The Science Behind Hybrid Cars

Probably no one is surprised with gasoline prices going up. By paying same amount of money you get less and less mileage everyday. Eventually you reach a point when you start thinking of some radical changes. Changing petroleum fuel in to another form of energy like electricity is a great choice, but radical move is impossible without radical infrastructure changes. If you choose an electricity driven vehicle you will face charging problem. Charging stations aren’t wide spread enough. And battery technology is till in progress to reach high energy density for acceptable price. We believe that future is for electric cars, but now we need some sort of middle point where we still could use what’s around us and be one step to future. Companies like Lexus (www.lexus.co.uk) has been intensively working on hybrid car technologies over a decade. They have reached really good results on efficiency, decreasing emissions and comfort of driving.

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Hybrid cars usually have two types of motors – internal combustion and electric. Both in combination they increase fuel efficiency, lower CO2 emission. Some technical data can be found at http://www.lexus.co.uk/hybrid/index.tmex. Generally speaking there are two types of hybrid cars – Full Hybrid and Mild Hybrid. (more…)

Intrinsically safe mobile devices for extreme conditions

Probably many of you heard of military grade devices that are meant to withstand wide temperature range, high accelerations, mud and dirt. They must be reliable and work when most needed. But what situation is with other extreme conditions – potentially explosive areas? You will be surprised how many of those areas are around us. Take oil platforms, gas trucks, coal mines, oil tankers, aviation fuel fillers and many other machine facilities that may generate explosive gases or dust. Workers cannot use regular phones or other devices in such areas, because there is always a risk of small sparks that could cause an explosion. Not to use at all is not an option – you may need to do measurements, calculate data and to other tasks where device is simply needed. This is where intrinsically safe equipment is used. There is even a special European Directive called ATEX (Atmospheres Explosibles) that regulates the use of equipment in hazardous areas. For instance lets take a multimeter Fluke 28 II EX. It can be used in explosive environments.

It is extremely protected multimeter which is certified for use in explosive environment. Multimeter is reliable sealed in IP67 rated case from water, dust and can survive drops from 3 meter high. Its ruggedness allows safe operation in any chemical, gas and dust environments. Anyway, using intrinsically safe multimeter still doesn’t guarantee that there will be no sparks. Measuring procedure is also very important. Just try to measure battery voltage with any multimeter and you will see sparks when touching leads to contacts. But this is different area of expertise where people have to be trained. Same situation is with mobile phones. We always carry cell phones with us. And for a moment did wee think that it would be better to turn it off when fueling car? They are not protected from falling, they are not shielded. It can cause sparks if dropped accidentally. And definitely have seen how small sparks can ignite gas lighter. There is more information about intrinsically safe devices in intrinsic safe mobile phone blog.

DNA Computer Chips On The Way?

The future of life sciences appears to be even more reliant on computing than we had supposed, and vice versa. From computer technology fields to Huntingdon Life Sciences careers, biological systems are being studied more extensively than ever with the use of computer technology. It is definitely interesting to think about a computer system itself utilizing the building blocks of organic life. But that may be exactly what we’re headed toward with DNA computer chips, which some technology experts say could make up the next generation of computer chips, replacing silicon as the ideal substrate for advanced computing. (more…)

3D Printing Technologies

3D printing is used to come up with three dimensional objects and is a form of additive manufacturing. It is now easier and more affordable to come up with a prototype using the 3D technology. Before these technologies were introduced, it used to take several hours, skilled labor and tools to create a prototype.

One form of 3D printing technology is made up of inkjet printing systems. Fine powder layers made of resins, corn starch or plaster is bonded selectively on adhesives produced by the inkjet print heads. This kind of technology makes it possible to print a full color prototype and is considered to be one of the fastest methods. (more…)