December, 2015

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New highly conductive solid electrolyte with improved electrode contact for solid-state Li-ion batteries

Green Car Congress

A joint research team from Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology (UNIST) and Seoul National University in Korea, with colleagues at Lawrence Berkeley National Lab and Brookhaven National Lab in the US, has developed a new highly conductive (4.1 × 10 −4 S cm −1 at 30 °C), highly deformable, and dry-air-stable glass 0.4LiI-0.6Li 4 SnS 4 electrolyte for solid-state Li-ion batteries.

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Global Warming 101

Electric Cars are for Girls

Global warming, its causes and effects, and a little global warming controversy.

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Green Car Reports Year In Reverse: 2015's Five Biggest Stories

Green Car Reports

At the end of every year, we look back to see which Green Car Reports stories proved most popular over the last 365 days. While we often focus on breaking news, certain stories--often guides and lists--get regular traffic for months and even years. Only one of our top five stories this year was first published in 2015: our guide to sorting out the.

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BMW, Nissan, jointly installing 120 EV fast charging stations across 19 states

National Green Transportation

On Monday, Nissan and BMW announced a joint project to expand electric car fast charging in 19 states across the US. This move is very welcome because, instead of sticking with the dispute over which fast charging system is.

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How serious is Norway about climate change? So much that its streetlights self-dim

emissions global warming Norway climate change carbon dioxide youtube lighting

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Chevrolet has sold more than 1.4M vehicles with 4G LTE

Green Car Congress

Chevrolet has sold more than 1.4 million vehicles with 4G LTE connectivity since June 2014, exceeding the total sold by of the rest of the industry combined. That number includes more than 500,000 Chevrolet Silverado, Silverado HD and Colorado trucks (about 36%). Chevrolet offers 4G LTE connectivity across its full-range of retail cars, trucks and crossovers.

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Uber passes 1-billion ride mark

Green Car Congress

A £5 London uberX ride on Christmas Eve from London Fields, Hackney to Hoxton in a blue Honda Insight Hybrid was the billionth Uber trip. In recognition of the milestone, Uber is giving one year’s worth of free rides to rider Marvin’s stocking, while Uber driver-partner Ara will be given a vacation to the Uber city of his choice. Uber also made a donation to Hackney Pirates—a charity serving the neighborhood where the billionth trip started.

More Trending

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Large-scale reaction screening study of advanced cellulosic biofuel pathways finds ethyllevulinate and 2-MTHF promising alternatives to ethanol

Green Car Congress

A team at RWTH Aachen University has identified ethyllevulinate and 2-methyltetrahydrofuran as promising alternatives to cellulosic bioethanol with respect to cost and environmental impact based on a large-scale reaction screening study. In addition, the study of 97 reactions for 23 advanced biofuel candidates found that lignin-based biofuels can be excluded from further consideration and that methane, while attractive economically, shows significant environmental impact.

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IHS: connectivity, infotainment, safety to drive growth in automotive display systems to $18.6B by 2021; > 11% CAGR

Green Car Congress

Driven by continued innovation in vehicle connectivity and safety technologies, global revenue from automotive display systems will grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of more than 11% to $18.6 billion by the end of 2021, according to a new forecast by IHS Inc. This will add nearly $9 billion in annual revenue compared to 2015. Data from the Automotive Display Systems Forecasts from IHS represents production of instrument cluster systems, head-up display systems and center stack display

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$10-Trillion Investment Needed To Avoid Massive Oil Price Spike Says OPEC

Green Car Congress

by Nick Cunningham of Oilprice.com. OPEC says that $10 trillion worth of investment will need to flow into oil and gas through 2040 in order to meet the world’s energy needs. The OPEC published its World Oil Outlook 2015 (WOO) in late December, which struck a much more pessimistic note on the state of oil markets than in the past. On the one hand, OPEC does not see oil prices returning to triple-digit territory within the next 25 years, a strikingly bearish conclusion.

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Audi testing autonomous driverless transport systems at Ingolstadt plant

Green Car Congress

Earlier this month, Audi began testing driverless transport systems (DTS) at its Ingolstadt plant. With DTS, logistics employees no longer have to fetch the required goods from the material shelves; the goods will come to them fully automatically. Audi says it is the first automobile manufacturer to implement such a DTS-based goods-to-person concept.

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Faurecia and Accenture partner on products and services for connected and autonomous vehicles

Brief

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Chempolis partners with Avantha Group on cellulosic ethanol in India

Green Car Congress

Chempolis Limited, a Finland-based biorefining technology corporation, has entered into partnership with India-based Avantha Group’s research wing—Avantha Centre for Industrial Research & Development (ACIRD)—on technology to produce ethanol from various agricultural residues for fuel blending. India’s agricultural sector produces large amounts of bagasse, cane trash, rice and wheat straw the disposal of which is an environmental problem.

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Infiniti offering 3 versions of new QX30 premium crossover next year; all conventional powertrains

Green Car Congress

Infiniti will offer three versions of its all-new QX30 premium active crossover for the United States and Canada next year. The QX30 line for the US and Canada is powered by a 208 hp, 2.0-liter turbocharged 4-cylinder mated to a 7-speed dual clutch automatic transmission, and is scheduled to go on sale in the US and Canada in mid-2016 and in Mexico and Latin America in the second half of 2016.

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Wärtsilä dual-fuel main engines to power 15 barges operating mainly on LNG

Green Car Congress

A series of 15 inland waterway barges being built for Belgium-based Plouvier Transport N.V., and which will be chartered by Shell Trading Rotterdam (Shell), are to be powered by Wärtsilä dual-fuel main engines. The barges will operate primarily on liquefied natural gas (LNG). For each barge, the full Wärtsilä scope of supply comprises a 6-cylinder Wärtsilä 20DF dual-fuel main engine, a gearbox, an LNGPac fuel gas handling system (developed in close cooperation with Cryonorm), and a Wärtsilä prop

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Navigant forecasts global annual natural gas vehicle sales to reach 3.9M in 2025, up 62.5% from 2015

Green Car Congress

In its new Natural Gas Vehicles report, Navigant Research forecasts that global annual NGV sales—light-, medium- and heavy-duty—will grow 62.5% from 2.4 million vehicles in 2015 to 3.9 million in 2025. Navigant forecasts that the number of light-duty NGVs on the world’s roads will double by 2025 to 39.6 million, accounting for 2.6% of all LDVs.

2015 150
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ExxonMobil announces 6th oil discovery offshore Guyana with Ranger-1; Guyana may move from non-producer to regional powerhouse

Oil

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PowerCell receives order for new 25 kW S2 fuel cell stack

Green Car Congress

Fuel cell company PowerCell Sweden AB, a spin-out from Volvo, has received the first order from France from the PowerCell S2 stack platform for a 25 kW stack. The France automotive market is important for PowerCell and we are happy to announce that a first order of our latest fuel cell stack platform has been placed by a company in France. —Andreas Bodén, Director of Marketing and Sales at PowerCell Sweden AB.

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Audi introducing Q2, new Q5 in 2016, confirms electric SUV for 2018; investing more than €3B in 2016

Green Car Congress

Audi management said that the company will continue with its high levels of investment in 2016, with planned capital expenditure to amount to more than €3 billion (US$3.3 billion). Half of the planned investment will take place at the Ingolstadt and Neckarsulm sites in Germany. Audi plans to enter a new market segment with the Audi Q2 model next year, and will also present the the successor of the Audi Q5.

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BMW to showcase AirTouch in Vision Car concept at CES

Green Car Congress

At the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas next week, the BMW Group will present a Vision Car to demonstrate what the interior and the user interface of the future might look like, including AirTouch. This feature empowers intuitive control of entertainment, navigation and communication functions using simple gestures made with a flat hand without actually having to make contact with the surface of the display.

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DINA consortium researches integrated diagnostic system for electromobility; draws up standards for diagnosis and repair

Green Car Congress

A consortium led by the Bosch Group has developed a standardized integrated diagnostic system that in the future will be able to clearly identify and locate defects in the electrical powertrain. The consortium’s project on diagnosis and repairs for electric vehicles—“ DINA ”—was funded with €2.8 million (US$3.1 million) by Germany’s Federal Ministry of Education and Research as part of the leading-edge “Electric Mobility South-West” cluster.

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New family of hydrophobic ionic liquid rocket propellants could replace hydrazine-based fuels

Green Car Congress

Researchers in China have developed a family of hydrophobic borohydride-rich ionic liquids (ILs) which exhibit ultra-short ignition delay times as low as 1.7 milliseconds and the lowest viscosity (10 mPa·s) of hypergolic ionic liquids. The ILs thus show great potential as faster-igniting rocket fuels to replace toxic hydrazine derivatives in liquid bi-propellant systems.

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Report: Suzuki to commercialize fuel cell motorcycle in Japan; on-road testing begins in 2016

Green Car Congress

The Nikkei reports that Suzuki Motor plans to commercialize a hydrogen powered fuel cell motorcycle, with plans to start testing it on public roads in 2016 once Japan’s transport ministry finalizes the relevant safety and environmental standards. Suzuki already has a joint venture with Intelligent Energy Holdings that will produce a Burgman fuel cell scooter. ( Earlier post.

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PNNL team scales up ammonia borane slurry for on-board H2 storage for automotive applications

Green Car Congress

A team at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) is scaling up their work on the use of ammonia borane (AB) slurries optimized with an ultrasonic process for automotive hydrogen storage applications. Ammonia borane is an atttractive material for chemical hydrogen storage (CHS) due to its high hydrogen content of 14–16 wt % below 200 °C. CHS materials release hydrogen at low temperatures but are not easily rehydrided as are metal hydrides, needing instead to use chemical regeneration.

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Study shows branched ketone biofuels derived from alcohols have potential for use in aviation fuel blends

Green Car Congress

Researchers at the University of Bath (UK) have demonstrated that branched ketone biofuels produced from the alkylation of isoamyl alcohol and isobutanol with acetone have the potential to be used as blending agents with Jet A-1 fuel. A paper on their work is published in the ACS journal Energy & Fuels. Although the technology to produce cellulosic ethanol is becoming established, ethanol’s low energy density and high affinity for water have led to the development of higher energy density alocho

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E.ON and Samsung SDI to cooperate in Li-ion stationary energy storage business

Green Car Congress

E.ON SE recently signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Samsung SDI on co-operation in the energy storage business. The co-operation includes the development of profitable energy storage solutions and, to this end, to assess and develop a potential business model for targeting applications for Lithium-Ion batteries in selected regions and markets.

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DOE releases three reports showing strong growth in US fuel cell and hydrogen technologies market

Green Car Congress

The US Department of Energy (DOE) released three new reports today showcasing strong growth across the US fuel cell and hydrogen technologies market. According to these reports, the United States continues to be one of the world’s largest and fastest growing markets for fuel cell and hydrogen technologies. With support from the Energy Department, its national laboratories and private industry have already achieved significant advances in fuel cell and hydrogen technologies, resulting in reduced

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UCLA researchers develop exceptionally strong and lightweight new metal nanocomposite

Green Car Congress

A team led by researchers from the UCLA Henry Samueli School of Engineering and Applied Science has created a super-strong yet light structural metal nanocomposite with extremely high specific strength and modulus, or stiffness-to-weight ratio. The new metal is composed of magnesium infused with a dense and even dispersal of ceramic silicon carbide nanoparticles.

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First facility for producing bioplastics from biodiesel byproduct glycerol

Green Car Congress

Bio-on and S.E.C.I. S.p.A, a part of Gruppo Industriale Maccaferri holding, will build the first facility for the production of PHAs bioplastic from the biodiesel byproduct glycerol. The production site will initially have a capacity of 5,000 tons/year output, expandable to 10,000 tons/year. The €55-million facility will be located at an Eridania Sadam—a holding of Maccaferri—site.

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Bain: Germany’s goal of 1M electric cars by 2020 is unattainable; fewer than 50,000 units on road by end of this year

Green Car Congress

The German Federal Government plan to have one million electric cars on its roads by 2020 has failed, according to the analysis of international management consulting firm Bain & Company. By the end of 2015, there will be a total of about 50,000 electric cars and plug-in hybrids on the roads in Germany (about 75% below plan); nevertheless, structural transformation towards electromobility is continuing, according to the firm.

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DOE to issue MEGA-BIO funding opportunity for drop-in renewable hydrocarbon fuels from biomass with a focus on byproducts

Green Car Congress

The US Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) intends to issue, on behalf of the Bioenergy Technologies Office (BETO), a Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) entitled “MEGA-BIO: Bioproducts to Enable Biofuels” ( DE-FOA-0001434 ). This FOA supports BETO’s goal of meeting its 2022 cost target of $3/gallon gasoline equivalent (gge) for the production of hydrocarbon fuels from lignocellulosic biomass.

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Record number of Ford patent applications in 2015

Green Car Congress

Innovators at Ford submitted nearly 6,000 new inventions for patent consideration in 2015—an increase of 36% from 2014—with many related to autonomous and connected vehicles, wearable devices, eBikes, navigation, ride-sharing platforms and other technologies. These include technologies to help autonomous vehicles detect other vehicles at obstructed intersections, technologies to alleviate range anxiety in electrified vehicles and to extend range in real-world driving.

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Bauhaus Luftfahrt analysis finds solar thermochemical jet fuel production viable only if CO2 captured from renewable sources and not flue gases

Green Car Congress

A team from Bauhaus Luftfahrt in Germany has analyzed the climate impact and economic performance of solar thermochemical jet fuel production. According to their analysis, published in the ACS journal Environmental Science & Technology , favorable assumptions for all involved process steps (30% thermochemical energy conversion efficiency; 3000 kWh/(m 2 a) solar irradiation, low CO 2 and heliostat costs) result in jet fuel production costs of €1.28/L (US$5.30/gallon) at lifecycle (LC) GHG emissio

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Semcon developing autonomous vehicle system in Brazil

Green Car Congress

Semcon and a global automotive partner have signed a new contract for autonomous vehicles. The assignment is mainly based in Brazil as part of Semcon’s global strategy to involve expertise in high-tech development projects from different countries. The new agreement will initially consist of ten specialists from Semcon in Brazil and four in Europe engaged in a joint development project in close cooperation with the customer.

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FuelCell Energy pathway for hydrogen from digester gas has negative carbon intensity for CA LCFS

Green Car Congress

Connecticut-based FuelCell Energy (FCE) has applied for a prospective pathway for California’s Low Carbon Fuel Standard (LCFS) for the production of hydrogen fuel produced from biogas derived from the mesophilic anaerobic digestion of wastewater sludge at a publicly owned treatment works (POTW). The biogas is cleaned, then internally reformed in an integrated hydrogen energy system (Tri-Gen DFC) that produces hydrogen fuel for transportation; electric power for plant operations and export; as we

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Climate XChange raffling off Tesla Model S or X to raise awareness of carbon pricing

Green Car Congress

Climate XChange, a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization based in Massachusetts, is raffling off a Tesla Model S or X valued at $110,450 on 31 December with the intention of raising awareness of carbon pricing in a push for economy-wide carbon pricing in the Commonwealth. The organization will also pay the $36,730 in US taxes on the winner’s behalf, plus extras.

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Navigant: 53.3 GWh of advanced batteries shipped in 2014; >7B cells, $14B in sales

Green Car Congress

According to a new report from Navigant Research, the advanced batteries industry shipped 53.3 GWh of batteries in 2014, representing more than seven billion individual battery cells and more than $14 billion in sales. Between 2013 and 2014, the industry’s growth rate increased 12.8% in terms of energy capacity and 7.1% in terms of revenue. While the consumer electronics segment saw tepid growth in 2014, the vehicle electrification and grid-energy storage sectors experienced significant increase

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