In Storage, Let’s Hear It for Zinc
by: Greentech Media: Headlines, 2011-06-13 17:13:45 UTC

SAN JOSE, Calif. --- Zinc isn’t as cheap as dirt, but it’s close, which is why it still belongs among the viable options for energy storage, say advocates.

Zinc costs $2 a kilogram, according to Gregory Zhang of the International Zinc Association. The world has reserves totaling 1.9 billion tons. If you wanted to store 10 percent of the energy that will get generated by the world’s wind turbines in 2020, you would only need 2.3 million tons of zinc.

The world produces 30 million tons a year.

“The world will never run out of zinc,”  he said during a presentation at the Energy Storage Association annual meeting last week.

The material isn’t perfect. Companies such as Revolt Technology and PowerAir have touted the material for years. APET from Taiwan even showed us the Zincmobile at the Frankfurt Auto Show 1.5 years ago. (That's APET's battery in the photo.) But it’s still not mainstream. Carbon dioxide can clog the air intake, while corrosion, inadequate electroplating of electrodes, mineral degradation and electrolyte degradation remain problems too. Many zinc batteries can’t survive more than 100 charging cycles.

But besides being cheap, zinc also packs a wallop of power. A kilogram of zinc contains enough energy for raising five cubic meters of water 100 meters. Energy is harvested by combining zinc with oxygen and catalysts. Zinc oxide, one of the byproducts of the first reaction, subsequently becomes a source for zinc. The zinc/zinc oxide reaction is essentially infinitely renewable.

By contrast, titanium and silicon oxide reactions can’t be reversed in the same way. Iron and lead have lower energy densities and lithium and sodium, which can pack quite a bit of energy, aren’t as stable.

Mike Oster, CEO of EOS Energy Storage, says the company's zinc air batteries for grid storage will cost $1,000 per kilowatt-hour when they come out next year. The first battery pack will be a capable of storing 6 megawatt-hours of power. The device will fit in a 40-foot storage container. The pack will be made from 50-kilowatt/300-kilowatt-hour modules. (EOS used to be Grid Storage Technologies.)

Though the starting price will be more expensive than lithium-ion grid batteries, the price will drop to $650 and $400 per kilowatt-hour in subsequent years.

The key to the battery is a novel aqueous electrolyte that helps ameliorate many of the problems listed above. (Aquion Energy has a sodium battery with an aqueous solution. Water and air seem to be two of the more popular ingredients in batteries these days. Maybe bread is next.)

The response time can be measured in milliseconds, Oster added.

Regardless of whether you become a zinc nut or not (personal disclosure: I'm a huge fan of the idea), Zhang did raise an interesting dichotomy to think about when considering energy storage technologies. The market can be divided into two categories: storage technologies that depend on mechanical devices like flywheels, batteries and capacitors and storage technologies that depend on materials like hydrogen, air or chemical changes. Material storage plays will always be cheaper because capacity can be added at marginal costs.

Differentiating between the two isn't always easy. Compressed air systems store energy in mechanical systems. Hydrogen needs fuel cells and zinc requires batteries. But in the case of zinc, ammonia and hydrogen, the mechanical elements mostly function as container. The energy is stored through molecular action. Similarly, the energy in a pumped hydro system comes from gravity. It's an interesting way to look at things.

Make your kitchen interactive with SmartFridge Home Refrigerator
by: The Design blog, 2011-06-10 12:27:33 UTC
Jaazhh:

Refrigerators have become an integral part of every household and help preserve perishable items. But, with developing technology how could this basic household equipment escape a hi-tech touch. Luciana Wagner Duarte used the modern methods and has designed, the SmartFridge Home Refrigerator.

The SmartFridge comes loaded with impressive features and vows to make lives simpler. It has been crafted in a unique manner and looks like a small cupboard with shelves. You can easily wedge it on the kitchen wall above the shelf and enjoy maximum benefits. The novel invention has exploited different materials and comes caked with a fresh approach, which makes it quite interactive.

The facade has been fitted with a Smart Glass, which will allow you to select materials before you open the refrigerator. Hiding the food stuff inside is easy as well. All you have to do is, press a button and the glass door will switch from transparent to a black appearance. The surface has been given a touch screen panel and performs useful functions. It features a clock, calendar and will also display recipes whenever required.

Life, in the kitchen, with the SmartFridge Home Refrigerator is going to get all the more exciting. Cook, keep a check on time and select items without much effort.

Via: Doizdesign

Looking For Low Water Usage In Your Tiny Home? Try A Dish Drawer
by: TreeHugger Design, 2011-06-11 12:36:19 UTC
Photo credit Fisher Paykel. Thus far, the search for energy-efficient, beautiful and small appliances for Graham Hill's LifeEdited apartment has been, if nothing else, revealing. Manufacturers, while they generally make small models, don't seem to be giving them the attention to eco-effiiency and maximum functionality that a small space deserves and demands. Fridges and freezers, for example are not generally designed with smart interiors cap... Read the full story on TreeHugger

Nest Labs: iPhone Alums Prepping Home Newtorking Devices
by: Greentech Media: Headlines, 2011-06-10 21:25:53 UTC

The race in home networking isn't over yet.

Nest Labs Inc., a very secretive startup in Palo Alto, has raised VC funds to bring smart thermostats and other home networking technology to consumers. The selling point of the company seems to be the iPhone heritage. Mike Matas, one of the key designers on the iPhone interface and the founder of Push Pop Press, is or has been part of the company. Other employees include Pat Cocoran, formerly of Salesforce, and some guy named Henry M.

Matt Rogers, not the former DOE executive but a iPhone software manager at Apple, is also involved.

One source described the company's valuation as "very high" after the fundraising. Matas is friends with Al Gore, so Kleiner, Perkins might be an investor. The bio of Kleiner partner Trae Vassallo says she currently works closely with the management team of "Stealth Efficiency Co., a new consumer efficiency company coming to residences soon."  Coincidence? I think not.

The company, according to trademark filings, is creating a:

[C]limate control system consisting of a digital thermostat that automatically sets climate conditions based on prior and historical patterns of climate settings selected by users; climate control system consisting of a digital thermostat that can be controlled wirelessly from a remote location; software application for use on computers and hand-held devices to control climate and energy usage in homes and businesses from a remote location.

The system will also include the capability for the "creation and transmission of messages and incentives to energy users to reduce their energy use."

So how does that make it different than Tendril or EcoFactor, which specialize in intelligent home automation equipment that can adapt to individual consumer patterns, or OPower, which pioneered behavioral dynamics to get people to use less power? Beats me. The difference -- and the excitement -- likely derives from the Apple angle. Apple is very good at industrial design and user interfaces. Home energy advocates have been tinkering over the past several years to determine how best to craft a system that will keep consumers engaged over the long haul.

The success of things like the iPhone also demonstrates that Apple understands how to sell status symbols to people, particularly people who pretend to disdain status symbols. Getting consumers to pay for home energy management systems has been one of the chronic problems in the industry. These systems can cost $300 or more. Many companies now believe that the only way to get these in homes is to get demand response providers, utilities or communications carriers to subsidize them. Stick a 'this product was designed in part by a guy who once worked at Apple' sticker on there and you'll have a line around the block in Palo Alto.

The line will likely start on Alma Street in Palo Alto, the apparent location of Nest's offices.

On the other hand, the device is essentially a thermostat. You can't play with it in public. It sits on your wall and tells you it's 72 degrees. The ultimate value will lay in whether it curbs power bills, and those other companies named above seem to have a good lead on that. GridPoint started out producing energy management systems for upper class homes too: it has since switched business plans a couple of times.

Sources could not confirm how much money the company has raised but the numbers we are hearing are sizeable.

Matas' continued participation is a little tricky to figure out. He doesn't list the association on his Facebook page or his TED bio. However, his LinkedIn bio says he currently works at both Push Pop and Nest Labs. Considering the secrecy otherwise, the company just may be keeping its associations with him off of other sites for the skullduggery effect.

I'll hopefully have more details soon.

Sharp Begins to Test 'Ultimate Power Saving' House
by: Tech-On! : tech news - straight from Asia., 2011-06-10 08:34:00 UTC
Sharp Corp announced June 8, 2011, that it has completed the "Sharp Eco House" in an industrial district in Sakai City, Osaka Prefecture, Japan, and disclosed it to mass media.

Allan Chochinov on Upcoming MFA Products of Design Program: "You are in the Consequence Business"
by: Core77, 2011-06-09 21:30:18 UTC

As many of you know, Core77's own Allan Chochinov currently has his sleeves rolled up over at NYC's School of Visual Arts, where he's launching their new Products of Design MFA program in fall 2012. Check out the faculty and speaker list they've amassed thus far and you'll have your socks knocked off.

Allan recently sat down with Metropolis Executive Editor Martin C. Pedersen to discuss the inception and development of the program, the reframing of artifacts and experiences and the opportunities for the future. An excerpt:

Pedersen: What, or how, are you going to teach that's different from object-based industrial design?

Chochinov: The program won't start from the beginning. It will be making-based, but we're looking for students who are experienced and skilled. I want to be open to people who have been practicing for a couple of years and might be disillusioned by what they're making every day but haven't given up on the power of design. We want to introduce them to notions of scale and systems and consequence so they can do more with their superpowers. And when you're talking about design—even if it's a brochure or an ad campaign—as soon as you make more than one of a thing, you're no longer in the artifact business. You are in the consequence business. And that's how we want students to begin looking at their work.

Read the full interview here.

The program will be open for applications this September, so check out productsofdesign.sva.edu to get on the email list for updates!

(more...)

Members of European Design Innovation Initiative announced
by: Core77, 2011-06-10 18:00:00 UTC

The European Commission has announced the members of a new European Design Leadership Board, to strengthen the link between design and innovation.

The newly established Board of fifteen members from umbrella organisations, design promotion institutions, leading academics, industrialists and designers will steer the European Design Innovation Initiative (which has a Secretariat based at Aalto University in Helsinki) with the aim to "exploit the full potential of design for innovation and to reinforce the link between design, innovation and competitiveness".

It will also support the European Commission in developing a joint vision, priorities and actions to better integrate design into innovation policy.

The members are:

BEDA - Bureau of European Design Associations - Deborah Dawton, President

UEAPME - European Association of craft, small and medium-sized enterprises represented by Gerin Trautenberger, Vice-President of Austrian creative Industries - member of UEAPME

TAFTIE - the European Network of Innovation Agencies - represented by Andrea Siodmok, Technology Strategy Board - member of TAFTIE

German Design Council, Andrej Kupetz, Chief Executive Officer

Barcelona Design Center, Isabel Roig, Directora general

Hungarian Design Council, Dr. Miklós Bendzsel, Chairman

Christian Bason, MindLab Copenhagen

Giovanni Antonio Cocco, Managing Director ISNART S.c.p.A, Istituto Nazionale Ricerche Turistiche

Rachel Cooper, Professor of Design management, Chair of Lancaster Institute for the Contemporary Arts and Chair of Imagination Lancaster

Olli-Pekka Kallasvuo, Chairman of the Committee supporting World Design Capital Helsinki 2012; former President and CEO of Nokia Corporation

Stefano Marzano, Chief Creative Director, Philips Design

Klemens Rossnagel, responsible for Design Research Audi Group

Livia Tirone, Tirone Nunes, Founder of Tirone Nunes dedicated to designing and promoting "bio-climatic" & "sustainable buildings"

Roberto Verganti, Visiting Professor in Copenhagen Business School, Department of Management, Politics and Philosophy and Professor in Politecnico di Milano

Thierry Wasser, Perfumer, Guerlain

A first meeting of the newly established European Design Leadership Board took place in Helsinki on Friday 27th May 2011.

The European Design Innovation Initiative is to be launched by European Commissioner Tajani as a component of the Innovation Union later this summer.

(more...)

10 multipurpose vehicles that combine style with eco friendliness
by: Ecofriend, 2011-06-10 09:48:09 UTC
Snehanair:

With increasing pollution, an inversely proportional relationship between parking spaces and its cost and a persistent reminder of how one is burning a hole in the ozone layer with one energy hogging device after another, the right way obviously seems as the green way. Automotives, perhaps the most affected by these attempts at going green are so to say, joining the bandwagon. And if these multipurpose rides are anything to go by, going green may provide more than just ease while parking for its drivers.

1. Urban wheels multipurpose personal transporter runs on solar energy

Imagine a day when you have just driven home and instead of using a lawn mower to tend your garden, take an extra round within your garden before you park. Siqi Liu’s Urban Wheel is aimed at just making such dreams come true. Besides using it for gardening, its sturdy built teamed with a compact shape makes it a great vehicle for camping trips, short travels, and even shopping, thanks to a detachable shopping rack. The vehicle also comes with a handlebar that can be adjusted based on the user’s height and convenience. The electric vehicle derives its energy from a battery pack. However, the solar panels, which slide to the left and right up front helps the vehicle gain as much sunlight as the car requires.

2. A Caravan with a removable car promotes fuel efficiency

With a caravan which can be detached from its car and put together as per the user’s convenience, German designer Christian Susana’s Colim is the ultimate dream come true for a part-time camper. This multipurpose vehicle is not just stylish but also manages to pack in just as much as an average camping vehicle at half the fuel charges. How? Through the easily separable parts. So now, when you go for camping you don’t need to lug a fuel chugging machine everywhere you go. You can park the body at a convenient locale and drive through narrow roads and small spaces without any worry. Its easy mobility also makes it a great everyday ride.

3. MBOLIC Modular Vehicle morphs itself diligently for the modern city commute

A completely emission free vehicle, the MBOLIC design by Colin Pan alternates between a family car and a one seater. The benefit lies in the fact that the size of the car is greatly reduced when traveling alone through the crowded streets of China. It is also a great multipurpose vehicle as it can be broken into two individual units for two separate rides! While the single units use pedals, the car itself is kept eco friendly thanks to its fuel cell that is a guarantor for fuel save during mid-range commutes. MBOLIC is a great way to switch to emission free driving.

4. M-Please-V: The explorer’s off-roader

The M-Please-V is a delightfully minimalist vehicle that does away with garish accessories to come up with a simple yet efficient design. With lightweight metal bars instead of doors, a versatile interior that is water, sand, dirt, and heat resistant, it makes for a great vehicle when you go on an exploration trip or sightseeing. The vehicle can also transport up to nine people at a time. It also has an ecofriendly motor thanks to the four in-wheeldynamic-damping motor drive systems that are powered by batteries situated under the cabin floor. This is bound to be a sure hit with the travel and tour industry!

5. Aventos: A multipurpose car concept to reduce carbon footprint

Another ecofriendly entrant in the automobile industry is the Aventos. While the materials involved in the engine and body of this vehicle may be unknown, it still manages to save fuel thanks to its roomy, multipurpose make that allows it to function as a goods carrier and even as a nomadic shop! The detachable car in this metro-vehicle also makes it a great ride on city roads. Bright and deceptively small, Aventos blends creativity with efficiency and is definitely an eagerly awaited green vehicle.

6. Happy bicycle transforms your suitcase into a bicycle

While many of us well-to-do city dwellers ride a bicycle to work, it’s true that often past a few miles it becomes heavy tread for the best of us yuppies. However, with this amazing design, all you have to do is pack your cycle into a suitcase and drag it along. The whole kit of 9 Kg can be transformed into a suitcase under 10 seconds. Its mobile design makes it a great way to avoid parking woes.

7. CarGo Vehicle: One seater sar concept for inner city deliveries

If the roads don’t yield to you, the most sensible thing to do is to yield to the roads themselves. CarGo, made to adapt cargo trucks for inner city duties is a great delivery vehicle. The back can be adjusted depending on the weight and the size of the goods. When not in use, the extendable wheel base can be folded in and used as an advertising medium. With the back folded in, the vehicle is the size of an average motorcycle and is easily maneuverable through the worst traffic jams.

8. Facile: A multidimensional green vehicle for future roads

It may be a few years before Facile makes it to the roads but, the accompanying dock that allows for the cars very own parking space may make this one worth the wait. Additional features include its flexible shape. The vehicle can be used as a monocycle, a tricycle and a car. While its fuel is solar energy, in case you are worried about low levels, you can easily transfer to pedals. Made of sustainable, lightweight materials like wood and organic glass, the vehicle is entirely recyclable. Additional features include Wi-Fi.

9. Duno: A fascinatingly ‘green’ fusion of a car and cycle

This cycle-cum car, with a choice between pedal and solar energy, is soon going to hit the roads. Much like the Facile, what differentiates them is that this one detaches to form not one but two unicycles. The compact shape is designed by Ben Herron for those who are at tenterhooks with parking troubles. While the idea of a unicycle may seem uncomfortable to an average car user, the design aims to provide the same comfort as a car in the two cycles as well.

10. Concept car has detachable motorbikes for wheels

It may not be a Harley Davidson but a motorcycle fan is bound to be fascinated with this design. The Light Weight Concept, an ambitious design with an unimaginative name transforms from a car into two motorbikes with the help of the two rear wheels, each with an electric motor. While they may have only one wheel each, they have a balance system that makes it as sturdy as a motor vehicle.

Marks & Spencer Over Halfway on Plan A Sustainability Goals
by: Environmental Leader, 2011-06-10 21:42:06 UTC
Marks & Spencer has achieved over half of the commitments outlined in its ecological and ethical corporate program, Plan A, according to its How We Do Business Report for 2010/11. The report says that by the end of 2010/11, M&S had achieved 95 commitments, with 77 on plan, seven behind and one on hold. Plan [...]

New Renewable Energy Generator Grabs Electricity from Rain as Well as Sun and Wind
by: Inhabitat , 2011-06-10 18:00:42 UTC

Researchers at the University of Bolton in the UK have developed a device capable of capturing energy from not only the sun and wind but rain, as well. The innovative generator is comprised of ribbons made from a piezoelectric polymer that generate energy currents when disturbed, and are also coated in flexible photovoltaic (PV) film that helps the device capture energy from the sun as well. In its current state the device can only generate small amounts of electricity but the researchers envision future pine cone shaped structures with thousands of ribbons vibrating in the wind and rain and soaking up the sun.

Read the rest of New Renewable Energy Generator Grabs Electricity from Rain as Well as Sun and Wind

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