Slovenia’s Pipistrel Aircraft, best known for its range of lightweight two-seaters, is nearing the launch of a new hydrogen fuel-cell- and battery-powered 19-seat hybrid that it hopes will revolutionise the commuter-category segment.
Dubbed the “Miniliner”, the aircraft could enter service by 2030, the company says, and will offer a substantial cut in operating costs against current designs.
Pipstrel says the Miniliner will be able to perform short point-to-point services between cities, boosting connectivity for underserved locations, or what it calls “microfeeder” flights into bigger hubs.
Power from the fuel cells will be sufficient for most departures, but batteries are provided to boost short-field performance, allowing departures from runways down to 800m (2,620ft). This, it says, will allow access to 80% of Europe’s airports.
While Pipistrel sees the optimum flight length as between 160-215nm (300-400km), the Miniliner will be able to fly for around 1,000nm on a single tank of liquid hydrogen.
Norway became the first country in the world where the sale of electric cars has overtaken those powered by petrol, diesel and hybrid engines last year, with the German carmaker Volkswagen replacing Tesla as the top battery-vehicle producer, data shows.
Battery electric vehicles (BEVs) made up 54.3% of all new cars sold in the Nordic country in 2020, a global record, up from 42.4% in 2019 and from a mere 1% of the overall market a decade ago, the Norwegian Road Federation (OFV) said.
Seeking to become the first nation to end the sale of petrol and diesel cars by 2025, oil-producing Norway exempts fully electric vehicles from taxes imposed on those relying on fossil fuels.
The policy has turned the country’s car market into a laboratory for carmakers seeking a path to a future without internal combustion engines, vaulting new brands and models to the top of bestseller lists in recent years.
While the sale of BEVs had broken the 50% mark in individual months, 2020 was the first time that fully electric cars outsold the combined volume of models containing internal combustion engines for a year as a whole.
In this Super Bowl commercial, GM and Will Ferrell want to challenge America to out-EV Norway. Then they have a long way to go. Norway is the first country in the world with over 50% of its new cars being electric because of good incentives. In USA the percent is only slightly more than 1 %.
Eviation Alice is an electric aircraft designed to take 9 passengers up to 1,000 km at more than 240 knots.
Our solution is electric from conception. Starting from scratch we take a holistic approach to aircraft design, allowing us to fully optimize the benefits of electric aviation. Our state-of-the-art aircraft is powered by four key capabilities:
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Radical and holistic re-thinking of the airframe, propeller and motor maximizes energy management and flight efficiency.
Ultra-light design
Our battery takes up 65% of the aircraft’s weight, and it takes a state-of-the-art all composite body to makeup for that.
High energy density battery
Combining Lithium-ion for high power needs and a proprietary Aluminum-Air system for range, hitting the 400Wh/kg mark and more
Autonomous flight
Built from day one as an Optionally Piloted Vehicle,
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This information comes from the website of Eviation.
Dutch designer Daan Roosegaarde and his team of experts have created the world’s largest smog vacuum cleaner. The Smog Free Tower uses patented ion technology to produce smog-free bubbles of public space, allowing people to breathe and experience clean air for free.
The Smog Free Project is not only intended to be a local solution for parks, but also an inspirational experience of a clean future. Along with governments, NGOs, pro-bicycle campaigns and the clean-tech industry, people can work together to make a whole city smog free.
Specifications:
2014-2018. The first 7-meter high Smog Free Tower equipped with environment-friendly and patented ozon free ion technology. The Smog Free Tower cleans 30.000m3 per hour without ozon, runs on green wind energy and uses no more electricity than a waterboiler (1170 watts). Smog Free Jewellery available on request.
This information comes from the website of Studio Roosegaarde.
