Apparently, a year's worth of human excrement is equal to a measly 2.1 gallons of diesel, but when you collect an entire city's worth of crap, you get a decent amount of fuel. The poop of 250,000 people is enough to operate 80 busses for 62,000 miles each, which is no small thing. So in Norway, they're going to start collecting it and running public transportation on it. Because hey, why not? [Slate via Technabob]

According to the New York Times, President Obama will announce later today a series of environmental initiatives, the cornerstone of which would grant waivers to states seeking to enforce their own emissions laws.

California passed a law in 2005 requiring automakers to meet stricter auto emissions standards, only to be denied a waiver from the EPA and forced to sue the government along with approximately a dozen other states to enforce the states' guidelines.

This move by the Obama administration will force some automakers to make adjustments to their lineup sooner than required by federal laws passed in 2007. They've argued vehemently against the bills saying they'd be forced to make their cars meet different standards for different states. This is partially true, though most states follow California's lead. However, the potential for a patchwork quilt of emissions standards across the country becomes an even greater possibility with this precedent-setting decision on the part of the nascent administration.

President Obama will also likely have the Department of Transportation draft guidelines to get automakers to comply with enhanced mileage requirements laid out in the federal law enacted more than a year ago.

Given the timing of these actions, Obama is trying to show he's strongly committed to moving forward on environmental issues and win support among his green-focused constituency. Additionally, Obama avoids having to spend any political capital on this while in the middle of his fight for a stimulus package because both of those moves are purely executive, requiring no significant action on the part of Congress. However, by also not writing the guidelines first, the Obama administration has put political expediency ahead of good policy and working with Congress to create and reveal a more holistic energy package from the start.

Allowing CARB to set the emissions standards for the country takes the ball away from the federal government, makes the possibility of a patchwork quilt of emissions standards an actual possibility and fails to provide the necessary monies to automakers to help make the shift. That's not good business and it makes it difficult for automakers to build for the future with constantly shifting goals.

Lastly, whether it's CAFE or CARB's regulation of emissions, the issue isn't fixing supply of vehicles with better fuel economy, it's changing demand. Remember, CAFE does not directly offer incentives for customers to choose fuel efficient vehicles, nor does it directly affect fuel prices. Rather, it attempts to accomplish these goals indirectly by making it more expensive for automakers to build inefficient vehicles by introducing penalties. CAFE advocates assert most of the gains in fuel economy over the past 30 years can be attributed to the standard itself, while opponents assert economic forces are responsible for fuel economy gains, where higher fuel prices drove customers to seek more fuel efficient vehicles. The truth is probably somewhere in the middle. The truth is, the best policy for increasing overall fuel economy is to change consumer habits, and that means increasing the costs of low fuel economy vehicles. Countless automotive experts have claimed the best way to do that is not through mandating automakers make more efficient cars, it's to increase, artificially, the price of gas. But that would require more political capital than Obama — or any politician — appears willing to spend.

So, in a world of half measures, President Obama's decision may make sense. But in a utopia, it's nowhere close.

[NY Times]

By comparison, the Tesla Roadster takes 8 hours or so to recharge its batteries, but it’s also capable of a sub 4-second 0-60 time, a 125 MPH top speed and a range of 200 miles. The Tazzari, which will presumably be far cheaper, is only capable of hitting 56 MPH, has a range of 93 miles and does 0-31 MPH in “less than 5 seconds.”

While it’s not a performance car, the Tazzari Zero actually looks like it has significant merit as a city runabout, having range and performance considerably greater than its main competition, the G-Wiz. Like that car, the Zero looks small enough to park virtually anywhere, and at less than 1,200 pounds, it’s seriously lightweight too. There’s no word on when the Zero will come to market, but when it does it looks like it’ll be available in Italy, England and France, where legislation and local preferences make vehicles like these extremely practical. [Tazzari via Smart Planet]

The figures were published by Clean Green Cars, which also pointed out that "Every manufacturer with average new car emissions significantly above 200 g/km of CO2 saw sales slump from January to June." Clearly, voluntary agreements are working. Why oh why then did the EU have to implement non-voluntary emissions targets for 2012? Press release below the jump.

Fiat tops the CO2 league; Porsche is rock bottom

Figures published exclusively by Clean Green Cars today reveal that Fiat and MINI are only mainstream manufacturers whose average tailpipe CO2 is now under 140 g/km. That figure was the target car makers' set themselves a decade ago in their voluntary agreement. Data for 2008 shows how far they have fallen short.

"Some manufacturers have delivered on their promise, but the vast majority have to raise their game significantly," said Jay Nagley of Clean Green Cars. "Porsche has the most work to do: bottom of the league, with CO2 emissions that actually went up slightly in the first half of 2008.

"What is interesting is that, as fuel prices rocket and the new car market falters, car makers with the highest emissions are being punished by the consumer. They have been complaining about pressure from the EU to meet what they say are 'unrealistic' targets. Now they are having to face much stiffer targets from the people that really matter: consumers."

Every manufacturer with average new car emissions significantly above 200 g/km of CO2 saw sales slump from January to June. Even bigger drops were reported last month by the five with the worst average CO2 output.

Porsche and Jeep sales were down by more than a half, Land Rover and Chrysler fell by nearly 30% while Subaru registrations plummeted 17.8%. As the total market only fell by 6.1%, there is clear evidence that high-CO2 cars are being heavily penalised.

This oil supposedly uses nanotechnology and dehydrogenation, whatever the hell those do, to be all green-like. It contains amino acid, plant exacts, plant-based fatty acids and non-ionic surfacants. Sounds like it would make a nice shampoo!

One appealing feature is that when it comes time for an oil change you can combine the G-Oil with Green Earth Technology's G-DISPOSOIL to ensure the oil is 100 percent biodegradable.

G-Oil also comes in a variety of weighs including 5w-20, 5w-30, 10w-30, 10w-40, 15w-40, 20w-50 and SAE-30. Man, going green is freaking awesome! [Toolmonger]

Eventually the team is looking into a long-term strategy that would involve creation of a truly and completely sustainable system. I'm still trying to wrap my head around the process as well, so take a gander at the press release below and see if you can figure out all of the eggheady scientific jargon.

ATLANTA (February 11, 2008) —Researchers at the Georgia Institute of Technology have developed a strategy to capture, store and eventually recycle carbon from vehicles to prevent the pollutant from finding its way from a car tailpipe into the atmosphere. Georgia Tech researchers envision a zero emission car, and a transportation system completely free of fossil fuels.

Technologies to capture carbon dioxide emissions from large-scale sources such as power plants have recently gained some impressive scientific ground, but nearly two-thirds of global carbon emissions are created by much smaller polluters — automobiles, transportation vehicles and distributed industrial power generation applications (e.g., diesel power generators).

The Georgia Tech team's goal is to create a sustainable transportation system that uses a liquid fuel and traps the carbon emission in the vehicle for later processing at a fueling station. The carbon would then be shuttled back to a processing plant where it could be transformed into liquid fuel. Currently, Georgia Tech researchers are developing a fuel processing device to separate the carbon and store it in the vehicle in liquid form.

The research was published in Energy Conversion and Management . The research was funded by NASA, the U.S. Department of Defense NDSEG Fellowship Program and Georgia Tech's CEO (Creating Energy Options) Program.

"Presently, we have an unsustainable carbon-based economy with several severe limitations, including a limited supply of fossil fuels, high cost and carbon dioxide pollution," said Andrei Fedorov, associate professor in the Woodruff School of Mechanical Engineering at Georgia Tech and a lead researcher on the project. "We wanted to create a practical and sustainable energy strategy for automobiles that could solve each of those limitations, eventually using renewable energy sources and in an environmentally conscious way."

Little research has been done to explore carbon capture from vehicles, but the Georgia Tech team outlines an economically feasible strategy for processing fossil or synthetic, carbon-containing liquid fuels that allows for the capture and recycling of carbon at the point of emission. In the long term, this strategy would enable the development of a sustainable transportation system with no carbon emission.

Georgia Tech's near-future strategy involves capturing carbon emissions from conventional (fossil) liquid hydrocarbon-fueled vehicles with an onboard fuel processor designed to separate the hydrogen in the fuel from the carbon. Hydrogen is then used to power the vehicle, while the carbon is stored on board the vehicle in a liquid form until it is disposed at a refueling station. It is then transported to a centralized site to be sequestered in a permanent location currently under investigation by scientists, such as geological formations, under the oceans or in solid carbonate form.

In the long-term strategy, the carbon dioxide will be recycled forming a closed-loop system, involving synthesis of high energy density liquid fuel suitable for the transportation sector.

Georgia Tech settled on a hydrogen-fueled vehicle for its carbon capture plan because pure hydrogen produces no carbon emissions when it is used as a fuel to power the vehicle. The fuel processor produces the hydrogen on-board the vehicle from the hydrocarbon fuel without introducing air into the process, resulting in an enriched carbon byproduct that can be captured with minimal energetic penalty. Traditional combustion systems, including current gasoline-powered automobiles, have a combustion process that combines fuel and air — leaving the carbon dioxide emissions highly diluted and very difficult to capture.

"We had to look for a system that never dilutes fuel with air because once the CO2 is diluted, it is not practical to capture it on vehicles or other small systems," said David Damm, PhD candidate in the School of Mechanical Engineering, the lead author on the paper and Fedorov's collaborator on the project.

The Georgia Tech team compared the proposed system with other systems that are currently being considered, focusing on the logistic and economic challenges of adopting them on a global scale. In particular, electric vehicles could be part of a long-term solution to carbon emissions, but the team raised concerns about the limits of battery technology, including capacity and charging time.

The hydrogen economy presents yet another possible solution to carbon emissions but also yet another roadblock — infrastructure. While liquid-based hydrogen carriers could be conveniently transported and stored using existing fuel infrastructure, the distribution of gaseous hydrogen would require the creation of a new and costly infrastructure of pipelines, tanks and filling stations.

The Georgia Tech team has already created a fuel processor, called CO2/H2 Active Membrane Piston (CHAMP) reactor, capable of efficiently producing hydrogen and separating and liquefying CO2 from a liquid hydrocarbon or synthetic fuel used by an internal combustion engine or fuel cell. After the carbon dioxide is separated from the hydrogen, it can then be stored in liquefied state on-board the vehicle. The liquid state provides a much more stable and dense form of carbon, which is easy to store and transport.

The Georgia Tech paper also details the subsequent long-term strategy to create a truly sustainable system, including moving past carbon sequestration and into a method to recycle the captured carbon back into fuel. Once captured on-board the vehicle, the liquid carbon dioxide is deposited back at the fueling station and piped back to a facility where it is converted into a synthetic liquid fuel to complete the cycle.

Now that the Georgia Tech team has come up with a proposed system and device to produce hydrogen and, at the same time, capture carbon emissions, the greatest remaining challenge to a truly carbon-free transportation system will be developing a method for making a synthetic liquid fuel from just CO2 and water using renewable energy sources, Fedorov said. The team is exploring a few ideas in this area, he added.

FORD TO EQUIP HALF A MILLION VEHICLES WITH ECOBOOST ENGINE TECHNOLOGY FOR UP TO 20% BETTER FUEL ECONOMY

DETROIT, Jan. 6, 2008 - Ford Motor Company is introducing a new engine technology called EcoBoost that will deliver up to 20 percent better fuel economy on half a million Ford, Lincoln and Mercury vehicles annually in North America during the next five years.

The EcoBoost family of 4-cylinder and 6-cylinder engines features turbocharging and direct injection technology. Compared with more expensive hybrids and diesel engines, EcoBoost builds upon today's affordable gasoline engine and improves it, providing more customers with a way to improve fuel economy and emissions without compromising driving performance.

"EcoBoost is meaningful because it can be applied across a wide variety of engine types in a range of vehicles, from small cars to large trucks - and it's affordable," said Derrick Kuzak, Ford's group vice president of Global Product Development.

"Compared with the current cost of diesel and hybrid technologies, customers in North America can expect to recoup their initial investment in a 4-cylinder EcoBoost engine through fuel savings in approximately 30 months. A diesel in North America will take an average of seven and one-half years, while the cost of a hybrid will take nearly 12 years to recoup - given equivalent miles driven per year and fuel costs," he said.

Ford will introduce EcoBoost on the new Lincoln MKS flagship in 2009, followed by the Ford Flex and other vehicles. By 2013, Ford will have more than half a million EcoBoost-powered vehicles on the road annually in North America.

In 2009, Ford first will introduce EcoBoost on the Lincoln MKS featuring a 3.5-liter twin-turbocharged V-6. It will produce the power and torque of a V-8 engine with the fuel efficiency of a V-6. In fact, with an estimated 340-horsepower and more than 340 lb.-ft. of torque, the Lincoln MKS will be the most powerful and fuel-efficient all-wheel-drive luxury sedan in the market.

More With Less
EcoBoost's combination of direct injection and turbocharging mitigates the traditional disadvantages of downsizing and boosting 4- and 6-cylinder engines, giving customers both superior performance as well as fuel economy.

With direct injection, fuel is injected into each cylinder of an engine in small, precise amounts. Compared to conventional port injection, direct injection produces a cooler, denser charge, delivering higher fuel economy and performance.

When combined with modern-day turbocharging - which uses waste energy from the exhaust gas to drive the turbine - direct injection provides the best of both worlds: the responsiveness of a larger-displacement engine with fewer trips to the gas pump.

Ford's 3.5-liter EcoBoost V-6, for example, can deliver upwards of 340-plus lb.-ft. of torque across a wide engine range - 2,000 to 5,000 rpm versus 270 to 310 lb.-ft of torque for a conventional naturally aspirated 4.6-liter V-8 over the same speed range. At the same time, this V-6 gives customers an approximate 2 mpg improvement and emits up to 15 percent fewer CO2 emissions to the environment.

Direct injection coupled with turbocharging allows for the downsizing of engines that deliver improved torque and performance. A small 4-cylinder EcoBoost engine has the capability of producing more torque than a larger 4-cylinder engine - nearly an entire liter larger in displacement - with better fuel efficiency.

The real-world fuel economy benefit is consistent no matter the drive cycle, meaning the engine is efficient in the city as well as on the highway - unlike hybrids, which are most efficient in stop-and-go traffic. In addition, customers who tow and haul - and have long turned to more expensive diesel powertrains for their superior towing capabilities - can find the engine performance they need from an EcoBoost powertrain.

EcoBoost - combined with multi-speed transmissions, advanced electric power steering, weight reductions and aerodynamic improvements - is part of Ford Motor Company's strategy to deliver sustainable, quality vehicles that customers want and value. Additional hybrid offerings and diesel engines are planned for light-duty vehicles.

Longer term, Ford plans to remain aggressive in the development of plug-in hybrids and hydrogen fuel cell-powered vehicles.

"We know that what will make the biggest difference is applying the right technology on volume vehicles that customers really want and value and can afford," said Kuzak. "EcoBoost puts an affordable technology within reach for millions of customers, and Ford's systems approach adds up to a big idea that differentiates Ford's sustainability strategy in the market."
[Source: Ford]

DEARBORN, Mich., Dec. 26, 2007 - Ford Motor Company and U-Haul launched the industry's first fleet of vehicles painted with Ford's environmentally responsible new technology, which reduces greenhouse gases by 15 percent and cuts Ford's production costs.

More than 200 Ford E-Series trucks painted with this new technology were delivered to U-Haul facilities around the country. U-Haul began renting the units, tagged with eco-friendly decals, to customers this week.

The technology combines an advanced chemical formulation of high-solids, solvent-borne paint with an innovative three-wet application process that requires a smaller, less expensive and cleaner paint shop than traditional automotive paint facilities.

In addition to reduced CO2 emissions, the new technology reduces VOC emissions (volatile organic compounds) by about 10 percent. The company estimates it can save approximately $7 per vehicle by cutting the time it takes to paint a vehicle by almost 20 percent as well as reducing the size of the traditional paint shop by nearly 15 percent.

"Painting vehicles has traditionally been one of the auto industry's biggest environmental challenges," said Mary Ellen Rosenberger, paint manager of Ohio Assembly Plant where the new technology was launched. "Ford has found the solution. It's environmentally sound. It's cost-efficient. And it produces beautifully painted vehicles with long-term durability."

Ford's new high-solids, solvent-borne paint formulation produces fewer VOC and CO2 emissions than do water-borne and current solvent-borne paints. Because the new formulation contains more color pigment, it requires less paint to cover a vehicle than water-based paint. Furthermore, the new technology allows for three coats of wet paint to be applied to the vehicle one on top of the other, without drying between coats. This eliminates the prime-coat application and its related processes, which means a smaller, more efficient paint shop.

Furthermore, there's no need for an air-conditioning process or an additional low-temperature oven, which are required in water-borne paint shops to evaporate the water from the paint.

The paint formulation contains new polymers and other additives that prevent running and sagging during the three-wet application process. And Ford's laboratory tests show the high-solids, solvent-borne paint provides better long-term resistance to chips and scratches than does water-borne paint.

Said Dean Cerimeli, U-Haul's director of Truck and Trailer Product: "When it comes to the environment and sustainability, we are happy to partner with Ford in this important field test. We believe this is the most environmentally responsible way to paint vehicles. And we applaud Ford for leading the industry."

In June, Ford won the "Best Technical Prize" for its new paint technology at SURCAR: The International Conference on Automobile Body Finishing in Cannes, France. [Source: Ford]

There's a monetary penalty for not reaching the standards, based on the difference between the standard and the average multiplied by the volume of cars sold. Of course, there's still disagreement over that. Will this result in lighter, more efficient cars or just more exceptions? Only time and people with foreign accents will tell. [Guardian]

The Canadian Green Party has started a petition to get the cars approved, so we're sure that all of this will go away soon as the Canadian PM is totally BFF's with the Green Party. It makes us happy to live in a country where where the government encourages electric car companies like Tesla, or at least lets them take deposits for cars. [CBC]

The new and improved routes will reduce the delivery routes by 28.5 million miles and reduce CO2 emissions by 31,000 metric tons. The new system begins at the sorting facility. A special software will load packages onto trucks in a method to maximize the amount of right turns and eliminating unnecessary left turns that requires the trucks to sit idle wasting gas and pissing off Al Gore.

I'm sure the lazy UPS drivers will continue to cut corners (like when they throw my package of fragile gadgets 20 feet) by making unnecessary left turns, but regardless, UPS gets a gold star for the effort! Now stop double-parking to drop off packages and the world will be a better place. [New York Times]

FORD EARNS "CLEAN VEHICLE AWARD" FROM INTERNATIONAL ENERGY AGENCY

ANAHEIM, Calif.., Dec. 4, 2007 - Today, for the second time, Ford Motor Company was awarded the "Clean Vehicle Award" from the International Energy Agency (IEA) Implementing Agreement on Hybrid & Electric Vehicles for the company's achievement in obtaining high energy efficiency and lower energy consumption in the transport sector. Ford accepted the award today at the 2007 Electric Vehicle Symposium (EVS23) in Anaheim.

Out of three possible categories, Ford was recognized for achieving sales of more than 50,000 hybrid models worldwide as part of the organization's award given to manufacturers with outstanding sales figures - surpassing thresholds of 25,000; 50,000; 100,000 and more than 250,000 clean vehicles sold.

"Our hybrid program has been an unqualified success and we believe hybrids are important to America's future," said Greg Frenette, chief engineer, Fuel Cell Production Program, Ford Motor Company. "From a technological perspective, our Escape Hybrid was the first hybrid from an American automaker and the first SUV hybrid on the market. It also remains the most fuel-efficient SUV in the world."

Two additional award categories include "The Best Practice Award" which is given to the organizers of an outstanding promotion project and the "Personal Award" which is given to an individual who has dedicated his or her work to the development or promotion of clean vehicles in an outstanding way.

In 2006, the Implementing Agreement on Hybrid & Electric Vehicles recognized Ford for passing the 25,000 milestone in clean vehicle sales.

The IEA launched the Implementing Agreement on Hybrid and Electric Vehicles in 1993 with the intent to produce and disseminate balanced, objective information about advanced vehicle technologies including electric, hybrid and fuel cell vehicles. It has a working group of governments and research organizations from eleven countries. Task forces are formed to investigate topics in depth, such as hybrid vehicles, advance electro-chemical storage systems, and market deployment strategies of clean vehicles.

According to IEA, "Ford Motor Company played an important role as a clean vehicle innovator in the early 1990s. By developing and marketing the hybrid Escape, Ford has been a pioneer among U.S. manufacturers to introduce a sports utility vehicle to the marketplace, and this has rewarded the company with well-earned market success." [Source: Ford]

What they're actually going to do besides pay lip service to the cause is up in the air, but said one NASCAR official "we've got lots of people who want to help us. We've got lots of ways to get educated and figure out... how we can participate." Yeah, totally. That'll do the trick. What about a hydrogen powered Honda entry? It'll make the crashes that much more spectacular [Reuters]