My Desultory Blog

Posted By RichC on November 3, 2005

A123 is a “geek-name” that comes from a mathematical formula describing the interaction between nano-scale materials. It was then used to name a company based out of Watertown, MA founded by an MIT professor. A123 Systems has developed new lithium-ion battery that is more powerful and has a lighter weight than existing batteries; perhaps only 20% of the weight of current lithium-ion batteries. Current products have a high cost, but the potential huge.

Black and Decker has been an early adopter of this new battery and has introduced it in a new line of 36 volt power tools under the DeWalt brand (see 36 volt tools). “It was the first thing we saw that could meet all our needs, particularly on durability and run time,” commented Christine Potter, DeWalt’s cordless-product manager according to WSJ reporter William Bulkeley. “In DeWalt tests, drills with the new batteries bored 200 to 300 holes through a two-by-four on a single charge versus 100 holes with the 18-volt model.” Who knows when this technology will makes it way to other products including hybrids?

The company, A123 Systems was founded in 2001 by MIT professor Yet-Ming Chiang, a materials scientist, who’s technology is improving batteries by coating an aluminum electrode with nano-scale particles, a few hundred atoms in size, of lithium metal phosphate. The actual research and production details are not public, but suffice to say, they have been impressive enough for A123 System’s to be able to raised $32 million from investors. Motorola Inc. and Silicon Valley’s Sequoia Capital are a couple of the names believing in this new technology. (Sequoia Capital backed Google and Yahoo) Dr. Chiang says the phosphate is safer than the oxide-based chemistry used in lithium-ion batteries today and that when compared with the same weight of larger particles, the nano-scale particles release more ions, thereby freeing electrons to create an electric current. “Research in batteries is very seductive,” says Dr. Chiang as his company competes for the ‘latest and greatest’ against Germany’s Robert Bosch GmbH, Milwaukee Electric Tool Corp. (a unit of Hong Kong’s TechTronics Ltd), and Taiwan’s E-One Moli Energy Corp.

The Department of Energy is working with A123 Systems to develop and test a battery package for vehicular use. They have provided $850,000 in early funding towards this development and are studying whether it can replace the 100-pound batteries in hybrid vehicles with lithium-ion batteries lighter than 20 pounds … now that would be interesting. Imagine a hybrid vehicle with 100 pounds of the A123 batteries offering 5 times the range under electric power of today’s hybrids? Couple that with the capablility of nightly plug-ins at home? The potential petroleum savings for daily commuting would be huge!

EDIT: The Wall Street Journal did a podcast (11/5/2005) after news of this advancement in battery technology. Click to listen to WSJ.mp3 audio file.

Category: Uncategorized | 18 Comments »
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Posted By RichC on November 1, 2005

As winter and cold weather nears, those of us running ‘Biodiesel’ need to re-evaluate our alternative fueling strategies. Many return to petroleum diesel (D2) in order to avoid potential gelling and fuel starvation problems associated with untreated biodiesel. Even those running treated biodiesel are concerned as most treatments only lower the cloud and gell points of B100 (100% biodiesel) to just under the freezing point. Usually I just blend biodiesel with a treated D2 for simplicity and settle for about a B20 mix.

Lately though, I’ve been reading with some interest about Cuphea (Lythraceae). The flowering Cuphea plant produces a tiny oilseed, which contains lauric acid and other natural fatty acids. Modified lauric acid is used in a variety of household products, including soaps, detergents, shampoos and toothpastes. The hybrid version of the Midwestern US grown crop is currently being monitored by a couple university ag programs and is planted in less than 100 acres nationwide. A primary benefit for biodiesel is that it seems to have outstanding properties that could address the cold climate issues. Cuphea oil “has been used in the development of a model diesel fuel and lubricant where superior physical properties compared to petroleum products were observed. In the case of lubricants, estolides were synthesized using Cuphea fatty acids and oleic acid to give a material with a pour point of -42 deg C and a rotating bomb oxygen test (RBOT) time of 420 minutes.” (see USDA Agracultural Research Service study.)

I’ve clipped couple of quotes from an email that I’ll include below:

“This is a specialty crop that literally has the potential to be a major new oilseed crop,” said Andrew Hebard, CEO of Technology Crops International, a global specialty crop production company that is leading commercialization of the crop. ”We will be looking to significantly increase our contract crop production of cuphea in 2006 and are seeking qualified growers interested in spearheading its commercialization at the farm level.”

For example, below -20 degrees C, aircraft fuel thickens, creating pumping problems, but the addition of oil extracted from cuphea reduces the fuel’s freezing point. The project is administrated by EERC’s Center for Biomass Utilization, which is co funded by the Department of Energy and various corporate partners, and promotes research and development in converting biomass to energy, fuels and marketable products.

Technology Crops International will hold grower sign-up meetings in the Midwest in December and January.

Category: Biodiesel | No Comments »
Tags: alternative, biodiesel, cuphea, fuel

Posted By RichC on October 31, 2005

A friend of mine is always coming up with interesting ‘car related’ news and emails … he has forwarded me this one for Halloween; its a bit of a stretch to see the ‘ghost,’ but worth ‘scaring’ … I mean ‘sharing’ here.

This is a car advertisement from Great Britain. When they finished filming the ad, the film editor noticed something moving along the side of the car, like a ghostly white mist. They found out that a person had been killed a year earlier in that exact same spot.

Is it a ghost, or is it simply mist? You decide. If you listen to the ad, you’ll even hear the cameraman whispering in the background about it near the end of the commercial. A little creepy but pretty cool!

A Short “less than one meg” WMV Video Clip: GhostlyCarAd.wmv.

Category: Automotive, Humor, Video | No Comments »
Tags: advertising, mp4, scary

Posted By RichC on October 29, 2005

Last night I watched the NBC program “Three Wishes” that I commented (see post) on a couple of weeks ago; they helped welcomed home the 3/25 Marine unit from Iraq to Ohio. It was a heartwarming 60 minute program that was very emotional. The program actually granted four wishes with several receiving homes, a couple cars and to one widowed wife also a full 4 year education by Miami University in Oxford, Ohio. Generally I’m not much of a television watcher, but because one part was recorded in my community and the others included the NE Ohio area and the MAPS museum, I had an interest. I’ll include the final segment of the program here, although the entire show was well done and worth seeing.

Click to play a streaming quality 9 mb Media Player .wmv clip (Windows Media Player Required) OR download (right-click/save as) a H.264 MP4 fullscreen high quality .mov clip, but a larger at 32 mb. Note: This is a long download for dialup users. If you are interested in seeing the entire program, drop me a comment and I’ll post it.

EDIT: Link for .WMV version of first 40 minutes of the Three Wishes. Warning: 69mb file.

EDIT 2: Scan of article in our local paper: Scholarship surprise wish for soldier’s widow

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Posted By RichC on October 27, 2005

Yeah Baby … I had fun driving this little puppy! I had a chance to test drive a friend’s 2004 BMW MiniCooper ‘S’ in Northeastern Ohio. I’ve looked with envy at these little go carts since their re-introduction, and have been waiting for an opportunity to buzz around a bit. It was fun.

John was quick to toss me the keys and let me zip around some corners … and ‘zip’ is the optimum word.

The short wheel based, ground hugging ‘shoebox’ handled like very few other vehicles. Its ‘run flat’ low profile tires stuck like glue to the cold asphalt and the BMW like control was very precise. I really enjoyed the super tight handling characteristics.
Perhaps the telltale sign of a higher performance ‘S’ model is the center exhaust, that and the ‘S’ on the rear hatch. From the front, the functioning scoop cools the super charger and boosts the standard 115 HP/110 lb. ft. to 163HP/155 lb. ft., impressive for a 1.6 liter gasoline engine. Unfortunately the even the S model with a 6 speed transmission left me wanting. It failed to impress me while I navigated some traffic filled streets as there wasn’t any low rpm torque. The ‘git up and go’ was really missing when the revs were low; maybe I’m too accustomed to the low end torque available in a ‘tuned’ diesel?

For those of you unfamiliar with the Mini, it was introduced in England in 1959 and has a transversely-mounted engine and front wheel drive. This was unique for cars in the fifties and sixties but is the norm today. The original Mini was a tiny, boxlike two-door sedan about ten feet long and hold four people ‘with’ luggage in surprising comfort. The designer was Alec Issigonis and within a short period of time his Mini design theme became mainstream.

The original Mini was powered by an 850 cc engine, enlarged later to 997, 1071, and ultimately 1275cc. The old Mini’s engine was a pushrod overhead valve design, where the new engine has an overhead camshaft and four valves per cylinder. In the early 1960s, Formula One builder John Cooper was called upon to improve Mini performance, and the Mini Cooper was born. (there is a John Cooper Works version of the mini today as well) The racing world primarily tuned the 1275cc engine in the early days where they now have a whopping 1600cc to work with. The Mini’s most famous win was not on a race track. It was at the Monte Carlo Rally, in 1964. One of the progenitors of today’s World Rally Championship, the Monte Carlo Rally (or, in French, Rallye Monte Carlo) was – and is, as it continues today – run over regular European roads in the depths of winter. Slippery conditions were and are the norm, with plenty of snow and ice, especially as Hopkirk and co-driver/navigator Henry Liddon started from Minsk, then in the Soviet Union. The Mini’s traction, Hopkirk’s driving, and Liddon’s navigation beat all competitors, even those with considerably more power and factory money behind them. The win was not a fluke; Minis went on to win the next three Monte Carlo Rallys in a row.

The old Mini was nicknamed “the flying shoe box” for its functional, boxy shape and diminutive size. Today’s Mini is of the same mold, although larger – at 12 feet long versus 10 – and more rounded in the front. Cooper S models, have a functional hood scoop to feed the intercooler. Although the Mini Cooper is small, it is a fully-functional car, with more interior space than some much larger sports coupes. Six-footers can fit comfortably in the front buckets, and two adults can fit in the rear as well. The rear hatch opens and provides storage behind the rear seat. The battery is in the rear and although the car is without a spare, it does have low profile $200+ a piece 205/45 VR17 ‘run flat’ Goodyear tires. Did I mention it “sticks like glue?” Fun, Fun, Fun.

I found it very comfortable and was impressed with all the switches ‘literally at my fingertips.’ With my hand on the gear shift I was practically able to control every creature comfort feature, including windows.

The original mini had a four-speed gearbox; the S has a 6-speed Getrag box that is a true pleasure to shift. Low ratios in first and second make the most of what power is available below 3000 rpm, not enough IMHO. It takes off over 3000 rpm, and around 5000 there is noticeable a supercharger whine and a serious kick from the blower. Unfortunately I have forgotten how to drive a car over 5000 rpm and perhaps didn’t get to experience driving it while keeping the tach in supercharger territory.

Sunroof – WOW – this is the only photo I need to show my wife if I want to convince her that we need a Mini Cooper! There is a lot to like about this great headturning package of ‘zip’ … it is functional, fun car and can still averaged over 30 mpg.

Category: Automotive | 1 Comment »
Tags: BMW, john bezusko, mini cooper, scooz

Posted By RichC on October 26, 2005

Jermaine Dye’s single was all that was needed for the White Sox to complete the sweep of the Houston Astros. Last night’s game was a defensive nailbiter with outstanding pitching and World Series defensive play by both teams. Dye’s 8th inning single put Chicago White Sox up 1 -0 and gave Sox fans their first World Series title in 88 years. (1917) The Astros became the 19th team to suffer a championship sweep while the White Sox made their first Series appearance since 1959 in convincing style.

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Posted By RichC on October 25, 2005

Interesting story: A body believed to be that of a World War II airman, found frozen in the Sierra Nevada Mountains of California was found by recreational climbers. The spotted a body with an Army uniform still attached to a world war two parachute. On Monday the body was sent to Hickam Air Force Base in Hawaii for identification.

The body was discovered earlier this month mostly encased in a glacier in Kings Canyon National Park. It had been thawing since last week at the coroner’s office in Fresno County and then moved to Travis Air Force Base before being sent to the Joint POW-MIA Accounting Command in Hawaii. Many believe this identification could solve the disappearance of a navigational training plane that left a Sacramento airfield in November 1942 carrying a crew of four on a routine flight.

LINK to PDF of an article

Category: Millitary, News | No Comments »
Tags: ww2

Posted By RichC on October 24, 2005

Hurricanes have not let up for 2005 as we prepare for another hit here in the US. This time it is Wilma who has already left dead in other areas. Wilma hovered over the Yucatan penninsula for the longest time until she accellerated as a Catagory 3 hurricane last night. Monday morning as I post this entry, Wilma is moving at 23 mph and rolling ashore with damaging winds and heavy rain. As the TV reporting is coming in, the folks on the east coast look to receive the heavy rain and damaging winds.

Marco Island, an affluent communty with beautiful homes and condos, looks to have received the eye of Wilma. I would expect to see quite a lot of property damage and hopefully no loss of life. Most of the southwestern Floridians wisely moved inland and hopefully found safe shelters.

My family is primarily concerned for the area on the east coast as our area might been next of Wilma’s hit list. According to the storm track we are on target for this strong storm to trigger tornados and inches of rain. Perhaps the storm surge is not as dangerous on the east coast but expect that with Wilma’s speed that the winds will still be hurricane strenghten and above. We are crossing our fingers.

Category: Weather | No Comments »
Tags: hurricane

Posted By RichC on October 20, 2005

Some of your reading my blog are diesel drivers and find the VW TDI or diesel content interesting so I’m making a late afternoon entry to point you to one of my favorite journalists and podcasters, Frank Giovinazzi. He had an opportunity to interview Tony Fouladpour, public relations manager of Volkswagen and talk about VW TDIs, diesel fuel and what the future ‘might’ hold for them in the US. I found Mr. Fouladpour comments rather reserved, how about you? Check it out over at CarBuyersNotebook.com.

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Posted By RichC on October 20, 2005

Another concept is unveiled by VW, this time at the Tokyo Motor Show. Volkswagen has an interesting mid-engine diesel sports car “concept” touting fuel economy translating to 69 mpg and capable of 143mph. Considering the ‘wise’ Volkswagen management of late, and a diesel, I’m sure VW is planning at this very moment to bring the Ecoracer to Anytown, USA. [/sarcasm]

The power for this concept car is a tuned 1.5 liter TDI diesel, similar to those developed for the popular VW TDI Toureg, Golf, Jetta, NB, Polo and Passat. This particular engine generates 134-hp utilizing TSI twin-turbo technology and is mid-located in a carbon fiber reinforced plastic car body. This lightweight sports car weighs in a a mere 1,874 lbs and can accelerates from 0 to 60 mph in about 6 seconds. This smaller 1.5-liter TDI diesel is using a new twin-charged TSI family of engines which promises a smaller engine size delivering the performance of higher displacement engines while reducing the overall fuel consumption. As with many production models, the EcoRacer as it is being called, uses the DSG double-clutch transmission for almost instant shifts.

What are the chances that the US will see new TDIs, let alone dream abot a VW EcoRacer TDI. US concept cars are bad enough, but hoping VW brings a diesel concept car to the US … dream on!

EDIT: An excellent writeup has been posted on the TDIClub forums which came from VWVortex.

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