Ethics & Sustainability (essay research)

For my recent essay, I had to add a few examples of 'good design' which was a great way to check out whats going on out there in the eco friendly world.


I found these few simple, yet effective concepts to get my brain ticking for what to write about...and was interested at harnessing natural energy sources such as solar, wind and water power. I chose my local gym as my location, (as I've become an avid user lately), and became interested in kinetic energy, why not use our own power source to power lights while we work out, or even our own ipods?...

The Dancepants Kinetic Music Player is powered by kinetic energy: you can only listen to your tunes as long as you're jogging.  Shortlisted for Designboom's Green Life competition, the device consists of two main parts: sports pants with interwoven electronics to generate and transfer power, and the music player itself.
http://www.wired.co.uk/news/archive/2009-11/18/kick-out-the-jams-a-music-player-powered-by-running

Any one point on a busy street can receive up to 50,000 steps a day, so imagine if you could take all that foot traffic and turn it into something useful – like energy! A new product designed by Laurence Kemball-Cook, the director of Pavegen Systems Ltd., can do just that. With a minuscule flex of 5mm, the energy generating pavement is able to absorb the kinetic energy produced by every footstep, creating 2.1 watts of electricity per hour.

http://inhabitat.com/energy-generating-pavement/pavegen-systems-energy-genrating-pavement_/

Why settle for one form of renewable energy when you can produce power with two? That’s exactly what scientists from the University of Liverpool have done by upgrading an everyday wind turbine with a new set of spinning solar blades. The team, led by Dr. Joe King, came up with the innovative solution to stymie critics who say wind turbines are “only useful when the wind is blowing” — their design doubles the functionality of traditional turbines by incorporating photovoltaic technology.

3M, the company behind Scotch Tape, is moving into alternative energy thanks to a $4.4 million grant from the U.S. Department of Energy. The company plans to use the money to develop and commercialize its new thin film solar technology known as Ultra Barrier Solar Film. The solar material is reported to have high light transmission, superb moisture barrier performance and excellent weather resistance.

 

The grant is part of the DOE’s SunShot Initiative, which aims to reduce the total cost of photovoltaic solar energy systems by 75 percent by the end of the decade. 3M’s Ultra Barrier Solar Film utilizes moisture-resistant film to replace the glass used in conventional thin film solar panels.

Whereas traditional solar panels are expensive and require involved installation systems, 3M’s solar film requires no metal racking and reduces logistics expenditures. 3M has also stated that the solar film reduces module manufacturing costs by allowing manufacturers to commercialize large area modules.