An MIT-led team has designed a plane that is estimated to use 70 percent less fuel than current planes while also reducing noise and emission of nitrogen oxides.

MIT was contracted ny NASA to evaluate the potential of quieter subsonic commercial planes that would burn 70 percent less fuel, emit 75 percent less nitrogen oxides and take off from shorter runways than todays commercial planes.

The MIT design achieves this in an aircraft similar in size to a 180-passenger Boeing 737 by reconfiguring the tube-and-wing structure. Instead of using a single fuselage cylinder, they used two partial cylinders placed side by side to create a wider structure whose cross-section resembles two soap bubbles joined together. This allows the fuselage to provide some of the lift currently provided by the wings and the design to have thinner wings and a smaller tail to reduce drag.

The team moved the engines from the usual wing-mounted locations to the rear of the fuselage. This means that the engines take in the slower moving air that is in the wake of the fuselage. As a result, they use less fuel for the same amount of thrust, although there is more engine stress. To mitigate theis, the plane is designed to fly 10% slower than a Boeing 737.

The team has also designed an aircraft similar in size to a  350-passenger Boeing 777 using the same "hybrid wing body" principles to dramatically reduce fuel consumption.

The Chinese Government has blocked General Motors attempt to sell Hummer to Sichuan Tengzhong Heavy Industrial Machinery, a private Chinese company that manufactures heavy vehicles and road-building equipment. As a result, General Motors will now dismantle the brand.

John Smith, General Motors’ Vice President of Corporate Planning and Alliances, said that "GM will now work closely with Hummer employees, dealers and suppliers to wind down the business in an orderly and responsible manner."

The Chinese Government did not give details of its reasons for blocking the purchase but according to Yale Zhang, a China auto-industry market analyst "The purchase of this brand is not a match for China. The Government’s general policies about efficiency and environmental protection …  This purchase does not match those."

 (Public domain photo via Wikimedia)

As the first step in its plan to eliminate all fossil fuel burning cars by 2030, Sweden has announced new taxes on car emissions and on diesel fuel.

From January 2011, vehicle (registration) taxes will be increased by 5 krona (about 90 Australian cents) for every gram of carbon dioxide that the car emits per kilometre traveled above a base of 120 grams per kilometre. (This is slightly more than a Honda Civic Hybrid which emits 109 grams per kilometre.).

"Green" cars, which emit less than 120 grams per kilometre will be completely exempt from vehicle tax for five years. Swedes already get a 10,000 krona ($au1,750) rebate when they buy a "green" car.

Taxes on diesel are to be increased by 0.40 krona (about 8 Australian cents) a litre. Most cars in Sweden run on diesel rather than petrol.

Both actions are part of Sweden’s plan to reduce greenhouse emissions to 40% below 1990 levels by 2020. Germany is aiming for a similar reduction with the overall European Union target being a 20% reduction. The Australian government is proposing a 5% target.

Sweden has been one of the most successful countries in reducing greenhouse emissions. It attributes its success to carbon taxes, which were introduced in 1990, rather than carbon trading.

Funding for a high-speed rail line that will go from San Francisco to Los Angeles in 2 hours and 40 minutes will be decided this November, when a $9.95 billion bond measure for the train is voted on.

The 1,250 kilomentre bullet train system is expected to eventually carry up to 100 million passengers a year at speeds of up to 350 kilometres per hour.

The train’s expected usage of 3,350 GWh a year will be generated using renewable energy and will produce no greenhouse gas emissions.

The American delivery company, UPS, has some 95,000 trucks. For 100 years, UPS employees have worked to find the most efficient routes for delivering packages in a safe and timely manner by physically driving each one and plotting them on maps. Over the last few years, UPS has been rolling out computer programs to automate the process that was performed manually in the past. One thing that the computer models showed was that drivers should make as few left turns across oncoming traffic as possible.

Waiting for the oncoming traffic to pass was costing more time and fuel than making three right turns to go around the block. In a right hand drive country, such as Australia, this would mean avoiding right hand turns. UPS tried the system and in 2007 shaved nearly 50 million kilometres off already streamlined delivery routes, saved 11 million litres of petrol and reduced emissions by 32,000 tonnes of CO2.

At the Goodwood Festival of Speed in England last weekend, Parajet displayed a prototype of its Skycar – the world’s first carbon neutral flying car. The Skycar will be a high performance, road legal machine, capable of beating congestion for the commuter or providing a low cost method of reaching remote regions otherwise only accessible by helicopter.

In “fly mode” the Skycar will be powered by a ram-air wing and capable of take-off from a field or airstrip in less than 200 metres. the Skycar will have a take-off speed of 60 kilometres per hour, a top speed of 110 kilometres per hour and a range of 300 kilometres. Cruising altitude will be 2000 – 3000 ft with a maximum altitude of 15,000 ft.

The makers claim that it will be easier and safer to fly than any other aircraft, as it has no pitch control and therefore impossible to stall or dive. Should the engine fail, the pilot would simply glide down into the nearest field or strip. In the event of catastrophic wing failure, car connection system failure or mid-air collision, an emergency ballistic reserve parachute can be deployed.

In “road mode” the Skycar will accelerate from zero to 100 kilometres per hour in 4.5 seconds, have a top speed of 180 kilometres per hour and a range of 400 kilometres.

The manufacturers say that a leading UK chemical engineer has succeeded in developing a revolutionary process for converting organic waste from landfill sites into synthetic biofuel which they will use. This process creates fuels with a zero carbon footprint.

A prototype Skycar is currently being tested. After testing, the Skycar’s maiden voyage will be from London across the Sahara to Timbuku in the spring of 2009.

While other car manufacturers are racing to produce “green” cars by improving fuel efficiency, Lotus has taken a different approach – overhauling its entire manufacturing process. The result is the Eco Elite made largely out of hemp.

As well as hemp-based bodywork, the car has wool and sisal carpets and water-based paintwork. The company’s main plant was overhauled for efficiency and eco-friendliness, producing an 11% reduction in water use, 14% reduction in electricity and 30% less gas usage last year as compared to 2006. Materials are being sourced locally to reduce the “carbon miles” of the production process. Nearly 60% of all waste product from Lotus’ manufacturing processes is recycled.

The car is light, quick and efficient but instead of the power shift option indicator found on many performance cars, the Eco Elite has a “green shift” indicator which tells the driver when to change gears for maximum fuel efficiency and low emissions.

The Eco Elite will be displayed at the British International Motor Show in late July.

Japanese company, Genepax, have produced a prototype car that runs entirely on water and air. The vehicle uses a proprietary technology called a "Membrane Electrode Assembly" which is a material that is capable of breaking down water into hydrogen and oxygen through a chemical reaction.

Genenpax say that their new process, while based on existing technology, is expected to produce hydrogen from water for a longer time than any method currently available. Furthermore, it does not require a hydrogen reformer, a high-pressure hydrogen tank or any special catalysts.

Currently, the cost of producing the water-powered vehicle engine is about ¥2,000,000 ($20,000) but is expected to fall to around ¥500,000 ($5,000) or less if they succeed in bringing it into mass production.

Zero Pollution Motors is about to start taking American orders for its compressed air car. The car runs solely on compressed air at speeds up to 35 miles per hour and uses a trickle of petrol to heat and compree more air to reach iys top speed of 90 miles per hour. ZPM says that the car "has zero to low C02 emissions, seats six, has plenty of space for luggage, cuts no safety corners, and costs no more than an average economy to mid-size vehicle."

The U.S., Brazil and the European Union have released an analysis of current biofuel standards with the aim of establishing common standards. Such standards are considered critical for the world biofuel market to develop.

Between them the three groups have sixteen different standards for the composition of ethanol and biodiesel. Reaching common standards will facilitate international trade in biofuels. It is hoped that other significant producers, such as China, India and South Africa, will also adopt the standards.

Currently, Brazil, which is the largest exporter of ethanol, requires up to 25 percent ethanol with all petrol sold and the European Unon will require at least 5.75 percent ethanol in all vehicle fuels by 2010.