efficiency

From cover of Airplane! by Robert Grossman

We learned in back in high school physics that it takes energy to move a mass, and the more mass, the more energy. Paul Kedrosky lists some of the tiny moves that airlines are making to squeeze every ounce out, which add up to big savings in fuel.

One airline saved over 17 gallons/year per pound of weight per airplane after shedding inflight phones, ovens, excess potable water, and some galley equipment on an older fleet

Lloyd noted a little while ago that Zeppelins are back, and they are even offering passenger journeys, as opposed to just cargo (like the SkyHook being proposed for the Alberta Tar Sands, of all places). However for now, when I say passenger journeys, I really mean sight-seeing tours. The Guardian has a fabulous photo essay showing the view that can be had floating over London in an ...

The truth about vehicle fuel efficiency is coming out: at last! Of course, Senator John Warner would not want to ask the US Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) - the Agency which for decades has been officially charged with determining and publishing fuel efficiency estimates for vehicles - to determine the optimal highway speed for fuel savings, because...you know...USEPA might actually promulgate a regulation. (Joking of course.) [Senator] Warner has asked the Energy Department to determine the most energy-saving speed — and the potential fuel savings — if a new national limit is imposed...

Electricity Overload Leads to Bad Energy Saving Decisions

Do you suffer from "electricity overload"? We don't mean the number of plugs crowding your outlets. We mean the short circuit in your brain when you try to figure out: Do you save energy by turning lights off for only a few minutes? Which takes more energy: leaving air conditioning on all day or cooling your house after you come home at night? What is a watt? Do I pay twice as much for an appliance running on 240V as one on 120V?

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Good things come in threes. TreeHugger recently reviewed the Bedfan and SunFrost Sleep Genie. The Bedfan cools you under the sheets while you sleep. The Sleep Genie is sized to cool just your sleeping area by insulating around the bed ("Victorian bed curtains" suggests TreeHugger's Lloyd Alter), and could be solar-powered.

Making it three, we mention the Sleepbreeze Personal Cooling System. The Sleepbreeze cooling f...

Home air conditioning accounts for about 5 percent of U.S. electricity usage. In the winter, snuggling under the comforter and turning the thermostat down is a time-honored tradition, but what about in the hot and sweaty mid-summer season?

Texan Ken Tompkins wanted to cut his high summer electric bill by turning his thermostat up, so he designed a small fan cooling system that attaches to a bed. The fans nestling next to the floor underneath the bed blow cooler air up into the sheets, moving body heat out of the bed. Sounds kinky but Bedfan claims it can cut an electric bill by up to 20 percent in summer if the user turns a home's thermostat up aro...

The Drive for Alternatives is On
One clear sign that the search for alternatives to oil has reached a fever pitch is when Ferrari, one of the world's most renowned sports car manufacturers, announces its intention to build vehicles powered by biofuels and electricity, as well as hybrid drivetrains. Ferrari, of course, isn't doing this out of the goodness of its heart: it has to meet more stringent European emissions standards, and the company has set...

Being fans of the charming and witty Eco-Worrier Blog at The Times Online we naturally wanted to take a peak at the new book by the Eco-Worrier herself Anna Shepard. Recently published by Eden Project Books 'How Green Are My Wellies' sees Shepard translating her eco-agony aunt style blog, in which she doles out sensible and practical advice to the pon...

One can dream about nuclear power or a hydrogen economy, but the best way to deal with a shortage of energy is to eliminate waste. Seven to ten percent of electricity is wasted through transmission losses, and the North American transmission infrastructure is a creaky, leaky mess. But it is almost impossible to get approval for new transmission lines; between aesthetics and EMF, nobody wants them in their backyard.

Superconducting cables to the rescue: they lose almost no electricity, radiate almost no EMF and can be discreetly buried. "This will be a way to move massive amount of pow...

Photograph:- The Daybreak Residential/Commercial Community in South Jordan, Utah features Energy Star homes.

Energy efficiency has been a consistent part of America's energy security policies and increasingly become an essential framework for abating carbon emissions. In fact, the federal government now offers several tax credits for everything from green home improvements to fuel cells.

But the effectiveness of energy efficiency does not go undisputed.

Skeptics such as the Energy Tribune's Robert Bryce point out that total energy use in the United States co...

We recently covered the low gas prices in New Jersey, the high cost of diesel nationwide, and the possibility that gas will reach $7 per gallon in four years. These factors have forced some behavioral changes in drivers, especially given the overall economic downturn. Some are opting for the usual alternatives:

We're all familiar with the concept of negative externalities: the behavior of one person has negative impacts on another person (or society as a whole), yet the person causing those impacts doesn't pay for them. Writing about this concept as it applies to driving, Stephen Dubner and Steven Levitt, authors of the best-seller Freakonomics, point out that driving has three negative externalities: congestion, carbon emissions and

In our quest for efficient water use, this might be the first time we’ve come across a shower that recycles its own water for reuse [we’ve already looked at behavior-related conservation tips, like the navy shower and the selective flush, and we’ve also featured a wide-array of technologies, from