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SiGNa Chemistry sodium silicide might power your next fuel cell
We've been promised portable fuel cells for years, but tech from SiGNa Chemistry might have a real shot at taking the concept mainstream. Instead of the more commonly used methanol, the outfit serves up a sodium silicide mix which it's begun licensing to companies bearing the "SiGNa fueled" logo. One example is PowerTrekk that first went on sale in Europe last December and is now making its way to the US this spring. The special salt concoction comes packaged into 5Wh hockey puck cartridges -- appropriately called Pukks -- to generate power and subsequently juice whatever device you plug into it over USB. It'll ship stateside in May for around $200, replete with an onboard 5Wh lithium-ion battery which acts as a rechargeable buffer, ensuring you'll still have some juice even after you run out of cartridges. Catch the power generating tech in a video after the break.
Inhabitat's Week in Green: robot cars, solar winds and the DeLorean EV
Each week our friends at Inhabitat recap the week's most interesting green developments and clean tech news for us -- it's the Week in Green. In case you missed it yesterday, the big green tech news of the week rolled in last night with the announcement of Google's top-secret robot car project, which has been deploying and testing self-driving robot cars on the streets of California over the past several months! (Engadget covered it here). It's also been a big week in general for green transportation announcements, as several supercharged electric vehicles hit the streets last week: the Delorean EV took us back to the future and SiGNa Chemistry unveiled an electric bike that runs on water. Finally, from the realm of tomorrow we brought you the future of moving house: strapping your home to an enormous balloon and lifting off for the skies. This week solar power also lit up the newswires as President Obama announced plans to deck out the White House with photovoltaics this coming spring and scientists proclaimed that interstellar solar winds could provide 100 billion times the Earth's energy needs. We were also wowed by a dog park powered by poo in Cambridge, and we can't wait to get our hands on this new copper-covered Nokia phone that recharges its battery using body heat. Speaking of eco gadgetry, we also showcased a set of gorgeous wooden wristwatches, and the world's first iPhone 4 cover made of plants. Green lighting was also a hot topic this week as scientists created a new type of glowing nano LED and we spotted an array of luminous lamps made from salt at the London Design Festival. We also learned how a wireless router scored a date for one lucky Inhabitat writer, and how Inhabitat editor Jill's solar-powered backpack has been a real conversation starter. See, green gadgets can help you make friends and influence people!
