Transportation

San Francisco may have shaken some flowers from its hair since hosting the first Earth Day 38 years ago, but the city continues to be named one of America's greenest. Satirists mock its politically correct "smug cloud" of eco-hipness, but many other regions tend to follow the city's environmental lead. For instance, more than a handful of U.S. cities are now mulling a ban on plastic grocery bags, first passed in San Francisco last March.

Fresh into his second term, San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newson in January set goals for the city to become carbon-neutral … Read more

A "green," petroleum-free brand of motor oil is due to appear on store shelves soon.

Green Earth Technologies said it's shipping its line of green motor oils to national retailers starting within the next month. Waste fats from cattle instead of fossil fuels are the key ingredients.

"We turn that into liquid form and use nanotechnology to have it perform in lubricant format," explained company CEO Jeff Marshall.

Because the slaughter of each cow leaves behind 200 pounds of waste tallow, the company is making use of a renewable resource, he said.

"We're … Read more

Current mass-produced hybrid cars use nickel-metal hydride batteries, but Mercedes-Benz says it will launch the first hybrid with lithium ion batteries. Lithium ion batteries are more efficient than nickel-metal hydride batteries and have a better weight-to-power ratio, and are used in the all-electric Tesla roadster as well as in many plug-in hybrid conversions. But large stacks of lithium ion batteries can overheat, a serious problem in an automotive application. Mercedes-Benz announced it has 25 patents around making lithium ion suitable for cars, detailing a key breakthrough of integrating the battery with a car's climate control system, which maintains the … Read more

Honda announced it will unveil a new global hybrid car at the 2008 Paris Auto Show, which will launch in 2009 along with another hybrid based on the CR-Z concept. Both cars will be produced as hybrid models without a gas-only counterpart, similar to Toyota's Prius. These hybrids are part of Honda's strategy to sell 400,000 hybrids per year by 2011. The new global hybrid will launch in Europe first, then come to North America. Both hybrids will use updated versions of Honda's integrated motor assist (IMA) mild hybrid system, currently used in the Honda Civic … Read more

Driven by fears of laptops and cell phones spontaneously bursting into flames, the U.S. government this year banned checking loose lithium batteries in luggage on flights. But that won't be an issue if Nanoexa has its way.

The company is taking a closer look at lithium-ion batteries to design a better, more stable breed. It's eyeing the growing energy storage market, especially for batteries used in hybrid and electric cars.

Nanoexa's software examines the ingredients of batteries at the atomic level. Computer modeling scrutinizes the contents, such as lithium, cobalt, and nickel, to determine the safest … Read more

The Department of Energy announced on Wednesday its choice of three venture capital firms to send promising clean-tech entrepreneurs to collaborate with national laboratories.

The government's new Entrepreneur in Residence plan is designed to speed the development of the green technology sector.

"Government has to cultivate the conditions for these technologies to thrive," U.S. assistant secretary of energy Alexander Karsner told attendees of the Cleantech Forum in San Francisco. "We felt very strongly we had to build bridges over the commercialization valley of death."

The venture capitalists include Kleiner, Perkins, Caufield, and Byers to … Read more

Co-eds enrolling at the University of Washington at Seattle this fall should be able to zip to class on electric bikes rented through Intrago Corporation's self-serve system.

The company plans to launch its first stable of 40 rental electric bikes at four stations around the campus around August.

Intrago's goal is to offer rental wheels around the world at transportation hubs like train stations, so people can reach their final destination without having to cab it, hoof it or pedal uphill on a manual bike.

Each user will get a key that works on any Intrago bike. They … Read more

Mercedes-Benz is apparently planning to use next week's Geneva auto show to unveil two new fuel-efficient versions of the C-Class sedan in the first example of a new line of "eco variants" of its main model lineup. According to Just Auto, Mercedes is planning to roll the strategy out to 20 other models over the course of the next year. BMW is also expected to launch a green concept car at the Geneva show. Both luxury German automakers are likely to be among the hardest hit by new European Commission legislation for stricter emissions and fuel efficiency … Read more

Comments from General Motors Vice Chairman Robert Lutz calling global warming "a total crock" sparked a storm on the Web, prompting Lutz to ask outsiders to judge GM on its actions, not his words.

A report from D Magazine dated January 30 quoted Lutz saying that global warming is a "total crock of ****." And "I'm a skeptic, not a denier. Having said that, my opinion doesn't matter...I'm motivated more by the desire to replace imported oil than by the (carbon dioxide argument)." The statements were later verified by a GM … Read more