We’ve all heard of green rooftop gardens. But, did you know that a team of recent MIT graduates has developed what could prove to be an even better way to make a roof eco-friendly? These innovators are working to produce roof tiles that change color, depending on the temperature.

The tiles become white when it’s hot, and then turn black when it’s cold.

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A grueling 7-day, nearly 1,900-mile race from Darwin to Adelaide across the Australian Outback, the 10th World Solar Challenge will once again test the best solar-powered vehicles from designers and race enthusiasts all across the planet. And since the race that has already attained mythical proportions with its promotion of solar energy and its testing conditions, for this year the guys from MIT will come up with a green supercharged Eleanor that will carry the fight down under.

Only driving on sun power the green supercar packs quite a punch with a top speed of just 50 mph, while adding some battery juice it will reach a good 70-80 mph. Named after the famous 1967 Ford Mustang from “Gone in 60 Seconds” (doesn’t look like “her” though), the vehicle is powered by 20 square feet of silicon solar panels that put out 1,200 watts and comes loaded with 600 lithium-ion cells from laptop batteries that helps reduce weight and improve efficiency. Dramatically!

The guys at MIT are hoping to put in some miles on the Eleanor before they get down to business in the big race. We’re with you all the way on this one …

Source: MSNBC

Lithium ion batteries that are in the market today are already being hailed as major breakthroughs and are helping both the automobile industry as well as the electronic field in producing gadgets that are smaller, lighter and far more efficient than ever before.

But how about turning that up a couple of notches by creating cell phones that are fully charged in a matter of a few seconds and electric cars that can challenge an F1 vehicle for the top speed? As astounding as that sounds, the researchers at the famous Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) are moving ahead in that direction.

A couple of material experts at MIT have been in the process of designing a new Li-Ion cell that unlike traditional li-ion batteries, charge up faster and can even discharge energy in one single burst when needed. They’ve used a Lithium Phosphate coating to the existing batteries, the experts have succeeded in creating nano-scale tunnels for the swift movement of the electrons.

Considering that it’s just an enhancement to a technology that is already commercial, we’re expecting it to hit the market in the coming years.

Source: AFP
Image by kqedquest