his solar-technology expertise into an open source website, ZEVUtah.com. The vehicle cost about $11,000 and is powered by 6 solar panels, 5 in a garage and one on the car's roof. It can go up to 75 mpg, and travel about 50 miles on a full charge that takes 3-4 hours. (Video) (Salt Lake Tribune; Oct. 2, 2008)

• Human-Powered >
  As America Implodes, The Bike Industry Booms - The nation may be wracked by collapsing banks, foreclosed houses and a tanking economy, but there's no sign anything's amiss at Interbike, the bike industry's annual trade show. In fact, it's party time as a perfect storm of eco-conscious consumerism, health-conscious lifestyles and wallet-sapping gas prices conspires to get people out of cars and onto bikes -- especially electric ones. (Wired; Sept. 26, 2008)

• U.S. Government and Energy >
  Bailout plan bails out clean-energy sector - The massive U.S. financial bailout plan, signed into law Friday afternoon, renews existing tax credits for renewable energy and includes rebates for plug-in hybrid drivers. (CNet News; Oct 3, 2008)

• Conventional Renewable Energy >
  The U.S. Faces Serious Risks of Brownouts or Blackouts in 2009 - A 36-page study, "Lights Out In 2009?" warns that the U.S. "faces potentially crippling electricity brownouts and blackouts beginning in the summer of 2009, which may cost tens of billions of dollars and threaten lives." (NextGen; Oct. 1, 2008)

• Solar >
  Solar Panels Are Vanishing, Only to Reappear on the Internet - Solar power, with its promise of emissions-free renewable energy, boasts a growing number of fans. Some of them, it turns out, are thieves. (New York Times; Sept. 23, 2008)

September 28, 2008

Electromagnetic > Keppean Scalar Motor Demonstration Under Way - The Keppe Motor allegedly requires a quarter as much electricity to generate power as a normal motor -- by capturing scalar energy from the "vacuum" of space. It is named for Brazilian scientist, Norberto Keppe, Ph.D., whose book The New Physics Derived from A Disinverted Metaphysics proposes a spiritual-based direction for our planet's technological philosophy. (PESWIki; Sept. 23, 2008)

Electromagnetic / Propulsion > EmDrive - Chinese Say They're Building 'Impossible' Space Drive - Chinese researchers are proceeding to build a demonstration version of a technology developed by Satellite Propulsion Research Ltd (SPR Ltd) of the UK, who have tested both an experimental propellant-less thruster and a demonstrator engine that use patented microwave technology to convert electrical energy directly into thrust. (PESWiki; Sept. 27, 2008)

• Cold Fusion >
  The 14th International Conference on Cold Fusion - Experimental evidence was presented that shows conclusively that excess heat can be reproduced on demand. (9-page PDF; August 10-15, 2008)

• Suppression / Cold Fusion > Eugene Mallove >
  Forensic lab mix-up could sink Eugene Mallove murder case - A mix-up at the State Police forensic lab may jeopardize the state’s case against two men charged with murder in the 2004 beating death of Eugene Mallove, according to an attorney for one of the suspects. (Norwich Bulletin; Sept. 25, 2008)

Top 100: Wind > High Efficiency HAWT > Interview: ENECO's Wind Amplified Rotor Platform (WARP) - One-hour interview regarding the WARP design that speeds up the wind with a velocity amplification factor in excess of 1.5 over free wind, resulting in a 4.5-fold increase in power, while not being nearly so visually obtrusive, and having much lower vibration and noise, making it suitable for topping buildings. Projected energy generation cost: $.02 to $.04/kW-h or lower. (FreeEnergyNow; Sept. 22, 2008)

Ocean > Tidal Power > Atlantis Resources Corporation -- Nereus and Solon Tidal Turbines - Atlantis has developed two families of sub-sea turbines, extensively tested over a decade of field trials. Nereus™ is a shallow water turbine which has been extensively tested, and grid connected in Australia. Solon™ is a deep water turbine for installation in some of the fastest flowing currents in the world. (PESWiki; Sept. 23, 2008)

Solar > Inverters > Micro-Inverters make solar modular - Enphase Micro-Inverters turn solar panels into modular systems, increasing the energy harvest by 13 to 15 percent. The system includes the micro-inverter, embedded powerline communications and Enlighten — a web-based performance monitoring and analysis tool. (PESWiki; Sept. 22, 2008)

• Wind > High-Efficiency Horizontal Axis >
  Loopwing Personal Wind Turbine - Because there are no blade tips, the Loopwing doesn't have tip vortex effects, and is therefore much quieter. This also reduces vibration, which helps with both noise and extending the life of the turbine and generator. The blade configuration is also responsible for its low start speed. (EcoGeek; April 30, 2007)

Prizes > Google's 10 to the 100th Project Seeks 5 Best Ideas - Google is marking its 10th anniversary by offering 10 million dollars for five of the best world changing ideas. After the submission deadline October 20th, 2008, a Google panel will announce 100 nominees on Jan. 27, 2009, to then be narrowed to 20 via Google user input, then to 5 by a Google board. (PESWiki; Sept. 26, 2008)

• Solar >
  12 year old Oregon student develops 3-D solar cell - William Yuan earned the Davidson Fellow award and is going to Washington D.C. to accept a $25,000 scholarship for his 3D Solar Cell research. (NECN; Sept. 16, 2008) (See also CleanTechnica)

• Top 100: Solar H / Waste to Energy > SHEC >
  SHEC LABS has moved up to the #2 position of the New Energy Congress Top 100 Clean Energy Technologies - The Top 100 is a prioritized listing by the New Energy Congress of the very best clean energy technologies according to ten criteria including: renewable, environmentally friendly, affordable, credible, reliable, developed, safe and not encumbered by politics of science. (BusinessWire; SHEC PR; Sept. 24, 2008)

• Solar >
  Oerlikon expects grid parity by 2010 - Oerlikon Solar has said its facilities will achieve grid parity by 2010 in connection with the opening of the company’s new fully-automated thin-film pilot line at Trübbach, Switzerland. (Video) (Renewable Energy Focus; Sept. 8, 2008)

• Flight >
  Pilot postpones jetpack adventure - Yves Rossy, the ""Fusionman", attempting to become the first person to fly solo across the English Channel using a single jet-propelled wing, has been delayed. (Videos) (BBC News; Sept. 25, 2008) (Slashdot)

September 21, 2008

Magnet Motors > V-Track George Soukup's V-Track Rotary Magnet Motor - German inventor presents what appears to embody the V-track magnet acceleration model into rotating motion -- something that many have unsuccessfully attempted. What is not clear is whether his model achieves acceleration, or even constant speed. Can it handle a load? (PESWiki; Sept 15, 2008)

Magnet Motors / Gravity Motors / Electromagnetic > Lee-Tseung Lead Out Theory - Theory predicts that both gravitational and electron motion energy can be lead out via pulse force at resonance on oscillating, vibrating, rotating or flux change systems. The ideal pulse force for a simple pendulum can be thought of as the pull applied perpendicular to the arc of motion when the pendulum bob is at the maximum displaced position. (PESWiki; Sept. 16, 2008)

Fuel Efficient Vehicles > Hybrids > XR-3 build-it-yourself hybrid car by Robert Q. Riley Enterprises, LLC - The XR3 Hybrid is a super-fuel-efficient, two-passenger, plug-in hybrid that achieves 125 mpg on diesel power alone, 225 mpg on combined diesel and electric power, with performance like a conventional automobile, focusing on existing technologies that make conserving energy a fun driving experience. (PESWiki; Sept. 20, 2008)

Wind > High-Efficiency HAWT > Groundbreaking Energy Ball Wind Turbine for Home Power -The Energy Ball designed and built by Home Energy in the Netherlands, breaks from most wind turbine design by using a spherical structure. They say that by using such a design, significantly higher aerodynamic efficiency can be achieved (40% better efficiency), as compared to traditional designs. (PESWiki; Sept. 17, 2008)

• Human-Powered >
  Designtrepreneur Turns the Alternative Energy Paradigm on its Head! - POWERleap is in its third generation prototyping stage and gaining funding to push the product into its next stage of development as a flooring system destined for high foot-traffic urban areas that generates electricity via human footfall. (Changents; June 2008)(Thanks Susan)

• Vortex Tech / Water >
  Watreco Vortex Generator - Building on nature’s own principles, Vortex Process Technology (VPT) used in the Vortex generator, builds on water’s own natural movement. The Vortex generator sets the water in a considerable swirl that changes its internal properties, purifying the water. ("In Harmony with Nature" PDF) (Watreco; Sept 14, 2008)

• Solar >
  Researchers Beam 'Space' Solar Power in Hawaii - Former NASA executive and physicist John Mankins captured solar energy from a mountain top in Maui and beamed it 92 miles to the main island of Hawaii. (Wired; Sept. 12, 2008)

• Solar > Lighting > LED / Energy Usage Monitoring Devices >
  Spark Lamp Increases Domestic Energy Awareness - A wi-fi module in the Spark Lamp developed in Sweden reads computer data about your home power usage and turns on red, yellow, or green, depending on whether you are behind, at, or ahead of your consumption goals. The lamp itself collects solar energy during the day and emit light during the night. (DesignZen; Sept. 3, 2008)

• Plastic and Energy >
  Genomatica develops novel bioplastic - San Diego-based Genomatica said it has developed genetically engineered E.Coli bacteria that could replace the need for petroleum in the process to make some plastics. (CleanTech; Sept. 16, 2008)

• Biodiesel / Biofuels>
  Flower Power: Run Your Ride on a Wild Weed - What makes stinkweed different than the plethora of other world-saving, game-changing biofuels that came before it, is farmers can't help but grow it. When executives from Innovation Fuels asked farmer Brian Ziehm about growing an acre of stinkweed on his property, he was dumbfounded. "It was like, 'What the heck? I've been trying to get rid of these things for 30 years. Now you want me to plant them?" (Wired; Sept. 16, 2008)

• Wind >
  Windfarms: One of the great deceptions of our time? - The total power generated by all the 2,300 turbines so far built in Britain, is less than that contributed by a single medium-size conventional power station. (Telegraph.co.uk; Sept. 13, 2008)

• Global Warming >
  A Strategy for Coping with Climate Change - A new multidisciplinary modeling effort concludes that certain tracts of land in California's Sacramento Delta should be abandoned the next time they flood, and that major California water-supply inlets in the area should be rerouted. The study indicates the kind of land-preservation and infrastructure triage that will become increasingly necessary in the face of rising sea levels and climate change. (MI Technology Review; Sept 11, 2008)

September 14, 2008
(Pre-recorded on Sept. 12)

Top 100: Wind > High Efficiency HAWT > ENECO's Wind Amplified Rotor Platform (WARP) - The WARP design speeds up the wind with a velocity amplification factor in excess of 1.5 over free wind, resulting in a 4.5-fold increase in power. A WARP wind farm would need on average about 80% less land per kilowatt of energy generated. Projected cost $.02 to $.04/kW-h or lower. (PESWiki; Sept. 11, 2008)

Top 100: Wind > Horizontal > FloDesign Wind Turbine Mimics Jet Turbine - FloDesign is working on a wind turbine concept that could potentially be at least twice as efficient as traditional rotor blade turbines, which force air around them instead of through them. First prototype will be 12 feet in diameter and produce 108 kW power. (PESWiki; Sept. 9, 2008)

• Wind >
  Aerogenerator turbine sets sail for a greener future - The Aerogenerator is an egg-whisk-shaped Darrieus wind turbine will be built for off-shore installation by aeronautical engineer David Sharpe. It is projected to be capable of generating up to 9 megawatts of electricity. (Guardian.uk; Jan. 29, 2008)

Top 100: Solar > PV > Plastic Solar Cells > Konarka's PowerPlastic Photovoltaic Solar - Konarka is an advanced R&D company, dedicated to the commercialization of power solutions based on a proprietary, solid-state, flexible, low-cost photovoltaics platform that can convert sunlight and even indoor light into electricity. (PESWiki; Sept. 8, 2008)

• Solar Heating >
  Solar Thermal and Evacuated Tube Technology - Apricus - Despite the fact evacuated tubes (e.g. Apricus) have better performance and are more economical, are easier to install and are capable of reaching higher temperatures, the technology coverage gets overshadowed by PV. (EarthToys; Aug. 2008)

Featured: Non-Fossil Oil > Dynamotive Energy Systems Corporation -- Fast Pyrolysis - Carbon/greenhouse-gas-neutral, fast pyrolysis technology uses medium temperatures and oxygen-free conditions to turn dry waste biomass and non-food crops into BioOil® for power and heat generation. (PESWiki; Sept. 5, 2008)

• Fuel Efficiency Vehicles >
  The 65 mpg Ford the U.S. Can't Have - Ford's 2009 Fiesta ECOnetic goes on sale in November, but the company will sell the little fuel sipper only in Europe. "We know it's an awesome vehicle," says Ford America President Mark Fields. "But there are business reasons why we can't sell it in the U.S." (BusinessWeek; Sept 4, 2008)

Oil / Conspiracy > Sex, Drugs, and Rockin' Oil - Are we surprised to find out that the U.S. government employees who oversee offshore oil drilling turn out to be literally and figuratively 'in bed' with the oil industry? A compilation of news stories about this scandal. (PESN; Sept. 11, 2008)

• Methane >
  Chemists create powdered methane - According to a report in Nature News, researchers at the University of Liverpool, UK, have found that they can trap methane in a bizarre material dubbed dry water, a mixture of silica and water that looks and acts like a fine white powder. (Top News; Sept. 4, 2008) (Thanks Adrian)

• Fuel Efficiency > Vehicles > Plug-Ins >
  100-mpg plug-in hybrids popping up in US - A handful of smaller companies have begun taking the energy crisis into their own hands. By retrofitting hybrids like the Toyota Prius with a second battery pack, they're converting these cars into hybrid plug-ins that can recharge from a wall outlet and drive a short commute on all electric power. (PhyOrg; Sept. 10, 2008)

• Ethanol >
  Sweet Potato Out-Yields Corn In Ethanol Production Study - In experiments, sweet potatoes grown in Maryland and Alabama yielded two to three times as much carbohydrate for fuel ethanol production as field corn grown in those states, Agricultural Research Service (ARS) scientists report. (Science Daily; Aug. 28, 2008)

• Ethanol >
  Spartan Corn III - Cow Stomach Microbe Enables 'Self-Ethanoling' Corn - In the commercial biofuel industry, only the kernels of corn plants can be used to make ethanol, but this new discovery would allow the entire corn plant to be used – so more fuel can be produced with less cost. (Scientific Blogging; April 8, 2008)

• Ethanol >
  Better Bug to Make Cellulosic Ethanol -New genetically modified bacteria could slash the costs of producing ethanol from cellulosic biomass. The microbes produce ethanol at higher temperatures than are possible using yeast, which is currently employed to ferment sugar into the biofuel. (MIT Technology Review; Sept . 9, 2008)

• Humor / Vertical Axis Wind Turbines >
  Lizard-Go-Round (YouTube) - This lizard does this every day and really seems to like it. Anolis Carolinensis have been dropping in population. Maybe they are having too much fun riding VAWTs? (GreenPowerScience; Sept. 10, 2008)

• Waste to Energy > Biomass >
  Dutch Biomass Plant to Use Chicken Poop to Power 90,000 Homes - In the latest development of large-scale biomass energy production, the Netherlands is now home to the world’s largest biomass power plant running only on – yep, you got it – chicken manure. (Treehugger; Sept. 8 2008)

September 7, 2008

Suppression / Ocean Wave Energy > Disappearance of Stefan Nystrom: Martyr or Monster? - On Wednesday, an article at Rense.com stating that Stefan Nystrom, who was involved in an ocean wave energy technology that allegedly could have provided electricity cleanly at 5% the cost of fossil-based power, appears to have disappeared suddenly under suspicious circumstances, and may even have been killed. (PESWiki; Sept. 5, 2008)

Top 100:  Geothermal > Raser > Raser is Rapidly Deploying Cost-Effective Geothermal Power - Instead of using electricity to turn a heat pump to cool a liquid, Raser runs a warmed liquid through a heat pump to generate electricity. With their rapid, low-cost deployment capability, they could maximize the U.S. geothermal capacity within ten years. (PESN; Sept. 4, 2008)

Hydrogen Storage / H Boosting > Hrein Energy Dehydrogenation System - Hrein Energy Inc. is striving for commercialization of a storage system for wind power-derived hydrogen -- a method utilizing organic hydride as a high-efficiency high-density storage media for hydrogen obtained from renewable energies (such as wind power generation) through water electrolysis equipment. (PESWiki; Aug,27, 2008)

Thermionic Generators / Homopolar Generators > Rotating Thermionic Generator - Rotating Thermionic Generators rely upon centrifugal force to create a biased electron flow by lowering the work function of the Emitter to a fraction of a volt. Philip Hardcastle believes that this design could provide all the energy needs of the World, just from the heat in ambient air. (PESWiki; Aug. 28, 2008)

Elementary School Projects / Solar > One (Solar) Laptop Per Child - With the solar-rechargeable XO laptop, children aren’t just learning about the world around them. They are actively learning about learning. Knowledge becomes a part of the journey instead of being simply the end goal. (PESWIKI; Sept. 6, 2008)

• Magnet Motors > Steorn >
  'Free energy' firm generated €8m in funding - Steorn, the controversial Irish company which claims to have defied the basic laws of physics by developing "free energy" technology, secured over €8m in funding from a range of investors to continue its research in 2006, the Sunday Tribune has learned. (Sunday tribune; Aug. 10, 2008)

• Gravity Motors / Milkovic Pendulum >
  Energy Excess In Large Milkovic 2 Stage Oscillator Replication? (YouTube) - Raymond L. Head of Dallas demonstrates what appears to be excess energy -- or at least super leverage -- in his replica of Veljko Milkovic’s two-stage mechanical oscillator. (August 29, 2008) (Thanks Bobsy)

• Wind > Wind Farms >
  Wind Turbine Overspeed Failure Video Collection - The braking system failed in the Vesta Wind Turbine, while 2 technicians worked in the turret in the top of the 10-year old fiberglass tower and were able to get out before the collapse near Hornslet, Denmark in February 2008. (PESWiki)

• Nuclear > Large Hadron Collider >
  This ain't no jive, Particle Physics Rap is a hit - Who says science doesn't turn people on? Kate McAlpine is a rising star on YouTube for her rap performance - about high-energy particle physics. (YouTube) (Wired; Sept. 1, 2008)

• Storage >
  New Jersey Utility Invests $20 Million Into Compressed Air Energy Storage - PSEG announced that it would be investing $20 million over the next three years into developing underground compressed-air storage systems for wind turbines; joining two other such projects in the world: one in Alabama and the other in Huntorf, Germany. (TreeHugger; Aug. 29, 2008)

• Solar Lighting >
  Solar Bric to Light Your Path (or Runway) - Product includes advanced solar cells, storage capability, and a crystal lighting system. The bricks can be imbedded in construction materials. The light is automatically activated after dark. (Sunrise Solar)

• Solar >
  Could Solar Highways Power our Cities? - Australian renewable energy retailer Going Solar has conceived of a clever strategy that infuses urban transit systems with energy producing potential - install solar panels in highways as sound barriers! (Inhabitat; Aug. 30. 2008)

August 31, 2008

Featured: Fusion > Sonofusion > Bubble Fusion Vindicated in Flagship Nuclear Journal - Bubble fusion, also known as sonofusion, which in the last couple of years has come to be viewed with a jaundiced eye, has now been cleared by a peer-reviewed report that exposes the faulty basis for the negative assessment. (PESN; Aug. 27, 2008)

Hydrogen > Formula Zero - Hydrogen Racing - The world's first international fuel-cell powered motor racing series kicked off in Rotterdam over the weekend. The organisers hope that 'Formula Zero,' like Formula 1, can become a forum for competing technology as much as anything else, helping green consumer cars to become better. (PESWiki; Aug. 29, 2008)

Waste to Energy > Diesel > Changing World Technology - Thermal Depolymerization Process - Technology claims to have a viable method of reforming organic waste into oil. However, the system has cost far more, and the small issues much larger than they had initially estimated. (PESWIki; Aug. 26, 2008)

Green Building > Ceratech, Inc.'s Green Cement - CERATECH’s products are compromised of 30 to 95% green sustainable industrial waste stream materials and are manufactured via a simple low energy, powder blending process; while the product is a cement with superior strength that can be deployed in a condensed timeframe. (PESWIki; Aug. 28, 2008)

Compact Fluorescent / Power Factor Correction > Are U.S. CFL's Designed to Make Us Pay More on Our Power Bills? - In Europe, a small capacitor is added to Compact Fluorescent Lamps for power conditioning and additional savings on the utility bills. Similar savings can be realized on AC motors. Why are these inexpensive modifications omitted from U.S. CFLs and many residential motors? (Steve Windisch; Aug 25, 2008)

• Solar >
  Sunrise Solar Introduces Solar Sunroof for Cars - Sunrise Solar has introduced its Solar Sunroof, a replacement for regular car sunroofs that includes solar PV cells to produce electricity. This can help recharge the vehicle's battery, but it can also cool down the car when it's hot, and warm it up when it's cold. (TreeHugger; Aug. 26, 2008)

• Solar > Solar Vehicles
  Grassroots Electric Vehicles - Solar Cycle is licensed as a motorcycle with three wheels. It seats two comfortably and has room in the back for provisions. It uses a 9' pancake motor, ultra light aluminum and plastic frame and body, and goes 0 to 60 in under 10 seconds. (Thanks JQP)

• Wind Farms / Grid >
  Wind Energy Bumps Into Power Grid’s Limits - Maple Ridge Wind farm cost $320 million to put nearly 200 wind turbines in upstate New York, but at times, regional electric lines have been so congested, that Maple Ridge has been forced to shut down, even with a brisk wind blowing. (Slashdot) (New York Times; Aug. 26, 2008)

• Solar > Flight >
  Solar plane's 3-day flight - The solar-powered Zephyr aircraft developed by the UK defence and technology firm QinetiQ have completed the longest-lasting unmanned flight. UAVs offer advantages over traditional aircraft and even satellites. (Video) (Slashdot) (BBC News; Aug. 24, 2008)

• X Prize:Automotive >
  Cornell to Show Off its 100-mpg Car-in-progress at New York State Fair - "We should be able to begin building the final car early next year," said Riddle, who leads a team of more than 70 students. The biggest design challenges for the team are maximizing drive-train efficiency, aerodynamics and keeping the car's weight low while meeting safety standards. (NewsWire; Aug. 20, 2008)

Suppression / Reviews > Of Pope John Paul II and of Power as in Electricity - As Karol faced two brutal tyrannies, certain exotic emerging technologies also face oppression and have been bullied, sometimes for more than a century. The stance Karol took of persistent love and courage can be instructive and helpful for us as we face down those who resist these solutions. (PESWiki; Aug. 24, 2008)

• Geothermal >
  New Geothermal Technology Could Tap 120,000MW of Energy - Raser Technologies broke ground on New Mexico’s first geothermal power plant, which will incorporate an innovative binary liquid technology that allows it to make use of the site’s low levels of geothermal energy. (Inhabitat; Aug. 28, 2008)

• Geothermal >
  4000 Megawatts of US Geothermal Power in Development, Sector Has Grown by 20% This Year - According to the US Geothermal Power Production and Development Update, 103 project are currently underway in 13 states, and when completed will be able to meet the electric needs of about 4 million homes. (TreeHugger; Aug. 22, 2008)

• Algae >
  Algae: Biofuel of the Future? - University of Virginia researchers have a plan to greatly increase algae oil yields by feeding the algae extra carbon dioxide (the main greenhouse gas) and organic material like sewage, meaning the algae could simultaneously produce biofuel and clean up environmental problems. (NewsWise; August 15, 2008)

• Wind > Largest >
  Status Check: The Biggest Wind Projects in the World - With all sorts of stories coming out about biggests and firsts, it’s about time to take the pulse of wind power generation and find out just where the industry stands on giant wind projects. (EcoGeek; Aug. 15, 2008)

August 24, 2008

Electric Cars > Shelby SuperCars (SSC) to Build World's Fastest Electric Car - The Ultimate Aero EV is based on the SSC Aero, the world's fastest production car. The EV will be powered by a 500 horsepower electric motor. The drive train will feature a revolutionary power source allegedly allowing for several years between charging (not a typo). (PESWiki; August 13, 2008)

Top 100: Batteries / Vibrations > M2E Power Could Charge Your Cell Phone With Kinetic Energy! - M2E Power is emphasizing the commercial applications for their technology, with a specific goal: revolutionizing cell phone batteries. An external charger generates between 300 and 700 percent more energy than current kinetic energy technologies, and may eventually replace cell phone batteries altogether. (PESWiki; Aug. 21, 2008)

• Nuclear / Fusion > Cold Fusion >
  American Chemical Society Gives Cold Fusion the Nod - Low-Energy Nuclear Reactions Sourcebook commissioned by ACS is a summary of selected experimental and theoretical research performed over the last 19 years that gives profound and unambiguous evidence for low-energy nuclear reactions (LENR), historically known as cold fusion. (New Energy Times; Aug. 18, 2008)

Global Warming > CO2 Sequestration > Cement from CO2; A Concrete Solution to Global Warming - Calera Corporation has developed a nature-mimicking process that converts CO2, such as from a coal power plant, into cement; thus removing CO2 from the atmosphere in the process of making a product that usually produces a lot of CO2 using other methods. (PESWiki; August 20, 2008)

Nanotechnology > Aerogels - This 87-year old technology will improve ultracapacitors by swapping in carbon nanotubes, since they have a extremely high surface area, carbon aerogels are used to create ultracapacitors with values ranging up to thousands of farads. It is already used a a super-insulator and for collecting stardust by NASA. (PESWiki; August 18, 2008)

Fuel Efficiency > Electric Freight Rail 8X More Efficient than Heavy Trucks - Electrifying railroads and transferring half of the ton-miles of trucks to rail could save 6.3% of US oil consumption. Electric railroads, well-proven in other countries, are cheaper to operate and can carry more freight because they accelerate and brake faster (and can generate electricity while braking, saving energy), and have no delays for refueling. (PESWiki; Aug. 13, 2008)

• Fuel Efficiency > Hydrogen Injection > Skeptics >
  Hydrogen Electrolyzer Mod Can't Up MPGs - Popular Mechanic's senior automotive editor installs a hand-built HHO kit — only to find he was right to be skeptical. Can bad chemistry keep the myth of the water car alive? More heavy testing in the PM garage will tell. (Popular Mechanics; August 7, 2008)

Featured: Fuel Efficiency > Hydrogen Injection > Interview:Ronn Motors' Scorpion Aims to Optimize then License Hydrogen Boosting - Damon Kuhn, COO of Ronn Motors, maker of the new $150,000 green supercar, talks about how their company is well suited to finally build an ideal version of the on-board electrolysis technology that injects hydrogen into the air intake to catalyze a more efficient burn of the petrol, increasing a vehicle's mileage by 20-40% or much more. (FreeEnergyNow; August 18, 2008)

• Fuel Efficiency > Water as Fuel > Water4Gas >
  Norfolk man pumped about savings with water-for-gas conversion - Since TV story in July, 13News viewers have asked whether Art Green is really saving money. "It's a brand new truck. It has been reborn," he says; claiming a doubling of highway mileage, while going from 18 to 20 mpg in city driving. (WVEC; August 18, 2008)

• Top 100: Waste to Energy / Diesel > Green Power, Inc. >
  GPI Explains Waste-to-Diesel Process (video) - Last year at a Waste Expo in Atlanta, CEO, Michael Spitzauer and CTO, James Osterloh, gave a brief description of their revolutionary process that turns feedstock municipal waste into high grade diesel fuel, eliminating the need for landfills. They're much further along now. (YouTube; August 20, 2008)

• Batteries >
  MIT engineers work toward cell-sized batteries - Forget 9-volts, AAs, AAAs or D batteries: The energy for tomorrow’s miniature electronic devices could come from tiny microbatteries about half the size of a human cell and built with viruses. The technique itself does not involve any expensive equipment, and is done at room temperature. (PhysOrg; Aug. 20, 2008)

August 17, 2008

Events > Report: ExtraOrdinary Technology Conference 2008 - See our 2008 Tesla Technology Conference reports, photo gallery and follow-ups. Our New Energy Congress members who attended have posted their thoughts and feelings on this year's Conference activities. (PESWiki; August 12, 2008)

Top 100: Solar > Concentrated > Cool Earth Solar > Interview: Cool Earth Solar's Answer to Global Energy Crisis - In 1-hour interview, CEO, Rob Lamkin, discusses how his company's inflatable solar concentrator technology slashes materials costs, making solar farms able to compete with natural gas plants, and eventually even coal plants. Commercial deployment expected next year; could satisfy a large portion of Gore's 10-years-to-100%-renewable initiative. (FreeEnergyNow; Aug. 9, 2008)

• Electromagnetic > The Orion Project >
  Update on Pulsed Motor Generator by the Orion Project - Greer's group reports: "In one test, the Pulsed Motor Generator successfully powered an 18 pound metal rotor at a steady speed of 1500 rpm with as little as 25 watts of input power." (Orion Project; August 12, 2008)
  

Fuel Efficiency > Hydrogen Injection > Ronn Motors' Scorpion the First to Implement Hydrogen Boosting - New $150,000 green sports car will integrate Hydrorunner's on-board electrolysis unit to inject hydrogen into the air intake to catalyze a more efficient burn of the petrol, increasing its mileage by 20-40%. (PESWiki; August 13, 2008)

X-Prize / Alt. Fuels > Intergalactic Hydrogen Expects to Win Auto X-Prize - Using off-the-shelf components and technology they have mastered, Tai and Fred Robinson say they can surpass 100 mpg-equivalent using a high-efficiency stock vehicle modified to run on hydrogen. (PESN; Aug. 9, 2008)

Fuel Efficiency > Additives > eeFuel eeFuel Gradually Boosts Mileage in 2007 BMW 335i - Ryan Fowler reports an improvement in his mileage on the same stretch of road since he started using the eeFuel additive, beginning with a jump of 5.7%, followed by 8.6%, then 14.0%, and then 17.9% in subsequent test runs in triplicate, as measured by onboard mileage instrumentation provided with the vehicle. (PESWiki; Aug. 6, 2008)

Fuel Efficiency > Spark Plugs > Firestorm Spark Plug - This revolutionary design creates an electric plasma that fills the entire combustion chamber like a firestorm. It allows you to take an internal combustion engine from the standard 14.7:1 air-to-fuel ratio to an incredibly lean 24:1. At this ratio, all the air/fuel mixture is burned much more efficiently without increasing heat, thus giving an engine more power and fuel economy while creating much less pollution. (PESWiki)

Nanotechnology > Carbon Nanotubes and other Nanotechnology Solutions for Renewable Energy - From vastly increasing efficiencies in solar power to reducing costs of hydrogen generation, the alternative energy sector is seeing a range of nanotech developments. Reducing the amount of raw product necessary for technology production, carbon nanotechnology cuts costs and conserves our precious non-renewable resources. (PESWiki; Aug. 13, 2008)

August 10, 2008
(Prerecorded on Aug. 8, 2008)

Plasma / Electromagnetic > Phemax Technology's Plasmagnetic Alternator - Patent pending device allegedly generates electricity via plasma arc (Microsun) technology, initiated with low voltage, high current, high temperature, thermally conductive, thorium tungsten / graphite electrodes submerged in water. The resulting syngas runs a Phemax generator, which is said to have 5x amplification capability. (PESWiki; Aug. 7, 2008)

Engines > Interview: Super-Efficient 'Gun' Engine - Canadian inventor, Kazimierz Holubowicz, has come up with an environmentally friendly and transmission-free engine based on the same mechanics as how a bullet is shot from a gun. More recent test results showed a 14% increase in torque while using 10% as much fuel. (FreeEnergyNow; Aug. 4, 2008)

• Electromagnetic / Engines > Linear Combustion Electromagnetic Engines >
  Free Piston Power Pack - The FP3 is a super-efficient, low-cost electric generator module with exceptional power density. Operation is based on 'free pistons' (unrestrained by con-rods or crank shaft) being driven back and forth inside cylinders by controlled internal combustion. Permanent magnets are attached to these pistons and move through stator coils, thus generating electric power. (Pempek; August 5, 2008)

Ground Source Heat Pumps > EarthLinked Technologies - Company has been in the business of installing Ground Source Heat Pumps for nearly two decades. The residential and commercial systems save energy in the winter and summer, drawing from the thermal mass of the earth with their direct geo-exchange technology. ROI is just a few years. (PESWiki; July 18, 2008)

Solar > Concentrated Lateral Aperture Solar Design - "Think of a sheet of glass set out to capture the sunlight; instead of letting the light pass through or reflecting it off somewhere, it captures the light inside the thickness of the pane. It then redirects it toward an edge, or a number of them, where it then emerges at a concentration ratio." (PESWiki; July 23, 2008)

Featured: Tools > Renewable Solutions for Emergency Preparedness - In case of emergency, be prepared. New page commenced to identify those areas and technologies for emergency situations that are inter-related with alternative energy solutions. (PESWiki)

• Lighting > OLED >
  OLED Breakthrough: 70 Lumens/Watt! - Researchers at the U. of Michigan and Princeton have allegedly fabricated OLEDs that can produce 70 lumens per watt (compared to 15 lumens per watt for incandescent), using a grid combined with nano-scale micro-lenses 5 micrometers wide. (TreeHugger; July 25, 2008)

• Solid State > Thermal Electric >
  Material May Help Autos Turn Heat into Electricity - Researchers at Ohio State University have invented a new material that could potentially make cars more efficient by converting heat wasted through engine exhaust into electricity. The researchers say that the material has twice the efficiency of anything currently on the market. (Renewable Energy Worldwide; July 25, 2008)

• Biomass >
  New UGA biomass technology dramatically increases ethanol yield from grasses and yard waste - The new technology features a fast, mild, acid-free pretreatment process that increases by at least 10 times the amount of simple sugars released from inexpensive biomass for conversion to ethanol. (University of Georgia; July 28, 2008)

• Ethanol >
  Research drives improvements in efficient biofuel processing - Iowa State University project is focused on using fungi to clean up and improve the dry-grind ethanol production process. That process grinds corn kernels and adds water and enzymes. The enzymes break the starches into sugars. The sugars are fermented with yeasts to produce ethanol. (Engineer Live; July 31, 2008)

• Trends / Oil >
  Alternative Energy Trends and Implications for Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) Countries - "With the exception of biofuels, renewables are used for electricity and heat generation. For the foreseeable future, renewables are not in a position either to substitute oil as a transport fuel or replace oil and gas as feedstock for the petrochemical industry on a large scale in the form of bioplastic." (Lebanon Daily Star; August 4, 2008)
  

• Tesla coil >
  Who Needs Amps? We've Got A Tesla Coil! - Tesla coils create a lot of noise when they're on, and somehow, some insane genius has found a way to harness the noise they create, manipulate it, and turn it into art. (YouTube) (ChordStrike; August 5, 2008)

August 3, 2008

Open Source / Electromagnetic / Magnet Motors > LaFonte Perpendicular Magnetics Motor - Butch LaFonte now offers to open source what he and his associates have come up with, being far enough along to begin some serious building and testing and possibly start coming up with some useful output designs. (PESWiki; July 24, 2008)

Electrostatic > McQueen Machine -Revolutionary Energy Generating Machine - The patented McQueen Machine is a new "Internal Energy Generating Power Source" that uses positive electrical charges from the atmosphere to generate power. It is claimed to generate more energy than is required to operate the machine. (PESWiki' July 24, 2008')

Top 100: Electrolysis > Solar Hydrogen > Electrolysis Breakthrough Makes Energy Storage Affordable - MIT researchers have combined a liquid catalyst with photovoltaic cells to achieve nearly a 100% efficient electrolysis in a simple set-up, which could make solar energy more affordable and practical -- excess capacity during the day could be stored as hydrogen and oxygen, then used in fuel cells at night when needed. (PESWiki; Aug. 1, 2008)

Water as Fuel > Brown's Gas > Epoch has Commercialized Brown's Gas - Epoch Energy Technology Corp is a Taiwan-based manufacturer of Oxy-hydrogen gas generators and solar water heaters. They have developed a method by which ordinary soft water can be instantly transformed into oxygen-hydrogen fuel. (PESWiki; July 23, 2008)

Water as Fuel > Electrolysis > Water-Fueled Car from Sri Lanka - A Sri Lankan inventor has come up with a super-efficient electrolysis method that allegedly enables a small vehicle to travel 80 kilometres on just one litre of water, without any danger to life or any impact on the environment. (PESWiki; July 23, 2008)

Spoofs / Magnet Motors > Videographer Posts Magnet Motor Spoof - On July 27, 2008, Alan D. Joseph posted a video to YouTube showing a motor that appears to spin with no batteries or other electrical input. Is it real, or was he putting his video skills to use? (PESWiki' July 24, 2008)

Conservation / Fuel Efficiency / Home Generation > What You Can Do Now to Go Green and Save Money - Products and concepts presently available and doable which help you reduce your footprint on the planet while also saving you money. These products are some of the best so far as we can tell. (PESWiki)

• Conservation / Energy Efficiency >
  22 Steps Toward Energy Efficiency - Energy "radical" Amory Lovins, points out that the US could save up to 75 percent of the energy we use by using efficiency techniques that are cheaper than the electricity itself. (Co-Op America; July 8, 2008)

• Cold Fusion > Sonofusion >
  Welcome to Bubblegate - In Defense of nuclear engineer and Purdue professor Rusi Taleyarkhan, who is being accused of scientific fraud, cold fusion expert, Steven Krivit, points out that the failure to replicate the Bubble/Sonofusion effect doesn't mean it didn't happen in the first place. (New Energy Times; July 28, 2008)

• Top 100: Batteries > EEStor >
  EEStor: The Story So Far - EEStor announced Tuesday that they third party validation of the equipment, procedures and techniques has been completed. The company says its technology can provide 10 times the energy of lead-acid batteries at one tenth the weight and half the price. (Earth2Tech; July 30, 2008)

July 27, 2008

Top 100: 10-Year Plan > NEC Says Gore's Ten-Year Renewable Energy Plan is Achievable - The New Energy Congress is taking up the challenge to show how it will be possible to achieve the goal of 100% of U.S. energy coming from renewable energy sources within ten years, (PESWiki; July 25, 2008)

Ocean Wave > Interview: Bulge Wave Anaconda by Checkmate SeaEnergy - Tom Roach, Director of Checkmate SeaEnergy's Anaconda project discusses the concept and progress of the bulge wave system that harnesses sea wave energy in a manner similar to the peristaltic action of a snake digesting its prey. (FreeEnergyNow; July 21, 2008)

Ocean Wave Energy / Nikola Tesla > Using Tesla's Valvular Conduit to Harness Water Waves - Proposal to combine (1) Nicola Tesla's "Valvular Conduit", patented in 1920, which is essentially a one-way fluidic valve, and (2) the Anaconda Bulge Wave concept of having rubber tubing move up and down with ocean waves, in order to provide a simple and cost-effective mechanism for harnessing sea wave energy. (PESWiki; July 18, 2008)

Wind > Vertical Axis Tangarie Alternative Power's spiral wind turbine - The Greenpower Utility System line of vertical axis wind turbines produces up to 50% more electricity on an annual basis, generates electricity in winds as low as 4 mph (1.5 m/s), and continues to generate power in wind speeds up to 130 mph (60m/s). It withstands extreme weather such as frost, ice, sand, humidity; and is low-noise. (PESWiki)

Free Energy / Open Source > Free Energy and the Open Source Movement Series - In this series of articles, Steve Windisch examines several “Free Energy” devices, explains their workings in a simplified way, while discussing the proposed theories behind them. Interviews look at new inventors and researchers working within the Open Source Energy movement today. (PESWiki; July 20, 2008)

Hydrogen / Events > 2008 Hydrogen Implementation Conference - Michael Riversong reports on the conference held July 22 - 24 in Laramie, Wyoming, covered a wide range of hydrogen generation sources, storage mechanisms, transport infrastructure, and application considerations. (PESN; July 25, 2008)

• Gravity Motors / Milkovic Pendulum >
  Cart With a Pendulum - Vehicles With Internal and Inertial Drive (7 min, YouTube) – New video presentation of Serbian inventor, Veljko Milkovic, demonstrating his perennial research work on the idea of moving vehicle without indirect mechanism (transmission). Milkovic explains a new power and how the isolated powers can perform one-way moving of model using tensile forces of physical pendulum. (veljkomilkovic.com; July 23, 2008) (Thanks Bobsy)

• Anti-Gravity / Magnet Motors > Searl Effect Generator|Searl Effect Generator (SEG) >
  Bill Alek Interviews John Searl - The Searl effect is based on magnetic fields that generates a continual motion of magnetized rollers around magnetized rings (also called plates) producing electric energy and, under certain conditions, an anti-gravity effect that can be used for propulsion. Side-effects include negative ionization of surrounding air and a cooling of temperature around the device when in operation. (Vortex Network; July 19, 2008)

Featured: Fuel Efficiency > Hypermiling > Slowing Down Doesn't Always Save Money - Vehicles are designed to achieve optimal efficiency at certain engine rpms and speeds. Going slower can actually use more fuel over the same distance, especially at much lower speeds. The Nissan Quest minivan does 35 mpg at 75 mph, whereas it only gets 30 mpg at 55 mph. (PESWiki; July 19, 2008)

• Solar >
  First Solar: Quest for the $1 Watt - The secret involves not the photovoltaic cell itself but the way in which it is manufactured. Instead of the familiar silicon, the design uses a compound of cadmium and tellurium. Previously limited to cell sizes not much larger than a postage stamp, First Solar has now refined the manufacturing procedure to blow up the cells to poster size. (PhysOrg; July 23, 2008)

Fuel Efficiency > Additives > Acetone > Boosting Acetone's Improvement on Mileage - Steve D. Gage gives the logic and data behind his conclusion that vehicle fuel efficiency can be improved 50% by adding 1 oz acetone per gallon and tricking the car's computer into detecting an excess of oxygen so it richens up the mixture. (PESWiki; July 19, 2008)

Featured: Fuel Efficiency > Hypermiling > Slowing Down Doesn't Always Save Money - Vehicles are designed to achieve optimal efficiency at certain engine rpms and speeds. Going slower can actually use more fuel over the same distance, especially at much lower speeds. The Nissan Quest minivan does 35 mpg at 75 mph, whereas it only gets 30 mpg at 55 mph. (PESWiki; July 19, 2008)

Buyer Beware / Hydrogen Injection > HAFC > Hydrogen-Assist Fuel Cell Warning from Former Installer - Richard Coyle said the units sometimes work at first, but then the improvements go away, and in their place some serious problems arise such as stuck idle motors, boiling water and gunk in the motors, plugged air filters. (PESWiki; July 22, 2008)

Featured: Fuel Efficiency > Additives > EeFuel > EeFuel additive gets flatline results on heavy-duty rigs test - A fleet in California that has multiple trucks taking the same route every day hauling lumber out and wood chips back, ran three of their trucks for a week using the eeFuel additive, but saw no improvement in mileage. (PESN; July 19, 2008)

July 20, 2008
(recorded on July 18)

Hydroelectric / Electromagnetic > James D. Hardy's Self-Looped Water Pump and Electricity Generator - Massachusetts inventor demonstrates a patent pending technology in which a 165 gallon/minute water pump powers a water wheel, which is connected through belts to a one horse power generator, which powers the water pump as well as an incandescent bulb. (PESWiki; July 16, 2008)

Top 100: Wind > Vertical Axis > CEO Interview: TESNIC vertical-axis wind turbine - The TESNIC, invented by Horia Nica, is based on the principles of the Tesla turbine, extracting the wind power via adhesion, in addition to the classic drag and lift extraction, enabling it to achieve a very high efficiency. (FreeEnergyNow.net; July 14, 2008)

Top 100: Solar > Concentrated > SHEC Labs > SHEC Labs Claims to Have World's Most Efficient Solar Thermal Tech (Interview) - By focusing the concentrated rays into the aperture of a highly-reflective, elongated tube, by the time the light bounces back out, it has gradually dumped 95% of its heat into the tube, which can then be put to work. (PESN; July 14, 2008)

Fuel Efficiency > Hypermiling - Driving Tips for Better Mileage - Hypermilers are drivers who exceed the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) estimated fuel efficiency on their vehicles by modifying their driving habits. (PESWiki; July 15. 2008)

• Gravity Motors / Milkovic Oscillator >
  Modeling and Simulation of a Double Pendulum With Pad (pdf) - An independent mathematical analysis by Bojan Petkovic considers the Veljko Milkovic's two-stage mechanical oscillator in a form of double pendulum with a pad that presents a mechanical system which is not analyzed in the literature. (veljkomilkovic.com; July 16, 2008) (Thanks Bobsy)

• Wind > ...in the United Kingdom >
  New plan to get power from turbines even when the wind does not blow - A planning application has been lodged for the UK's first commercial hydrogen balancing plant - the latest innovation in renewable energy, described as “a potential holy grail” when combined with wind energy. (The Times; July 14, 2008)

• Solar Innovations >
  37.6% – European Record Efficiency for Solar Cells from Fraunhofer ISE - Researchers at the Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems have set the European record for converting sunlight into electrical energy using multi-junction solar cells made out of III-V semiconductors. (Fraunhofer ISE; July 3, 2008)

• Electrolysis >
  Nanoelectrodes boost electrolysis to cut hydrogen fuel cost - QuantumSphere's nanoparticle-coated electrodes can be used today to retrofit existing electrolyzers for higher efficiency. The company plans to also offer retrofit nanoparticle-coated membranes for fuel cells and catalytic converters. (EETimes; July 14, 2008)

• Air Conditioning >
  Honolulu Seawater Air Conditioning - HSWAC will reduce Hawaii's dependence on imported oil used to generate electricity and dramatically reduce operating costs for downtown building owners. Deep seawater will be drawn at a temperature of about 45°F and pumped to a cooling station onshore. (RenewableEnergyWorld; July 9, 2008)

July 13, 2008

Featured: OS > What You Can Expect Open Sourcing Energy Technology - Sterling Allan describes how an ideal open source energy technology might roll out from beginning -- even before it is publicly posted -- through the time of early replications, to end when it spreads throughout the earth to bless mankind. (PESWiki; July 13, 2008)

Top 100: Solar > Thin Film > Dye Sensitized > G24 Innovations Ltd rolls out solar - Automated "roll-to-roll" manufacturing process transforms a lightweight roll of metal foil into a 100-pound half-mile of G24i’s Dye Sensitized Thin Film in less than three hours. This material is rugged, flexible, lightweight and generates electricity even indoors and in low light conditions. (PESWiki) Inventor: Michael Graetzel of Switzerland

• Solar > Concentrated >
  A Better Solar Collector - MIT researchers have created sheets of glass coated with advanced organic dyes that more efficiently concentrate sunlight. Covalent Solar plans to commercialize the coated glass sheets that could eventually make solar power as cheap as electricity from fossil fuels. (MIT Technology Review; Jul. 10, 2008)

Fuel Efficiency > Lubricants > (Interview) Maryn International's lubrication solutions - Maryn is a leading developer and manufacturer of high performance industrial additives which significantly improve lubricity and which also improve mileage. While the product is aimed at the trucking industry, it also works well in any car. (PESWiki; July 7, 2008)

Wind > Floating > HeliWind's twist on floating wind generation - The HeliWind design by the Hawaii Consulting Group replaces the blades and tower of a conventional wind turbine with a lighter-than-air helical balloon and lowers the generator to the ground. With generating costs expected at around $0.034/kW-hr, the design is expected to go into production in June 2011. (PESWiki; July 6, 2008)

• Top 100: Ocean Wave > S.D.E. Energy Ltd. >
  Israeli company to build sea wave power plants in China - S.D.E. Energy has signed an agreement for selling sea wave electricity power plants in China. The first commercial, full-scale model of the system, capable of generating 40 electrical kilowatts (eKW) has been working successfully for a year and is located at the Jaffa Port in Tel Aviv-Yafo.(ISRAEL21c; July 10, 2008)

• Solar > Vehicles >
  Hot New Solar Hybrid by Mindset AG - The Swiss company Mindset AG has announced that it is planning to produce an ultra-lightweight hybrid vehicle with roof-mounted solar panels. The hybrid coupe, dubbed Six50, is the work of former VW head of design Murat Günak. (Inhabitat; July 8, 2008)

• Hydrogen >
  Unveiling of Home-Brewed Hydrogen-Fuel Unit - A British company, ITM Power thinks it has the answer that could kick-start a hydrogen-based economy: A home based refueling system. The station overcomes one of the fundamental stumbling blocks to a hydrogen economy – the lack of hydrogen refueling infrastructure and utility supply network. (Red Herring; July 9, 2008)

• Flight >
  Why Fly When You Can Float? - As the cost of fuel soars and the pressure mounts to reduce carbon dioxide emissions, several schemes for a new generation of airship are being considered by governments and private companies. Cloud is a flying hotel proposed by French designer Jean-Marie Massaud. (New York Times; July 5, 2008)

Communities / Building / Electric Vehicles > Beijing 2008 "Green" Olympics - We take a look at the environmental theme around the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing August 8-24, such as air and water quality, green buildings and modes of transportation, and health impacts on Olympic athletes. (PESWiki; July 7, 2008)

• Wind / Tools >
  Ocean Wind Power Maps Reveal Possible Wind Energy Sources - Scientists have been creating maps using nearly a decade of data from NASA's QuikSCAT satellite that reveal ocean areas where winds could produce wind energy. (Happy News; July 9, 2008)

• Wind >
  Siemens New 3.6 MW Direct-drive "Concept" Wind Turbine - In contrast to the geared-up turbines traditionally used, Siemens Energy is installing a highly innovative 3.6-megawatt (MW) direct drive "concept" turbine in Denmark, where it will undergo a two-year test period. (Renewable Energy Worldwide; July 4, 2008)

• Thermal Electric >
  Beakon Technologies - Developing next generation thermoelectric device with efficiencies 10-15 times that of today’s Peltier-elements and 30% higher than compressors. The Beakon chip can provide a cooling solution for applications like computers, cell phones, lasers but also replace traditional cooling systems like the compressor in a refrigerator. (Beakon Technologies; July 6, 2008)

July 6, 2008

Featured / Top 100: Wind > Vertical Axis > TESNIC vertical axis wind turbine - The TESNIC is based on the principles of the Tesla turbine, extracting the wind power via adhesion, in addition to the classic drag and lift extraction, enabling it to achieve a very high efficiency, with the potential cost of electricity produced below the utility price.

Top 100: Wind > Horizontal Axis > Interview with Broadstar Wind Systems - Like a wind surfer, the horizontal blades of the Broadstar turbine change their angle of attack as they go around the perimeter, so that they are generating torque in nearly every position. It is much easier to ship and assemble these units because the largest components can be fit in 20-foot shipping containers. (FreeEnergyNow; June 30, 2008)

Solar > Concentrated > Sopogy Concentrated Solar - Recently named the "Venture Capital Deal of the Year," Sopogy specializes in MicroCSP solar technologies that bring the economics of large solar energy systems to the industrial, commercial and utility sectors in a smaller, robust and more cost effective package. (PESWiki; July 2, 2008)

Hydrogen > H Boost > Modifying the ECU to Accommodate a New Mixture from Hydrogen Boosting - One of the most knowledgeable researchers and compilers of the various approaches being tried with on-board electrolizers is New Energy Congress member, Noah Seidman. This is his latest article on the topic. (PESWiki; July 2, 2008)

Events / Hydrogen Injection > Alternative Energy Partnership Conference Report - Outside-the-box energy technology enthusiasts converged in Maryland to share and inspect various inventions from hydrogen booster systems to a lawn mower converted to run on GEET reactor. (PESN; July 2, 2008)

• Ocean Wave >
  Simple 'Anaconda' Device Could Address Wave Power Cost - BulgeWave Anaconda is a simple closed end rubber tube that promises 1MW wave-generated electricity at US$0.12 per kWh. Although around twice as much as coal-fired power stations, this compares very favorably with other leading wave energy concepts. (Green Car Congress; July 3, 2008)

• Waste to Energy >
  PlascoEnergy to Build North America's First Waste Gasification Plant - The $125 million plant in Ottawa, Ontario is expected to be able to convert up to 400 metric tons of garbage a day into 21 megawatts of net electricity, which would be enough to power roughly 19,000 homes. (TreeHugger; June 2, 2008)

• Algae for Oil >
  Scum Power - Today, the cheapest algae production costs $5,000 per ton. If crude oil stays at its lofty price, algae-based oil could be competitively priced in five years if engineers and scientists can improve algae productivity per acre. (Video) (Wall Street Journal; June 30, 2008)

• Geothermal >
  Hot Source in the Cold: Alaska Turns to Volcanic Energy as Alternative Energy Source - Volcanoes and hot springs are estimated to be able to provide at least 25 percent of Alaska's energy needs. (DailyTech; June 30, 2008)

• Storage / Solar >
  The Molten Salt Solution to Storing Solar Energy - The difference between the molten salt and other liquids that are used in this sort of system is that the molten salt retains heat for a long enough time that it can effectively time-shift the stored solar energy from when it is most efficiently generated to when it is most needed. (Video) (TreeHugger; June 30, 2008)

• Biofuels >
  Research yields pricey chemicals from biodiesel waste - New metabolic pathways uncovered by researches at Rice Univ. are paving the way for the development of new technologies for converting this waste product into high-value chemicals such as succinate, formate and lactate with processes licensed to Glycos Biotechnologies Inc. (Rice University; June 26, 2008)

• OTEC >
  Xenesys Inc thermal electric ocean energy systems - Xenesys has acquired an exclusive license for the patent on the "Uehara Cycle", developed by Saga University with higher efficiency than the conventional method, and is implementing demonstration testing using an OTEC mini model plant. (Video)

• Human-Powered >
  Electricity-generating merry-go-round installed in Ghana - Technology students from BYU recently traveled to Ghana where they worked alongside Ghanaian colleagues to build and install the power-generating merry-go-round, as part of a senior Capstone project sponsored by Empower Playgrounds, Inc. (Video) (BYU News; June 11, 2008)
• Energy-Related Requests for Proposals - 1) A multi-billion dollar electronic parts manufacturer invites proposals for an energy harvesting generator using environmental input such as vibration, heat, electromagnetic wave or light; 2) High-Power, High-Capacity Energy Storage Devices for Cell Phones. (NineSigma)

• Solar > Unenlightened >
  U.S. Freezes Solar Energy Projects, Citing Need for Assessments - Faced with a surge in the number of proposed solar power plants in 6 western states, the Bureau of Land Management has placed a moratorium on new solar projects on public land until it studies their environmental impact, which is expected to take about two years. (New York Times; June 27, 2008)

June 29, 2008

• Two Magnet Motors

Fuel_Efficiency > Engines > Turbine Truck Engines, LLC - Owns an exclusive license for the manufacturing and marketing of a highly innovative, environmentally-friendly 300 to 1,000 horsepower turbine-based truck engine. Known as the Detonation Cycle Gas Turbine engine, its patented cyclical detonation technology is poised to revolutionize the heavy-duty truck engine market. (PESWiki; June 25, 2008)

Fuel Efficiency > Alternative Fuels > Diesel > Syntroleum Bio-Synfining™ process - This flexible feed, flexible synthetic fuel technology is able to take a wide variety of renewable feedstocks such as natural gas, vegetable oils, fats, and greases; and turn them into liquid hydrocarbons including diesel and jet fuels. (PESWiki; June 24, 2008)

Top 100: Communities > Clean Energy Road Show Launch Imminent - Year-long road show will educate people about easy-to-implement clean energy solutions available now, many of which can actually save money; and to give hope about the future by reviewing some of the most promising clean emerging technologies. (PESN; June 23, 2008)

• Solar > Concentrated
  MIT Students Develop Revolutionary Solar Dish - RawSolar is a company formed by MIT students to develop their concentrated solar thermal design that is exceedingly simple and inexpensive. The new dishes would return their costs in a mere couple years, concentrating sunlight 1000x to produce steam to run a turbine. (DailyTech; June 21, 2008) (Thanks JQP)

• Thermal Electric / Solar >
  Transpacific Energy's low-heat conversion technology - Uses an advanced Organic Rankine Cycle to produce electricity from waste heat or other low temperature heat sources such as solar. It uses a proprietary, environmentally sound multiple refrigerant mixture, that can easily be adapted to low and medium heat sources and used where ammonia, propane, butane and other CFCs cannot be used. (PR; June 22, 2008)

• PHEV >
  Uncle Sam Rolls In a 100-MPG Solar Plug-In Hybrid - Tom Markel, a senior engineer at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory runs a 2006 Prius that has a lithium-ion battery six times more powerful than the nickel-metal hydride pack Toyota put in it. But what makes the car really cool is the solar panel on the roof. It generates enough juice to go 5 miles. (Wired; June 27, 2008)

• Advanced Power Generation > Storage >
  Energy storage coming to a power grid near you - Technology optimists say that wide-scale energy storage will change the face of the transmission grid and make wind and solar power more compelling economically. (Green Tech Blog; June 27, 2008)

• Directory:Electric Vehicles > Recharging Stations >
  Epyon: 10-Minute Electric Car Charging - Dutch startup Epyon says it can charge the battery of an electric vehicle in 10 minutes — a mere fraction of the 8-10 hours it can take to charge an electric car in a standard outlet. (Earth2Tech; June 19, 2008)

• Solar > PhotoVoltaics / Heating >
  Solar Energy Cogeneration - A new system from SolarWall, the SolarDuct PV/T, offers a combination of solar photovoltaic and solar thermal in one assembly providing a means to heat and power from the sun with one product. (Inhabitat; June 23, 2008)

Conservation > Does Blackle Conserve Computer Screen Energy? - Do we save or use more power when we use black as a background on a computer screen? If you still have a CRT display, then Blackle makes sense. If you use a flat-screen display, which has been the majority for a few years, the opposite effect takes place. (PESWiki; June 24, 2008)

June 22, 2008

Magnet Motors / Wind > Shinyeon Magnet and Wind Systems - Shinyeon Energy Research Center of Korea has two highly exotic prototypes. One is a piston-based permanent magnet motor called the Magforce engine, that doesn't require fuel or electricity. The other as a tower-based induction wind generator. (PESWiki; June 18, 2008)

Featured: Magnet Motors > China - A New Magnetic Conversion of Zero Point Energy - The Wang Shum Ho prototype 5kW electricity generator is reportedly powered by permanent magnets and claimed to be close to production. The team is seeking a marketing partner and offers a working prototype for viewing by financial backers. (PESWiki; June 21, 2008)

Fuel Efficiency > Hydrogen Injection Zero Point Unlimited's Hydrogen Booster - ZPU is pursuing research and development of the Stanley Meyer Hydrogen fuel cell, a method of obtaining the release of a gas mixture including hydrogen and oxygen. Units for sale. (PESWiki; June 19, 2008)

• Top 100: Solar > Thin Film > Nanosolar Inc >
  Nanosolar Achieves 1GW CIGS Deposition Throughput - Most production tools in the solar industry tend to have 10-30MW in annual production capacity. How is it possible to have a single tool with Gigawatt throughput? The proprietary nanoparticle ink developed by nanosolar does it. (YouTube; June 17, 2008)

Human-Powered / Piezoelectric > Strike-Heel Generation - New directory dedicated to piezoelectric and heel-strike generation systems for generating power from "good vibrations". (PESWiki; June 20, 2008)

Biofuels > Turning Asian Carp Invasion Into Food, Fertilizer and Fuel - Ted Karson proposes harvesting the millions, if not billions of carp that have infested the Mississippi River system, to use for food, fertilizer, and biofuel; turning a pestilence into an opportunity. (PESWiki; June 16, 2008)

• Oil / Non-Fossil Oil >
  Scientists find bugs that eat waste and excrete petrol - LS9 claims that this “Oil 2.0” will not only be renewable but also carbon negative – meaning that the carbon it emits will be less than that sucked from the atmosphere by the raw materials from which it is made. (Times Online; June 14, 2008)

• Waste to Energy >
  Trash-fed generator deployed in Iraq - The U.S. Army is testing two prototype generators in Iraq that run on garbage, rather than diesel fuel. The Tactical Garbage to Energy Refinery (TGER, pronounced "tiger"), was co-developed with Purdue University and deployed in May at Victory Base camp in Baghdad, where it will be tested until August 2008. (CNet News; June 19, 2008)

• Top 100: Waste to Energy / Plasma > W2 Energy >
  W2 Energy in Waste-to-Diesel JV in Thailand - W2 Energy Inc., the developer of a Gliding Arc Tornado plasma reactor for gasification for power and fuels generation, and Better World Energy of Thailand are forming a joint venture to build one waste-to-energy plant which will convert 40 tons of municipal waste into electricity and 70 cetane synthetic diesel. (Green Car Congress; June 16, 2008)

• Fuel Efficiency > Capstone Turbine >
  Capstone Turbines Double Bus Fuel Efficiency - Capstone MicroTurbines will be deployed in ECOSaver IV hybrid electric buses manufactured by DesignLine International. Tests have shown up to 100% improvement in fuel economy. DesignLine has ordered 150 of the turbines. (The Energy Blog; April 4, 2008)

• Fuel Efficiency > Retrofits >
  Clackamas engineers' invention improves fuel economy - Vapor Fuel Technologies' patented technology has been documented to provide a 30 percent mileage increase in certified lab testing in Southern California. (Oregon Live; June 13, 2008)

• Ethanol / Biodiesel from Algae Oil >
  Algae-based Biofuels from Power Plant Emissions, Redux - Inventure Chemical and Seambiotic have announced that they have formed a joint venture to construct a pilot commercial biofuel plant to produce ethanol, biodiesel and other chemicals via algae created from CO2 emissions as a feedstock. (TreeHugger; June 20, 2008)

Oil > Fuel Watch Worldwide - Directory created to keep an eye on fuel costs worldwide. Why do we see prices from 12 cents USD up to over $11 USD per gallon for the same product from around the world? (PESWiki; June 17, 2008)

• Fuel Cells / Fuel Efficient Vehicles >
  Volkswagen HyMotion fuel cell vehicle - built into Volkswagen's new Tiguan crossover model, uses hydrogen to create electricity, providing power for the car's electric drive motor. It also has a lithium ion battery pack for extra electricity storage, and gets the gasoline equivalent of 42-to-62 miles per gallon. (CNet Reviews; June 12, 2008)
  

• Fuel Efficiency > Air Cars >
  Go-Karting Goes Green With Compressed Air - Students modified a snowmobile engine to run on compressed air stored in two scuba tanks, producing power similar to a gas engine. They attached the engine to a go-kart that can go 43 km/h full out. Although it runs out of air quickly, the zero local emissions make it attractive for indoor operations and the tanks are easy to refill. (EcoFriend; June 11, 2008)

June 15, 2008

Top 100: Water as Fuel / Hydrogen > Genepax water fuel system - Genepax intends to provide 1kw-class generation systems for use in electric vehicles and houses. Instead of driving electric vehicles with this system alone, the company expects to use it as a generator to charge the secondary battery used in electric vehicles. (PESWiki; June 14, 2008)

Featured / Top 100: Wind > Horizontal Axis > Broadstar Wind Systems - BroadStar's AeroCam is claimed to be the first turbine to break through the $1/watt cost barrier. It enables distributed power generation in almost any setting, including densely populated urban areas and can capture abundant surface-wind energy in wind farms. (PESWiki; June 8, 2008)

Fuel Efficiency Tai Robinson on Clean Fuel Conversions - New Energy Congress founding member gives an overview of how to convert existing vehicles into clean fuel vehicles, running on multiple local fuels. A look at the process, costs, and other considerations regarding alternative fuels in general. (FreeEnergyNow.net; June 9, 2008)

Fuel Efficiency > Lubricants > Silver Series Lubricant - The silver contained in the oil finds it's way onto working surfaces, where it reduces friction and wear. When wear attempts to remove it, more silver is plated onto the surface, so it is the silver that wears and not the original surface. (PESWiki)

Engines / Hydrogen / Ethanol > Hydrogen Engine Center Inc - Making Engines to Run On Hydrogen, Ammonia - A small company in Iowa hope to make gasoline obsolete as an engine fuel. All HEC engines and power generation equipment are capable of running on a multitude of fuels including hydrogen, ammonia, synthetic gas, coal bed methane, gasoline, and ethanol. (PESWiki; June 12, 2008)

Microwave-Based Energy Technologies > Cell Phones Popping Popcorn? - Cardo Systems set up groups in various countries and released the YouTube videos all about the same time to sell their remote headsets as a viral promotion. Can Cell phones really be used to pop popcorn? Are Cell phones safe to use today? (PESWiki; June 14, 2008)

• Water Distillation >
  Greening the desert by squeezing water out of gypsum - Gypsum, a rocky mineral abundant in desert regions where fresh water is usually in very short supply, could become a new resource out of which trillions of liters of clean drinking water can be squeezed through solar power or oil well flares. (BioPact; June 12, 2008)

• Waste to Energy / Plastic and Energy >
  Bio-plastics from animal protein waste - A new process, developed over two years by University of Waikato chemical engineers can turn animal protein waste like blood meal and feathers into a biodegradable plastic using industry-standard plastic extrusion and injection moulding machinery. (Science Alert; May 27, 2008)

• Batteries > Nickel Zinc >
  PowerGenix Introduces NiZn Cells for HEV Market - PowerGenix introduced its nickel-zinc (NiZn) rechargeable D cells for hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs) in a retrofitted Toyota Prius. NiZn packs can deliver 30% more power and increased energy density, as well as reduced size, weight and cost relative to existing Nickel Metal-Hydride (NiMH) technologies. (Green Car Congress; May 15, 2008)

• Tidal >
  Worlds First Megawatt Tidal Turbine Installed - Construction of Marine Current Turbines' 1.2MW SeaGen tidal system has now been completed. The world’s first megawatt scale tidal turbine will now enter a 12-week period of commissioning and testing before it starts regularly feeding power into the Northern Ireland grid. (GizMag; June 4, 2008)

• Solar / DIY >
  Converting a Gas Mower to Run on Solar Power - Project entails replacing the gasoline engine of a used 22" gas powered mower with a 12 Volt electric motor and battery - along with gauges, circuit breaker/power switch and charging connector. (Art Tec; June 2005)

• Conservation > Water >
  Cleaning up the laundry industry - The Xeros polymer pellets act like a magnet, attracting the soiling and the dirt out of a small amount of water. The technology has already been proven in controlled lab experiments and has also been tested in commercial scale dry cleaning facilities. (CleanTech; June 9, 2008)

June 8, 2008

Featured / Top 100: Environmental Hall of Fame Honors Several Top 100 Energy Technologies - First annual ceremony christens event toward becoming the 'Golden Globes' of the Environmental movement. (PESN; June 8, 2008)

Fuel Efficiency > Additives eeFuel Nano Catalyst Fuel Additive (Interview) - EeFuel, a non-toxic, non-fossil, sub-nano fuel additive; is said to increase mileage by 10% to 20% by two-fold action: increasing the vaporization of the fuel and serving as a catalytic agent to increase the amount of fuel burnt as well as to stabilize its burn rate. (PESWiki; June 2, 2008)

Featured: PAC > U.S. Senator Takes Second Look at Breakthrough New Energy Legislation - Roundtable addresses why the United States government is so slow to facilitate extreme leading edge technologies, and how that tendency could be changed for the better through visionary leadership. (PESN; June 4, 2008)

Featured: Biofuels > Rethinking Biofuel - Robert Pritchett presses a few biofuel hot-buttons regarding the current status of biofuel and unintended consequences - along with some solutions. (PESN; June 2, 2008)

• Hydrogen > Blacklight power >
  Blacklight Power claims nearly-free energy from water — is this for real? - Inventor claimed that he’s found a way to produce a molecule called a hydrino, which is a theoretical form of the hydrogen atom in which the electron has entered a lower orbit — meaning the atom itself contains less energy. Mills decided that he could not only produce hydrinos, but also capture the energy released during the transition from hydrogen, using it to generate electricity. (Venture Beat; May 30, 2008)

• Solar >
  Transparent Transistor Solar - Xtreme Energetics says it will make a more efficient solar panel that can convert up to 43 percent of the sun’s light into energy at a cost of $1.50 per watt. The clear transistor panels are clear and can be tinted to whatever color might match or compliment the building. (earth2tech; June 3, 2008)

• Solar > Thin Film Solar >
  Website: Global Solar Technology -“CIGS has proven to be the most efficient, cost-effective thin-film technology for BIPV applications. Global Solar is the only company in full-scale production of CIGS cells on flexible substrates, and has achieved a record-setting average 10 percent solar cell efficiency.” (GS-ENews; April 28, 2008)

• Wind > Floating >
  Scalable wind turbine might fit on your roof - Doug Selsam´s "Sky Serpent" design uses several small rotors attached to a single shaft. 25 rotors generate 3,000 Watts to the generator. (Physorg; May 26, 2008)

• Fuel Efficiency > Transmissions / Hydraulics >
  Hydraulic Transmission Doubles Mileage - Artemis Intelligent Power claims to have developed a new kind of transmission capable of doubling fuel economy and reducing CO2 emissions by as much as 30 percent. The High Efficiency Digital Displacement Automotive Transmission (HEDDAT) is a hydraulic hybrid engine modulator said to be more durable, lighter and cheaper than its electric counterparts. (GoodCleanTech; June 5, 2008)

• Fuel Efficiency > Skeptics >
  Do Fuel-Saving Gadgets Take You for a Ride? - (Naysaying by Mainstreamers). Auto-industry officials and federal energy experts say most fuel-saving add-ons don't work. The EPA and FTC have tested products that claim to boost fuel economy and found they generally don't improve vehicles' efficiency -- and they sometimes actually harm performance and increase emissions. (Wall Street Journal; June 4, 2008)

• Fuel Efficiency / Hydrogen Injection >
  Hula's hydrogen-assist generator helps drivers increase gas mileage - "In one quart of water there are between 1,200 and 1,800 gallons of hydrogen, which equate to from 900 to 1,000 cubic feet. That's amazing. You are breaking apart molecules and separating the oxygen from hydrogen." Ed Hula (Ozarks Newstand; May 29, 2008)

• Fuel Efficiency / Water as Fuel > Hydrogen Injection
  High Schooler's Engine Runs With Water (TV video included) - Jonathan Soli’s onboard electrolysis invention uses both hydrogen and oxygen for energy, and improves mileage by around 23%. (ABC6 News KAALtv.com; June 2, 2008)
  
• Engines > Cyclone Power Technologies >
  Cyclone Waste Heat Engine - The Cyclone Waste Heat Engine (WHE) is a self-starting engine that operates in a low pressure, low temperature range. This feature allows the engine to run on waste heat emanating from an external source, such as the exhaust from an internal (or external) combustion engine, or the direct burning of biomass(Engineering TV; June 2, 2008)

• Fuel Efficiency > Hydrogen Injection >
  Scorpion sportscar would burn gasoline and hydrogen - Rather than using fuel cells to power an electric motor, the Scorpion from Ronn Motor Company would have an internal combustion engine burning both gasoline and hydrogen, achieving 40 highway miles per gallon. (CNet News; June 5, 2008)

• Solar > Solar Vehicles >
  Golf Cart Solar Roof Panel Kit - A photovoltaic roof allows the golf cart to go one mile for every 1.68 hours in peak sun. Affordable way to convert your Club or E-Z-GO golf cart. (Frugal Dougal's Golf Cart Accessories; May 30, 2008)

• Fuel Efficiency Vehicles >
  Honda Leasing First Ever Consumer Fuel Cell Car - If you live in Torrance, Irvine, or Santa Monica, California, Honda is the first ever major car company to lease the hydrogen fuel cell-based Honda FCX Clarity to the public. (EcoGeek; May 27, 2008)

• Waste to Energy >
  Landfill Gas to Energy: A Growing Alternative Energy Resource - Landfill gas is comprised of approximately 50-60 percent methane and 40-50 percent carbon dioxide. Waste Management (WM) has over 100 sites that have landfill gas to energy (LFGTE) facilities that collect methane and use it to fuel onsite engines or turbines, generating electricity to power surrounding homes and neighborhoods. (Treehugger; May 30, 2008)

June 1, 2008

Top 100: Hydrogen / Plasma > Blacklight > BlackLight's Hydrino Going Commercial - The BlackLight Process is said to generate enormous amounts of cheap, non-polluting heat that will replace the thermal power in coal, oil, gas and nuclear power plants that is then converted to electricity. (PESN; May 29, 2008)

Water / Hydro > River > Interview with Dr. Elijah of Slow Moving Water, Inc. - Company has a floating barge river energy turbine technology, in which they use the electricity to generate other usable products such as hydrogen, to get around the high cost of becoming a utility. (Free Energy Now; May 25, 2008)

Top 100: Air Conditioning > Zeolite > Zeolite-Water Heating and Cooling System - Zeo-Tech has developed a new energy conversion process for the efficient generation and storage of heat and/or cooling power. Driven by a heat source, this process is solely based on the material zeolite and water and is therefore fully compatible with the most stringent environmental regulations. (PESWiki)

Solar > Silicon > 1366 Technologies: More-Powerful Solar Cells - An MIT researcher has found a way to increase the efficiency of an important type of silicon solar cells by 27% while keeping costs about the same. The technology has received its first round of funding at $12.4 million dollars. (PESWiki; Mar. 27, 2008)

Featured: Power Factor Correction / Conservation > Pacific KVAR Power Conditioning Units - The KVAR/KEC system reduces the amount of power drawn from the utility by eliminating otherwise lost electricity (reactive power) created by inductive loads at any given facility. The KVAR Energy Controller unit stores and releases this reactive power thus eliminating this wasted energy. (PESWiki)

• Radio > Vortex Network News - William Alek presents Progressive Technology Hour each Saturdays at 10am Pacific. Not very rigorous in requirement for proof.

• Fuel Additives >
  Liquid boosts mileage, reduces pollution - Fuel Science E3 Research inventor claims his E3 ultra clean fuel catalyst changes the way gasoline is used in the engine, making it burn more efficiently. Diesel engines saw fuel efficiency increase up to 45% and emissions drop 98%, he said. (KATU.com; May 21, 2008) (Thanks JQP)

• Fuel Efficiency Retrofits / Hybrids / Hydraulics > Fuel-saving find - Ernie Brookins’ hybrid hydraulic transmission drive system captures, compresses, and stores “wasted” drive-train energy produced when a vehicle’s engine is running. (In-Forum; May 24, 2008)

• Ethanol > Cellulosic Ethanol Plant Opens - A 1.4 million gallon demonstration-scale plant in Jennings, LA will make biofuel from agricultural waste left over from processing sugarcane. (MIT Technology Review; May 28, 2008)

• Non-Fossil Oil / Algae Oil >
  Sapphire Energy turns algae into 'green crude' for fuel - Sapphire Energy uses algae, sunlight, carbon dioxide and non-potable water to make "green crude" that it contends is chemically equivalent to the light, sweet crude oil. They call it "the world's first renewable gasoline". (Los Angeles Times; May 29, 2008)
• Waste to Energy > Modern-Day Alchemy: Turning Trash Into Power - GE, which aims to make $25 billion in annual sales from green businesses by 2010, is working to adapt its gasification technology, used to burn coal more cleanly, to turn municipal waste into a relatively clean-burning gas. They are about five to ten years away from making garbage gasification a paying business. (Planet Ark; May 22, 2008)