01/09/2011
Goodbye red lights and fuel-inefficiency
Want to drive in a more fuel-efficient way? Hate sitting at red lights? Well, researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology may have a way of avoiding red lights and being more fuel-efficient at the same time.
They have come up with an application for smart-phones, called SignalGuru, which, using GPS technology, will help motorists time their approach towards red lights so that they change to green before the driver needs to slow their vehicle to a stop.
This will mean that on top of not having to wait around at traffic lights so often, it will reduce the amount of time the car engine is idling and, as a result, save fuel.
Unfortunately this clever app has only been tested on smart-phones in Massachusetts and Singapore, but the researchers want to make the system commercially available to all drivers in the near future.
Image © http://snow.ipernity.com via Flickr, under Creative Commons Licence
Labels: app, car, engine, fuel-efficient, GPS, idling, motor vehicle, red lights, smart-phone, traffic lights
18/07/2011
Algae bio-fuel from the Roman Baths
We bring you such an interesting variety of car news on this blog – flying cars, boat-cars, ghost cars – and here’s another.
Algae-fuelled cars.
Scientists are at this very moment growing seven different types of algae to determine which would be best as a bio-fuel.
Confused?
Apparently, scientists have found that the Roman Baths, in Bath, have an array of algae growing in their waters and extracting oil from one of the cells in these plant-like organisms could result in a replacement for petrol and diesel.
The idea of running vehicles on algae has been around for years, but there have been two potential problems. One drawback is that algae “are usually happiest growing at temperatures around 25C and that can limit the places in which it can be cultivated on a large scale,” states a PhD student working on the project.
Hindrance number two is that, as researcher Professor Scott states, “One species might produce a lot of oil, but if we can't harvest the algae or break the cell walls easily then the production costs of the bio-diesel will rise and it will no longer be a suitable alternative to other fuels”.
What the scientists are trying to do now is find the best, and most easily mass-produced, algae for the job.
So far they’ve established and begun to grow seven types, but there are many more to be found.
Sounds difficult. We’ll leave them to it and wait for the results.
Algae-fuelled cars.Scientists are at this very moment growing seven different types of algae to determine which would be best as a bio-fuel.
Confused?
Apparently, scientists have found that the Roman Baths, in Bath, have an array of algae growing in their waters and extracting oil from one of the cells in these plant-like organisms could result in a replacement for petrol and diesel.
The idea of running vehicles on algae has been around for years, but there have been two potential problems. One drawback is that algae “are usually happiest growing at temperatures around 25C and that can limit the places in which it can be cultivated on a large scale,” states a PhD student working on the project.
Hindrance number two is that, as researcher Professor Scott states, “One species might produce a lot of oil, but if we can't harvest the algae or break the cell walls easily then the production costs of the bio-diesel will rise and it will no longer be a suitable alternative to other fuels”.
What the scientists are trying to do now is find the best, and most easily mass-produced, algae for the job.
So far they’ve established and begun to grow seven types, but there are many more to be found.
Sounds difficult. We’ll leave them to it and wait for the results.
Photo by bongo vongo via Flickr, under Creative Commons Licence
Labels: algae, bio-fuel, car, diesel, motor vehicle, petrol, Roman Baths
14/04/2011
British pride, it’s… Chinese
It’s a sad thing that the days of British manufacturing are long gone but it’s also true that these days being a mature and developed nation, invariably means having only very limited heavy industry.
In the heyday of British manufacturing almost all families contributed in one way or another to sectors such as aviation, pharmaceuticals, textiles and tobacco.
Perhaps none was more ingrained in the national identity than motor vehicle manufacturing. Names like Vauxhall, Leyland, Rover, Mini, Metro, MG, Aston Martin, Bentley, Lotus and Jaguar all became synonymous with British pride and excellence in automotive engineering.
These days very little motor manufacturing lives on. Yes, many major names still have a presence – Ford, Honda, Nissan, Mini, Morris and Jaguar Land Rover are just some of the companies which still retain UK vehicle production plants – but it is a scaled down presence and the industry does not employ anything like the hundreds of thousands of workers it used to.
At least Nissan, Toyota and Jaguar Land Rover can lay claim to decent levels of vehicle production, as all produce over 200,000 vehicles a year, but it certainly isn’t the same, particularly when there is only a limited level of British ownership.
Still, that didn’t prevent me from feeling excited at the news that MG is to produce its first completely new vehicle in 16 years. Yes, it is a now a Chinese owned brand, but MG is one of the most iconic of all British brands and the new model, the MG6, has been engineered in Britain and will be assembled over here at the famous plant in Longbridge, the West Midlands. I certainly won’t allow myself to make tired jokes about MG going all MSG.
My first thoughts on seeing pictures of the new vehicle? Well, I’m disappointed to say that I think it looks a bit samey, so I very much doubt I’ll be seeking a cheap car insurance quote for an MG6 any time soon, but I will reserve final judgement until I see it up close and in the metal.
In the heyday of British manufacturing almost all families contributed in one way or another to sectors such as aviation, pharmaceuticals, textiles and tobacco.
Perhaps none was more ingrained in the national identity than motor vehicle manufacturing. Names like Vauxhall, Leyland, Rover, Mini, Metro, MG, Aston Martin, Bentley, Lotus and Jaguar all became synonymous with British pride and excellence in automotive engineering.These days very little motor manufacturing lives on. Yes, many major names still have a presence – Ford, Honda, Nissan, Mini, Morris and Jaguar Land Rover are just some of the companies which still retain UK vehicle production plants – but it is a scaled down presence and the industry does not employ anything like the hundreds of thousands of workers it used to.
At least Nissan, Toyota and Jaguar Land Rover can lay claim to decent levels of vehicle production, as all produce over 200,000 vehicles a year, but it certainly isn’t the same, particularly when there is only a limited level of British ownership.
Still, that didn’t prevent me from feeling excited at the news that MG is to produce its first completely new vehicle in 16 years. Yes, it is a now a Chinese owned brand, but MG is one of the most iconic of all British brands and the new model, the MG6, has been engineered in Britain and will be assembled over here at the famous plant in Longbridge, the West Midlands. I certainly won’t allow myself to make tired jokes about MG going all MSG.
My first thoughts on seeing pictures of the new vehicle? Well, I’m disappointed to say that I think it looks a bit samey, so I very much doubt I’ll be seeking a cheap car insurance quote for an MG6 any time soon, but I will reserve final judgement until I see it up close and in the metal.
Image © dok1 via Flickr, under Creative Commons Licence
Labels: automotive engineering, cheap car insurance quote, manufacturing, MG, motor vehicle
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