Development of a biomechanical energy harvester

© 2009 Li et al; licensee BioMed Central Ltd. This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Licens

Energy Efficiency Analysis: Biomass-to-Wheel Efficiency Related with Biofuels Production, Fuel Distribution, and Powertrain Systems

BACKGROUND: Energy efficiency analysis for different biomass-utilization scenarios would help make more informed decisions for developing future biomass-based transportation systems. Diverse biofuels produced from biomass include cellulosic ethanol, butanol, fatty acid ethyl esters, methane, hydrogen, methanol, dimethyether, Fischer-Tropsch diesel, and bioelectricity; the respective powertrain systems include internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles, hybrid electric vehicles based on gasoline or diesel ICEs, hydrogen fuel cell vehicles, sugar fuel cell vehicles (SFCV), and battery electric vehicles (BEV). METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: We conducted a simple, straightforward, and transparent biomass-to-wheel (BTW) analysis including three separate conversion elements--biomass-to-fuel conversion, fuel transport and distribution, and respective powertrain systems. BTW efficiency is a ratio of the kinetic energy of an automobile's wheels to the chemical energy of delivered biomass just before entering biorefineries. Up to 13 scenarios were analyzed and compared to a base line case--corn ethanol/ICE. This analysis suggests that BEV, whose electricity is generated from stationary fuel cells, and SFCV, based on a hydrogen fuel cell vehicle with an on-board sugar-to-hydrogen bioreformer, would have the highest BTW efficiencies, nearly four times that of ethanol-ICE. SIGNIFICANCE: In the long term, a small fraction of the annual US biomass (e.g., 7.1%, or 700 million tons of biomass) would be sufficient to meet 100% of light-duty passenger vehicle fuel needs (i.e., 150 billion gallons of gasoline/ethanol per year), through up to four-fold enhanced BTW efficiencies by using SFCV or BEV. SFCV would have several advantages over BEV: much higher energy storage densities, faster refilling rates, better safety, and less environmental burdens

Using cognitive work analysis to inform policy recommendations to support fuel-efficient driving

The role of man-made emissions in climate change has been a large focus of academic research and political discussion. One considerable source of emissions is everyday driving, and finding ways to reduce driving emissions is a great challenge. This paper presents the use of Cognitive Work Analysis as a potential tool in helping address this problem. Focusing on Control Task Analysis and Social Organization and Cooperation Analysis, this paper discusses the indirect role governmental organizations can play in reducing driving-related emissions. It is proposed that the use of Cognitive Work Analysis can provide insights not typically garnered from traditional academic literature surrounding eco-driving, including the role governmental organizations can play in reducing everyday emissions.</p

Advancing Towards a Hydrogen Energy Economy: Status, Opportunities and Barriers

Asia Pacific economic cooperation, automobiles, clean energy technology, economic development, energy security, environmental protection, fuel cells, hydrogen production, storage and transport, international energy agency, international partnership for the hydrogen economy,