Solar Used To Sterilize Med Equipment, Cook Food

A new solar apparatus has been created to use the sun to heat up water to create steam. This steam can be used for sterilizing equipments, medical apparatus, or to cool food.

As I understand it, this applies the same concept that is used on solar ovens. We tried it once weekend. I built a crummy version but it worked.

This new autoclave device can really help in situations and places where electricity is scarce or unreliable.

Harnessing the power of the sun is ageless. We all know that solar and other renewable power sources is key to cleaner environment and, one day, will wield us off the current energy sources that produce green house gases.

In first world conditions, we don't worry about cooking oil, having clean water (unless you live in a fracking zone), or electricity. But these same renewable tech should be given equal considerations in helping third world nations or far off villages with their basic and medical needs.

This new implementation by Rice University is called the Capteur Soleil.

There is no mention how soon this tech will reach those who needs it but soon the better. And hopefully, sooner.

More at Earthtechling.

Green: DIY Back-Up Battery Solution?

Anyone out there have information on solutions for a back-up battery system for a home? Maybe a consumer product solution have created one for yourself?

I got to thinking about what's going in Japan with the earthquake, tsunami, and problems with their nuclear facilities, I think even in LA, there is something we can do individually.

After all, Japan is a first world country and look at what's happened since the 8.9 earthquake from last Friday. Though I cannot be certain if the media reports match the facts on the ground, you'd think this earthquake has broken the back of the Japanese society and economy.

My idea is to get going on a solar leash with one of those solar companies like Solar City. I'll be doing some research on this to see if this is the right solution for me. But if it does work out, my idea is this:

I want to create or buy (hopefully affordable) backup battery or something that can sustain my household needs a few hours at a time should natural disaster hit and we end up being without power for weeks.

Any help in point me in that direction would be great.

President Obama's Meeting With Tech CEOs: We Need A Steve Jobs Or Henry Ford For Green Tech

At the moment, at the writing of this post, President Obama is meeting with a few of Silicon Valley's heavyweights, Apple's iconic leader Steve Jobs and Eric Schmidt. And though there are many thoughts and conjectures about what the meeting could or should be about, there is one thing that I think many missed.

Green tech. And right now even with tens of billions invested by the federal and state governments in incentives and grants and private investments, we are still a long way from getting off foreign oil and those pesky climate warming (or changing) coal.

What we need is a Steve Jobs for green tech. What we need is for President Obama to ask one of those tech visionaries to leave his current position and take up post at a new company that would revolutionize energy conservation and renewable energy production.

Imagine a healthy Steve being talked into taking reign of this new company. And it would have to be a private enterprise, perhaps with some grants from the government. That is as far as governmental involvement should be.

As a matter of fact, the Obama Administration should clear a path for this Steve Jobs led endeavor to succeed.

And how would Steve Jobs be convinced by this challenge? Better question is why would he do this?

Because Steve is Steve. The man who revolutionized computers, brought us the iPod, unleashed on the mobile market a device unlike anything they have seen before, and has once change how we work and play with the iPad.

Because it not him, who? Zuckerberg? Exactly.

And most importantly, Because Steve Jobs' ego is big enough for the challenge.

And yes, I am optimistic that Steve Jobs will beat what ailment he is offering from and has a lot of milage left to change the world again. Maybe even twice over.


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPod touch

Green: Volts Arriving At Dealerships

Well, Christmas is almost upon up and the calendar is just an artificial timeline that repeats ever 12 months and 365 days.  I remember for me, Christmas came last April when I lined up at the Apple store for my iPad.  And for some, this will be the GM's Volt that is said to be arriving at dealerships.  And I'm a believer that the Volt will usher in a new era of EV and fuel efficient vehicles in the coming decade.

The Prius and the Insight has done much to help gain attention in the media and the mind set of everyone who wanted fuel efficient cars and to reduce their carbon footprint.  The arrival of the Volt will take that another step.  Able to drive between 35-40 miles before burning any petro is something that most people will be interested in.

Furthermore, Volt is coming at a time of GM's rebirth after being bailed out by the government.  Whether libertarians and conservatives find varying degrees of disgust at government intervention or not, the technology behind the Volt is going to change the dynamics of the auto industry as oil begins another march towards $100 a barrel.

Also imagine a future where individual homes are outfitted with solar panels that can power our cars as well.  The Volt is the first step in that direction.  Together with self-generating homes capable of generating homes, EV can also help out with the power grid during peak hours as well.  

Personally, I can't be more excited about this.  As far as game changers go, folks, you'll want to mark this day.  The Volt is a big deal.

More at Green Prophet.

Miltary Green: Not Just About Uniform, Also About Renewable Power

The Secretary of the US Navy hopes to have the Navy and Marine use renewable sources to provide 50% of its power needs by 2020. The impact of this is huge beyond just national security concerns.

Already, being deployed into the war theaters are solar gears and tents. The USAF is make sure its squadrons of warplanes are certified to use biofuels.

Again, great for national security but also great for civilians. In the long term, the research into renewable power with Pentagon’s back should speed up new tech deployment as well as drive down cost over the long-run. And the new tech and lower costs will eventually trickle down to non-military markets.

Don’t think so? Think Cold War tech. It’ll happen.

More at Greenjava.

Solar, Wind, And EV Incentives

Right now, if you get an plug-in vehicle, you essentially forgo the need to burn petroleum in exchange for power generated by the local power plants or whoever your city mandates you buy your electricity from. So we're pretty much making someone else increase the load of chemicals that affect the environment, and ultimately, the planet.

What if the government offers additional incentives for consumers who purchase renewable energy solutions in addition to the EV? Or what if the power companies also provide incentives for consumers with EV to drive even less?

More at GreenJava.

Can Green Tech Be The Salvation For Third-World Nations?

The Sahara Desert, from what little I gathered from Wikipedia, is a diverse and large desert, about the size of the United States and all of Europe. What we see is large sand dunes that stretch as far as the eye can see.

Given the tremendous amount of heat, sun, and wind with a sparse population, it would appear to be an opportunity for renewable energy investments. It would benefit a whole region as well as drastically reduce reliance on petroleum.

I know there are a lot of politics and conflicts that are regional as well as international in scope. However, there is a saying that goes along the line of if something isn't hard, it's not worth doing. Or something close to it.

A multibillion dollar effort can go a long way in help energy starved nations while also benefitting the local populations. Of course, we should not make the same mistakes that many companies and conquering armies from first world nations often do.

This an endeavor should be one undertaken with the ultimate goal of helping all of humanity.

Aerogenerator: MegaWind Turbine Capable of 10MW & Counting

Apparently, there is a great competition among various groups vying for the title of the biggest, most efficient, and powerful wind turbines and a new design from a British team based on a spinning leaf can be a challenger to the Americans and other EU teams. More importantly, it will be operational in 2014 (according to The Guardian).

Green: Contacted Solar City For Lease And Consultation

I read an article with Money from CNN about Solar City. I'm sure I've also read other posts about them in the past but I finally decided to do something about it.

I went to their website and requested a free consultation for solar leasing. I suppose the way it works is that I would get power from the solar panels installed by Solar City guys.

I'll have more to say about it after the consultation whenever it is and I'm very excited about it. I'm not a green nut but like everyone else, we have our ideals about conservation and waste. And this is more than just feeling good about ourselves. We have a responsibility to the future generation and legacy of what our generations gave to the world.

How does a solar lease from Solar City work? From my understanding, I think it's a balancing act between actual power use and the lease. I'm going to explore the site for more information and come back when I found out more. But I encourage you to take a look at it.

Here's a video from CNN about Solar City and concept of solar leasing.



More at Solar City and Money.

Airships Satellites; Not Just For Football Games Anymore

Long before airships were used to advertise Goodyear products at football games, Airships had practical use.

It was used as long range surveillance and for transport.  And for years, people thought about using it to provide communications for urban use as well as battlefield communications.

Now meet Bullet 580:

• With a 48 hours hang-time
• Up to 80 mph (cruising at 40mph)
• Payload: 2,000 lbs
• 235 feet long (goodyear blimp, 195 feet, Hindenburg 804 feet)
• Cost:  $8 million a pop.  Talk about cheap.  
• 20,000 feet
• NEW TERM:  Stratellite
• Runs on algae - so it's green as well
• Functions: weapons platform, communication broadcasts and monitoring, GPS, weather monitoring, defense shields, and possibly transport in larger versions of the Bullet

Yes, I am very very excited about this.  This is both a big retro in a futuristic sort of way.  In anime and scifi movies, you can occasionally see airships.  Especially in steampunk societies.  

In our world, I'm sure there are tons of applications for just such a use.  And this is still first generation airships.  I'm sure bigger and faster versions can be built should this one really take off and operate as expected.  The skin is made of kevlar which is a pretty good thing if these might end up over the skies of battlefields.  I'm sure cheaper and stronger materials will also be available soon.  

Personally, I cannot wait for this thing to happen.  Oh, and did I mention that if the uses of these airships take off, it'll create thousands of jobs?

More at:

• space.com
• EcoGeek
• Mother Nature Network (MNN)

Green: MIT Labs To Reduce 15% Electricity Use

Why does it have to be MIT?  Why not Standard, Harvard, Cal Tech, or UCLA?  Regardless of who, I applaud the effort.

According to CNet, MIT's effort to reduce 15% electricity will power almost 5,000 homes.  That's not a small effort by any means.  Imagine if this effort could be spread to other universities and institutions, it may well make a big dent in energy in America.

Furthermore, the savings from the scale of this effort would be translated into cheaper costs as well.

MIT's effort isn't going to happen overnight.  It's a 5-year effort but the savings will come.  And that is the difference.  While governments and other businesses or schools are still in the planning stages (or just talking about it), others like MIT are doing something about it.

More at CNet.

Cowboys Have Their Horses, Mobile Warriors Have...

Mobile Warriors! This is your ride.

First off, it’s strange how all these new green cars are suppose to be available in 2010. Have you noticed that?

Now, this VW. Yes, I would drive this around town. 280+ miles per gallon and you may even use algae-based diesel if research is as promising as the media reports it to be.

Reported to be 20K to 30K euros (I’m not putting a dollar figure given the dollar to euro rate is a moving target right now), it could be worth it since gas has nowhere to go but up in the short-term.

It’s small frame may be a turn-off for some mobile workers but according to Canadian Driver, this little roadster has safety of the driver built in mind: air bags, stability controls, anti-lock breaks – ejection seat too (just kidding about the ejection seat).

I’m sure a bigger version will come soon thereafter. If VW can create one with more room and even as the expense of the mileage per gallon, it would be worth the sacrifice (280 to say 150 miles per gallon).

We’ll keep an eye on this one for you.