No Vroom Vroom?: An Electric Porsche

It had to happen. Now there’s an electric Porsche, made by German Porsche modifier/carmaker RUF Automobile GmbH. The company dropped a 204hp electric motor into a Porsche 911 chassis, powered it with 96 lithium ion batteries from California battery maker Calmotors, and the result? An electric Porsche 911 that sprints from 0 to 60mph in less than 7 seconds with a top speed of 160. Whoa.

Don’t expect to carry much luggage along, because the back and front trunks are filled with batteries. Its 180-mile range is not quite up to that of the Tesla Roadster, either, nor is its acceleration. But just look at it! We are filled with auto-lust over this gorgeous machine, hoping it will find its way out of the prototype stage and onto an assembly line, pronto.

 

 

 

Source: Geekologie

JVC Speakers with Built In Planters

Here’s a pretty interesting speaker concept from JVC; it’s a regular speaker (albeit slightly unusually shaped) with a tiny potted plant on top. The idea is to combine an eco-friendly concept in with a speaker.

 

The mold is from earth safe plastic and the speakers can all be linked up together to form one large eco-ghetto blaster speaker. In theory it’s a good idea; in practice- not so much. Putting something you need to water on top of electronic equipment? Not in my house.

 

Source: Craziest Gadgets

Verdier’s Stylish Solar-Powered Eco Camper

What with gas prices being as high as they were this summer, we didn’t go on as many road trips as we would have liked to. If we had a camper like the Verdier Solar Powered Camper, we definitely would have embarked upon more road trips to beautiful National Parks and done it in eco-style. Verdier’s eco-RV is based upon a classic VW Westfalia that has been upgraded with many green elements, like a hybrid engine, solar panels and a lot of high-tech systems that makes this bus a hippy’s Pimp My Ride dream come true.

 

Alexandre Verdier, a French Canadian designer, is responsible for this redesign and is a philosopher and industrial designer. Verdier believes that the solution to environmental problems “resides in smart, simple design and employing technology to make better use of natural resources.”

The Verdier Camper comes in comes in five different models designed for your own unique personality: Woody, Geeky, Ebony, Blueberry, and Purity. Each camper comes equipped with a 4-cylinder hybrid engine, powered by a 170 W solar system on the roof. If you’re driving a lot or if the sun just isn’t shining enough, you can fill your tank with normal gasoline to make it to your next sunny local. The solar panels are controlled by a GPS system to optimally orient the panels to the sun and can tilt up to 45 degrees in two directions. Two deep cycle batteries hold the charge.

This camper excels in making every space count for something, whether it is storage, beds, a fold-out kitchen or even stairs built into the back of a chair to get to the bed above. We were very impressed by the built in containers for trash, recycling and composting, as well as refrigerator/freezer combo. Our favorite feature though is the on-board entertainment center, complete with a projector, 6 speaker surround sound, and a roll down screen. You may be camping, but that doesn’t mean you can’t kick back and chill with a movie.

 

The most useful feature of the Verdier is probably the on-board computer built into the front passenger dashboard. The PC tablet let’s you get online to check email, listen to music, surf the web and chat online. The GPS software takes care of navigation, and exclusive software lets you find nearby activities and supplies, as well as monitor your camper’s energy and fuel supplies. Plus, you can take it with you by removing the tablet from its base.

The camper’s price certainly isn’t in most of our budgets, at $129,000, but when you compare this to one of those big lumbering RV’s, it’s a steal and a lot more environmentally friendly. Verdier is currently takingreservations for these amazing campers, and should have yours ready just in time for summer road trips in 2009. Their video is pretty cool as well.

 

Source: Inhabitat

Eco Trains: Greener outings with ‘PIC NIC’

Going out for picnics is something we all love. There are not many things much better than spending a day out in Mother Nature’s lap. Usually these picnics just give us a sense of eco-friendliness, even if the outing on the whole is an eco-disaster. Going for a day out in our gas guzzlers and littering all over the place, can in no means be termed ecofriendly.

Designed by Eduardo Povarchik in collaboration with FCG Spain, this is the new means for an ecofriendly picnic. Dubbed the “PIC NIC”, this train is designed for short travel between lakes and landscapes that concludes in mountains and urban environments. Hybrid propulsion that includes electricity and fuel cells, which are placed under the wagons, make sure that the train does not disturb the else wise serene eco system.

The train will run on 1.66 m wide rails and will accommodate 181 passengers. This not-so-ordinary train will keep your journey musical with MP3 ports, headphones, and FM radio access. Commuters will also be able to shop inside the train using the integrated shopping points.

 

For the full article and more pictures go to EcoFriend

Steven Holl’s Stunning Solar Copenhagen Bridge

A welcoming beacon before a shining expanse of sea, Steven Holl Architects‘ LM project will update Copenhagen’s waterfront with two eye-catching photovoltaic-sheathed skyscrapers and a sky bridge studded with wind turbines. The iconic development recently took first place in a competition to design a new gateway for Copenhagen, and it was approved in a unanimous vote by the jury.

 

Holl Architects‘ winning entry is defined by a number of pairs: two towers, with two bridges, oriented in two directions that connect the city with the site’s history. The Langenlinine tower takes its geometry from the site’s old harbor, while the Marmormolen tower forms a connection with the city via an expansive main terrace and a public auditorium. The project also boasts a stunning public walkway that rises 65 meters over the harbor, securing the development’s status as an iconic new addition to Copenhagen’s waterfront.

The LM Project’s sustainable solutions are just as exceptional as its aesthetic merits. Both skyscrapers incorporate glass curtain walls shaded by a photovoltaic-laden solar screens. The buildings also feature seawater heating and cooling systems, radiant floor heating, and excellent natural light thanks to the reflective light performance of the solar screens. A true blessing in tall office buildings, each of the towers’ floors also contain operable windows that allow for natural ventilation. Finally, the pedestrian bridge is lined with enough wind turbines to light all of the the buildings’ public spaces.

The administrative director of the development company City/Harbor and Copenhagen’s previous lord mayor Jens Kramer Mikkelsen stated that “The project combines the esthetical, the functional, and the business minded. This winning proposal is architecture in high, high class.”

Ritz Bjerregaard, the current mayor of Copenhagen also shared his thoughts, saying “With the winning project, we get a great high-rise building, which will bind the city better together and function as a landmark in the harbor.”

Source: Inhabitat

Trashing Batteries for Brighter Sidewalks by Yanko Design

 

We all know alkaline batteries are really bad for the environment if you don’t dispose of them properly. The right thing to do is send them to special recycling centers but hundreds of tons end up in landfills where their toxic innards seep into the earth. Perhaps a good solution is the Energy Seed, an LED lamp post powered by trashed alkaline batteries.

The idea is to encourage people to throw their batteries away into the Energy Seed. There’s a slot for nearly every size battery. The unit combines any left over juice from all the batteries to power a super efficient LED ring.

Of course once the bins are full, we’re left with the same original problem. Somebody has to collect all those spent batteries and recycle them. 

 

The great green design is a cool eco solution, just looks at the images below.

Barcode Trashcan by Woo Seok Park

Lets face it. We all should be recycling. What used to be simple; “metal goes here, paper goes there, and plastic goes in over there,” is now a bit more complicated. For example did you know not all plastics and metals can be recycled? If you look for the recycling symbol on most packaging, it’s often filled with a number value. They denote what can and can’t be recycled. That’s where the Barcode Trashcan comes in. It makes being “green” a lot easier.

There’s one bin for each type of recyclable material. Just swipe the item in question over the top and the bin that opens is your winner. Easy breezy covergirl for real!

Eco Architeture: Sky Village

Eco Architeture: Sky Village – A sustainable, adaptable eco-structure for Copenhagen.

 

“Sky Village,” a design by MVRDV and ADEPT architects, has won the competition for a new building design for Copenhagen, Denmark. The 116-meter tall structure will be host to some fascinating eco wonders, which are incorporated in an effort to make the tower as sustainable as it could be.

 

The super structure will provide an area of 21,688 square meters and will be located in Roskildevej. The design is based on a “pixel” design that allows the designers to relocate some of the pixels to modify the shape of the entire tower. These 60 square meter pixels are arranged around the central core of the building, where they can be moved around. As seen in the design, the lower floors are kept slim so that enough space can be provided for the surrounding public plaza with retail and restaurants. These slim floors will have offices, the middle floors will have apartments with sky gardens, will would give the tower its name – “The Sky Village.” The topmost pixels will contain hotels with the fascinating views of Copenhagen city center.

 

For the full article and more pictures go to EcoFriend.

Strata Furniture by Ryan Frank

This is are third Greet Green Design and it is the Strata furniture range by South African, Ryan Frank, who was Inspired by London’s heaps of discarded furniture and usable timber.

 

This recycled furniture range is made from sawn-up desks salvaged by GreenWorks, a charity and social enterprise that reclaims timber from redundant office furniture collected around the UK.

 

There is so much office furniture out there which just gets dumped when companies or CEO’s are taken over and removed and I feel that this approach is a great and fairly cool way of dealing with this problem.

Emir Chair by Lars Urheim and Trøkk16

Starting with the idea to make a contemporary, sustainable alternative to traditional upholstered furniture, Lars Urheim and Norwegian firm Trøkk16 (mostly) succeeded with the design and creation of “Emir”. Designed as a “sofa for one”, Emir is created from natural latex foam, sustainable wood, wool fabric and woolen felt, and the classic, Scandanavian-inspired chair just begs to be sat in. We noted late last year that Norwegian design is beginning to emerge from the shadows of its older, more well-known Scandinavian neighbors to establish its own aesthetic, and we’re liking what we see.

 

 

Among the chair’s charms, according to designer Urheim, is that “the materials breathe, and return to their original state even after many years use. At time of disposal, the different components can be separated for further treatment like degradation, reuse and recycling.” Though the biodegradable wool is not a bad choice, we’d love to see something like Cradle to Cradle upholstery to bump it up another eco-notch; recycled steel would put it over the top. Still, the chair’s design and eco-accomplishments are both worth noting; learn more about Trøkk16 from their website. ::Trøkk16

 

Source: treehugger.com