Sustain the World's Environment

Image by Kevin Krejci via Flickr When a company the size of Ford starts taking an interest in electric cars then it means that the idea of electric cars has become mainstream. The Ford Focus is one of the most popular small family cars on the market. Since its introduction in 1998, almost 10 million have been sold worldwide. Thus year will see the third generation of the model. However, the electric version was demonstrated in 2008 and Ford plans to have it launched later this year in the USA . It will launch in Europe in 2012. Like other electric cars this will have a lithium-ion battery - though with a difference. Ford have announced that it will be liquid cooled battery and its hoped this will increase battery life and increase the range the car can travel before requiring recharging. Another innovation is that when the battery is being recharged, the battery will be brought to an optimal temperature before recharging starts. This is meant to maximise the performance of

Image via Wikipedia EnSol AS is situated in Bergen and together with he University of Leicester ( UK ) it is developing a thin film deposition system with nanocrystal source which will hopefully help it turn its patented nanotechnology into a working product. Their aim is to refine their PV cell technology so that it can achieve a cell efficiency of 20% or greater. If they succeed, this will be a significant leap forward in PV technology and could revolutionise the industry . Claiming cost effective production via standard “spray on” magnetron techniques, it claims that this technology can realistically compete with existing established PV cell technology, a claim that isn't that far-fetched. EnSol is aiming to construct a world class thin film deposition facility in Norway , based on experience gained working in collaboration with the Condensed Matter Physics group at the  University of Leicester (UK) . Related articles by Zemanta Spray-on film turns gl

Image via Wikipedia According to the respected International Energy Agency , China 's use of coal , oil , wind and other sources of power more than doubled in the past decade to reach the equivalent of 2.26bn tonnes of oil in 2009, creeping past the US total of 2.17bn tonnes. This fact is no doubt linked to China's economic growth of almost 9% in GDP last year. Its also the reason why its carbon emissions is growing by around the same amount, at a time when most other nations was static or falling. As to what's driving China's energy use up, well its the same thing that drove up that of the US, UK , Japan and Germany etc. Consumption. More cars, more air conditioning , more electronic consumer products (TV's, Hi-Fi, computers and the like). China's population has a long way to go in order to catch up to the lifestyles that we have enjoyed in the West for so long, but with 1.3 Billion people aiming for the same standard of living , its a worrying tho

Image via Wikipedia Here in the South-east of England we are experiencing some unusually hot weather with temperatures today (Friday 9th July) reaching 32 Degrees Centigrade! Now, I personally find this level of heat too much, though my wife loves it. She did grow up in Africa , lived in Singapore and Israel for many years so I guess she is used to it! So, when it get this hot I find myself having to do something I try not to... use more energy , in an effort to keep cool. So, out comes the fan in my office, on goes the fan in the kitchen to keep the dog and me cool and I tend to drive with the car windows fully open. We do have Air Conditioning in the car but I think I am correct in saying that using that is even less green than driving with the windows open. We do, I have to confess, use the Air-Con on long journeys (such as holidays) because driving at motorway speeds with the windows open is less fuel-efficient. So, as the temperature climbs I find myself getting the s

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Image by now picnic via Flickr The British Government is proposing to offer loans so householders can install solar panels. This is not a new idea, as in the US so companies and local authorities have already started doing this. The cost of installing solar panels on a typical house in the UK costs @ £12,000. This is more than many families can afford in the current economic climate. The loans will repaid with the savings householders make from the electricity they generate . The model relies on the recently announced ‘feed-in tariff’ that will give householders an income from feeding surplus electricity into the National Grid . This could amount to hundreds of pounds a year. The tariff pays up to 36p per kW/hr of electricity generated form not only solar panels but also wind turbines , hydro power or anaerobic digestion. This is paid even if the electricity generated by these means is not fed into the National Grid but used instead by the householder. Any that is fed back i

Image via Wikipedia The sideshow that was Copenhagen lived up to expectations (or lack of them) and showed how irrelevant in fact it was. Why do I say this... well, for one thing it was unrealistic to expect so many nations and powerful interest groups to work together in perfect harmony (we would all love the song to be true, I know...). Secondly, whenever you get politicians involved, especially so-called 'world leaders' its never going to be anything but a sideshow, full of posturing for the domestic audience. Add to the mix the diverse but ultimately divergent groups of NGO 's, energy companies, scientists of every persuasion, journalists, individual campaigners and a host of others all fighting to gain their 15 minutes of fame and failure to achieve anything of substance was all we could realistically expect. Here's a thought... was more carbon created by the whole thing than will be saved by anything that directly and solely came out of it? I personally woul