WOW-POW = World Of Wonderful POWer: September 2008

Thursday, September 18, 2008

Can nanoscopic meadows drive electric cars forward?


Nanoscale meadows of grass and flowers could hold the key to increasing the amount of energy that can be stored in ultracapacitors, devices tipped to replace batteries in high-demand applications like electric cars.

Batteries are slow to recharge because they store energy chemically. By contrast, capacitors, which are common in electronics, are short-term stores of electrical energy that charge almost instantaneously but hold little energy.

Read more here

Wednesday, September 17, 2008

First Picture of likely planet around sun-like star

Astronomers have unveiled what is likely the first picture of a planet around a normal star similar to the Sun.
Three University of Toronto scientists used the Gemini North telescope on Mauna Kea in Hawai‘i to take images of the young star 1RXS J160929.1-210524 (which lies about 500 light-years from Earth) and a candidate companion of that star. They also obtained spectra to confirm the nature of the companion, which has a mass about eight times that of Jupiter, and lies roughly 330 times the Earth-Sun distance away from its star. (For comparison, the most distant planet in our solar system, Neptune, orbits the Sun at only about 30 times the Earth-Sun distance.) The parent star is similar in mass to the Sun, but is much younger.

Breakthrough In Energy Storage: New Carbon Material can store large quantities electricity.

Breakthrough In Energy Storage: New Carbon Material can store large quantities electricity. Engineers and scientists at The University of Texas at Austin have achieved a breakthrough in the use of a one-atom thick structure called "graphene" as a new carbon-based material for storing electrical charge in ultracapacitor devices, perhaps paving the way for the massive installation of renewable energies such as wind and solar power.
The researchers believe their breakthrough shows promise that graphene (a form of carbon) could eventually double the capacity of existing ultracapacitors, which are manufactured using an entirely different form of carbon.
More at Science Daily

Wednesday, September 10, 2008

'Smart Water' May Help Boost Production From Oil Wells By 60 Percen

Researchers in Norway report that injecting a special type of seawater called "smart water" into certain low-yield oil wells may help boost oil extraction by as much as 60 percent. The study could help meet rising energy demands and provide consumers with some financial relief at the gas pump in the future, the scientists suggest.  

New bug ferments green fuel on the cheap


Genetically engineered bacteria could make cellulosic ethanol cheaper to manufacture, researchers report. The finding could unlock more energy from the waste products of farming and forestry.

Ethanol from cellulose, the kind of sugar in cornstalks and sawdust, is being promoted as an environmentally friendly alternative to fossil fuels, with the advantage that it does not use food crops such as corn as raw materials.

Wednesday, September 3, 2008

RAON Digital EVERUN Note Prices out

Raon Digital's latest design Everun Note has been priced and resellers are reporting delivery dates now.

Conics.Net reports price @ approx $889 USD.
(they ship the Raon to all countries)

Japanese Site, Sarutek.Com put their price at 99,800 yen.

Both sites are reporting delivery to be 19th Sept 2008

Stay tuned :-)