Sustainable Inventions featured in Forbes

As featured on Forbes.com:

Harnessing a mix of creative thinking and engineering know-how, entrepreneurs have come up with a host of affordable, eco-friendly solutions to everyday problems ranging from cheaper solar panels in California to irrigation challenges for small farmers in Myanmar. Some of these innovations have already proved to be commercially viable; others are still in development, but on their way to market. All have the potential to make big changes.

For the slide show of all 10 inventions click below:

         Original Article:  Forbes 10 Eco-Friendly Inventions

EVENT: Tufts Energy Conference 2009

This year, Tufts Energy Forum (TEF) will be hosting its 4th annual energy conference:

For more information on the conference and free registration see the links at the end of this post.

“Global Green Infrastructure: Powering the 21st Century”. The Conference will feature three panel discussions with experts from fields of academia, research, business and policy and will explore the areas of : New Infrastructure Technologies, Revitalizing our national infrastructure and Powering the developing world.

We invite you to join us for a day of passionate and immense debate, learning and exchange on how to make our world a more sustainable one.

Date: 28th March 2009
Time: 10am - 5pm
Venue: Sophia Gordon Multipurpose Hall, Tufts University

* This event is co-sponsored by the Tufts Institute for Global Leadership (IGL) and Tufts Climate Solutions Coalition (TCSC)

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SCHEDULE
9:00-9:30	Open Registration
9:30 - 9:45	Welcome Sherman Teichman, Director of the Institute for Global Leadership Peter O'Regan, Conference Co-Chair
10:00 - 11:30	Innovation and Diffusion of New Infrastructure Technologies  Examining the efforts to both finance and develop technologies that allow us to use power more efficiently and sustainably. This panel brings together the science and technology of infrastructure development and explores the future of new technological innovation and diffusion. Featuring: James Bickford, Draper Labs Philip Guidice, Commissioner Massachusetts Department of Energy Resources Jon Karlen, Flybridge Capital Richard Larson, MIT Rob Pratt, Energy Climate Solutions Moderated by Professor Maria Flytzani-Stephanopoulos, Tufts University
11:30-11:45	Coffee Break
11:45-12:15	Opening Keynote: Peter Droege, World Council for Renewable Energy
12:15 - 1:30	Revitalizing National Infrastructure This panel will explore the future of U.S. Infrastructure policy. What roles will the U.S. Federal government, state governments, utilities, and other actors play in the future of U.S. Infrastructure policy? How can we alter our grid to encourage more sustainable power use? Is distributed generation a better means to greener power supply and usage than grid-based infrastructure? Featuring: Evan Sanders, A123 Systems Watson Collins, NE Utilities Penny Conner, NSTAR Alan Nogee, Union of Concerned Scientists Suzanne Watson, American Council for an Energy Efficient Economy Moderated by Professor Kent Portney, Tufts Department of Political Science
1:30-3:00	Luncheon Keynote: Gregg Dixon, EnerNOC (Lunch is provided free to all who have preregistered for the conference.)
3:00-4:00	Powering the Developing World This panel will examine developing world energy infrastructure. It seeks to see how growing nations will get their power in the future, especially as many countries see rapid population growth and subsequent energy demand growth. What are the best routes for meeting this need in a sustainable manner? Can distributed generation technologies carry the load? What other technologies and policies are needed? To what extent will developed nations contribute to the process? Featuring: Michael Caramanis, Boston University Richard Hansen, Soluz Inc. Sam White, Promethean Power Moderated by Professor David Dapice, Tufts University
4:15-4:45	Closing Keynote: Mindy Lubber, CERES
4:45-5:00	Closing Remarks Alex Clough, Conference Co-Chair

Official Site:  TEC 2009

Registration: Register 

Water Vortex Power Plant

In a new method of generating electricity via small scale hydropower, Franz Zotlöterer, an Austrian Engineer, has discovered a way to harness the power of whirlpools.  Originally designed as a method to purify water by breaking down contaminants as the water was aerated in the vortex, Zotlöterer adapted the system to generate power in a un-intrusive manner that purportedly even allows fish to swim through unaffected.   While designed for the developed world, Zotlöterer's website theorizes that the vortex could also be used for more than one house hold, such as in communes. 

For more on this innovation:

Official Website:  ZOTLÖTERER

Related Article: ecogeek

Seawater Greenhouses - Using the Sea and Sun to produce food

Courtesy of  Seawatergreenhouse.com :  

"The Seawater Greenhouse uses the sun, the sea and the atmosphere to produce fresh water and cool air. The process recreates the natural hydrological cycle within a controlled environment. The entire front wall of the building is a seawater evaporator. It consists of a honeycomb lattice and faces the prevailing wind. Fans assist and control air movement. Seawater trickles down over the lattice, cooling and humidifying the air passing through into the planting area.

Sunlight is filtered through a specially constructed roof, The roof traps infrared heat, while allowing visible light through to promote photosynthesis. This creates optimum growing conditions - cool and humid with high light intensity.

Cool air passes through the planting area and then combines with hot dry air from the roof cavity. The mixture passes through a second sea water evaporator creating hot saturated air which then flows through a condenser.

The condenser is cooled by incoming seawater. The temperature difference causes fresh water to condense out of the air stream. The volume of fresh water is determined by air temperature, relative humidity, solar radiation and the airflow rate. These conditions can be replicated in the thermodynamic model and, with appropriate meteorological information, the detailed design and performance of the Seawater Greenhouse can be optimised for every suitable location and environment."

For larger diagram click (here)

For more information:

Official Site:   Seawatergreenhouses.com

More pictures:  Gallery 

A conceptual variation: Seawater Vertical Farm

Vegawatt™- Using cooking oil to generate electricity and hot water

From the Vegawatt website:

"The unit, which is about the size of a refrigerator, is placed outside the building the same way central air conditioning units often are. It hooks up through one electrical cable to the electric system. There is also a hot water feed and return system. Your hot water heater won't have to work as hard now because the water has already been partially heated by the system."

Read more. . . .

Editorial: Lessons Learned from Technology Transfer in South Africa

Courtesy  of Scidev.net

"Technology often develops faster than people will take it up. To close the gap and ensure science and technology maximizes its benefit to society, all stakeholders — at community and government levels — must be engaged in the creative process. Identifying a need in a lab or boardroom then developing a suitable product without involving the end-users can lead to low take-up on the ground. . ."

Read more. . .

More on the AmaDrum project:

South African Department of Trade and Industry

PDF Pamphelet

Harnessing the power of children at play

The PlayPump system is an innovative, water pump powered by children at play.  Installed near schools, the device doubles as a water pump and a merry-go-round for children.

While children have fun spinning on the PlayPump merry-go-round (1), clean water is pumped (2) from underground (3) into a 2,500-liter tank (4), standing seven meters above the ground.

A simple tap (5) makes it easy for adults and children to draw water. Excess water is diverted from the storage tank back down into the borehole (6).

The water storage tank (7) provides a rare opportunity to advertise in outlaying communities.  All four sides of the tank are leased as billboards, with two sides for consumer advertising and the other two sides for health and educational messages. The revenue generated by this unique model pays for pump maintenance.

The design of the PlayPump water system makes it highly effective, easy to operate and very economical, keeping costs and maintenance to an absolute minimum.

Capable of producing up to 1,400 liters of water per hour at 16 rpm from a depth of 40 meters, it is effective up to a depth of 100 meters.

For more information visit Playpump's site:  Playpumps International