Technology
« Previous EntriesEthanol Conversion May Be More Than You Bargained For
Friday, November 28th, 2008
Orlando Sentinel:
Question: I’m interested in converting my car to make it run on E85 ethanol. Are there kits to do this, and is it safe?
Answer: There are indeed kits that, when installed, will allow your vehicle to run on E85. There are problems, but there are ways to address them.
First, though, I have to […]
Mini Refiner Produces Ethanol And Biodiesel
Wednesday, November 5th, 2008Gas2.0:
A Texas-based company has announced the “world’s first mini-refinery” for consumer use that can produce both ethanol and biodiesel from the same small machine at the same time. It’s capable of generating up to 120 gallons per day of ethanol and 450 gallons per day of biodiesel.
Consisting of two pieces of equipment — an ethanol […]
US Company To Use Technology From Nipawin Biomass Ethanol Co-Op
Wednesday, September 24th, 2008Nipawin Journal:
A California company will probably be the first user of the catalytic technology that was developed for a future ethanol plant at Nipawin.
Fulcrum BioEnergy recently announced plans to build a commercial-scale plant that will use municipal solid waste to produce ethanol. Construction of the plant, to be located just outside Reno in Storey County, […]
Dealers Embracing New Technology In Autos
Monday, September 15th, 2008Natchez Democrat:
In a time when the United States economy is uncertain at best, most households are taking steps to save money any way they can.
With gas prices over $3.60 in many places, reducing fuel usage is one way families are trying to reduce expenses.
Purchasing smaller, more economical cars is fast becoming a trend and new […]
Ford Testing Ethanol Injection With Ecoboost
Tuesday, September 2nd, 2008CNET News:
We haven’t been too excited about Ford’s Ecoboost tech, simply because it’s not really new tech. However, Ford’s next evolution of Ecoboost, code-named Bobcat, might be worth getting worked up about.
According to sources at PickupTrucks.com, the Bobcat is essentially a turbocharged engine running at a high compression ratio. Typically, this combination results in disaster, […]
Gulf Ethanol Begins Testing New Cellulosic Preprocessing System
Wednesday, July 30th, 2008CNNMoney.com:
Gulf Ethanol Corporation announced today that testing of its new preprocessing system for cellulosic ethanol production has begun.
On Monday we started the equipment and began the process of calibrating it to handle sorghum. Tuesday was spent further evaluating the settings and a small amount of sorghum was tested in the machine to establish a […]
French Firm To Develop Va Tech Ethanol, Hydrogen Technologies
Monday, July 14th, 2008Domestic Fuel:
French firm Biométhodes has inked an exclusive deal with Virginia Tech’s Intellectual Properties Inc. division to option-to-license the school’s processes to convert biomass into ethanol and hydrogen.
This story from the school says the processes were invented by Percival Zhang, assistant professor of biological systems engineering in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences at […]
How Cheap Is It To Drive Green?
Friday, July 4th, 2008KHOU:
Going green with a hybrid vehicle that gets 40 to 50 miles per gallon may sound great. But after you factor in the cost of the car, maintenance and insurance, are hybrids really saving their owners money?
Before $4 a gallon gasoline, Gary Stankowski bought a hybrid vehicle for the ecological reasons.
“I just thought it […]
Ethanol Worries In Small Engines
Thursday, July 3rd, 2008NBC 13 Birmingham:
Benjamin Mallisham’s lawn mower repair shop in Tuscaloosa is booming with business lately. Mallisham says about 40% of the broken engines he’s repairing have ethanol damage.
“When you put that ethanol in here, it eats up the insides or rusts them out. All the rubber gaskets and parts - it eats those up,” […]
An Investment Boom: The New Coal Car
Wednesday, July 2nd, 2008The technology dates to the 1920s, but today’s prices make liquid coal for cars a live option. The result is an investment boom.
Newsweek:
Powering cars with coal might seem like a recipe for ecological disaster. But if fuel experts are right, a liquefied form of the notoriously dirty mineral will be providing much of the world […]
Formula 1 Considering A Switch To Ethanol
Tuesday, June 10th, 2008Wired News:
Formula 1, widely considered the pinnacle of automotive engineering but woefully behind in environmentalism, is reportedly considering a switch to ethanol.
The move comes as the sport faces increasing pressure from Max Mosley, the beleaguered president of F1’s sanctioning body, to make its cars more energy-efficient and the engineering behind them more relevant to road […]
The Race For Nonfood Biofuel
Thursday, June 5th, 2008Christian Science Monitor:
Way back in 2006, when gasoline cost just $2.50 a gallon, President Bush called for home-grown biofuels to replace three-quarters of oil imports from the Persian Gulf – or about 72 billion gallons – by 2025.
How to achieve that goal is still a question. Corn-based ethanol production is expected to be 12 billion […]
Finding The Holy Grail Of Ethanol Biofuel For Cars
Wednesday, June 4th, 2008IslamOnline:
In the search for renewable energy, turning low-value materials like switchgrass and corn husks into ethanol to fuel cars is something of a Holy Grail.
In theory, these materials would replace corn as the main feedstock for ethanol in North America, reducing the pressure on farmland that has played a role in rising food prices and […]
Eco Friendly Vehicles: A Case Of Misplaced Emphasis?
Monday, May 12th, 2008Desicritics.org:
In this year’s budget, the Government reduced the excise duty on electric cars from 8 per cent to nil. Recently the Government repeated the same with 2 and 3 wheel electric vehicles. (Full article here) Why? Well, if one were to believe the advertisements, this is because the Government wants to promote these “eco friendly”, […]
Fiat Likely To Invest E10 Million On Ethanol Engines
Friday, May 2nd, 2008RedOrbit:
Fiat Powertrain Technologies is planning to invest about E10 million in developing an ethanol-powered engine to be used in trucks and agricultural machinery in Brazil, Reuters has reported quoting Franco Ciranni, the company’s regional manager.
The company expects to launch the engine by 2010. Experts say that the engine will not face any danger from […]
Embraer Sells Its 50th Ethanol-Powered Ipanema Crop Duster
Thursday, April 24th, 2008Wired News:
The good old Ipanema. It entered service in 1973, and it’s changed with the times.
Neiva, a subsidiary of Brazilian aircraft maker Embraer, recently delivered its 50th ethanol-powered Ipanema, a low-wing agricultural monoplane.
Since 1973, Neiva has sold over 1,000 of the crop dusters, most of them in the Latin American market. The company began […]
Central Florida Pipeline To Carry First Ethanol Flow
Wednesday, April 16th, 2008Tampabay.com:
Florida will soon be home to the nation’s first ethanol pipeline.
The 104-mile Central Florida Pipeline has carried gasoline from the Port of Tampa to the Orlando International Airport since 1965.
Workers have been upgrading the 16-inch pipeline in preparation for its first batch of ethanol, slated for the third quarter of this year.
The booming […]
Can Biotechnology Save Ethanol?
Tuesday, March 25th, 2008Truth about Trade & Technology:
Some experts have questioned the feasibility of Congress’s new biofuels mandate, but emerging biotechnologies may boost the industry above and beyond expectations.
Traditional corn ethanol has received a bad rap in the popular press lately due to concerns increased production and conversion of corn into fuel may increase emissions and raise food […]
Small, Cheap, Safe And Runs On Ethanol? Call It Pompeo
Monday, March 24th, 2008TREND Information:
Some vehicles may choose to use motorcycle engines and concepts in order to have better performances, such as the Cirbin V13R, but there are others that have different objectives, such as the safety and comfort of a car with the running costs of a two-wheeler. One of these will be released this year, in […]
Car Makers Go Green At New York Auto Show
Friday, March 21st, 2008Chevy Equinox fuel cell car runs toward the future.
MarketWatch:
From the outside, the Chevy Equinox fuel cell vehicle looks a lot like any other sport utility vehicle, but sit behind the wheel, turn the key and the differences abound.
No engine roars to life. Instead, a faint hum comes from the car as its hydrogen tanks feed […]