Quest for energy alternatives steps up

CHICAGO, Illinois (AP) -- The future of energy is bright
in Said Al-Hallaj's invention lab at the Illinois
Institute of Technology, and not just because of the solar
window that lies in development on a table.

All around the lab are advanced alternative energy
projects that testify to the war on oil that's proceeding
quietly at laboratories and research centers across the
country.

A tiny two-passenger electric car stands ready to drive 25
miles on one charge of its custom-designed pack of
lithium-ion batteries, not unlike the ones that power
laptops. A research assistant who's working out the kinks
on an electric bicycle motors down a hallway at 20 mph,
triple the speed of the hybrid fuel-cell scooter developed
here.

Elsewhere, Al-Hallaj and another professor are converting
an SUV into a plug-in hybrid vehicle using lithium-ion
cells to double the fuel efficiency and reduce emissions.
And a team of students is converting a gasoline-powered
lawnmower to use hydrogen as fuel.

Some of the projects could be manufactured commercially
right now, said Al-Hallaj, research associate professor of
chemical and environmental engineering and coordinator of
IIT's renewable energy program. The problem is cost, which
keeps them from competing with oil -- for now.

"The implications if we succeed are unbelievable,"
Al-Hallaj said. "You're coming up with a solution that is
clean and advanced -- [good for] energy, the environment
and people who are burdened by high prices."