MDI - The air car:  A car designed around compressed air, with "an engine capable of propelling a car up to 110 Km/h, that can cover a distance of 300 km with one tank refill."  Range is halved when run at top speed compared to city speeds.  Refill of the tank takes 3 minutes from a station, 4 hours from a home power outlet. The company sells the factories to make the cars.  The North American licensee plans a trial with Mexico city taxis.  Several models are offered.  62 plants have been sold so far, 10 in Italy, 6000 vehicles per year.  5:12:36 PM    

New ways to use solar thermal energy?:  A Greek firm is developing a new energy capture:  "The electrochemical thermal convertor is a revolutionary technology for the direct conversion of low  temperature heat  into  electricity based on a continuous regeneration of an electrolyte using the thermal energy of the heat source with an efficiency in the conversion of thermal to electrical energy of  75% - 85% depending on the temperature of the heat source.  (temperature ranges: 40 - 100EC)."  Claimed costs are estimated at under $200/KW (East European installation).  In the US, "Renewable Energy Corp., a wholly owned subsidiary of SunPower, .. uses high intensity solar energy to produce pure hydrogen, methanol or ethanol from feed stocks such as bio-mass, CO2, low quality natural gas or coal."

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Marine current power: Good review of options for tapping tidal and other ocean currents -- many similarities to wind power.  "Because of the higher energy intensity in the tidal stream compared with wind, the diameter of the rotors used in a tidal turbine is much less than for a wind turbine - around 18 m versus 55 m for a nominal 1 MW rotor."  Marine Current Turbines Ltd, based in the UK, has initiated a programme of tidal turbine development with government support, including a 300 kW trial in September, 700 kW in 2003, up in stages to 300 MW in 2010.  A different £1.8m 'Stingray' prototype, powered by tidal water, has been built and will be moved this summer onto the seabed near Shetland.  4:07:11 PM