Fiberglass Whale Set For Cleaning Soon

The biggest fiberglass structure in the world (or at least the biggest one I've ever seen...) is set to be cleaned soon.

Of course I'm talking about the gigantic whale hanging from the ceiling at the American Museum of Natural History in New York City. The giant blue whale is made of fiberglass of polyurethane. To give you a sense of its scale (life sized, apparently), it is 94 feet long and weighs 21,000 pounds. Despite its massive weight, hundreds of people walk under and sit under the whale model every day.

The big blue whale hasn't been cleaned in two years. Looks like it's due.

Custom Composite Battery Boxes For The Next-Next-Gen Hybrid Auto

Sure, you've got your Toyota Prius. Or maybe you've got a Ford Fusion hybrid. Or one of those new Chevy Volts. Those hybrid automobiles are OK. But they lack a certain... custom composite battery technology.

What do composites have to do with hybrid automobiles, you may be wondering? Well, researches out in Germany look to have developed a crash-resistant battery case for automobiles. On the one hand, it's not extremely difficult to create a crash-resistant case for automobile batteries, but given their power output (read: a sight less than a V8 Hemi), keeping weight down is a prime concern. Hence the custom composite casing.

According to this news report,

The Ernst-Mach Institute has developed a mass-production-ready, crash-safe battery housing that meets strict requirements. The battery housing that surrounds the battery that weighs 340 kilograms (749.57 lbs.) only weighs 35 kilograms (77.16 lbs.) [...] The battery housing can withstand a crash, assuming a ten-fold gravitational acceleration.“ And even if a sharp object collides with the housing at 60 km/h (45mph), the highly sensitive battery on the inside remains intact.

Not only are these composite material battery boxes lighter than metal alternatives, but they're also easily mass-producible, making them a potentially cost effective solution.

Southern Spars Spurs Innovation In Custom Composites

Another week, another story about the uses of custom composites in nautical applications? What can we say: composites provide such a great combination of strength to weight that they're just the best for demanding uses, like sailing.

In this case, we're talking about the very most demanding nautical application: world-class superyachting. A New Zealand company called Southern Spars has recently unveiled some new custom composites technology it calls "TPT" or "thing ply technology". TPT is a supposedly revolutionary new laminate composite. Says Wayne Smith of Southern Spars,

"Our designers now have the ability to design products using whichever ply angles are optimal for the loading situation at every point on the spar or boom," he says. 

"The plotter then lays the carbon fibre laminate more accurately and efficiently than can be achieved by hand. 

"It is also possible to individually position pieces rather than being required to lay all adjacent plies parallel to one another."

That's pretty awesome, especially when you consider the unbearable loads these components will be handling on the superyacht circuit. Our neighbors to the very far south are certainly coming up with some sweet composite technology.

Custom Composites On Deck, Literally

Think custom composites don't have much application in a non-power generation application? NorthJersey.com would have you know you're wrong.

Even though it comes toward the end of the season, the online paper has a nice breakdown of different deck and patio options. (If you live in the northeast, you can bookmark this one for next year.) Included in the survey is a discussion of wood versus composites:

Traditional decks are constructed of pressurized wood that has been chemically treated to help increase the life of the lumber — in fact, that’s now the law [...] Over time, wood cracks, needs to be refinished, or splinters, so treating it may slow the aging process, but it doesn’t necessarily look any younger. Composite material has a little longer lifespan and requires far less maintenance.

So when it comes to decks and patios, you select composites and that's that, right? Well, ideally. Composites cost four to five times as much as their wood counterparts up front. Then again, they last longer and require much less by way of repairs and maintenance.

At the end of the day, the choice between wood and composites will come down to your available money right now, and how much you think you can budget for the future. You also may just plain prefer wood or composites for aesthetic reasons, of course. The North Jersey story is pretty in-depth, though, with some words of wisdom from folks in the industry. Check it out for a little change of pace!

Pennsylvania Hits a Solar Power Milestone, According to PennFuture

Pennsylvania isn't known as a sunny state, but it's set to reach a milestone in solar power generation. According to a group called Citizens for Pennsylvania's Future (PennFuture), the state has reached a level of 100 megawatts of installed solar capacity.

A 100 MW solar capacity means solar energy can produce the amount of pollution-free energy needed to completely power over 12,600 per year. Not too bad for the Keystone State.

In just four years, again according to PennFuture, the state has grown from 3 MW to its present level of 100 MW. That's just tremendous growth! Overall, it's also accounted for more than 6,700 jobs and 600 solar-related businesses.

While many green tech ventures like solar power are time- and cost-intensive, they can be hugely beneficial one they're up and running. Solar power certainly represents an investment, and its present technological state is sure to be improved upon, but as Pennsylvania has shown, by being dedicated to an ideal, truly great levels of solar accomplishment can be reached in relatively short time.

GE Energy Adds Converteam to its $30 Billion Power Portfolio

General Electric Corp. has been on an industrial power generation roll lately. They've spent over $11 billion (with a "b") the last few months, and they're set to add to that with the acquisition of Converteam, for $3.2 billion.

The GE energy unit has taken over scads of companies lately, including Dresser Inc., Wellstream Holdings, Lineage Power, and part of the John Woods Group. GE's energy-sector portfolio is now estimated to be worth north of $30 billion.

Converteam is a power generation company based out of France. It supplies power electronics, rotating machines, generators, and energy controls to for large industrial power generation outfits like gas pipelines. It looks like GE is betting big on power, which is, of course, a strong bet! So far, there's been only one direction in human progress: Upward. And as the population and industry expand, the demand for power will only increase.

Bushehr Nuclear Plant Raises Questions As Well As Power Generation

In industrial power generation news that's sure to have the more hawkish among us up in arms, Iran is all set to commence nuclear power plant operations. As of midnight this past Tuesday, Iran's nuclear power plant in the southern port city of Bushehr started generating about 60 MW of energy.

Overall, the plant in Bushehr will have a 1,000 MW power generating capacity. The plant was originally started in concert with Siemens. But after the partnership fell through, it was built with Russian help; there are also some inklings of Chinese and North Korean involvement, based on Iran's recent behavior.

 An Iranian Parliament member has recently been reported to be scheduled to visit North Korea, the first such visit since the 1980s.

 As Iran inches into nuclear power, it is disturbing that the country maintains involvement with such totalitarian governments as North Korea. Nuclear power is a great boon, which should not go abused by those with dark motives.

The Indian State of Gujarat Suffers Power Cutbacks

There was a setback to Indian industrial power generation this week. At least a dozen power generators have shut down in the Indian state of Gujarat, according to some reports.

 The shutdowns are credited to a decreased demand for power, which seems kind of odd for such a brisk economy. Though there have been some heavy rains that may account for the drop off. The power generation decrease of these twelve generators accounts for over a quarter of the state's power generation, bringing total power from 13,354 MW to less than 10,000 MW.

 As farming and agriculture continue to take hits from the weather, it looks like power production will continue to stay low in Gujarat, which has suffered sub-par power production since July of this year. Some private power generators like Gujarat Industries Power Company Limited have been shut down completely in recent days.

 Hopefully this beleaguered Indian state can get back up to snuff in the power generation department. Paying for infrastructure is a costly affair, and having a dozen power generators sit inoperable exacerbates an already poor situation.