Archive for the 'Energy' Category
A Solar Boom So Successful, It’s Been Halted
December 21st, 2013Greed and incompetence at power companies are running up against the unstoppable force of distributed power generation. Not long to go now. Germans laugh at this, by the way. Flashback 2011: Residential Energy Storage with Underground Flywheels — Update 2013: Velkess: New Residential Scale Flywheel Design Via: Scientific American: William Walker and his wife, Mi […]
Algae to Crude Oil: Million-Year Natural Process Takes Minutes in the Lab
December 19th, 2013Via: U.S. Department of Energy / Pacific Northwest National Laboratory: Engineers have created a continuous chemical process that produces useful crude oil minutes after they pour in harvested algae — a verdant green paste with the consistency of pea soup. The research by engineers at the Department of Energy’s Pacific Northwest National Laboratory was reported […]
This Week in Acidic Radioactive Slurry
December 10th, 2013Via: Sydney Morning Herald: The chemical spill at Ranger Uranium Mine last weekend was the second such incident in a week for the mine’s parent company, Rio Tinto, placing further scrutiny on the company’s uranium mining operations. Processing at the Ranger site, in Kakadu National Park, was suspended by the federal government on Tuesday. Environment […]
Fukushima: Outdoor Radiation Reading 25 Sieverts Per Hour
December 9th, 2013Via: news.com.au: WELCOME to Fukushima, where the radiation’s so bad it can be fatal within 20 minutes. The tsunami may have happened some 33 months ago, but the fallout just keeps getting worse. Japanese media is reporting that the intensity of radiation levels in the nuclear powerplant devastated by the earthquake – and subsequent tidal […]
Green Energy Versus a Grid That’s Not Ready
December 4th, 2013In other news: Germany Hits 59% Renewable Peak, Grid Does Not Explode. Via: Los Angeles Times: Energy officials worry a lot these days about the stability of the massive patchwork of wires, substations and algorithms that keeps electricity flowing. They rattle off several scenarios that could lead to a collapse of the power grid — […]
Typhoons Spread Fukushima Fallout
November 29th, 2013Via: AFP: Typhoons that hit Japan each year are helping spread radioactive material from the Fukushima nuclear disaster into the country’s waterways, researchers say. Contaminated soil gets washed away by the high winds and rain and deposited in streams and rivers, a joint study by France’s Climate and Environmental Science laboratory (LSCE) and Tsukuba University […]
Renault Will Remotely Lock Down Electric Cars
November 28th, 2013Via: FSFE: For a long time, cars were a symbol of freedom and independence. No longer. In its Zoe electric car, car maker Renault apparently has the ability to remotely prevent the battery from charging. And that’s more chilling than it sounds. When you buy a Renault Zoe, the battery isn’t included. Instead, you sign […]
Atmospheric Electricity Powers Small Motor
November 27th, 2013Update: Atmospheric Powered Motor 2.0 Via: LaserHacker: — Via: Laser Hacker:
New Inks and Tools Allow 3-D Printing of Lithium-Ion Technology
November 26th, 2013Via: MIT Technology Review: By making the basic building blocks of batteries out of ink, Harvard materials scientist Jennifer Lewis is laying the groundwork for lithium-ion batteries and other high-performing electronics that can be produced with 3-D printers. Although the technology is still at an early stage, the ability to print batteries and other electronics […]
Israelis Secretly Inspect Saudi Bases; Possible Staging Ground for Strikes Against Iran
November 24th, 2013As a response, would Iran blow up Saudi Aramco’s deep water oil terminal at Ras Tanura, or close shipping through the Strait of Hormuz? Decisions, decisions. Via: Klein Online: Israeli personnel in recent days were in Saudi Arabia to inspect bases that could be used as a staging ground to launch attacks against Iran, according […]
