We spend an awful lot of time talking about cars here at EcoGeek. And that's not necessarily something that we're proud of. We think that cars, in the end, can never be green...only greener. Which is why we love Carectomy, and also why we love these bike trees.

In general, bike racks suck. They're used improperly, often there aren't enough around, and they can even be downright insecure. Parking and walking away from your thousand-dollar investment is never fun, especially when we all know that any lock, with enough persistence, can be cut.

Enter the bike tree, a marvolous bit of technology which will keep your bike safe in any situation (save a meteorite.) Abhinav Dapke of Bahrain and India designed the trees to deal with theft, and with congested bike parking. The trees actually use significantly less space than traditional bike parking.

Just hook your bike into the device, push the thumbprint scanner, and the bike gets lifted to safety. When you return, scan your thumb again your bike comes down to meet you. A simple system, and one that could also be performed with RFID or a swipe card, to lower the costs of thumb-scanning.

In any case, one more way to make biking more convenient. Now if they just put a roof over the whole thing we  wouldn't have to worry about soggy-butts after a rainstorm.

Via TreeHugger

It’s not often that a blogger has the opportunity to meet with GM engineers and test drive a one-of-a-kind prototype, but that’s exactly the opportunity I was given the other day. GM first presented a run-down of the interesting tech (which we've written up here) and then handed over the keys so I could see what I thought first hand. The HCCI-equipped Saturn Aura I drove was hot off the proving grounds and the only one of its kind in the United States (there are to HCCI Opel’s in Europe, like the Opel pictured), and evolved out of an idea hatched way back in the 70s.

My first impression (and the first negative) came before even stepping into the car, and that was when I learned I would be driving an automatic. Evidently, Americans don’t drive stick anymore, but I was still jealous when I learned the two HCCI Opels in Europe were stick shift. I’ll try to put that aside since I’m supposed to be considering the engine, not the whole car.

The Saturn Aura is a fairly large, family-size sedan, and is not uncomfortable by any means. I was given the impression by Paul Najt that this was the type of car currently targeted for HCCI, so I would wager it was a fairly representative of what we as consumers might actually be seeing. GM did hint at the possibility of a V6 HCCI in such a vehicle, but that is just speculation right now, as to the best of my knowledge, there is no such engine in existence.

Those disclaimers made, my first driving impression was “wow, this thing really is like a diesel.” It sounded and drove the part when in HCCI mode, and then in switching back to standard ignition (SI) mode showed its side as a typical gasoline-powered car. The transitions were definitely a little rough around the edges, but I was assured (and believe) that these things will be cleared up long before the car is sent to consumers.

Given the size of the car, the 2.2-liter 4-cylinder had a little less oomph than you would expect from your typical Detroit-built family sedan, but it definitely wasn’t unbearable and I didn’t find myself digging into the gas to keep up with traffic. Monitoring the HCCI display screen while cruising you could see (and feel) the engine performing its unique compression ignition. Such a screen won’t be available in production cars, but even in the unusually aggressive driving cycle that I put the car through in the downtown, live-traffic course, I was in fuel-saving HCCI mode over 50% of the time.

That was, in fact, the most impressive part of the test drive. While I understand that an HCCI mode monitor is unlikely to come with a production model (due to marketing reasons), even without being particularly conscious of my driving, this new technology was in use over half the time. Even though HCCI mode cannot carry the car to highway speeds (it only reaches up to 55 mph right now), the fact that is in operation the majority of the time bodes well for GM’s quoted 15% increase in fuel economy.

It was a pleasure to drive, and it will be interesting to see how (and if and when) it is introduced to the public. If the car does maintain a slight transition between HCCI and SI modes or the sound difference is profound (which really gives the impression of driving a diesel while in HCCI mode), driving an equipped engine will definitely take a shift in the mind of the consumer. However, I won’t fault GM for that now, as it seems that consumers are finally ready to make that switch.

Let’s just hope that those fears don’t keep GM from putting the kibosh on this technology. It gets a definite thumbs up from me.

Has GM struck gold, 30 years later?

HCCI, which stands for Homogeneous Charge Compression Ignition, is currently under development at General Motors. Under the watch of Paul Najt, who worked on the technology during his days as a PhD researcher, HCCI is coming to the forefront of GM’s work on eco-friendly gasoline technology. The technology was put on the shelf years ago, but has made a comeback with several important improvements and a promise from GM to make it viable for use in passenger vehicles in the near future.

I recently had a chance to try out this new technology in a working Saturn Aura. You can check out my post-ride review of the technology. But right now we're going to dive in and talk about exactly what HICCI is, and how it works.

What is HCCI?
At its most basic level, HCCI combines the best properties of diesel and gasoline engines into one. Gasoline engines use spark ignition, whereas diesels are compression ignition, meaning that instead of using spark plugs to ignite the air-fuel mixture within the cylinder they use the pressure of the piston to compress the mixture, creating heat and ignition. Because compression ignition is inherently more efficient, diesel engines are predisposed to good fuel economy, but at the cost of high NOx emissions. Gasoline engines, on the other hand, are less fuel efficient, but are also much cleaner in terms of NOx emissions.

Audi, the luxury car unit of the Volkswagen Audi Group (VAG), has announced plans to make electric cars within the next ten years.

In a recent interview, Chairman Rupert Stadler said that he saw great opportunities for electric cars, and expects diesel and battery technology to dominate in the next five to ten years, saying, “By then we will offer cars without exhaust emissions.”

When challenged with the idea that Audi was lagging behind rival German car giants Mercedes and BMW in the development of Li-Ion battery technology, Stadler stated that their research capacities were larger than those of domestic rivals. Without elaborating, he also said, “electric cars offer great opportunities, which we have already seized on.”

This mention of a superior research budget may indicate that Audi intends to throw money at developing a more lightweight, longer range battery than is currently available. Perhaps the most likely showcase for an all-electric vehicle might be a variant of the Audi A1 Metroproject Quattro concept showcased at the Tokyo Motor Show last October. This gas-electric hybrid boasted acceleration of 0-60mph in 7.8 seconds and a top speed of 124mph.

It’s hard to know exactly what to make of Audi’s strategy. Perhaps they’re planning some big alternative power train project that they’re reluctant to talk about, or else the announcement was calculated to be deliberately vague in an effort to wrong foot competitors, or dupe the press (us) into talking about them without actually committing to anything. Either way, ten years is a long time in the auto industry, and it’s possible that the relentless rise in oil prices may force them to show their hand sooner than that.

Via Reuters

Hello, it's Monday May 12th, and stamps just got more expensive again! I've decided...$0.42 is too much. It's time to stop sending letters.

In lieu of going out and buying a sheet of 100 one-cent stamps, I say we figure out how to not need them. Here's a helpful little guide to make those "forever" stamps you bought six months ago last as long as possible.

Discover the Joys of Scanning
I used to think that, every time I had to send someone an official document, it required a stamp. The truth is, that's just not so. I now invariably ask "is it OK for me to scan and email this?" Ninety percent of the time, the answer is yes. I actually have a signed and scanned W-9 that I've sent to dozens of clients. All I need to change is the date.

Scanners are cheap, and easy to come by. I actually recently gave one away of Freecycle because I couldn't find a buyer for it on Craigslist. It might take an hour or so to figure out how to use it, but once you've got the procedure, you'll save yourself time, money and paper.

Online Bill Pay
By now this probably seems like a no-brainer. But, chances are, you haven't fully switched over yet. You've got most of your bills on auto-pay, but a couple still get paid with a check in the mail. Take an hour out of your day and go completely treeless. Either sign up at the company's site, or schedule monthly transfers with your bank.

And for those bills that you might pay to companies or individuals that don't have billing systems, like my landlord, discuss the possibilities of PayPal. When I showed him how easy it was, and told him that it would significantly reduce the number of times per year my payment was late, he was totally into it!

Say I Love You in Binary

Don’t do windows? Now there’s an eco-friendly way to not clean as often. A Denmark company has a new cleaning product called ShineOn that keeps windows free from dirt and grime for up to two years.

ShineOn is a thin coating developed using nanotechnology by SCF Technologies. The coating chemically bonds with glass to create a layer that uses the sun’s energy to “burn” loose dirt that gathers on the glass and loosen it from the surface. The dirt is then washed away from the window by rain.

The coating, which contains titanium dioxide, is applied in two stages with windows prepared with a special fluid to remove all possible contaminants. ShineOn is then polished onto the window with a cloth. Though other dirt-burning coatings have been developed in the past, this is the first that can be applied to existing windows, making retrofit possible without replacing and landfilling millions of panes of glass.

The product makes sense now for commercial use even though the initial application is expensive. The eventual savings are tremendous when you consider how much money is regularly spent on cleaning towers that are surfaced almost entirely in glass. Environmental benefits will come from using less traditional detergents. In a typical modern office building, windows are cleaned up to 100 times over two years.

Now if only someone will discover an energy-free way to fold laundry.

Full Press Release from SCF Technologies

Image via Swisscan on Flickr

Completing the Circle: Gas at the Pump, War in Iraq, and Global Warming

The war in Iraq, originally known as O.I.L. (Operation Iraqi Liberation, that is) recently passed its fifth anniversary. Oil Change International recently published a study that quantifies the greenhouse gas emissions from the Iraq War as well as some of the environmental opportunity costs.

Bicing Takes Barcelona By Storm

In its first two months, Bicing, a bike-sharing program in Barcelona, Spain, garnered over 30,000 subscribers. The program’s popularity has only grown, which is good news for new bike-sharing programs in Washington D.C. and San Francisco.

All Aboard for National Train Day

May 10th marks the first edition of National Train Day, a celebration of trains, tracks, mass transit, and efficient travel. The date is significant as the anniversary of the joining of the Central Pacific and Union Pacific railways in Utah 1869 – which created the US' first transcontinental railroad.

Valley Girl Decries Car Culture

The Los Angeles' Times "Emerald City" blog recently ran a great post illustrating how Southern California turned from sunny citrus paradise to car-choked hell. Cassandra Davis mixes an historical account of the evolution of car culture in SoCal with her own firsthand experiences growing up as a Valley Girl.

Acciona Energy, an alternative energy company based out of Spain, can boast about its reputation for building clean technologies, and lots of them. They are the world leader in wind power, totalling 5,300MW in 192 separate wind parks, and built the first modern concentrating solar plant in the US, the Nevada Solar One (pictured above), to date the 3rd largest in the world, and they keep expanding. They announced today that they are planning on building 2 solar thermal plants in Cordoba, Spain, each with a capacity of 50MW, entering into service in 2010, and costing 500 million euros (roughly $850 million). The two facilities will produce an amazing 224 million KWh per year, the equivalent of 75,000 homes.

"A fluid (oil) runs through these tubes that reaches a very high temperature (400º C). This fluid is sent from the solar field to the power unit where the heat is transferred to a heat exchanger, through which water runs that turns into steam. The steam is taken to a turbine connected to a generator that produces electricity. Following its transformation to high voltage it will be evacuated to the grid through a substation at Villanueva del Rey (in the municipality of Écija)."

Thermal solar power plants have the advantage of producing their peak power during the hottest part of the day, when demand for electricity is generally the highest. The disadvantage, however, is that it cannot actively produce energy during the night and must rely on passive heat remaining in the system, or stored energy which can be released (underground compressed air storage, stored energy flywheels, etc.)

via Ecolectic.org

Among the highlights from the week in wonk was our first "Wonk of the Week" post, featuring an interview with renowned author and activist Bill McKibben. Topics included his new project, the 350 Campaign, as well his thoughts on the ongoing presidential race.

We're still working on the fancy template and title that Hank uses for his awesome "EcoGeek of the Week" interviews, but we hope to make "Wonk of the Week" an ongoing feature as we move forward. In other EnviroWonk news:

• Another week, another depressing story about the influence of big business on EPA business. This time it's Dow Chemical, accused of getting an EPA regional director fired for trying to force the company to clean up in Michigan.
• Samantha Hulkower wrote about how the Army Corps of Engineers may finally be held liable for Katrina flooding.
• British scientist Sir Nicholas Stern, who in 2006 warned of the dire economic impact of global warming, now says he and his team underestimated the risks of climate change.
• What do you get when you combine the inane gas tax holiday proposals with those Nigerian scam e-mail? The best political parody we've read in ages.
• And after all the praise we gave Barack Obama for not taking part in the gas tax pandering, his campaign in Kentucky goes and hands out this unfortunate flyer.
• And again, be sure to check out our interview with Bill McKibben.

The most near-term, cost-effective solar solution is undoubtedly solar thermal. While photovoltaics, which convert light directly into electricity, can have a significantly smaller footprint and higher efficiency...solar thermal has generally proven that it can create electricity at a lower cost.

With that in mind, the U.S. Department of Energy has decided to spend $60 M over the next five years developing low-cost concentrating solar thermal technology (like the parabolic trough pictured from Schott Solar.) They plan on making between 10 and 20 awards to industry and universities working on increasing the efficiency and decreasing the costs of solar thermal power.

They will also be funding projects related to "advanced thermal storage." At first this might seem slightly unrelated. In fact, what they're looking for is a way to store the heat captured during the day so that they can continue to generate electricity throughout the night. This is another possible advantage to solar thermal technology. If the heat can be stored in some medium, say molten salt for example, then that medium could, in effect, make the solar plant a giant battery. Photovoltaic plants, on the other hand, would require some other form of backup energy to keep the juice flowing at night.

Via Cleantech

We all know that the Google boys are EcoGeeks. They've built themselves a 9 MW solar plant, worked to get plug-in hybrids on the streets and even sponsored a contest to create pedal-powered innovations.

But it is nonetheless good to hear Larry Page, one of the two founders of Google talking so passionately and optimistically about the future of our world. The interview, with Fortune Magazine, is a great read...full of hope and inspiration from one of the most influential entrepreneurs alive today.

I'm hugely more optimistic because now we have a conceptualization of the problems that makes some degree of sense to a fair number of people. Look at the things we worry about - poverty, global warming, people dying in accidents....I think our ability to achieve these things on a large scale for many people in the world is improving.

Page discusses Google's non-core (10% of company resources) interest in geothermal and solar thermal power. "How hard should it be to dig a really deep hole?" To be fair...it is pretty hard. But digging a really deep hole seems like a massively simpler process than the one we currently have set up to power America. Page seems honestly convinced that the world's problems will be solved. He puts emphasis on the power of small groups of smart people to make these changes...Ibut he also recognizes that the political, social and economic climate surrounding those small groups of smart people is pretty important too.

Chrysler has promised that they are working on green cars and advanced technology vehicles, but I simply don't see it. While GM is promising an gas-electric car with a 40 mile EV range, Toyota is planning on launching an even-more-efficient Prius, and VW seems to have a 200 MPG two-seater in the works, Chrysler is solving its customers' fuel-cost concerns by trying to help them ignore the problem.

Chrysler has just announced that, instead of making its vehicles more efficient (thus saving customers money) they're simply going to charge more for their large trucks, and use the money to artificially deflate customers gas prices to $2.99 per gallon for three years after purchase. And then, surprise, unlike efficiency gains, the well suddenly runs dry and vehicle owners are stuck with a car that neither they, nor anyone else, wants, in a world where gas costs, at best, more than $4 per gallon.

Of course, Chrysler should be worried. A great deal of its business in its Dodge and Jeep brands are SUVs and large trucks, and SUV sales are not doing well. SUV sales for the month of April are down 33% from last year. That's a HUGE drop, especially when so much of Chrysler's profit comes from these high-markup vehicles.

Not only is this a bad deal for the environment, it turns out its a bad deal for consumers too. The $2.99 offer only comes at the expense of giving up other incentives. And while the program will only ever save consumers about $1,200, the straight-cash incentives on the RAM and Durango are currently about $5,000.

Of course, this is all ignoring how extremely short-sighted this policy is. A measly 3 MPG gain would save consumers far more money than the $2.99 deal, while also decreasing demand for oil and emissions of CO2.

But Chrysler, apparently, would rather remain technologically stagnant. Should we let people pretend like oil prices will never rise again? Or should we actualy do something about the increased demand for gasoline, and skyrocketing levels of CO2 in the atmosphere. You know where my vote lies.

The good news is that a similar program from GM a few years back (promising everlasting $1.99 gas) was a complete flop. Not only did they catch a nationwide PR backlash, as Chrysler now seems to be experiencing, but they also saw no increase in sales of large trucks and SUVs.

Via AutoBlogGreen and AutoObserver