Talk to the pioneers of green technology and they'll tell you these days they spend less time hard-selling the allure of renewable energy, and more hours managing shortages of materials, labor, and manufacturing capacity. Instead of evangelizing new markets, their focus has shifted to the practical: how to build new plants while driving down costs to make their products and services more competitive.
New energy technologies, particularly in solar and biofuels, remain the most popular fields, attracting more than $1 billion for new ventures so far this year. But the latest hot spot, says Parker, is Energy Infotech, software used to find and eliminate waste in everything from lighting systems and manufacturing operations to utility grids. What follows is a look at some green sectors and the challenges companies in these areas face.
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Wednesday, 12 September 2007
Reclusive green-tech startup whispers a eulogy for the battery
AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — Millions of inventions pass quietly through the U.S. patent office each year. Patent No. 7,033,406 did, too, until energy insiders spotted six words in the filing that sounded like a death knell for the internal combustion engine.
An Austin-based startup called EEStor promised "technologies for replacement of electrochemical batteries," meaning a motorist could plug in a car for five minutes and drive 800 kilometres roundtrip between Dallas and Houston without gasoline.
By contrast, some plug-in hybrids on the horizon would require motorists to charge their cars in a wall outlet overnight and promise only 80 kilometres of gasoline-free commute. And the popular hybrids on the road today still depend heavily on fossil fuels.
"It's a paradigm shift," said Ian Clifford, chief executive of Toronto-based ZENN Motor Co., which has licensed EEStor's invention. "The Achilles' heel to the electric car industry has been energy storage. By all rights, this would make internal combustion engines unnecessary."
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Tuesday, 11 September 2007
High-Tech Eco-Friendly Brentwood Home Built in 2 Days?
Interested in a new home that's prefab and evergreen too? It's expected to go on the market soon and it's only taking two days to put together. Some call this the wave of the future in environmentally correct homes.
A conventional high-end home of this size usually takes one to two years to build. This modular environmentally friendly version will be done in just days, and when it's complete it will be wired with all the latest high-tech gadgets and energy efficient appliances too. So if you're looking for a new home, this showcase house could be on the market by the end of this year.
Fifty-thousand pounds of steel lowered carefully into place. It's just one of the 15 prefab modules that together will make up this modern state-of-the-art luxury home. In just two days the 4,000-square-foot living space will be 70 percent complete. With a little plumbing, electrical and lots of high-tech bells and whistles, developers hope it will strike the perfect balance between green living, high technology and high design.
"It's an architectural masterpiece," says homeowner Phillip Beron. "It's by one of the premier architects in California history, from Ray Kappe."
The home is the second green-living project for architect Ray Kappe and LivingHomes CEO and Founder Steve Glenn. The first was built last year in Santa Monica, a 2,500-square-foot modern home that took just one day to assemble.
"We're really talking about trying to reduce costs and reduce time, so that's where we are going so these can be built in much shorter time," says architect Ray Kappe.
Phillip Baron, who owns the new home under construction, admits he wasn't too keen on green living until he met Steve Glenn.
"I didn't realize that a third of all the landfills are filled with construction waste and a lot of that is because as you bring materials to the site and you cut and you measure and you throw everything else away. When it's done in a factory, there is significantly less waste," said Beron.
Less waste in the building phase and throughout the life of the home. Most, if not all the materials used, are recycled and the home, with solar-power panels and energy-efficient lights, will more than do its part for the planet.
"There are a bunch of things that make it a healthier, more sustainable place in terms of both how it's constructed, and then how it operates in an ongoing basis," said Steve Glenn.
Come the end of October, this showcase house will be open to the public so you can see it for yourself.
This house won't be cheap. It will be in the millions.
continue
A conventional high-end home of this size usually takes one to two years to build. This modular environmentally friendly version will be done in just days, and when it's complete it will be wired with all the latest high-tech gadgets and energy efficient appliances too. So if you're looking for a new home, this showcase house could be on the market by the end of this year.
Fifty-thousand pounds of steel lowered carefully into place. It's just one of the 15 prefab modules that together will make up this modern state-of-the-art luxury home. In just two days the 4,000-square-foot living space will be 70 percent complete. With a little plumbing, electrical and lots of high-tech bells and whistles, developers hope it will strike the perfect balance between green living, high technology and high design.
"It's an architectural masterpiece," says homeowner Phillip Beron. "It's by one of the premier architects in California history, from Ray Kappe."
The home is the second green-living project for architect Ray Kappe and LivingHomes CEO and Founder Steve Glenn. The first was built last year in Santa Monica, a 2,500-square-foot modern home that took just one day to assemble.
"We're really talking about trying to reduce costs and reduce time, so that's where we are going so these can be built in much shorter time," says architect Ray Kappe.
Phillip Baron, who owns the new home under construction, admits he wasn't too keen on green living until he met Steve Glenn.
"I didn't realize that a third of all the landfills are filled with construction waste and a lot of that is because as you bring materials to the site and you cut and you measure and you throw everything else away. When it's done in a factory, there is significantly less waste," said Beron.
Less waste in the building phase and throughout the life of the home. Most, if not all the materials used, are recycled and the home, with solar-power panels and energy-efficient lights, will more than do its part for the planet.
"There are a bunch of things that make it a healthier, more sustainable place in terms of both how it's constructed, and then how it operates in an ongoing basis," said Steve Glenn.
Come the end of October, this showcase house will be open to the public so you can see it for yourself.
This house won't be cheap. It will be in the millions.
continue
Monday, 10 September 2007
'Green' buildings are hot - and cool
It's the perfect "green" building.
It faces south, taking advantage of passive solar features. Its east and west ends are insulated with a mountain of limestone. It stays cool in summer, warm in winter.
It is made from materials that are found nearby or manufactured on-site and recycled generation after generation.
No commute. The work site is on-site or a stone's throw away. Food and water are available nearby.
It is the perfect zero-carbon home, though nobody has lived in it for centuries.
Still, we can learn something from the cliff dwelling, says architect Dave Burns, who has spent much of his professional career trying to approach the sustainability of our ancestors in buildings that must be air conditioned, lighted and powered for the various jobs they perform. He is spending his time now persuading others to go along, forming a Southern Arizona chapter of the U.S. Green Building Council.
The crusade for greener buildings has accelerated with the recognition that powering our homes, offices and factories requires 70 percent of the electricity generated in this country and accounts for 30 percent of our contribution to climate change — the release of greenhouse gases caused by our daily activities.
The modern green building is an amalgamation of those early lessons and high-tech systems.
Site planning
Oriented mainly toward north and south with shade configured to warm the building in winter, cool it in summer. Breezeway allows outdoor classroom, and two-story design minimizes building footprint.
Water management
Rainwater captured from roof irrigates native or adaptive plants, and excess is directed to nearby recycled-water pond in Reid Park; toilets are flushed with recycled water; gray water from sinks and showers is used for on-site watering.
Building also has waterless urinals, ultra-low-flow faucets and a pervious-concrete in parking lot, which allows rain to seep back to water table.
Energy management
Solar panels provide shade and generate at least 20 percent of the building's energy needs. Skylights and windows provide "daylighting," reducing energy demand. Lights, heating and cooling adjusted to reduce use in sunny and warm areas of the building. White reflective roof, insulated-concrete-form walls with average R-32 insulative properties, double-paned, low E glass. HVAC system downsized to 35 percent of energy that would otherwise be required.
Material use
Made on site: rammed-earth patio walls. Concrete and asphalt on site was ground and recycled for new paving. Recycled fly ash in new concrete. Most building materials manufactured within 500-mile radius.
Recycled: Originate Natural Building Materials donated a salvaged countertop of Ice Stone, a totally recycled product. Window shading salvaged from former Tucson General Hospital; cotton batt insulation made from recycled jeans in Chandler; linoleum flooring made from scrap wood and sawdust; Trex decking and carpet made from recycled plastic. Steel frame is 99 percent recycled; 90 percent of construction debris was sorted and recycled.
Rapidly renewable materials: Bamboo; wood from certified renewable forests.
Commuting
Located along multiuse paths with bus line nearby. Showers (of limited duration) in restrooms and bike lockers to encourage bike use by staff. Parking set aside for car pools and alternative-fuel vehicles.
Indoor environment
All paints and adhesives are free of volatile organic compounds. Operable windows allow fresh air to circulate (and reduce heating and cooling needs) on balmy days. Plywood and particle board used in construction are formaldehyde-free. Carpet doesn't give off gas. Green-cleaning program uses environmentally friendly products.
Other
White roofs, shade trees and light-colored paving reduce heat-island effect. Tucson Zoological Society will purchase "green" energy credits comparable to four years' operation of building. The building and its resource-saving components will become part of the Zoo School's education about conserving resources. Vegetation removed was fed to the zoo animals. Animals will snack in the future on bamboo grown on-site.
continue
It faces south, taking advantage of passive solar features. Its east and west ends are insulated with a mountain of limestone. It stays cool in summer, warm in winter.
It is made from materials that are found nearby or manufactured on-site and recycled generation after generation.
No commute. The work site is on-site or a stone's throw away. Food and water are available nearby.
It is the perfect zero-carbon home, though nobody has lived in it for centuries.
Still, we can learn something from the cliff dwelling, says architect Dave Burns, who has spent much of his professional career trying to approach the sustainability of our ancestors in buildings that must be air conditioned, lighted and powered for the various jobs they perform. He is spending his time now persuading others to go along, forming a Southern Arizona chapter of the U.S. Green Building Council.
The crusade for greener buildings has accelerated with the recognition that powering our homes, offices and factories requires 70 percent of the electricity generated in this country and accounts for 30 percent of our contribution to climate change — the release of greenhouse gases caused by our daily activities.
The modern green building is an amalgamation of those early lessons and high-tech systems.
Site planning
Oriented mainly toward north and south with shade configured to warm the building in winter, cool it in summer. Breezeway allows outdoor classroom, and two-story design minimizes building footprint.
Water management
Rainwater captured from roof irrigates native or adaptive plants, and excess is directed to nearby recycled-water pond in Reid Park; toilets are flushed with recycled water; gray water from sinks and showers is used for on-site watering.
Building also has waterless urinals, ultra-low-flow faucets and a pervious-concrete in parking lot, which allows rain to seep back to water table.
Energy management
Solar panels provide shade and generate at least 20 percent of the building's energy needs. Skylights and windows provide "daylighting," reducing energy demand. Lights, heating and cooling adjusted to reduce use in sunny and warm areas of the building. White reflective roof, insulated-concrete-form walls with average R-32 insulative properties, double-paned, low E glass. HVAC system downsized to 35 percent of energy that would otherwise be required.
Material use
Made on site: rammed-earth patio walls. Concrete and asphalt on site was ground and recycled for new paving. Recycled fly ash in new concrete. Most building materials manufactured within 500-mile radius.
Recycled: Originate Natural Building Materials donated a salvaged countertop of Ice Stone, a totally recycled product. Window shading salvaged from former Tucson General Hospital; cotton batt insulation made from recycled jeans in Chandler; linoleum flooring made from scrap wood and sawdust; Trex decking and carpet made from recycled plastic. Steel frame is 99 percent recycled; 90 percent of construction debris was sorted and recycled.
Rapidly renewable materials: Bamboo; wood from certified renewable forests.
Commuting
Located along multiuse paths with bus line nearby. Showers (of limited duration) in restrooms and bike lockers to encourage bike use by staff. Parking set aside for car pools and alternative-fuel vehicles.
Indoor environment
All paints and adhesives are free of volatile organic compounds. Operable windows allow fresh air to circulate (and reduce heating and cooling needs) on balmy days. Plywood and particle board used in construction are formaldehyde-free. Carpet doesn't give off gas. Green-cleaning program uses environmentally friendly products.
Other
White roofs, shade trees and light-colored paving reduce heat-island effect. Tucson Zoological Society will purchase "green" energy credits comparable to four years' operation of building. The building and its resource-saving components will become part of the Zoo School's education about conserving resources. Vegetation removed was fed to the zoo animals. Animals will snack in the future on bamboo grown on-site.
continue
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