Points of Interest | Green Energy News

August 10, 2003 – Vol.8 No.20

POINTS OF INTEREST.

A weekly collection of websites worth visiting.

The Regional Transportation Center (RTC) is now open in San Diego, California to rent, sell, service and fuel a wide variety of alternative fuel vehicles that will become more common under that state’s Zero Emission ruling.

The RTC, operated by Pearson Ford, and built with funding from Ford, the U.S. Department of Transportation, the City and County of San Diego and the Air Resources Board, also includes the RTC Education Center to introduce middle and high-school students to clean and alternative vehicle technologies. The Education Center is operated by the San Diego Environmental Foundation. http://www.rtc4afv.com/

RailPower Technologies is developing hybrid vehicles you may never see - unless you’re train spotter. RailPower’s hybrids are designed to run on rails, to be used in switching yards to shuffle railroad cars about.

The company’s initial product is the Green Goat, a 2000-horsepower, 280,000-pound, diesel-lead-acid-battery hybrid that uses 30-45 percent less fuel than a typical diesel or diesel-electric switcher. A second product under development is the Green Kid, a baby Goat with half the horsepower, 50-80 percent less fuel consumption and is operated remotely - no driver involved. A third product will use natural gas to fuel a gas turbine to provide power. http://www.railpower.com/ .

Azure Dynamics is another hybrid vehicle development company who’s products you might experience - but never see. Among various projects this company is developing is a hybrid drive train for the venerable London Taxi, now built by U.K. company Manganese Bronze. http://www.azuredynamics.com/

Toxco is one company that will be called on in the coming years to recycle all those batteries from hybrid electric and fuel cell vehicles. While the company specializes in recycling lithium batteries, other branches of the company recycle all battery chemistries. Lithium batteries, though, are rapidly becoming the preferred choice in advanced vehicle technologies.

The recycling process for lithium begins by freezing the batteries to -325 degrees Fahrenheit to prevent explosion. Batteries are then sliced, lithium separated and turned into lithium carbonate, other toxics are then neutralized, plastics and metals recycled. http://www.toxco.com/ .