Hasta La Gadget!

Mid-September is a busy time of year in the world of design as the Solar Decathlon Europe takes place in Madrid and the London Design Festival kicks off — and Inhabitat has correspondents on the ground at both events bringing us a steady stream of photos and updates. At the Solar Decathlon, Team Portugal designed an innovative house that can actually rotate to follow the sun in order to increase energy production and adjust interior daylighting. Team Valencia developed a modular home that can grow or contract depending on the family’s needs. And the team from Tongji University produced an eye-catching house that embraces both Western and Daoist principles. In the competition, Rome’s super-efficient MED in Italy house jumped out to an early lead — but it’s still too soon to call the winner so stay tuned.

Continue reading Inhabitat’s Week in Green: rotating house, desktop 3D printer and a Star Trek-style warp drive

Filed under: Misc, Science

Inhabitat’s Week in Green: rotating house, desktop 3D printer and a Star Trek-style warp drive originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 23 Sep 2012 10:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Whenever Popeye was in trouble, he’d always reach for his can of spinach that would give him the strength to punch Bluto’s lights out.

While spinach won’t really transform a normal human being into a massive hulk, it actually achieves an effect similar to that on Popeye when it comes to solar panels.

A team of researchers from Vanderbilt University in Tennessee published results from their study which showed that a protein found in spinach known as PS1 was actually pretty efficient in converting light to energy.

They recommended that this protein be combined with the silicon used in creating solar panels to come up with a more efficient system. This discovery was first reported forty years ago, but no one really did anything about it – until now.

When the researchers built the biohybrid cells and put them to the test, they discovered that it was up to 2.5 times more efficient than cells without the protein.

Professor David Cliffel explained: “People are trying to get around limitations in semi-conductors with fancy, multi-element devices. But molecular biology is a better known game than these complicated multi-element inorganics. Our components are also non-toxic [and] they literally grow on trees.”

Now who would’ve thought that spinach was indeed this powerful?

[via BusinessGreen via Softpedia]

Obama Administration has been diligently working on making the auto-industry more fuel-efficient. President Obama has been pursuing the very policy since 2009 and a new set of fuel efficiency standards was due to arrive sometime this year. Now, it is here.

The new fuel efficiency standards seek to enhance the mileage of cars and light-duty trucks to upto 54.5 miles per gallon by the year 2025. While that may sound like an ambitious aim, the auto industry is already on the way. By 2016, the aim is to hit the 34.1 mpg target and then continue the progress. (more…)

By Ubergizmo. Related articles: Obama and Romney get into a fight at the White house [+video], Personal Power Generator Prototype Powered By Organic Viruses,

Imagine a bacteria that could not only suck the excess CO2 out of the air, but turn that waste gas into a clean-burning biofuel for cars. If the current research on genetically-engineered bacteria goes to plan at MIT, these wonder creatures could help solve our energy and climate woes. More »

Recycling wastewater to generate energy has turned up noses before, but researchers at Oregon State University have developed a microbial fuel cell that can create 10 to 50, or even 100 times more electricity per volume than similar technologies. After refining the tech for several years using new materials, techniques and selecting better microbes, the team can now extract two kilowatts per cubic meter of refuse. As bacteria oxidizes organic matter, electrons — rather than the hydrogen or methane that other methods rely upon — are produced and run from an anode to a cathode within the device to create an electric current. Once implementation costs are cut down, the technology could power waste treatment plants and enable them to sell excess electricity. The contraption isn’t just for processing what comes out of the porcelain throne — it can also utilize materials ranging from grass straw to beer brewing byproducts. For now, however, the cell will tackle a pilot study before it inches closer to your local brewery or water treatment facility.

Continue reading Researchers create super-efficient microbial fuel cell, dream of selling excess electricity

Filed under: Science

Researchers create super-efficient microbial fuel cell, dream of selling excess electricity originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 14 Aug 2012 04:14:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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