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First flight of Nephelios. Image: Projet Sol’R

A group of French engineering and technical students and recent graduates have devised for themselves a challenge - to fly without consuming fuel, without polluting. Their solution, the Projet Sol’R, is a solar panel-powered helium dirigable, called Nephelios.

The flexible solar panels on the upper surface of the airship feed an electric motor at the rear of the gondola which turns two large two-blade propellors.

The pilot and the two propellors. Image: Projet Sol’R

Having shown the blimp at the Salon du Bourget, preparations are underway for a flight across the Channel.

The flexible solar panels. Image: Projet Sol’R

some facts and figures

• length 22 metres/72 feet
• width 5.5 metres/18 feet
• nylon and polyethylene aluminum frame
• semi-flexible solar cells that generating up to 2.4 kilowatts
• speed: maximum 40 kph/25 mph; cruising, 30-35 kph/19-22 mph
• Flight altitude: up to 500 metres
• load: one pilot

related material
photovoltaics (solar cells)
non-pv (photovoltaic) solar technology

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transformer origami

0:58mins

At Harvard University, researchers have made programmable sheets whose programming is based on origami.

“The sheet, a thin composite of rigid tiles and elastomer joints, is studded with thin foil actuators (motorized switches) and flexible electronics. The demonstration material contains twenty-five total actuators, divided into five groupings. A shape is produced by triggering the proper actuator groups in sequence.” [Quoted from harvard.edu]

“Smart sheets are Origami Robots”. Image: harvard.edu

“The technology, described online today in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, could be scaled up to create ultra-portable tripods or even cups that automatically adjust to the size of liquid being poured into them.” [Quoted from sciencemag.org]

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cars for nutters and for utopians!

“Ron Dennis, the boss of McLaren, insisted today he had "moved on" from Formula One as he launched the company's new super car.

Image:Kirsty Wigglesworth/AP

“Production of the road car, the MP4-12C, which will cost about £150,000, will start next year...” [Quoted from guardian.co.uk]

And an electric car, under £50k, including £20k battery, with a 100 mile range.

“The Leaf is based on a special electric vehicle chassis and will have an average range of 100 miles and a top speed of 90mph, which Nissan claims will be sufficient for more than 90 per cent of UK car customers' daily journeys.

Image: Nissan

“It also claims that the Leaf will be able to be recharged to more than 80 per cent of its capacity in just 30 minutes at special high-current charging stations.”

And some comments on batteries, charging and recharging stations

I am using some strong lithium batteries. They are performing rather well, but I have not owned any for more than 2 years yet. Those from five or more years ago were very disappointing (to me). From reading reports, batteries are obviously improving rapidly, but none of the suppliers are prepared to answer straight questions yet. You cannot get useful guarantees.

There will come a time when photovoltaic generation at home, when you have free land or roof space, will become economically attractive, if and as electricity prices rise. Night electricity is cheap, daytime is expensive. On balance, a PV system will feed into a grid during the day, making income for the householder, while charging batteries off-grid with cheaper night-time current.

Battery prices will fall and efficiency will increase. I would expect households to have back- up batteries. I already have some lithium back-up batteries.

As for garages - in that case, you would not purchase the batteries but rent them from garages, just as you can now rent butane and propane canisters.

related material
fuel cells and battery-powered vehicles

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star wars a step closer

“The US this week achieved a goal that has eluded it since Ronald Reagan's Star Wars programme by knocking out a ballistic missile using a high-powered laser beam mounted on a plane.

“The successful test was carried out yesterday in California, the US Missile Defence Agency (MDA) said, making real what had previously been confined to the realms of science fiction.

“The plane uses a combination of lasers to lock on to the missile and track its trajectory, and then bring it down with a ­single shot fired from the nose turret, all in less than 12 seconds.”

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alleged end of ‘cleaning’ gunge incorporated

“In the home, spray-on glass would eliminate the need for scrubbing and make most cleaning products obsolete. Since it is available in both water-based and alcohol-based solutions, it can be used in the oven, in bathrooms, tiles, sinks, and almost every other surface in the home, and one spray is said to last a year

“Liquid glass spray is perhaps the most important nanotechnology product to emerge to date. It will be available in DIY stores in Britain soon, with prices starting at around £5 ($8 US). Other outlets, such as many supermarkets, may be unwilling to stock the products because they make enormous profits from cleaning products that need to be replaced regularly, and liquid glass would make virtually all of them obsolete.”

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the changing face of publishing - free e-books

“That’s right. More than half of the “best-selling” e-books on the Kindle, Amazon.com’s e-reader, are available at no charge.

“Although some of the titles are digital versions of books in the public domain — like Jane Austen’s “Pride and Prejudice” — many are by authors still trying to make a living from their work.

“Earlier this week, for example, the No. 1 and 2 spots on Kindle’s best-seller list were taken by “Cape Refuge” and “Southern Storm,” both novels by Terri Blackstock, a writer of Christian thrillers. The Kindle price: $0. Until the end of the month, Ms. Blackstock’s publisher, Zondervan, a division of HarperCollins Publishers, is offering readers the opportunity to download the books free to the Kindle or to the Kindle apps on their iPhone or in Windows.

“Publishers including Harlequin, Random House and Scholastic are offering free versions of digital books to Amazon, Barnes & Noble and other e-retailers, as well as on author Web sites, as a way of allowing readers to try out the work of unfamiliar writers. The hope is that customers who like what they read will go on to obtain another title for money.”

Article worth a scan.

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