As the scientists said, the development of this technology may reduce the cost of using  to the same price as using conventional energy sources.  The laboratory will use what is known as “artificial leaf” technology. It is inspired by the way leaves use sunlight to generate electricity.This technique will make possible the separation of water into oxygen and hydrogen. Large quantities of hydrogen can be produced in a clean and sustainable manner.

Conventional technologies are not so efficient because they require huge amounts of energy to extract only small amounts of hydrogen from water. The researchers want to test in the lab if cheap substances like titanium dioxide and rust can efficiently capture solar energy to split water. Currently, such extraction technologies are available, but the team wants to find cheaper ways.

“We can do this reaction right now. It’s no problem. We can use platinum, or we can use very expensive semi-conductor materials. The challenge is to devise a technology which is cheap, and is robust,” said professor James Barber, a leading expert in this field.

This may be the way of the future for fuel.

Researchers at the University of Illinois claim that the Agave plant (used in making tequila) could be a great source of biofuel.

According to some articles published in the journal Global Change Biology Bioenergy, two Agave species greatly exceeded the yields of other biofuel feedstocks such as sorghum, corn, soybean and wheat.

“We need bioenergy crops that have a low risk of unintended land use change. Biomass from Agave can be harvested as a co-product of tequila production without additional land demands,” said Sarah Davis, a bioenergy analyst.

In different locations from Mexico and Africa there are a few abandoned Agave plantations (that had been used to support the natural fiber market) that could be reclaimed as bioenergy croplands.

“More research on Agave species is warranted to determine the tolerance ranges of the highest yielding varieties that would be most viable for bioenergy production in semi-arid regions of the world,” she added.

As the scientists said, Agace is the perfect source of biofuel, having the possibility to be cultivated in Australia, Mexico and Africa.

Read more: http://www.greenoptimistic.com/2011/02/04/agave-plant-biofuel/#ixzz1DK81oARH

Eight years ago, President George W. Bush proposed a $1.2 billion program to help develop fuel-cell vehicles and hydrogen storage systems. Now, in 2011, the U.S. still has no hydrogen fuel cell cars in commercial production.

At the State of the Union Address, President Barack Obama stated that his goal is to make the United States the first country with one million electric vehicles on the road by 2015.

According to Michael Omotoso, director of global powertrain forecasting at J.D. Power and Associates in Troy, Mich., the limited market for short-range compact cars and the high cost of batteries could be real obstacles to reaching Obama’s goal.

The first vehicles planned to be on the road will be the Chevy Volt and the Nissan Leaf. General Motors wants to expand its production to 120,000 Volt units by 2012. So far, a total of 19 Leafs and 326 Volts have been sold in the U.S.

As the Energy Information Administration claims, automakers will sell about 281,000 light trucks and electric vehicles from 2011 through 2015.

With some help from a local utility provider, Green Hills Community Action Agency (GHCAA) is now offering to help renew a practice your grandmother would have sworn by when it comes to doing the laundry.
GHCAA’s Energy Services Department has received a $5,000 grant from Ameren Missouri to provide clothes lines and drying racks for those whose incomes are at or below 125 percent of the 2011 federal poverty guidelines (see chart directly below on the front page of today’s Leader).
Last year, GHCAA installed 200 outdoor clothes lines within its nine-county service area. Linn County GHCAA Director Monica Baker says about 30 homes in Linn County received clothes lines or drying racks.

For more information on this please visit the Linn County Leader website

According to the English version of Dubai News, UAE’s new solar energy desalination process “helps reduce cost of water treatment, especially in desert areas where dust and high temperatures impair the efficiency of solar panels used in the existing desalination system.”

Click here for more information:

http://www.greenoptimistic.com/2011/01/22/arab-emirates-solar-desalination-system/

Indian plans to build first commercial tidal power plant

Atlantis Resources Co, a London-based marine energy developer, had the idea of building a tidal power plant with an initial capacity of 50 MW. Gujarat, an Indian state, has already made some plans for the installation of the first commercial tidal power plant in India. The project will be organized in partnership with Guajar Corporation Limited.

Atlantis Resources Corporation and the government of Gujarat have signed a MoU (memorandum of understanding), with the purpose of assembling the power plant in the next two years. The plant may have a capacity of 250 MW and its costs are believed to raise to about $165 million.

To learn more about this exciting project go to:

http://www.greenoptimistic.com/2011/01/17/india-tidal-power-plant/

To learn more go to:

http://magsx2.wordpress.com/

This year’s G’Day USA two-week program is now underway. An annual program designed to showcase and bring new business, art, education and tourism events to eight US cities – Los Angeles, San Diego, San Francisco, Sacramento, Denver, Houston, Boston and New York – with the goal of strengthening bilateral collaboration and realising new business opportunities for Australia.

For more information on how to attend events around the US please visit http://www.australia-week.com

I look forward to seeing how the Americans embrace the Aussies!