By now, we know all about the new ultra-low sulfur diesel fuel widely available throughout the States, but where does biodiesel fuel stand in relation to new emissions policies and technologies?
The fact that gas prices keep sinking has been both a relief and a horror for many of us. It obviously takes a big strain off your budget, but in the grander scheme it also seems to move the discussion focus away from alternative fuels and high-mileage vehicles as witnessed by both J.D. Power and Derrick Y. Noh
A few months ago, we first heard word of Altair Nanotechnologies because of an innovative new battery cell design they're now calling NanoSafe. They say that the graphite used in standard lithium-ion batteries is replaced with a nano-structured negative electrode material called nano lithium titanium oxide. The result could very well be ground-breaking.
According to the Christian Science Monitor, there are now 134 million commuters hitting American streets during rush hour and we're responding to the traffic problem worse than ever. So says Alan Pisarski, the country's top commuter expert (I not sure how he got that title, but the CSM chooses to use it). From 1980 to 1990, commute times grew by less than one minute despite the number of single-occupancy vehicles rising by 22 mill
Many of us green-minded car nuts have at one point or another suffered from the worst of all diametrical battles within - high performance v. high mileage. I'll be the first to admit that some years ago I owned a '69 Alfa Romeo GTV. The engine displaced just under 1.8 liters, but with high-performance camshafts and a stripped-out fuel injection system replaced by two 45mm Weber side-draft carburetors, mileage wasn't exactly an underlying (or even peripheral) theme. Now that I'm older and wiser,
On Tuesday, while speaking to the Council on Competitiveness and the Chicagoland Chamber of Commerce Foundation, Energy Department Secretary Samuel Bodman announced that $100 million has been awarded to 25 fuel cell research and development projects. Bodman said, "We expect hydrogen to play an integral role in our energy portfolio and we are eager to see hydrogen fuel cell vehicles on the road in the near future."
According to Reuters, a group of researchers at Massachusetts Institute of Technology are working on what they think is a more logical ethanol solution for our impending fuel crisis. Instead of using ethanol as a primary fuel or an additive, we could potentially see more realistic fuel-saving improvements across a wider spectrum if we implemented a system on cars that injected ethanol in small quantities when the engine is under heavy load.
Mitsubishi's annoucement of the "i MiEV" electric vehicle based on their "i" minicar has so far caused a bit of a stir. First, Automotive News reported that the car would be headed for the States. Then CNN said that the report was incorrect. Then, in a new article on Monday, AutoWeek, a si
Chart: Google Finance / VeraSun Energy Corporation (NYSE: VSE)
Auto Industry is reporting that Britain has passed new air quality rules which will limit the amount of gas vapor that is emitted when filling your gas tank. Under the Petrol Vapour Recovery stage II controls (PVRII), gas stations that sell more than 3.5 million liters (about 925,000 gallons) per year have until January 1, 2010 to install equipment that would capture 85 percent of the escaping fumes. The government estimates that this will save about 16,000 tonnes (about 17,636 tons) of fumes fr
They say we Americans love a good challenge, so in the face of global warming Slate collaborated with Treehugger to come up with the Slate Green Challenge. The idea is that you take a short quiz which determines your annual carbon footprint and then for the next eight weeks, the nation goes on a carbon diet with the end goal of reducing carbon emissions from individuals by 20 percent. The average for a U.S. citizen is 44,312 lbs.
Canadian gearing technology company Ikona Gear International announced that they have filed for two provisional patents that will help automakers produce more efficient and environmentally friendly vehicles - a frictionless CVT clutch and frictionless CVT differential.
It looks like the diminutive urban commuter segment is about to get a little more crowded. Auto Express is reporting that Toyota will be releasing a small, high-mileage, city car based on the futuristic Endo concept that was first unveiled at the 2005 Frankfurt Auto Show.
If we had an exact launch date for the official state-side introduction of the Smart ForTwo in 2008, you can be sure we'd be counting down the days one by one with a big fat, red marker. Needless to say, we're pretty excited, so any tidbits of new information immediately get flagged for discussion.
Treehugger recently wrote about this article in the New York Times spotlighting General Motors for switching to solar power for electricity in some of their buildings. The reason why the General's accountants are so happy is because they're saving money on their electric bill and there wasn't a single penny to pay for upfront costs.
On Sunday, Philip E. Clapp, president of the National Environmental Trust, wrote an opinion piece in the San Francisco Chronicle arguing that Toyota should not be penalized for selling two of the top three most fuel-efficient vehicles in the country. The company's only crime was that they invested roughly $1 billion in their hybrid drive train while the Big 3 were violating the nation's minimum fuel economy requirements and then effectively marketed the Prius which soon became an icon for enviro
This Chicago Tribune article almost slipped through the cracks, but thankfully Plenty Magazine caught it for the rest of the green blogosphere. The article reports that the Environmental Protection Agency will be relaxing pollution rules for new ethanol production plants by changing the way those plants are permitted to operate under the Clean Air Act.
Last week, Japan's Railway Research Technical Institute (RTRI) officially announced that they completed successful running tests of what they say is the world's first fuel cell-powered train.
With all the talk and rumors over the last month, we expected to see OPEC cut oil production by 1 million barrels per day. However, according to Reuters, Friday's announcement of the deeper than expected cut of 1.2 million barrels seemed to send an intended message to buyers on the oil market: if the price of oil does not stabilize, OPEC would be open to even deeper cuts.
At last year's Tokyo Motor Show, Yamaha introduced a fuel cell scooter called the FC-me. It ran on a liquid methanol-water solution and its size and performance would have fit nicely in the 50cc gas-fueled class. This year, Yamaha is upping the ante with the FC-AQEL, a 125cc comparable two-wheel fuel-cell that they'll show off at the 22nd Electric Vehicle Symposium in Yokohama, Japan.
