In Brazil alone, officials estimate that some 475
million animals die from being struck on the nation's roads. That's
around 15 animals per second, totaling more than twice the country’s
human population. The Centro Brasileiro de Estudos em Ecologia de
Estradas (CBEE) is working to reduce those grim statistics with the help
of an app called Urubu (vulture in Portuguese), which uses the power of
crowd-sourcing to identify roadkill hotspots across the country. Read More
Panasonic is reporting a 25.6 percent conversion
efficiency for its HIT (Heterojunction with Intrinsic Thin layer) solar
cells. This is an improvement of 0.9 percentage points over the 24.7
percent conversion efficiency Panasonic achieved in February 2013, with
the company claiming it as a world record for crystalline silicon-based
solar cells of a "practical size." Read More
Winds are stronger and steadier at higher altitudes, that’s why the Buoyant Air Turbine
(BAT) from Altaeros is pushing to be the highest wind turbine in
history. Already tested to 500 feet off the ground in 45 mph winds, this
helium-filled shell with a wind turbine in the middle is soon shooting
for a world record 1,000 ft float. Packing down into a shipping
container for transport, the BAT is being proposed as a quickly
deployable tethered power source for remote areas and emergency zones.
Read More
The rooftops of automotive manufacturing plants have proven fertile ground for solar arrays with Audi, Ferrari and Renault
installing extensive fields of solar panels at their respective
facilities. Now Jaguar Land Rover has got on board with the largest
rooftop solar panel array in the UK sprouting from its new Engine
Manufacturing Centre in South Staffordshire. Read More
An international team of researchers has
discovered a potential new use for discarded toilets, along with other
ceramic waste such as basins, stoneware and bricks. It turns out that
they can be made into a more eco-friendly form of cement. Read More
DualWingGenerator mimics flapping wings to harvest energy
By Nick Lavars
April 2, 2014
With homes and light-vehicles accounting for
roughly 44 percent of total greenhouse gases emitted in the US,
neutralizing these emissions would certainly go a long way towards a
clean energy future. What if these sources of pollution could not only
be nullified, but play an active role in reducing our environmental
footprint? Such is the thinking behind the Honda Smart Home US unveiled
last week, which generates enough solar energy to power both car and
home, with a little left over to feed back into the grid. Read More
Israeli solar plant is now 100 percent self-cleaning
By Stu Robarts
March 31, 2014
The dusty desert environments where many solar
plants are located can make their photovoltaic arrays dirty and reduce
their effectiveness. Cleaning the panels can be a time-consuming and
expensive process. An Israeli solar plant is now said to be the first to
have fully-automated cleaning in place. Read More
Phosphorus is a mineral that's widely used in
fertilizer, which itself has an unfortunate tendency to leach out of
farmers' fields and into our waterways. Now, researchers from Germany's
Fraunhofer Institute for Silicate Research have devised a method of
retrieving some of that phosphorus from the water – thus both reducing
pollution, and providing a source of reclaimed phosphorus. Read More
When we complain about the rain, other people
will often say "Yeah, but it's good for the plants." Well, thanks to a
microturbine-based system created by three students from the
Technological University of Mexico, it's now also being used to generate
electricity for use in low-income homes. Read More
In 2010, Stanford University researchers reported harnessing energy directly from chloroplasts,
the cellular "power plants" within plants where photosynthesis takes
place. Now, by embedding different types of carbon nanotubes into these
chloroplasts, a team at MIT has boosted plants' ability to capture light
energy. As well as opening up the possibility of creating "bionic
plants" with enhanced energy production, the same approach could be used
to create plants with environmental monitoring capabilities. Read More
Insulating your home may help the environment by
lowering your energy usage, but unfortunately the petroleum-based foam
that's typically used as insulation isn't all that eco-friendly
itself. Researchers at Germany's Fraunhofer Institute for Wood
Research, however, have developed a reportedly greener alternative that
they claim works just as well – it's foam made from wood. Read More
Its hard to imagine a major metropolis devoid of
cars in any country, let alone in the home of celebrated brands like
Mercedes-Benz and BMW. Germany's affection for all things automotive may
be in for a shake up however, with the city of Hamburg setting the
wheels in motion for its "Green Network," a bold plan make cars an
optional mode of transport in the city within 15-20 years. Read More
According to the US Department of Agriculture,
every year approximately 455,000 tons (412,769 tonnes) of discarded
eggshells must be transported and disposed of in the US alone. Now,
however, scientists at the University of Aveiro in Portugal have
developed a method of using such eggshell waste in the production of
ceramic goods. Read More
According to World Wildlife Fund data, we are
losing 12 to 15 million hectares (46,332 to 57,915 square miles) of the
world's forests every year. Deforestation is a major contributor to
climate change, as it accounts for 15 percent of all greenhouse gas
emissions, besides killing biodiversity, depleting natural resources,
compromising water sources, causing soil erosion and other environmental
problems. Efforts to fight deforestation require fast information that
could help authorities and NGOs take action before the worst damage is
done. Global Forest Watch is a new initiative offering the possibility
to do just that. It monitors deforestation activity across the globe, in
near real time. Read More
FOR MORE SEARCH "Environment".. OR @GIZMAG
Seafloor carpet mimics muddy seabed to harness wave power
By Nick Lavars
February 23, 2014
Many organizations around the world are looking at ways to harness the power of waves
as a renewable energy source, but none are covering quite the same
ground as a team of engineers from the University of California (UC),
Berkeley. The seafloor carpet, a system inspired by the wave absorbing
abilities of a muddy seabed, has taken exploring the potential of wave
power to some intriguing new depths. Read More
Interview: Environmental artist Chris Jordan talks sustainability
By Nick Lavars
February 18, 2014
Around the world there are hundreds of millions
of discarded mobile phones lying around in drawers and boxes, displaced
by the bigger screen or better camera of the latest version. But truth
be told, even if we were talking about hundreds of billions it
would be unlikely to elicit a much different response, because
ridiculously big numbers are ridiculously big numbers, right?
Seattle-based photographer and activist Chris Jordan is on a mission to
make these measures of consumerism manifest through visual art and, as
he explained to Gizmag, bridge the disconnect between our mass
consumption and its largely invisible consequences. Read More
World’s largest solar thermal plant now fully operational
By Stu Robarts
February 17, 2014
After three years of construction, the Ivanpah Solar Electric Generating System
(ISEGS) is now operational. The 392 MW plant, funded by NRG, Google,
and BrightSource Energy, is expected to generate enough electricity to
power 140,000 homes, each year. NRG announced last week that each of the
plant's three units is now supplying electricity to California’s grid.
Read More
Sensor system lights up wind turbines only when aircraft approaches
By Nick Lavars
February 11, 2014
With aspirations to claim 80 percent of its power
from renewable sources by the 2050, it follows that Germany is taking a
proactive approach to its clean energy transformation. Wind farms,
while set to play an important part in achieving this goal, often meet
impassioned opposition from disgruntled neighbors piqued by their
perpetually blinking beacons. In an effort to address this issue,
researchers have developed a sensor system for wind turbines which
detects nearby aircraft, switching on a beacon warning system only as
they approach. Read More
Study links stronger Pacific trade winds to pause in global warming
By Nick Lavars
February 10, 2014
Despite an overwhelming consensus among climate
scientists that warming trends over the past century are most likely the
result of human activities, some claim that a plateau in global surface
air temperatures since 2001 is evidence to the contrary. However, a new
study suggests the recent stabilization of air temperatures is a result
of abnormally strong east to west trade winds, causing warmth to be
stored temporarily beneath the western Pacific ocean. Read More
Talking about the weather is a pastime as old as
language, but climate researchers from the University of East Anglia
(UEA) in the UK have just given people a whole lot more to talk about.
As part of an ongoing effort to increase the accessibility and
transparency of data on past climate and climate change, they've made
one of the most widely used records of Earth's climate accessible
through Google Earth. Read More
By now, most people have at least a passing
knowledge of biodiesel – it's diesel fuel made from plant or animal
oils, as opposed to the more traditional and less eco-friendly
petroleum. While it's a good choice for people with diesel-powered
vehicles, those of us with gas-burning cars haven't been able to get in
on the action ... although that may be about to change. Read More
With dwindling non-renewable fuel sources
creating an enormous energy challenge, the search is on to develop
sustainable, renewable types of energy such as solar, wind and biofuel.
One of the recent developments in this field comes from New York's
Clarkson University, where new findings suggest that small organisms
found in wastewater treatment lagoons could be used as biofuel
feedstock. Read More
Just as a good meal can be ruined by too much
table salt, too much sodium chloride applied to road surfaces to prevent
icing can have a detrimental effect on vehicles, infrastructure and the
environment. Engineers at Spain's Carlos III University (UC3M) have
developed an optical sensor intended to prevent excessive salt treatment
by detecting the amount of salt already on the road in real time. Read More
Ozgur Sahin believes that water evaporation is
the largest power source in nature. In an effort to demonstrate the
potential of this untapped resource, Sahin and his fellow researchers
have created prototype electrical generators with rubber sheets that
move in response to changes in humidity thanks to a coating of bacterial
spores. Read More
Whenever the topic of plant-derived biofuels
is raised, the issue of turning valuable arable land over to the task
of growing feedstock is generally not far behind. A discovery by the
Sustainable Bioenergy Research Consortium (SRBC) that desert plants fed
by seawater can produce biofuel more efficiently than other well-known
feedstocks could help alleviate such concerns. Read More
Many claim that talking to plants helps them grow
faster. But what if the plants could talk back? That’s what the
EU-funded PLants Employed As SEnsing Devices (PLEASED) project is hoping
to achieve by creating plant cyborgs, or "plant-borgs." While this
technology won't allow green thumbs to carry on a conversation with
their plants, it will provide feedback on their environment by enabling
the plants to act as biosensors. Read More
A new type of carbon nanotube (CNT) sponge that
contains sulfur and iron has been developed and is proving to be more
effective at soaking up water contaminants, such as oil, fertilizers,
pesticides and pharmaceuticals, than previously seen. The magnetic
properties of these nanosponges also make them easier to retrieve from
the environment once the clean-up job is done. Read More
Rawlemon's beautiful, spherical solar energy generators
By Stu Robarts
January 14, 2014
Despite their noble cause of harnessing clean,
renewable energy from the sun, solar panels tend to be aesthetically
uninspiring. Solar start-up Rawlemon aims to change all that with a new,
and undeniably beautiful, take on concentrated photovoltaic (CPV) technology. Read More
Researchers at Ruhr-Universitat Bochum have
created a bio-based solar cell capable of generating a continuous
electrical current of several nanowatts per sq cm. The new approach
avoids damage to the tapped photosynthetic cells, an issue that has
plagued previous attempts to harness nature's "power plant." Read More
Huge reserves of freshwater lie beneath the ocean floor
December 11, 2013
Scientists in Australia have reported the
discovery of huge freshwater reserves preserved in aquifers under the
world's oceans. The water has remained shielded from seawater thanks to
the accumulation of a protective layer of sediment and clay. And it’s
not a local phenomenon. Such reserves are to be found under continental
shelves off Australia, China, North America and South Africa. Read More
Solspaces project to test year-round solar heating system
By Nick Lavars
December 3, 2013
Researchers at the University of Stuttgart are
preparing to test a solar heating system capable of long term storage as
part of "Solspaces," a three-year project that kicked off in March
2012. The heating concept uses a solar thermal system in conjunction
with a sorption tank for storing heat from solar collectors throughout
the warmer months that can then be released when the mercury drops. Read More
Over the years, various researchers have
developed systems in which the weight transferred through cars' wheels
onto the road – or through pedestrians' feet onto the sidewalk
– is used to generate electricity. These systems utilize piezoelectric
materials, which convert mechanical stress into an electrical current.
Such materials may be effective, but they're also too expensive for use
in many parts of the world. That's why Mexican entrepreneur Héctor
Ricardo MacÃas Hernández created his own rather ingenious alternative.
Read More
Amphiro's a1 self-powered water and energy meter
By Darren Quick
November 27, 2013
There's nothing like putting real time water and
energy usage information in your face to change people's shower habits,
and that's just what Amphiro's a1 self-powered water and energy meter
does. It connects between the shower hose and a handheld showerhead and,
like the Driblet, generates the electricity required to power it from the flow of water running through it. Read More
Spectrolab beats its own solar cell efficiency world record
By Darren Quick
November 19, 2013
Spectrolab has set a new solar cell efficiency
record of 38.8 percent for a ground-based multi-junction solar cell. The
new world record doesn't exactly smash the previous mark of 37.8 percent, which was also set by Spectrolab, but is welcome news in a field where every percentage point counts. Read More
City of Vancouver launches cigarette butt recycling program
By Ben Coxworth
November 14, 2013
What can you say about cigarette butts? They
instantly make wherever they are look seedy, they don't biodegrade, plus
they're highly toxic to aquatic organisms. It turns out, however, that
they are good for something. The City of Vancouver and
TerraCycle Canada launched a first-of-its-kind pilot program this
Tuesday, in which the butts will be collected for recycling. Read More
New process recycles rare earth elements from wastewater
By Ben Coxworth
October 31, 2013
Rare earth elements are an integral part of many
of today's electronic devices, serving as magnets, catalysts and
superconductors. Unfortunately, these minerals are also ... well, rare,
and thus very pricey. Recently, however, scientists discovered that
some of them can be reclaimed from industrial wastewater, instead of
being mined from the earth. Read More
Combining solar power, health care and education
is the concept behind Samsung’s Digital Villages, a project recently
launched in South Africa as the kick-off a larger plan that includes
units in Ethiopia and Gabon by the end of 2013. The Digital Village is
also designed to help local traders develop their business with a
sustainable and low-cost alternative to fossil fuels. Read More
Plug&Sun CPV system powers up remote Madagascan village
October 22, 2013
Fondation Énergies pour le Monde (Energy for the
World Foundation), an organization that promotes clean energy in
developing countries, has completed the installation of a concentrator
photovoltaic (CPV) system in Ambondro, southern Madagascar. The CPV
system was also combined with existing wind turbines in the village,
with project partner Sunidarity claiming it is the first decentralized
rural electrification operation of its kind in Madagascar. Read More
Of all the things that we regularly dispose of,
you would think that shoes would be one of the most difficult to
recycle. Not only are well-used shoes kind of ... gross, but
they're also made of a variety of different materials, all of which are
joined together. Nonetheless, scientists at Loughborough University in
the UK announced last week that they have created and trialled "the
world’s first comprehensive system for separating and recovering useful
materials from old footwear." Read More
Starpath spray-on coating lights up the road
October 21, 2013
UK company Pro-Teq has developed a new
water-resistant, spray-on coating that absorbs UV light during the day
and releases it at night, adapting to the lighting conditions in its
surroundings. The technology is being given a test run at the Christ's
Pieces park in Cambridge, and could prove a cost effective alternative
to conventional street lighting. Read More
Joining forces with engineering firm Deka
R&D, Coca-Cola has launched a project which will see the
transformation of approximately 2,000 shipping containers into water
purifying stations. Dubbed Ekocenter, the shipping container module has
been designed to provide isolated and developing communities with
facilities to produce safe drinking water, as well as access to wireless
internet technology and solar powered charging. Read More
Street lights are one of things people in heavily
populated areas tend to take for granted. They make walking and driving
a safer, more pleasant experience, but they also account for a
significant chunk of a city's energy usage. Solar powered street lights
offer a solution for places where electricity is at a premium, or
locations that are off the grid completely and the Spirit Solar Powered
Lighting Column is the first example we've seen which rolls the post and
the panels together in a standalone design. Read More
Delft University's Nuon Solar Team has won the
Challenger class of the World Solar Challenge. Its solar-powered Nuna 7
vehicle arrived in Adelaide at 10:03 a.m. on the morning of the fifth
day of the event, having led from the front for the full 3,021 km from
Darwin, crossing Australia from north coast to south in a total of a
little over 33 hours. That puts its average speed at an impressive 91
km/h (57 mph). Read More
Novel ad campaign squeezes extra life out of dead batteries
By Dave LeClair
September 27, 2013
Thai soymilk company Vitamilk has rolled out a
rather interesting advertising vehicle in the form of a large signboard
that takes "dead" batteries and squeezes enough extra power out of them
to charge smartphones. Read More
Discarded plastic bags are if nothing else, certainly one of the most visible
forms of litter out there. While it's possible to recycle some of them
into other plastic products, scientists at Australia's University of
Adelaide have found another use for them – they can be used in the
production of high-value carbon nanotubes. Read More
Cleanup Array concept aims to rid the oceans of plastic waste
September 23, 2013
Boyan Slat, an aerospace engineering student at
the Delft University of Technology, is working to combine
environmentalism, technology, and his creative outlook to rid our oceans
of plastic debris. His Ocean Cleanup Project aims to utilize the
oceans’ natural gyres (five circular currents in the oceans around the
world – two in the Atlantic, two in the Pacific, and one in the Indian)
to collect plastic waste. Read More
According to scientists at Spain's Universidad
Carlos III de Madrid (UC3M), approximately five percent of vehicles on
the road are responsible for about 90 percent of toxic vehicle
emissions. Short of pulling each and every car over to analyze its
tailpipe output, though, how does one go about identifying the
offenders? Well, the UC3M researchers have helped design a system that
images the emissions of individual vehicles in real time, on highways up
to three lanes wide. Read More
Photoflow concept combines solar power with rainwater collection
By Tim Walker
September 12, 2013
In many countries around the world the supply of
electricity and clean water is often sporadic and of poor quality.
Consulting and design company NOS is looking to address this problem
with PhotoFlow, a two-in-one concept design that combines solar power
generation with water collection and storage. Read More
Scientists challenge economics of storing renewable energy
By Heidi Hoopes
September 11, 2013
True or false: solar and wind power are freely
available and clean, and thus should always be stored when they generate
more energy than the grid can use? It's easy to assume that renewable
energy should never be turned off, but scientists at Stanford have done
the math to find the break-even point where storing energy is better
than "wasting," or curtailing, that energy, and their findings aren't
necessarily as you'd think. Read More
Australian company Zeo has developed and patented
a glue-free process that creates a strong, versatile new building
material out of just cellulose and water. The resulting hardwood-like
material known as Zeoform can then be sprayed, molded or shaped into a
range of products. And it's not just trees that stand to benefit –
Zeoform also promises an eco-friendly alternative to the use of plastics
and resins. Read More
The refrigeration units used in cold transport
trailers are typically powered by small diesel engines, which use up
non-renewable fuel and release greenhouse gases, just like their big
brothers. The US Department of Energy, however, is looking into an
alternative. As part of a two-year pilot project, it’s equipping four
such trailers with clean-running hydrogen fuel cells. Read More
Researchers at MIT have come up with a new design
for a rechargeable flow battery that does away with the expensive and
ineffective membrane of previous designs. The device could prove the
ideal solution for effectively storing energy from intermittent power
sources such as solar and wind power. Read More
By 2050, the UN expects that there will be almost
10 billion people on the Earth. This poses some serious practical
questions, not least among which is how we'll put food into 2.5 billion
or so extra tummies (especially given that we don't adequately fill all
of the 7-plus billion we already have). If you're yet to hear alarming
phrases like "food security" and "sustainable intensification" you've
probably been living under a rock. Which is apt, actually, because
that's exactly where you might find one of the proposed answers:
insects. A pop-up kitchen in London on Thursday served up a variety of
bug-based bites to passers by, and Gizmag arrived soon after it opened
to sample the wares on offer. Read More
Playing video games and feeling virtuous may seem
almost like a contradiction in terms, but the Sainsbury Laboratory in
Norwich, UK has turned gaming into a way to advance science and help
protect the environment. The Fraxinus game is a Facebook app that uses
player participation to figure out the structure of a fungus genome, as
part of a crowdsourcing effort to combat a disease that threatens
Britain and Europe’s ash trees. Read More
FOR MORE SEARCH "Environment".. OR @GIZMAG
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