April, 2015

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Volvo Cars announces improved fuel consumption/GHG numbers for XC90 T8 Twin Engine PHEV

Green Car Congress

Volvo Cars reports that its XC90 T8 Twin Engine plug-in hybrid is now rated with fuel consumption of 2.1 l/100 km (112 mpg US) and 49 g CO 2 /km, with 43 km (27 miles) all-electric range on the NEDC cycle for hybrids. In December 2014, the figures were 2.5 l/100 km and 59 g/km. ( Earlier post.). Further tuning of the 7-seat luxury SUV resulted in the drop of 10 g/km from the initial prognosis, bringing fuel consumption down to 2.1 l/100 km while also adding horsepower: now 407 hp (304 kW), up fr

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Photos of progress

DIY Electric Car

'A selection of shots of the progress so far. Attached Thumbnails.

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Third Row Seats And Good Gas Mileage, Electric Cars Defined, Premium Gas On The Rise: Today's Car News

Green Car Reports

Today, we look at vehicles with three rows of seats and good gas mileage, definitions for the different subcategories of electric car, and the implications of more widespread use of premium fuel. All this and more on Green Car Reports. See how the Tesla Model S valet mode can help protect the electric car from potential abuse at the hands of.

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GM investing $5.4B in US plant improvements over next 3 years

Green Car Congress

General Motors will invest $5.4 billion in US plant improvements over the next three years; an initial $783.5 million is headed for three Michigan facilities. $124 million for Pontiac Metal Center; $520 million for tooling and equipment for future new vehicle programs at the Lansing Delta Township assembly plant; $139.5 million for a new body shop and stamping facility upgrades at Pre-Production Operations in Warren.

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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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BRUSA Elektronik AG licenses WiTricity patent portfolio for wireless charging

Green Car Congress

BRUSA Elektronik AG, a leading global supplier of advanced power electronics for electrified vehicles, will license WiTricity’s patented intellectual property to commercialize efficient, high-performance wireless charging systems for carmakers. BRUSA’s “ICS” wireless charging system, utilizing WiTricity’s patented technology, can transfer power to a vehicle safely and at high efficiency, eliminating the need for the charging cables required by existing electrified vehicles.

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HRL Labs video demonstrates principle of thermal battery based on advanced metal hydrides for EV heating and cooling

Green Car Congress

In 2011, the Advanced Research Projects Agency - Energy (ARPA-E) awarded $2.7 million to a team comprising researchers from the University of Utah, HRL Laboratories and GM Global R&D for a project to develop a new generation of high-density thermal battery based on advanced metal hydrides. ( Earlier post.) The goal of the project, part of ARPA-E’s HEATS (High Energy Advanced Thermal Storage) portfolio, was to develop a compact thermal battery for climate control in electric vehicles.

Batteries 207

More Trending

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Cargill acquires OPX Biotechnologies’ fermentation-based processes and systems

Green Car Congress

Cargill has acquired OPX Biotechnologies' proprietary fermentation-based processes and systems. These technologies are used to produce bio-based chemicals from sugars for use in non-food applications such as lubricants, detergents, plastics, agrichemicals and personal care products. Cargill is already a large supplier of carbohydrates and other biotech offerings.

Renewable 183
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Li-ion maker Electrovaya acquires Evonik Litarion and licenses SEPARION IP

Green Car Congress

Canada-based Li-ion developer and manufacturer Electrovaya Inc. has completed the acquisition of Evonik Litarion GmbH and the licensing of the ceramic composite separator SEPARION intellectual property from Evonik. The transaction includes an advanced and automated production plant for lithium-ion electrodes and ceramic composite separators, with a rated capacity of 0.5 Gigawatt hours (GWh) of electrodes and 10 million m 2 of ceramic separators along with all associated intellectual property.

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VIA Motors launches Chicago voucher program for fleet and businesses for extended range EVs

Green Car Congress

VIA Motors announced a voucher program for Chicago-area fleet and business owners that will reduce the initial costs of owning a VIA Motors extended range pickup truck, extended range electric passenger van, or extended range electric cargo van. Incorporating a proprietary power train, the V-DRIVE, into new OEM vehicles, VIA Motors sells units directly to fleets under the VTRUX brand name.

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AVIS Denmark orders 401 Nissan e-NV200 vans and 60 more LEAFs; largest fleet of Nissan EVs in Europe

Green Car Congress

Nissan and AVIS Denmark have signed a deal to create the largest fleet of Nissan electric vehicles anywhere in Europe, with a new order of 401 Nissan e-NV200 vans and a further 60 units of the battery-electric Nissan LEAF, brining its total EV fleet to date to 861 vehicles. In 2014 AVIS ordered 400 Nissan LEAF electric cars and after successfully placing them through its leasing scheme.

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

Brief

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Jaguar bringing XE diesel to US in 2016

Green Car Congress

The Jaguar US lineup will expand in 2016 with the addition of the all new, aluminum-intensive Jaguar XE compact sports sedan in 20d (diesel) and 35t models each in Premium, Prestige and R-Sport trim levels and available in RWD or AWD. The Jaguar XE will be offered with a lighter version of the ZF 8-speed automatic used in the rest of the Jaguar range.

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Enbridge, TransCanada, Kinder Morgan working together to evaluate aerial-based pipeline safety technologies

Green Car Congress

Pipeline companies Enbridge Pipelines Inc., TransCanada Corporation, and Kinder Morgan Canada have signed a Joint Industry Partnership (JIP) agreement to conduct research into aerial-based leak detection technologies, in the interest of enhancing across-the-board pipeline safety. The goal of the project is to identify technologies capable of viably detecting small leaks from liquid petroleum pipeline systems to improve pipeline safety.

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DOE to re-fund Joint Center for Artificial Photosynthesis with $75M for solar fuels R&D

Green Car Congress

The US Department of Energy announced $75 million in funding to renew the Joint Center for Artificial Photosynthesis ( JCAP ), a DOE Energy Innovation Hub originally established in 2010 with the goal of harnessing solar energy for the production of fuel. ( Earlier post.). Under the renewal plan, the five-year-old center would receive funding for an additional five years of research, subject to Congressional appropriations.

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Opinion: Have Natural Gas Prices Bottomed?

Green Car Congress

by Leonard Brecken of Oilprice.com. Last Friday we finally got confirmation of where all the natural gas supply has been coming from as Cabot (COG) reported its earnings. Just like Chesapeake (CHK), they reduced natural gas output, but on a much grander scale. CHK has yet to report and will do so on May 6 th providing even more color on the subject.

Gas 188
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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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Universal LNG Solutions rolling out Class 8 LNG truck fleet for pilot

Green Car Congress

Universal LNG Solutions ( ULNG ) has introduced the first four trucks in a fleet of 95 of liquefied natural gas (LNG) big rigs at the campus of Sancus Energy, an LNG processing technology company. The trucks are Freightliner Cascadia models with Cummins Westport ISX 12G 400hp engines and can haul 80,000 pounds of goods for more than 700 miles (1,127 km) per fill-up.

Universal 183
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U Toronto studies find traffic emissions spread farther than thought; 25% of cars causing 90% of pollution

Green Car Congress

A trio of recently published studies from a team of University of Toronto engineers has found that air pollution could be spreading up to three times farther than thought, contributing to varying levels of air quality across cities. Past research on tailpipe criteria pollutants has shown poor air quality anywhere between 100 to 250 meters of major roadways.

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Audi and partners advancing intelligent laser adaptive headlights; Matrix Laser technology

Green Car Congress

Audi and its partners Bosch, Osram and the Lichttechnischen Institut (LTI; “Lighting Technology Institute”) of the Karlsruhe Institute for Technology (KIT) are working on the project “intelligent laser light for compact and high-resolution adaptive headlights” (iLaS), sponsored by the German Federal Ministry for Education and Research. The Matrix Laser technology and its high resolution will make roadway illumination even more flexible and highly versatile, in all situations.

Audi 183
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Volkswagen Group to tweet bits from its new sustainability report; role of EVs in China

Green Car Congress

The Volkswagen Group will present its annual sustainability report on Twitter for the first time. Snippets on topics of economic, environmental and social sustainability will appear as tweets on twitter.com/vwgroup_en (hashtag #VWCSR). The complete sustainability report for 2014 will be published next Monday, 4 May. The new report will includes essays on strategically relevant topics from Board of Management members.

China 183
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Japan Ministries propose light commercial vehicle fuel economy standards for 2022

Green Car Congress

In a policy update, the International Council on Clean Transportation (ICCT) reports that Japan’s Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism (MLIT) and Ministry of Economy, Trade, and Industry (METI) have finalized new proposed fuel economy standards for light- and medium-duty commercial vehicles with gross vehicle weights less than 3.5 tonnes.

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PATHION develops new LiRAP-based solid-state electrolytes for Li-sulfur and sodium-ion batteries

Green Car Congress

At the Spring 2015 Materials Research Conference in San Francisco earlier this month, PATHION presented two new derivative superionic solid-state electrolytes built upon LiRAP (Lithium-Rich Anti-Perovskite). PATHION has an exclusive worldwide license for LiRAP from Los Alamos National Laboratories. Supported by an ARPA-E grant, LiRAP has proven to be a safe alternative compared to the liquid electrolytes used in most of today’s lithium ion batteries.

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BMW, GM sites in top 5 US generators of onsite green power

Green Car Congress

According to the latest Top 30 list for organizations generating and consuming the most green power on-site within the EPA Green Power Partnership, BMW Manufacturing in Spartanburg, SC and General Motors’ Fort Wayne Assembly Plant rank fourth and fifth, respectively, with both using biogas. BMW. BMW Manufacturing earned a 2003 Green Power Leadership Award for using landfill gas to generate a portion of the power needed to operate its Spartanburg, South Carolina manufacturing facility.

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DOE launches wave energy competition

Green Car Congress

The US Department of Energy (DOE) opened the registration period for the new Wave Energy Prize competition that aims to double the state-of-the-art performance of wave energy conversion (WEC) devices over the next two years. DOE announced the Wave Energy Prize at the International Marine Renewable Energy Conference co-located at the National Hydropower Association Annual Conference.

Energy 183
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Navigant now forecasting slower growth for 48V systems

Green Car Congress

In January 2014, Navigant Research forecast a slow start through the end of this decade but then a quick ramp from 2020 to 2023 for light-duty vehicles with 48V electrical subsystems, with sales reaching nearly 13.5 million worldwide by 2023. ( Earlier post.) In an update, Navigant has significantly pared back its expectations for 48V growth, now forecasting that global annual sales of new cars with any form of 48V system are now not expected to exceed 1 million until after 2020, after which gro

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Audi launches “Audi on demand” pilot mobility program

Green Car Congress

Audi has introduced “Audi on demand”, an innovative mobility program that gives customers a new way to experience the Audi brand and its range of vehicles at the touch of a button. With Audi on demand, customers can reserve an Audi by the day for up to 28 days. The premium service is currently available in San Francisco as part of a beta program and will be rolled out across additional US cities in the coming years.

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Volvo Group invests in Peloton Technology and its platooning technology

Green Car Congress

Volvo Group Venture Capital, a subsidiary of the Volvo Group, has invested in Peloton Technology , a developer of vehicle technologies that deliver safety and fuel savings to fleets in the trucking industry. Peloton’s truck platooning system is an integrated safety, efficiency and analytics platform that builds on advanced safety technologies such as collision mitigation and adaptive cruise control systems.

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Self-propelled catalytic microparticles boost hydrogen release from liquid storage media

Green Car Congress

Researchers at the University of California San Diego (UCSD) have developed catalytically active micromotors that significantly increase the release of hydrogen from liquid storage media. In a paper in the journal Angewandte Chemie , they introduce their new concept with a model vehicle powered by a hydrogen–oxygen fuel cell. The new motion-based H 2 -generation concept relies on the continuous movement of Pt-black/Ti Janus microparticle motors in a solution of sodium borohydride (NaBH 4 ).

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Quantum receives follow-on orders from Linde for retail dispensers to support California’s H2 infrastructure

Green Car Congress

Quantum Fuel Systems Technologies Worldwide has received multiple orders from Linde North America to develop and manufacture additional retail hydrogen fueling dispensers for the further development of hydrogen fueling infrastructure in California. The hydrogen dispensers are targeted to be delivered to and commissioned by Linde North America around the fourth quarter of 2015.

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Heliocentris launches HyDrive Fuel Cell Electric Vehicle Trainer

Green Car Congress

Germany-based Heliocentris has launched HyDrive – Fuel Cell Electric Vehicle Trainer as part of its training systems product family. HyDrive—targeted at academic programs—provides students with a hands-on experiment set to examine the construction, functionality and benefits of fuel cell hybrid electric vehicles. HyDrive. Click to enlarge.

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Phoenix Cars delivers electric flatbed truck with V2G capability to US Navy

Green Car Congress

Phoenix Cars LLC, a developer of electric vehicle technologies for the fleet market, delivered an electric Zero Emissions Utility Shuttle flatbed (ZEUS) to US Naval Base Ventura County Port Hueneme, California. Vehicle To Grid (V2G) charging capability will provide mobile power capability available for future needs. ZEUS. Click to enlarge. The fully sized electric flatbed truck will be used as a service vehicle to transport supplies and equipment for facilities maintenance around Naval Base Port

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Bayer MaterialScience names BioAmber as bio-succinic acid supplier for new bio-based polyurethanes for textiles

Green Car Congress

p> Bayer MaterialScience has chosen BioAmber Inc. ( earlier post ) as the supplier of bio-succinic acid used to produce a new range of innovative, bio-based polyurethanes for textile applications that Bayer MaterialScience has begun commercializing. Bayer MaterialScience has launched IMPRANIL eco, a series of bio-based waterborne polyurethane dispersions with renewable content that reaches as high as 65%.

Renewable 183
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Navigant forecasts connected vehicle revenue to grow to $36.6B by 2025

Green Car Congress

According to a new report from Navigant Research, worldwide revenue from connected vehicle systems is expected to grow from $96.3 million annually in 2016 to $36.6 billion by 2025. Vehicle connectivity for this report includes vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V); vehicle-to-infrastructure (V2I); vehicle-to-pedestrian (V2P); vehicle-to-cyclist (V2C); and other combinations of communicating with vehicles.

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Opinion: Oil Price War May Benefit both US Shale and Saudi Arabia

Green Car Congress

by Michael McDonald on Oilprice.com. Even as financial commentators on CNBC are starting to come around to the idea of a bottom in oil prices, the key question for US oil producers remains one of timing. How long will the oil price slump last? Is this a relatively short term event like 2008, or a longer term slump like the one in the mid 1980’s? After the oil price crash in 1985, it took almost twenty years for prices to revert to previous levels.

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ENGEL to equip Open Hybrid LabFactory with v-duo 3600 for integrated composites research

Green Car Congress

Injection moulding machine manufacturer ENGEL is currently building an ENGEL v-duo 3600 machine for the Open Hybrid LabFactory (OHLF) public/private collaborative research partnership in Wolfsburg, Germany where the machine will support research into functionally integrated composite technologies. (BMW uses ENGEL duo injection moulding machines to manufacture car body shell components for the BMW i3 electric vehicle.

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California ARB partnering to crack down on heavy-duty diesel violations

Green Car Congress

The California Air Resources Board (ARB) has teamed. up with local and federal agencies to increase significantly enforcement of California’s Heavy-Duty Diesel regulations statewide. ARB says that the partnerships leverage its ability to bring vehicles that are operating illegally into compliance and level the playing field for those that have already met requirements.