Transportation
At 2.5 tons and 9 feet high, the truck that engineers are about to race across the Mojave Desert could literally crush the competition. And it would do so without a driver. The truck won't be squashing its rivals -- the purpose of the competition is to design vehicles that can drive autonomously and avoid obstacles, rather than run them over.
Diesel fuel is now at the center of a delicate balancing act between smog production and global warming. Some lawmakers and car manufacturers advocate widespread diesel use in passenger vehicles as a strategy for reducing the production of so-called ''greenhouse gases'' thought to cause global warming. But according to a new study, replacing gasoline vehicles in the United States with diesel vehicles - equipped even with the most modern pollution controls - may increase smog production over most of the country.
Australian scientists have developed a 'brain', which enables the production of a world-first low-cost, intelligent small helicopter, set to end many difficult and dangerous tasks undertaken by humans. The CSIRO Mantis can simply be told where to go and what to do, and it will go off, do the job and find its own way home, unassisted.
A study of muffler technology is giving American automakers new options for designing quieter cars. Engineers have tested a promising new muffler design that utilizes glass fiber, and are developing the computational tools manufacturers will need to optimize the design. The new design can often silence auto noise just as well as a typical muffler, but it can be lighter, less prone to corrosion, and help engines work more efficiently.
A report released yesterday by the National Research Council found that the nation's air transportation system is "in peril," as is the United States' dominance in world aviation. "In the past, we have been the world leader in aviation and aviation technology. But that leadership is eroding rapidly," said David Woods, who was a member of the report committee. Woods is a professor in the Institute for Ergonomics and co-director of the Cognitive Systems Engineering Lab at Ohio State University. "Without a coordinated national vision, the U.S. aviation system and industry are in peril of falling into the shadow of other parts of the world," he said.
As politicians and the public leap aboard the hydrogen fuel bandwagon, a University of California, Berkeley, energy expert suggests we all step back and take a critical look at the technology and consider simpler, cheaper options.
In a paper appearing in the July 18 issue of Science, Alex Farrell and David Keith present various short- and long-term strategies that they say would achieve the same results as switching from gasoline-powered vehicles to hydrogen cars.
"Hydrogen cars are a poor short-term strategy, and it's not even clear that they are a good idea in the long term," said Farrell. "Because the prospects for hydrogen cars are so uncertain, we need to think carefully before we invest all this money and all this public effort in one area."
Secretary of Energy Spencer Abraham announced today the release of a $150 million solicitation for a project that will spur the development of both hydrogen vehicles and hydrogen infrastructure needed to support them. This solicitation represents a critical step in implementing President Bush's Hydrogen Fuel Initiative and supports his FreedomCAR Initiative.
The U.S. Department of Transportation's National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) today announced it will increase the corporate average fuel economy (CAFE) standards for light trucks by 1.5 miles per gallon (mpg) over the next three years, thus saving more than 3.6 billion gallons of gas over the lifetime of the trucks affected.
Vegetable oil similar to the stuff you use to cook your food may one day fill your car?s engine. Researchers at the U.S. Department of Agriculture have developed a chemically modified version of the edible oil that shows promise as a cleaner, renewable alternative to petroleum-based motor oil, while enhancing its protective properties. Veggie motor oil could eventually be produced cheaper than petroleum-based oil and may help reduce this country?s dependence on foreign oil, the researchers say.
It's virtually impossible for people who use wheelchairs and other mobility devices to enjoy the full benefits of a beach experience, but the National Center on Accessibility at Indiana University Bloomington is working to remedy this situation that affects millions of Americans. "Most typical wheelchairs are impossible to use on sand, so people with disabilities are unable to enjoy the beach," NCA Director Gary Robb explained. "We had about 40 men and women who use wheelchairs test five different wheeled devices designed to traverse beach sand to evaluate their usability. We are now compiling the data and hope to report our findings in two to three months to government agencies, people with disabilities, and others interested in an independent analysis of this equipment."
Even with aggressive research, the hydrogen fuel-cell vehicle will not be better than the diesel hybrid (a vehicle powered by a conventional engine supplemented by an electric motor) in terms of total energy use and greenhouse gas emissions by 2020, says a study recently released by MIT's Laboratory for Energy and the Environment (LFEE). And while hybrid vehicles are already appearing on the roads, adoption of the hydrogen-based vehicle will require major infrastructure changes to make compressed hydrogen available. If we need to curb greenhouse gases within the next 20 years, improving mainstream gasoline and diesel engines and transmissions and expanding the use of hybrids is the way to go.
The Department of Justice and the Environment Protection Agency finalized yesterday a settlement of the government's lawsuit against Toyota Motor Corporation for Clean Air Act violations involving 2.2 million vehicles manufactured between 1996 and 1998. Under the settlement, Toyota will spend $20 million on a supplemental environmental project to retrofit up to 3,000 public diesel fleet vehicles to make them run cleaner and extend the emission control system warranty on affected vehicles. In addition, Toyota will accelerate its compliance with certain new emission control requirements, and pay a $500,000 civil penalty. The settlement will cost Toyota an estimated $34 million.
Marlan Scully, the Texas A&M University professor who applied quantum physics to the automotive engine and came up with a design that emits laser beams instead of exhaust, has been tinkering under the hood again. This time, he's sized up the perfect engine -- and improved it. Scully, known as the "Quantum Cowboy" for his innovations in quantum physics and his Franklin Society prize-winning research into beef cattle production, has invented a theoretical design more efficient than the Carnot engine, which had stood for nearly two centuries as the standard for efficiency -- an engine so ideal it exists only in theory.
The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) today announced the first certification for fuel economy and emissions of a U.S. hydrogen fuel cell zero emission vehicle. This comes shortly after a Presidential commitment to further the progress of hydrogen fuel cells as a way to make the air significantly cleaner, and our country less dependent on foreign sources of energy.
Marine recon may soon get some new wheels: a vehicle with a hybrid electric and diesel drive. Fast, quiet, and with excellent off-road performance, the Reconnaissance, Surveillance, and Targeting Vehicle (RST-V)?less formally called the Shadow?last month successfully completed a 1000 mile test of its performance and reliability. It successfully sustained highway speeds over its extended drive through mountain passes, rain, snow, and rough construction zones.
