New posts from Gas 2.0!

Garage Fire Destroys Homemade EV, Chevy Volt in Connecticut
Sweden Unveils “Arctic Whisper” Hybrid Bus
VW Jetta Protect: is it the “Greenest” Tank You Can Buy?
Algae-based Fuels Could Cut Foreign Oil Use by 17%

Garage Fire Destroys Homemade EV, Chevy Volt in Connecticut

Posted: 22 Apr 2011 02:00 PM PDT

So now we potentially get a glimpse at the "dark side" of electric cars.

I say "potentially" because firefighters and other officials have yet to determine the exact cause of a garage fire in Barkhamsted, Connecticut, which claimed the lives of the two electric cars as they innocently charged overnight.

One of the cars was a 2011 Chevy Volt with just 2,000 miles on it. *Sniff* it was so young. The other was an older Suzuki Samurai that the owner, Storm Connors (sounds a bit like an action-hero name, doesn't it?), had converted to electric.

It's too early to say whether one or both of the cars somehow contributed to the blaze, but officials are already a tad suspicious. I'd be too, especially since the Suzuki was converted over from gasoline. I don't know the circumstances of the car's conversion—whether it was a do-it-yourself job or professionally done, whether the guy was a hack or an expert—but something about those kinds of projects makes me cringe when they end in fireballs.

It should also be noted that Storm Connors converted the Suzuki years ago, with no problems until the Volt joined it in the garage. It's entirely possible that charging the two simultaneously was too great a strain on the garage's electrical system. Perhaps it was solely a problem with the Volt, which re-ignited several days after the blaze was extinguished. Maybe it was the home charging system Connors rigged up himself as described in his own blog.

If I were less cynical, I wouldn’t foresee this story becoming ammunition for the EV-bashing community if it manages to blow up into the national spotlight. Sigh.

What really matters, of course, is that no human lives were lost. The Connors' house is in good shape as well, as Storm Connors (himself a fireman) had smartly installed a firewall between the garage and house which proved quite effective in quarantining the fire in the garage.

Then again, maybe Skynet is running out of Terminators to send back in time after deciding to eliminate anybody with the last name “Connor.” Chevy Volt, slave of Skynet? All hail our hybrid overlords!

Source: Autoblog

Sweden Unveils “Arctic Whisper” Hybrid Bus

Posted: 22 Apr 2011 12:08 PM PDT

Trust a Scandinavian country to be well ahead of the curve on green energy. Having lived in Vaxjo, Sweden (which is quite possibly the greenest city in Europe) for nearly six months, I can tell you that the Swedes take this green energy stuff quite seriously.

So it should come as no surprise that the northern city of Umea, Sweden has debuted a hybrid bus called the "Arctic Whisper." This bad boy features an overhead charging station by Opbrid which (according to the company) will allow the bus to travel up to 18 hours without support from its diesel engine, with only minor five-minute pit stops in between routes to recharge.

The best part about this nifty system: one Opbrid Busbaar charging station can recharge any number of these green buses for a fraction of the cost of filling the behemoth with diesel—between 1-2 Euros worth of electricity can take the bus 10 kilometers, compared to 7-8 Euros for the diesel engine to move it the same distance.

Of course, the diesel engine is still there in a pinch, making the Arctic Whisper a versatile beast indeed. If deployed correctly, though, the bus should almost never need it. Knowing the Swedes, the only time they'll be firing up the good old diesel motor is in an emergency. This is just another front in the ongoing effort to green bus travel. From London to China, ultracapacitors to hydrogen fuel cells, plug-in hybrids and even buses that straddle the road, the bus of the future is going to be very different in the coming years.

This is cutting-edge technology, folks. The potential is there to save a fortune on energy costs. The technology will only get better.

It's an exciting time to be alive, no?

Source: Autobloggreen

VW Jetta Protect: is it the “Greenest” Tank You Can Buy?

Posted: 22 Apr 2011 08:56 AM PDT

As far as I can tell, the VW Bora (called “Jetta” in the US) shown above is the “greenest” armored car you can buy. Powered by a 200 hp version VW’s 2.0 TSi four-cylinder (from the Golf GTi) and mated to the company’s outstanding “DSG” dual-clutch gearbox, this baby-tank features ultra-lightweight kevlar and Aramid mats in the door panels, bullet-resistant polycarbonate windows, and run-flat tires to help keep drivers safe in the mean streets of Mexico (where the car is being marketed).

Why Mexico? Some parts of Mexico (and the rest of Latin America, if we’re being honest) can be pretty rough, and companies like Texas Armoring have been known to beef up everything from brand new tuner Benzes and Cadillac SUVs to more “under the radar” stuff like old Toyota Camrys – but none of those cars is as emissions-friendly as the EuroV-compliant VW, nor can they come close to matching the 2.0 liter TSi’s 31 mpg fuel economy rating.

Speaking of that TSi engine: the Jetta Protect shouldn’t be as “tank slow” on the road as some of its heavier “competition” either, since it weighs in at just 3800 lbs vs. the “standard” Jetta’s 3200 lbs (more than made up for by the Protect’s additional 85 hp).

What do you think, readers? Is there a greener factory armored car out there? Let us know in the comments!

Source: VW, via Autoblog.

Algae-based Fuels Could Cut Foreign Oil Use by 17%

Posted: 22 Apr 2011 06:55 AM PDT

According to a team of researchers at the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, algea-based biofuels could replace up to 17 % of America’s petroleum imports each year, without a significant impact on fresh water use.

The issue of where the water necessary to grow the algal components for the fuel is (arguably) the greatest singles source of controversy surrounding algea based fuels, but the PNL researchers note that raising even large amounts of algae in the humid climates of the Gulf Coast, Southeastern Seaboard and Great Lakes regions would require very little “new” water use. Addressing the issue of water, Mark Wigmosta (the project’s hydrologist and lead author of the study) dismissed excessive water-use concerns, explaining that “algae has been a hot topic of biofuel discussions recently, but no one has taken such a detailed look at how much America could make — and how much water and land it would require — until now.”

Algea biofuels are made by extracting and refining the fats and lipids within algae, which are ideal biofuel stock because they grows quickly and thrive in everything from seawater to sewage.

These biofuels could go a long way toward meeting the Energy Independence and Security Act (EISA) without getting drawn into dubious “food for fuel” arguments. The EISA requires that bio-based fuels replace more than 10 % of our current petroleum consumption by 2022.

Sources: Water Resources Research and PNNL, via Wired.