Here is a picture of the glass coating:

 http://www.earthtechling.com/2011/02/spray-on-solar-glass-gets-a-bit-bigger/

The coatings are less than 1/10th the thickness of thin films, New Energy says, taking advantage of what it calls “the world’s smallest functional solar cells.” The company claims that by generating electricity from both natural and artificial light sources, its cells “outperform today’s commercial solar and thin-film technologies by as much as tenfold.”

This stuff has the power and distribution possibility to be in every home and help reduce the amount people spend on electricity.

Sanyo Eneloop electric bike YouTube video from CES 2010

For the summertime commute or for year-round transportation for those living in balmy climes, the Eneloop Bike by Sanyo could just be one of the biggest money and energy-saving devices you could ever buy. Forget about trading in your SUV for a hybrid vehicle! If you’re interested in truly low-cost driving, then check out this electric bike.

The Sanyo Eneloop electric bicycle is a very low-energy, cost effective means of getting from point A to point B, with little in the way of greenhouse gas emissions along the way. With a rack on the back, you can carry your work bag, groceries, or your child as you run errands, head to the office, or make a trip to a friend’s house. Plus you have the advantage of getting fresh air in the meantime!

When you pedal, it goes—the faster you pedal, the faster you move, up to 15 miles per hour. And by adjusting the built-in Power-Up mode, the bike automatically gives you assistance from the motor while you pedal so that you can ride comfortably uphill with very little energy (they state that it will increase your riding distance by 1.8 times).

Using “Loop charging” the bike circulates energy, charging the battery while you ride. When you apply the brakes, the rear brake acts like a generator that charges the battery. It can also be plugged in to charge it in 3 hours and 30 minutes.

It is available at a variety of retailers for about $2,300, including Best Buy (limited distribution) in their Personal Transportation department.  It’s only available in the white color and one size, but they believe the frame fits about 80% of the people in the market. The seat is adjustable up and down. You can also customize the graphics package for the bicycle (much like your iPhone), so you can personalize your vehicle for an extra charge.

Sanyo Eneloop electric bike

Obama administration recently announced a new clean energy REDI program

The Obama administration announced a new program on December 14: The Renewables and Efficiency Deployment Initiative (REDI), which will offer $350 million in funds to accelerate the development of clean energy technologies. As both a domestic and global initiative, some of the funds ($85 million) will go into a joint coffer (supported by other countries such as Australia, Norway, Switzerland, Netherlands, the UK, and France) to be used to develop and deploy clean energy tech around the world.

The program will operate in several industries, including advanced vehicles, bioenergy, building and industrial efficiencies, smart grid technologies, carbon capture, high-efficiency coal,  and of course, solar, wind, and marine energy. The official REDI website outlines the following programs that will receive this funding:

• The Solar and LED Energy Access Program will accelerate deployment of affordable solar home systems and LED lanterns to those without access to electricity.  This program will yield immediate economic and public health benefits by providing households with low-cost and quality-assured solar alternatives to expensive and polluting kerosene.
• The Super-efficient Equipment and Appliance Deployment Program will harness the market and convening power of MEF countries to improve efficiency for appliances traded throughout the world.  A number of MEF countries have implemented, or are exploring, incentive programs for energy-efficient appliances. Coordinating incentives, standards and labeling systems can create unprecedented economies of scale for these appliances.

• The Clean Energy Information Platform will establish an online platform for MEF countries to exchange technical resources, policy experience and the infrastructure to coordinate various activities in deploying clean energy technologies, and share this information with the world.

• The Scaling-up Renewable Energy Program (S-REP), under the World Bank’s Strategic Climate Fund, will provide policy support and technical assistance to low-income countries developing national renewable energy strategies and underwrite additional capital costs associated with renewable energy investments.  Funding through Climate REDI will accelerate the launch of S-REP.

Further, it states that REDI will use the following tools to disseminate the new technologies:

1. Quality assurance to guard developing country consumers against sub-standard renewable energy products;
2. Minimum efficiency standards to remove the lowest efficiency appliances from the market;
3. Labeling to guide consumers to quality-assured and high-efficiency products;
4. Financing for scale up of early-stage low-carbon products, to bring down costs and remove barriers to deployment and to catalyze investment by the private sector;
5. Information sharing that enables all energy stakeholders to access state-of-the art information on technology and best practices.

Image: Zipcar

Lower monthly transportation bills and environmentally-friendly driving has been possible for quite some time for those using Zipcar’s car sharing program. With over 325,000 members and 6,500 vehicles throughout North American states and provinces, as well as in London, England, Zipcar boasts an impressive community of members committed to energy conservation and reducing their greenhouse gas emissions.

But sharing cars just got a whole lot easier for iPhone users. Zipcar recently announced the release of their new iPhone application, available for download for free from the App Store for iPhone and iPod touch users. This new applications offers a variety of great features that make it easier for people to save energy by finding and use a Zipcar:

1. Find available Zipcars on a map using your current location, a favorite location, or any location

2. Reserve a Zipcar anytime, anywhere

3. Sort cars by time available, car type and model

4. View upcoming reservations

5. Get directions to your Zipcar

6. Easily locate your reserved Zipcar by telling it to honk its horn

7. Unlock and lock your Zipcar after scanning your Zipcard at the start of each reservation

8. Tap to contact Zipcar if help is needed during a reservation

9. Extend or cancel reservations on the go

10. Play around with the virtual key fob and make sounds even when you’re not in a reservation

This app makes finding a great car for much less totally fun and very sustainable. In fact, according to Austin CarShare, the average consumer can save approximately $6,500 every single year by joining a car share program!

Concerns over climate change and rising fuel costs have more people turning to biofuels than every before. Whether you’re interested in burning a biodiesel blend in your current vehicle or converting an old car to run on straight vegetable oil, you may be able to reduce your fuel costs, save money, and help the environment by looking into alternative fuel sources for your driving needs. To get an idea of what’s involved in using bio fuels in your vehicle, check out these basic instructions for choosing biodiesel or bio fuel.

Maintenance

Besides driving more efficiently, you can also save money and improve your vehicles fuel efficiency by keeping it in good working order. Proper maintenance and care are essential for anyone wishing to reduce their monthly and yearly auto bills.

• Driving on underinflated tires will subtract 0.4 percent from your overall vehicle fuel efficiency. Doing a monthly check of your tires can save you 7 cents/gallon.
• Maintain your vehicle by having it tuned-up regularly to improve fuel economy by 4 percent, which will save you $0.10/gallon.
• During your next oil change, make sure you get the recommended grade of motor oil to improve fuel efficiency by 1-2 percent.
• If you’ve got an older car, replacing clogged or dirty air filters will help to prevent debris from getting into your engine, thus making it more fuel efficient.
• Regularly replace the oil filter in your vehicle to help your car running efficiently.
• Make sure that your tires are aligned properly. Misaligned tires will cause engine drag, which will further degrease your fuel efficiency.
• Regular oil changes will help to increase fuel efficiency, since smooth-flowing oil will reduce friction in the moving parts of your engine. This will also extend the useful life of your engine.

Converting your vehicle to run on biodiesel

Running your diesel vehicle on biodiesel is a great way to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. You can choose to run your vehicle on commercially-available biodiesel blends which generally don’t go higher than 20 percent biodiesel and 80 percent petrodiesel, commonly known as B20. If, however, you want run your vehicle on 100 percent biodiesel, or B100, it will require some vehicle modifications if you intend to use a blend that contains more than 20 percent biodiesel.

1. Up-front vehicle changes

• a. Biodiesel is an excellent solvent, so your vehicle will go through an intense time of transition. Petrodiesel leaves waxy, grimy deposits in your fuel tank and hoses. Over the course of several weeks when first using biodiesel, the biodiesel will slowly dissolve sediment deposits in your vehicle’s engine, requiring frequent filter changes.
• b. If your engine uses rubber components in any of its systems, these will need to be replaced with rot-resistant parts. Viton is the preferred material.

2. Ongoing maintenance requirements

• a. Running a vehicle on biodiesel will require more frequent filter changes ongoing as well due to the solvent nature of the fuel.
• b. Diesel vehicles don’t have electronic fuel injection systems like gasoline vehicles, and as such, the injector pump (IP) will need to be primed. This is done by pumping the diesel fuel into the IP from the tank.

Compared to running your vehicle on biofuels, the vehicle modifications in this system are quite a bit less involved. However, if you choose to make your own biodiesel, either from virgin or waste vegetable oil, it will require a significant ongoing time commitment to process the vegetable oil into biodiesel in a relatively dangerous chemical process.

Nevertheless, it can cost less to run your vehicle on biodiesel. The initial cost to convert your vehicle is very little (the price of some filters and rubber component replacements) and if you make your biodiesel, it can cost between $300 and $13,000 to get a processor up and running. Making your own biodiesel after these initial costs are accounted for can range from $0.40/gallon to $3/gallon, depending on where you source your oil.

Additionally, biodiesel burns more cleanly than petrodiesel. In fact, even a 20:80 blend of biodiesel and petrodiesel means a 15 percent reduction in carbon dioxide (CO₂), and also cuts down on particulate matter (PM), carbon monoxide (CO), and sulphur dioxide (SO₂). Pure biodiesel can result in a 90 percent decline in air toxins. Biodiesel also produces about 95 percent less toxic waste than petrodiesel, although it also creates about twice as much nontoxic solid waste (in the form of unprocessed plant material).

Converting your vehicle to run on biofuel

Using straight (SVO) or waste vegetable oil (WVO) as a fuel requires modifications to be made to your diesel vehicle engine rather than modifications to the fuel itself (although the oil is filtered).

1. One- or two-tank conversion? The basic premise is to add either a one- or two-tank system that will be used to heat the vegetable oil. Veggie oil is very viscose and so must be heated to run in your vehicle properly in order to prevent coking, liquid fuel leakage past unsealed rings, and contamination of lubricating oil. Here are the two options:

• a. One-tank system: With this option, you fundamentally alter the stock fuel system to run the vehicle on 100 percent vegetable oil, but can only be used on vehicles run in warmer climates that never go below -40F. Many one-tank system users either blend their vegetable oil with petroleum diesel or add a solvent such as turpentine, paint stripper, kerosene, or naphthalene.
• b. Two-tank system: Here the stock fuel system is left untouched and an entirely new, secondary fuel system is added (the second tank). The stock fuel system runs on petrodiesel for start-up and shut-down, and then switches to the second tank to run on vegetable oil. The secondary tank heats the oil to 160F or higher. This method results in fewer engine problems, does not reduce the life of the vehicle, is an easy conversion, and much safer to operate.

2. Parts needed: The parts required for using biofuels include:

• a. Heated fuel tank: To warm the vegetable oil.
• b. Heated fuel lines: To keep the heated oil warm as it travels through the engine.
• c. Heated vegetable oil filter: Generally heated, these provide filtration to at least the same micron level as the stock fuel filter.
• d. Final fuel heater: To raise the fuel temperature to minimum injection levels.
• e. Valves: To correctly direct the fuel as needed, with automatic or manual controls.
• f. Indicators: Used by the driver to monitor the system

3. Oil collection: To run a vehicle on WVO, oil will have to be collected. Many restaurants will give away their oil for free to avoid paying disposal costs, but you must negotiate an agreement with them.

4. Oil filtration: Once the oil is collected, it should be filtered to remove any large debris.

5. Oil storage: Vegetable oil can degrade over time if left exposed to air, sunlight, and moisture. It therefore should be stored in a cool, dry location in sealed drums.

6. Legal implications: It should be noted that using vegetable oil as fuel is illegal and therefore should be done with due consideration.

Although many biofuel advocates suggest that you save as much as 75 percent on your fuel bills by using vegetable oil as fuel, how much you save by running your vehicle on biofuel will depend on many factors, including:

• Type of oil: If brand new pure or straight vegetable oil is used, the cost for using this fuel can be quite prohibitive, especially as costs for certain crops, such as corn, continue to rise. Waste vegetable is generally the most cost effective as it is often free.
• Cost of time: You will have to put some time in to collecting and filtering your oil, as well as time to modify your vehicle and maintain it on a regular basis.
• Vehicle conversion: There are some up-front costs to converting your vehicle, which fall somewhere between $300 and several thousand dollars.
• Original vehicle efficiency: The fuel efficiency of your vehicle won’t change much when using veggie oil, so this will have to be taken into consideration.

The greatest environmental benefit to running a vehicle on SVO or WVO is the reduction in pollutants. Compared to petrodiesel, vegetable oil is 75 percent cleaner, and results in fewer carbon dioxide, sulphur oxide, carbon monoxide, air toxics, unburned hydrocarbons, and particulate emissions.

Resources for Biofuel and Biodiesel Users

Today, there are more and more cooperative organizations allowing individuals to organize around various interests. Those wishing to use either straight vegetable oil or biodiesel have been enthusiastic about getting together for the purposes of supporting each other’s efforts. Here are a few of those types of organizations:

• The Biodiesel Collective Conference (http://www.collectivebiodiesel.org/coops/index.php): This is their site for bodiesel coops located through North America, listed by state/province.
• Fusel (http://www.fusel.com/vegoil_sites.html): Has a good list of vegetable oil-related communities throughout the country.
• Vegoil Yahoo! Groups (http://autos.groups.yahoo.com/group/vegoil-diesel/): Join this group for all kinds of resources for vegetable oil enthusiasts.

The WVO community has developed largely out of necessity. The messy nature of filtering and using WVO as a fuel has keep many people from really investing in this work, resulting in small groups of people banding together to find solutions and develop systems to make the job easier.

Online communities are popping up everywhere to meet the need, many of which have good listings of potential sources for used cooking oil in your area. Cooperatives are essentially a collection of people who pool their efforts to benefit one another: build or buy a filtration system, collect a communal supply of WVO, or just swap ideas.

Check out these options to see if they’ve got listings suitable for your requirements:

• Fillup4Free (http://fillup4free.com/): Use their interactive map to add yourself to the community and then find people who have WVO to give away or sell.
• Good grease (http://www.goodgrease.com/search/node/wvo+for+sale): Has an ongoing list of vendors with WVO for sale or for free!). Use their search tool with keywords like “WVO for sale Dallas” to find what you’re looking for.
• Lovecraft Bio-Fuels (http://www.lovecraftbiofuels.com/index.php?option=com_joomlaboard&Itemid=40&func=showcat&catid=7): Provides a place for vendors to post WVO for sale.
• Community Partner (http://www.commoditypartner.com/): This side has a nice search feature that lets you filter results by region, quantity minimums and maximums, and frequency.
• Biodiesel Now (http://www.biodieselnow.com/forums/118.aspx): Like Good Grease, Biodiesel Now has a community board where suppliers post listings of WVO for sale.

Craigslist (http://www.craigslist.org/about/sites): Like many other general-purpose sites, Craigslist may be a source for finding used vegetable oil. Just look for your city’s local Craigslist site, then search for WVO or SVO or some other keyword. You never know what you might find!

Powering our vehicles with renewable energy—like wind and solar—is a highly effective way to reduce our personal carbon footprints. The rise in fuel prices combined with renewed concern over climate change has significantly increased the interest the auto industry is paying to alternative energy when it comes to how they develop new vehicles. Here are the latest developments.

• Nissan released the Leaf electric car on August 3, 2009, hoping to provide the first mass-market zero-emissions vehicle. The battery, which charges overnight, is said to have a 100-mile range. You’ll even be able to check in on your car through your iPhone.
• REVA is an under $20,000 electric car that reaches speeds of 50 mph and comes out of India.
• The all-electric E6 vehicle by China’s BYD could be available in the US by 2010 (ahead of its 2011 schedule). The battery’s range is suggested to reach about 186 miles (300 km) per charge.
• The $100,000 Tesla Roadster electric vehicle goes from zero to 60 in four seconds or less and packs a battery with a 200-mile range.
• The Chevy Volt electric car is supposed to get 230 miles per gallon city driving according to closed circuit tests. Real-world tests will confirm whether this will actually be the vehicle’s average city driving mileage rate.
• Daimler is set to begin rolling Smart ForTwo electric cars off the production line in November 2009 in France. It will have a Tesla Motors lithium-ion battery pack that gets about 71 miles before needing a charge.
• The BMW Vision EfficientDynamics car was unveiled in early September 2009. It is anticipated to reach top speeds of 155 mph. The battery charges in about 2.5 hours and will go about 31 miles in electric mode-only.
• UCFlorida has purchased the Zenn car, a plug-in electric vehicle with 3 solar panels attached to the roof to make it 100 percent solar powered. The vehicle can only go about 15 miles, but it that works for this vehicle that travels only around campus.
• MIT students have developed a 90 mph solar-powered car that will race for 7 days in the World Solar Challenge in October2009.
• The Prius 10 by Toyota has an optional solar-powered ventilation system that cools the interior of the vehicle while it’s parked.
• The BlueCar EV by Pininfaria and Bolloré is equipped with a lithium-ion battery with supercapacitors, and has roof- and hood-mounted solar cells. It will go into production in 2011 in France and Canada.

Enermotion is a company that converts the Prius by installing photovoltaics and a back-up battery supply. This will provide additional electric charge to the motor and will extend the driving range while the factory battery pack recharges itself.

Every year, we drive our vehicles millions of miles combined as a nation—together, we burn about 113.1 billion gasoline-equivalent gallons of fuel per passenger annually. Every mile represents more carbon dioxide and other air pollutants, more energy for maintaining roadways, and more energy for repairing and manufacturing our vehicles. It’s a pretty big toll on the environment.

Even if it’s not in the budget right now to purchase a new, more fuel efficient vehicle, there are many simple and inexpensive things you can do to improve the efficiency of your car, truck, or SUV. From removing excess weight in your trunk to maintaining your vehicle on a regular schedule—it all adds up to a more efficient ride, and of course cash savings, as well.

• Remove weighty items from your trunk to improve your mileage by 1-2 percent for every 100 pounds removed.
• For every 5 miles per hour you slow down on the highway, you’ll improve fuel consumption by 7 -23 percent and cut fuel costs by $0.17-$0.56/gallon.
• Stop idling your car and save $0.01/gallon for every two minutes your car is shut off.
• Drive less aggressively (foot lightly on the pedals) and you’ll raise your gas mileage by as much as 33 percent, saving you between $0.12 and $0.81 per gallon.
• Reduce the total number of miles you drive each month by combining trips or choosing alternative forms of transportation (walking or public transit, for instance). Reduce the total miles by 5 percent to save up to $65 yearly on gas costs.
• Remove your unused roof rack or carrier to improve fuel economy by 5 percent.
• Your car’s a/c unit will use the most energy when on the maximum setting. Turn it down to improve fuel efficiency by 5-25 percent.

Use a GPS navigation system to avoid traffic congestion and find the most efficient route to your destination to avoid waste fuel.

No doubt, you can save a lot of money every year by purchasing a more fuel-efficient vehicle. Although some may take a little longer to pay off, overall, the eco-investment in a fuel-sipping vehicle will result in financial benefits, as well.

Here’s a summary of the US Environmental Protection Agency’s Green Vehicle picks. Their SmartWayratings give you an impartial comparison of vehicle fuel efficiency. You may also want to refer to Edmunds, a site that also frequently lists their Top 10 Green Car choices as well.

No doubt, you can save a lot of money every year by purchasing a more fuel-efficient vehicle. Although some may take a little longer to pay off, overall, the eco-investment in a fuel-sipping vehicle will result in financial benefits, as well.

Here’s a summary of the US Environmental Protection Agency’s Green Vehicle picks. Their SmartWay ratings give you an impartial comparison of vehicle fuel efficiency. You may also want to refer toEdmunds, a site that also frequently lists their Top 10 Green Car choices as well.

Improving Gas Mileage

Every year, we drive our vehicles millions of miles combined as a nation—together, we burn about 113.1 billion gasoline-equivalent gallons of fuel per passenger annually. Every mile represents more carbon dioxide and other air pollutants, more energy for maintaining roadways, and more energy for repairing and manufacturing our vehicles. It’s a pretty big toll on the environment.

Even if it’s not in the budget right now to purchase a new, more fuel efficient vehicle, there are many simple and inexpensive things you can do to improve the efficiency of your car, truck, or SUV. From removing excess weight in your trunk to maintaining your vehicle on a regular schedule—it all adds up to a more efficient ride, and of course cash savings, as well.

• Remove weighty items from your trunk to improve your mileage by 1-2 percent for every 100 pounds removed.
• For every 5 miles per hour you slow down on the highway, you’ll improve fuel consumption by 7 -23 percent and cut fuel costs by $0.17-$0.56/gallon.
• Stop idling your car and save $0.01/gallon for every two minutes your car is shut off.
• Drive less aggressively (foot lightly on the pedals) and you’ll raise your gas mileage by as much as 33 percent, saving you between $0.12 and $0.81 per gallon.
• Reduce the total number of miles you drive each month by combining trips or choosing alternative forms of transportation (walking or public transit, for instance). Reduce the total miles by 5 percent to save up to $65 yearly on gas costs.
• Remove your unused roof rack or carrier to improve fuel economy by 5 percent.
• Your car’s a/c unit will use the most energy when on the maximum setting. Turn it down to improve fuel efficiency by 5-25 percent.

Use a GPS navigation system to avoid traffic congestion and find the most efficient route to your destination to avoid waste fuel.

Concerns over climate change and rising fuel costs have more people turning to biofuels than every before. Whether you’re interested in burning a biodiesel blend in your current vehicle or converting an old car to run on straight vegetable oil, you may be able to reduce your fuel costs, save money, and help the environment by looking into alternative fuel sources for your driving needs. To get an idea of what’s involved in using bio fuels in your vehicle, check out these basic instructions for choosing biodiesel or bio fuel.

Maintenance

Besides driving more efficiently, you can also save money and improve your vehicles fuel efficiency by keeping it in good working order. Proper maintenance and care are essential for anyone wishing to reduce their monthly and yearly auto bills.

• Driving on underinflated tires will subtract 0.4 percent from your overall vehicle fuel efficiency. Doing a monthly check of your tires can save you 7 cents/gallon.
• Maintain your vehicle by having it tuned-up regularly to improve fuel economy by 4 percent, which will save you $0.10/gallon.
• During your next oil change, make sure you get the recommended grade of motor oil to improve fuel efficiency by 1-2 percent.
• If you’ve got an older car, replacing clogged or dirty air filters will help to prevent debris from getting into your engine, thus making it more fuel efficient.
• Regularly replace the oil filter in your vehicle to help your car running efficiently.
• Make sure that your tires are aligned properly. Misaligned tires will cause engine drag, which will further degrease your fuel efficiency.
• Regular oil changes will help to increase fuel efficiency, since smooth-flowing oil will reduce friction in the moving parts of your engine. This will also extend the useful life of your engine.

Converting your vehicle to run on biodiesel

Running your diesel vehicle on biodiesel is a great way to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. You can choose to run your vehicle on commercially-available biodiesel blends which generally don’t go higher than 20 percent biodiesel and 80 percent petrodiesel, commonly known as B20. If, however, you want run your vehicle on 100 percent biodiesel, or B100, it will require some vehicle modifications if you intend to use a blend that contains more than 20 percent biodiesel.

1. Up-front vehicle changes

• a. Biodiesel is an excellent solvent, so your vehicle will go through an intense time of transition. Petrodiesel leaves waxy, grimy deposits in your fuel tank and hoses. Over the course of several weeks when first using biodiesel, the biodiesel will slowly dissolve sediment deposits in your vehicle’s engine, requiring frequent filter changes.
• b. If your engine uses rubber components in any of its systems, these will need to be replaced with rot-resistant parts. Viton is the preferred material.

2. Ongoing maintenance requirements

• a. Running a vehicle on biodiesel will require more frequent filter changes ongoing as well due to the solvent nature of the fuel.
• b. Diesel vehicles don’t have electronic fuel injection systems like gasoline vehicles, and as such, the injector pump (IP) will need to be primed. This is done by pumping the diesel fuel into the IP from the tank.

Compared to running your vehicle on biofuels, the vehicle modifications in this system are quite a bit less involved. However, if you choose to make your own biodiesel, either from virgin or waste vegetable oil, it will require a significant ongoing time commitment to process the vegetable oil into biodiesel in a relatively dangerous chemical process.

Nevertheless, it can cost less to run your vehicle on biodiesel. The initial cost to convert your vehicle is very little (the price of some filters and rubber component replacements) and if you make your biodiesel, it can cost between $300 and $13,000 to get a processor up and running. Making your own biodiesel after these initial costs are accounted for can range from $0.40/gallon to $3/gallon, depending on where you source your oil.

Additionally, biodiesel burns more cleanly than petrodiesel. In fact, even a 20:80 blend of biodiesel and petrodiesel means a 15 percent reduction in carbon dioxide (CO2), and also cuts down on particulate matter (PM), carbon monoxide (CO), and sulphur dioxide (SO2). Pure biodiesel can result in a 90 percent decline in air toxins. Biodiesel also produces about 95 percent less toxic waste than petrodiesel, although it also creates about twice as much nontoxic solid waste (in the form of unprocessed plant material).

Converting your vehicle to run on biofuel

Using straight (SVO) or waste vegetable oil (WVO) as a fuel requires modifications to be made to your diesel vehicle engine rather than modifications to the fuel itself (although the oil is filtered).

1. One- or two-tank conversion? The basic premise is to add either a one- or two-tank system that will be used to heat the vegetable oil. Veggie oil is very viscose and so must be heated to run in your vehicle properly in order to prevent coking, liquid fuel leakage past unsealed rings, and contamination of lubricating oil. Here are the two options:

• a. One-tank system: With this option, you fundamentally alter the stock fuel system to run the vehicle on 100 percent vegetable oil, but can only be used on vehicles run in warmer climates that never go below -40F. Many one-tank system users either blend their vegetable oil with petroleum diesel or add a solvent such as turpentine, paint stripper, kerosene, or naphthalene.
• b. Two-tank system: Here the stock fuel system is left untouched and an entirely new, secondary fuel system is added (the second tank). The stock fuel system runs on petrodiesel for start-up and shut-down, and then switches to the second tank to run on vegetable oil. The secondary tank heats the oil to 160F or higher. This method results in fewer engine problems, does not reduce the life of the vehicle, is an easy conversion, and much safer to operate.

2. Parts needed: The parts required for using biofuels include:

• a. Heated fuel tank: To warm the vegetable oil.
• b. Heated fuel lines: To keep the heated oil warm as it travels through the engine.
• c. Heated vegetable oil filter: Generally heated, these provide filtration to at least the same micron level as the stock fuel filter.
• d. Final fuel heater: To raise the fuel temperature to minimum injection levels.
• e. Valves: To correctly direct the fuel as needed, with automatic or manual controls.
• f. Indicators: Used by the driver to monitor the system

3. Oil collection: To run a vehicle on WVO, oil will have to be collected. Many restaurants will give away their oil for free to avoid paying disposal costs, but you must negotiate an agreement with them.

4. Oil filtration: Once the oil is collected, it should be filtered to remove any large debris.

5. Oil storage: Vegetable oil can degrade over time if left exposed to air, sunlight, and moisture. It therefore should be stored in a cool, dry location in sealed drums.

6. Legal implications: It should be noted that using vegetable oil as fuel is illegal and therefore should be done with due consideration.

Although many biofuel advocates suggest that you save as much as 75 percent on your fuel bills by using vegetable oil as fuel, how much you save by running your vehicle on biofuel will depend on many factors, including:

• Type of oil: If brand new pure or straight vegetable oil is used, the cost for using this fuel can be quite prohibitive, especially as costs for certain crops, such as corn, continue to rise. Waste vegetable is generally the most cost effective as it is often free.
• Cost of time: You will have to put some time in to collecting and filtering your oil, as well as time to modify your vehicle and maintain it on a regular basis.
• Vehicle conversion: There are some up-front costs to converting your vehicle, which fall somewhere between $300 and several thousand dollars.
• Original vehicle efficiency: The fuel efficiency of your vehicle won’t change much when using veggie oil, so this will have to be taken into consideration.

The greatest environmental benefit to running a vehicle on SVO or WVO is the reduction in pollutants. Compared to petrodiesel, vegetable oil is 75 percent cleaner, and results in fewer carbon dioxide, sulphur oxide, carbon monoxide, air toxics, unburned hydrocarbons, and particulate emissions.

Resources for Biofuel and Biodiesel Users

Today, there are more and more cooperative organizations allowing individuals to organize around various interests. Those wishing to use either straight vegetable oil or biodiesel have been enthusiastic about getting together for the purposes of supporting each other’s efforts. Here are a few of those types of organizations:

• The Biodiesel Collective Conference (http://www.collectivebiodiesel.org/coops/index.php): This is their site for bodiesel coops located through North America, listed by state/province.
• Fusel (http://www.fusel.com/vegoil_sites.html): Has a good list of vegetable oil-related communities throughout the country.
• Vegoil Yahoo! Groups (http://autos.groups.yahoo.com/group/vegoil-diesel/): Join this group for all kinds of resources for vegetable oil enthusiasts.

The WVO community has developed largely out of necessity. The messy nature of filtering and using WVO as a fuel has keep many people from really investing in this work, resulting in small groups of people banding together to find solutions and develop systems to make the job easier.

Online communities are popping up everywhere to meet the need, many of which have good listings of potential sources for used cooking oil in your area. Cooperatives are essentially a collection of people who pool their efforts to benefit one another: build or buy a filtration system, collect a communal supply of WVO, or just swap ideas.

Check out these options to see if they’ve got listings suitable for your requirements:

• Fillup4Free (http://fillup4free.com/): Use their interactive map to add yourself to the community and then find people who have WVO to give away or sell.
• Good grease (http://www.goodgrease.com/search/node/wvo+for+sale): Has an ongoing list of vendors with WVO for sale or for free!). Use their search tool with keywords like “WVO for sale Dallas” to find what you’re looking for.
• Lovecraft Bio-Fuels (http://www.lovecraftbiofuels.com/index.php?option=com_joomlaboard&Itemid=40&func=showcat&catid=7): Provides a place for vendors to post WVO for sale.
• Community Partner (http://www.commoditypartner.com/): This side has a nice search feature that lets you filter results by region, quantity minimums and maximums, and frequency.
• Biodiesel Now (http://www.biodieselnow.com/forums/118.aspx): Like Good Grease, Biodiesel Now has a community board where suppliers post listings of WVO for sale.

Craigslist (http://www.craigslist.org/about/sites): Like many other general-purpose sites, Craigslist may be a source for finding used vegetable oil. Just look for your city’s local Craigslist site, then search for WVO or SVO or some other keyword. You never know what you might find!

Solar/Electric

Powering our vehicles with renewable energy—like wind and solar—is a highly effective way to reduce our personal carbon footprints. The rise in fuel prices combined with renewed concern over climate change has significantly increased the interest the auto industry is paying to alternative energy when it comes to how they develop new vehicles. Here are the latest developments.

• Nissan released the Leaf electric car on August 3, 2009, hoping to provide the first mass-market zero-emissions vehicle. The battery, which charges overnight, is said to have a 100-mile range. You’ll even be able to check in on your car through your iPhone.
• REVA is an under $20,000 electric car that reaches speeds of 50 mph and comes out of India.
• The all-electric E6 vehicle by China’s BYD could be available in the US by 2010 (ahead of its 2011 schedule). The battery’s range is suggested to reach about 186 miles (300 km) per charge.
• The $100,000 Tesla Roadster electric vehicle goes from zero to 60 in four seconds or less and packs a battery with a 200-mile range.
• The Chevy Volt electric car is supposed to get 230 miles per gallon city driving according to closed circuit tests. Real-world tests will confirm whether this will actually be the vehicle’s average city driving mileage rate.
• Daimler is set to begin rolling Smart ForTwo electric cars off the production line in November 2009 in France. It will have a Tesla Motors lithium-ion battery pack that gets about 71 miles before needing a charge.
• The BMW Vision EfficientDynamics car was unveiled in early September 2009. It is anticipated to reach top speeds of 155 mph. The battery charges in about 2.5 hours and will go about 31 miles in electric mode-only.
• UCFlorida has purchased the Zenn car, a plug-in electric vehicle with 3 solar panels attached to the roof to make it 100 percent solar powered. The vehicle can only go about 15 miles, but it that works for this vehicle that travels only around campus.
• MIT students have developed a 90 mph solar-powered car that will race for 7 days in the World Solar Challenge in October2009.
• The Prius 10 by Toyota has an optional solar-powered ventilation system that cools the interior of the vehicle while it’s parked.
• The BlueCar EV by Pininfaria and Bolloré is equipped with a lithium-ion battery with supercapacitors, and has roof- and hood-mounted solar cells. It will go into production in 2011 in France and Canada.

Enermotion is a company that converts the Prius by installing photovoltaics and a back-up battery supply. This will provide additional electric charge to the motor and will extend the driving range while the factory battery pack recharges itself.

Purchasing A Fuel Efficient Vehicle

Americans love their cars. Yet they’re one of the biggest contributors to our individual carbon footprints. The average US household owns two medium-sized sedans, each emitting 10,000 pounds of carbon dioxide annually. And these add significantly to our yearly energy bills, especially if your vehicles have poor fuel efficiency.

Compare, for instance, a 50 mpg car that will require about $552 of fuel annually to a much less efficient vehicle that gets 10 mpg, costing you $2,760. That’s nearly four times the cost! Choosing a more fuel efficient vehicle is not only important for the planet, it’s important for your yearly financial statements. Vehicles with better fuel economy are now widely available, making the choice more simple than ever.

• When looking for a new vehicle, purchase the most fuel-efficient in the class you’re interested in to save $300-$700 every year in fuel costs.
• Choose a more efficient vehicle that gets 30 mpg rather than 20 mpg to cut fuel costs by $3,050 in five years!
• Choose a vehicle that comes with a deactivation system for your engine’s cylinders. This could improve fuel economy by 20 percent.
• Buy a vehicle with a lean engine (2.2 liter for instance) and transmission system (manual is best) to get better average mileage.

VW 1-Litre Concept Car

Volkswagen has been showing off its 1-Liter (also known as the L1) concept car this past week at the car show at the Frankfurt Motor Show. This full-hybrid vehicle, which weighs in at about 838 pounds, hopes to achieve a one liter per 100 kilometers (235 mpg) fuel efficiency.

This full-hybrid vehicle, weighing just 380 kilograms, offers an initial glimpse at how a production version might appear. The CFRP body is a masterful achievement in car making, both technically and visually. Unique on this car are its proportions. While the length of the L1 at 3,813 millimetres is still similar to that of a Volkswagen Fox, and its height of 1,143 millimetres nearly matches that of a Lamborghini Murciélago, the car’s aerodynamically optimised width (1,200 millimetres) has no comparisons in the world of today’s production cars.

Currently, the L1 combines several technologies to achieve such grand fuel savings. It’s got a 10 kW motor, a 7-speed rear-installed DSG, and a 0.8L TDI engine, which is the smallest diesel engine intended for production ever built by Volswagen. It’s also got incredible aerodynamicity and can reach top speeds of 99 mph (160 kph).

CO2 emissions of the 160 km/h L1 are 36 g/km. The TDI, E-motor and 7-speed DSG are installed at the rear; as a unit they represent the most fuel efficient hybrid drive in the world. In the standard “ECO” mode, the 800 cm3 TDI develops a power of 20 kW / 27 PS (at 4,000 rpm); in “Sport” mode – used to reach the car’s top speed, for example – the car’s power increases to 29 kW / 39 PS (at 4,000 rpm). The maximum torque of the TDI is 100 Newton-meter (at 1,900 rpm).

The two-seat monocoque is composed of carbon fibre reinforced plastic (CFRP) and is accessed not through doors, but by climbing into the L1 from the top. Other interesting features include:

• LED technology for headlights and taillights.
• Completely enclosed underbody.
• Cooling provided via adaptive air channels integrated into the side of the car body which open and close automatically based on the vehicle speed and the hybrid unit’s operating state.
• Completely covered wheels.

VW 1-Litre Concept Car

Toyota Auris HSA Full Hybrid Concept

With 3^rd generation Prius technology under the hood (Hybrid Syndergy Drive), the Toyota Auris HSD Full Hybrid Concept Car, which will be shown off in Frankfurt at the Motor Show, is the “logical first step in deploying full hybrid technology across Toyota’s entire European model line-up.” The “full hybrid” means that there will be four driving modes; the vehicle can be operated either completely on petroleum fuel, solely on the electric motor, or on a combination of the two. The mode of preference can be selected on-demand by the driver. The fourth mode—ECO mode—will help to maximize fuel efficiency.

Here are some of the highlights:

*  Concept previews new Auris HSD Full Hybrid, Toyota’s first full hybrid mainstream model in Europe

* World debut at the Frankfurt motor show

* Hybrid Synergy Drive powertrain, shared with latest generation Prius

* Sub-100g/km CO2 emissions, class-leading combined cycle fuel consumption and 0-62mph acceleration in around 10 seconds

* Detailed exterior styling changes to improve aerodynamic performance

* Extension of on-board solar power technology

* Auris HSD Full Hybrid production model to be built at TMUK’s Burnaston factory

With this new model, Toyota hopes to “shift customer perceptions of hybrid technology” by selling them on the advantages of exceptional fuel efficiency, lower greenhouse gas emissions, and the smooth, practical stylings of this family hatchback.

Toyota Auris HSA Full Hybrid Concept - solar roof panels

The roof will be entirely covered with solar panels that will provide energy for the ventilation system. More solar panels will be installed on the dashboard of the vehicle which should provide enough energy to recharge mobile phones or portable music players in on-board charging trays. Toyota hopes to use solar to also power the battery in future models.

The Auris is scheduled to go on sale in the UK in the second half of 2010.

Peugeot iOn. From Peugeot

Peugeot has recently announced that it will be launching the iOn vehicle—a small car based on Mitsubishi’s iMiEV— by the end of 2010. It is expected to use a lithium-ion battery system that should give it 130 km (80.8 miles) range.

It’s a four-door car that has a maximum speed of 130 km/h (81 mph) with a max power output of 47 kW (64 bhp). The batteries are rechargeable in six hours with a conventional 220 V socket. It can also reach 80 percent charged capacity within thirty minutes with their quick charge option.

With the ion, which will be presented to the world for the 1st time at the Frankfurt Motor Show, Peugeot is incorporating the latest automotive edition into its model range.

It also offers an onboard “localized communication unit” that will authorize the emergency call system and transfer data such as distance covered, battery status, and time before maintenance, making it well suited to businesses looking for options for their fleets.

Mitsubishi's i MiEV electric car. From Mitsubishi

Peugeot is a pioneer in the electric vehicle world, having produced 106 EVs between 1995 and 2003 (the most “zero-emissions” cars in the world, they claim). They also plan to produce the Hybrid4, a crossover hybrid that’s set to be released in 2011 (which was showcased at the Paris Motor Show earlier in 2009). It has 4-wheel drive and will have 147 kW (200 bhp) of power. Running in electric only mode from start-up to speeds of 50 kph (31 mph), it will switch to the diesel engine only mode at stable speeds on open roads or highways.

Traffic Jam Via Flickr - Hamed Saber

Best Workplaces for Commuters estimates that the daily commute wastes 2.3 billion gallons of fuel as people idle in traffic waiting for the way to clear. According to the Texas Transportation Institute, the cost in wasted time and fuel per commuter was approximately $750 in 2007, a total that amounted to $87.2 billion for the US as a whole.

While we like to encourage people to use alternate modes of transportation as much as possible (telecommuting, public transit, bicycling, waling, carpooling, etc.), it’s good news when we find ways to reduce the congestion and get people moving again. We’ve always assumed that GPS is one of those technologies that will cut down on fuel waste and time.

GPS Via Flickr - Jimmy_Joe

And now, according to a new NAVTEQ study published in August of this year (NAVTEQ is in the business of navigation, so these results should be taken with that in mind), traffic-enabled navigation systems will not only save people time, they’ll cut down on greenhouse gas emissions and wasted money. They estimate that portable, wireless navigation systems equipped with real-time traffic information could save the average US driver the equivalent of four days-worth of time (UK drivers save only 2.5 days). That’s because they can avoid traffic jams and therefore spend about 18 percent less time driving than those without navigation systems.

Greenhouse gas emissions also dropped by about 21 percent, or 0.79 metric tons (about 1,700 pounds) according to the study, which was conducted in Germany. In all, the research totalled data from 2,100 individual trips, logging over 20,000 kilometres (12,427 miles) over nearly 500 hours.

Google Maps for mobile

Systems like Google Maps for mobile are also helping, making real-time traffic information for all US cities available on GPS-enabled phones. The easier the daily commute, the better for us all.