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Japan Airlines first Asian airline to test biofuel derived mainly from camelina plant
. Japan Airlines will carry out a flight test on Jan. 30 of a Boeing 747-300 airliner fitted with a Pratt & Whitney engine using a 50 percent blend of a biofuel derived mainly from camelina, a plant in the mustard family. JAL will power one of the airliner’s four Pratt & Whitney engines with…
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Toyota to use approximately 60 percent Ecological Plastic in Vehicle Interiors
Toyota plans to increase use of plant-derived, carbon-neutral plastics in more vehicle models, starting with a new hybrid vehicle next year. The newly developed plastics, collectively known as “Ecological Plastic”, are to be used in scuff plates, headliners, seat cushions and other interior vehicle parts. Within 2009, Toyota aims for Ecological Plastic to account for…
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Sanyo to display SUNPLANT designed by Toshiyuki Kita for the first time in Japan
Sanyo will display the ‘SUNPLANT’ installation at the ‘Lighting Objet 2008’ in ‘Tokyo Building Tokia Galleria Square’. The ‘SUNPLANT’ is an installation designed by Toshiyuki Kita, one of the world’s most recognized designers, and incorporates both Sanyo’s rechargeable ‘eneloop’ batteries and highly efficient ‘HIT’ solar cells, displaying the concept of charging ‘eneloop’ rechargeable batteries and…
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Honda leases first FCX Clarity Fuel Cell Vehicle to Ministry of the Environment in Japan
Honda began leasing the FCX Clarity fuel cell vehicle in Japan, delivering the first vehicle to the Ministry of the Environment. This transaction follows directly upon a completed lease to the Ministry of the FCX fuel cell vehicle, predecessor to the FCX Clarity. Designed as a dedicated fuel cell vehicle, the FCX Clarity is powered…
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Los Angeles mayor announces world’s largest solar energy plan
Los Angeles mayor Antonio Villaraigosa unveiled an ambitious plan for installing solar panels on residents’ rooftops to meet 10 percent of the city’s energy needs by the year 2020.The energy plan, Solar LA, is expected to cost each Los Angeles resident an additional 2 dollars a month once it is complete. Details of the plan,…
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15-meter-high solar-powered Christmas tree unveiled at the Mitsukoshi department store in Tokyo
It seems Christmas fever has already started in Japan. Today Mitsukoshi department store in Tokyo’s Nihonbashi district unveiled a 15-meter-high solar-powered Christmas tree with some 20,000 light emitting diodes. The Christmas tree will be on display till December 25.
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Honda Begins Sales of Thin-Film Solar Cells for Public and Industrial Use in Japan
Honda’s wholly-owned solar cell subsidiary Honda Soltec Co., Ltd. will begin sales throughout Japan of thin-film solar cells for public and industrial use on October 24, 2008. Having sold solar cells for home use since October 2007, Honda intends to expand its customer base by manufacturing and selling solar cells capable of the high-capacity electrical…
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Mazda RX-8 Hydrogen RE car goes to Norway
Mazda today introduced the Mazda RX-8 Hydrogen RE (Rotary Engine) vehicle to Norway’s public roads in collaboration with the Norwegian national hydrogen project, HyNor. Initially, the Mazda RX-8 Hydrogen RE’s driving performance on Norwegian roads will be validated with a single vehicle, which will also be shown at various events. This marks the first time…
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Five minutes charge enables an electric car to run for about 40 kilometers in Japan
Tokyo Electric Power Co. has installed charging devices for electric vehicles in nine basement parking lots, including those under several office buildings, in the business district near JR Tokyo Station on a trial basis. It is the first time that “battery stations” for electric vehicles have been set up in basement parking areas. The charging…
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Solar Light Brick-integration of solar technologies into traditional construction materials
Sunrise Solar Corp announced the introduction of a Solar Light Brick for the integration of solar technologies into traditional construction materials. This innovative technology includes advanced solar cells, an energy storage device and a crystal lighting system that surrounds the energy module in a square or rectangle. The imbedded solar cell generates electricity when the…
