Sat.Jun 27, 2015 - Fri.Jul 03, 2015

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Opinion: Why Buffett Bet A Billion On Solar: Miles Per Acre Per Year

Green Car Congress

by Henry Hewitt for Oilprice.com. During the late innings of the ICE-age (as in the Internal Combustion Engine age) it has become clear that feeding gasoline and diesel to the next billion new cars is not going to be easy, or cheap. In China alone, 500 million new vehicles can be expected to jam the roads between now and 2030. That may sound far-fetched, but considering annual sales have already made it to 25 million units per year (vs. around 17 million in the US—China became the top mark

Miles 295
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Tesla Battery Gigafactory 'Slightly Ahead Of Schedule': State Officials

Green Car Reports

Tesla is currently juggling several major projects, leading to speculation about when each will be completed. It plans to launch its much-delayed Model X electric SUV later this year, and unveil a concept version of the Model 3 sedan next year. But the Model 3's timeliness is largely dependent on another Tesla project--the company's massive.

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Electric cars win the day at Pikes Peak taking 1st and 2nd place overall

National Green Transportation

Rhys Millen and Nobuhiro "Monster" Tajima, both driving electric cars in the 93rd running of the Pikes Peak Hillclimb race, on Sunday, took 1st and 2nd place in the overall ranking with preliminary times of 9:07.

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Successful run across the US on 37.6 gallons of 100% NEXBTL renewable diesel; 66.7 mpg w/ average speed 67.7 mph

Green Car Congress

On 26 June, CLP Motorsports’ Superlite Coupe crossed the finish line in Santa Monica, California, after driving across the USA on one tank of NEXBTL renewable diesel ( earlier post )—the first time that this type of trip was driven using a fuel that is made exclusively from bio-based raw materials. The 2,507-mile (4,035 km) journey, which began in Jacksonville, Florida, and finished successfully in Santa Monica, California, took a total driving time of 37 hours 2 minutes (thus average spee

Renewable 237
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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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UK AA president says millions of second cars could be electric

Green Car Congress

At last week’s Low Carbon Vehicle Partnership conference in the UK—prior to the Battersea Formula E Grand Prix run over the weekend—Edmund King, the UK AA’s (Automobile Association) president argued that millions of second cars in households could relatively easily be electric vehicles. According to King, 74% of AA members park their cars overnight off the road and on their own land (58% on the driveway, 16% in the garage) where, potentially, they could be charged overnight. 50% of 1

Cars 235
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Study: even with high LDV electrification, low-carbon biofuels will be necessary to meet 80% GHG reduction target; “daunting” policy implications

Green Car Congress

A study by researchers from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and a Michigan State University colleague has concluded that even with a relatively high rate of electrification of the US light-duty fleet (40% of vehicle miles traveled and 26% by fuel), an 80% reduction in greenhouse gases by 2050 relative to 1990 can only be achieved with significant quantities of low-carbon liquid fuel.

Carbon 232

More Trending

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Electric bus maker Proterra completes $55M strategic financing

Green Car Congress

Battery-eletcric bus manufacturer Proterra has completed a $55M strategic financing. This signals a new growth phase for the company, as Proterra scales production to meet growing demand and accelerates cash realization. Proterra closed a $30-million Series 4 equity round led by $19 million from several new strategic investors. The existing major investors in Proterra added $11 million of equity.

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Mercedes-Benz sets Pikes Peak diesel record with near-production C 300 d

Green Car Congress

Mercedes-Benz has set a new record for the diesels in the Pikes Peak hill-climb race with a near-production C 300 d 4MATIC. Test driver Uwe Nittel completed the 19.99 km (12.4-mile) route—which includes 156 bends with a change in altitude of 1439 meters (4,721 feet)—in just 11.37 minutes. The 150 kW (204 hp) C 300 d 4MATIC (in Europe known as 250 d) fitted with a 7G-TRONIC PLUS automatic transmission competed in the hill-climb race in largely series-production configuration.

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Volkswagen Group receives 2015 KS Energy and Environment Prize for the Golf GTE and Audi A3 e-tron PHEVs

Green Car Congress

The German automobile club Kraftfahrer Schutz e.V. (KS) awarded the 2015 Energy and Environment Prize to the Volkswagen Group for the plug-in hybrids Golf GTE ( earlier post ) and Audi A3 e-tron ( earlier post). Accepting the award in Munich was Hanno Jelden, Head of Powertrain Electronics at Volkswagen. The organization Kraftfahrerschutz e.V., which was founded in 1935, is one of the larger German automobile clubs with around 520,000 members.

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BMW Group and NTU Singapore launch US$965K electromobility research program; Electromobility in Asia and Smart Materials

Green Car Congress

BMW Group and Nanyang Technological University (NTU Singapore) launched a new electromobility research program, involving the all-electric BMW i3 and plug-in hybrid sports car BMW i8. This new research program will be conducted at the Future Mobility Research Lab located on the NTU campus, which is the BMW Group’s first joint lab in Southeast Asia. Both parties will be injecting a combined S$1.3 million (US$965,000) to drive the new research projects, on top of the initial S$5.5 million (US$4.1

Singapore 220
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Faurecia and Accenture partner on products and services for connected and autonomous vehicles

Brief

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Mercedes-Benz increases engine range for refreshed A Class compact

Green Car Congress

Mercedes-Benz increases engine range for refreshed A Class compact. With the refresh of its A-Class, Mercedes-Benz has increased the range of available engines. The A 160 with 75 kW (102 hp) is the new entry-level model. The new efficiency champion is the 80 kW (109 hp) A 180 d BlueEFFICIENCY Edition with an NEDC fuel consumption of 3.5 l/100 km (67 mpg US) and CO 2 emissions of 89 g/km.

Mercedes 218
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New Samsung silicon anode with graphene boosts volumetric capacity of LiCoO2 Li-ion cell 1.5x after 200 cycles; gravimetric capacity the same

Green Car Congress

A team at Samsung Advanced Institue of Technology ( SAIT , Samsung’s global R&D hub) reports in an open access paper published in the journal Nature Communications on a new approach to advance high-capacity silicon (Si) anodes for Li-ion batteries (LIBs) to commercial viability, with a particular focus on improving the volumetric capacity of LIBs. The SAIT team fabricated the anode material by growing graphene directly on a silicon surfaces while avoiding Si carbide (SiC) formation by developing

Li-ion 218
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Energiepark Mainz comes online; hydrogen from wind power; Siemens 6MW electrolysis system

Green Car Congress

After a year in construction, Energiepark Mainz, a collaboration between Stadtwerke Mainz, Linde, Siemens and the RheinMain University of Applied Sciences, was inaugurated in Mainz. ( Earlier post.) The energy park will produce hydrogen using electricity from neighboring wind parks. Around €17 million has been channelled into the project, which is also being funded by Germany’s Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy within the framework of its “Förderinitiative Energiespeicher” (Energy

Wind 216
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Audi launches next-gen A4 with new Millerized TFSI engine; g-tron model w/ Audi e-gas

Green Car Congress

Audi has unveiled the new-generation Audi A4 and A4 Avant, developed with a high priority on the reduction of CO 2 emissions. Among other developments, the new A4 is the launch vehicle for the new high-efficiency 2.0L TFSI based on Miller cycle, introduced by Audi earlier this year at the Vienna Motor Symposium. ( Earlier post.) The A4 Sedan and the A4 Avant will be launched in the market this fall.

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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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DOE to award $20M to projects to recover rare earth elements from coal and coal byproducts

Green Car Congress

The US Department of Energy (DOE) has issued a funding opportunity ( DE-FOA-0001202 ) that will award an estimated $20 million to projects quickly to develop bench scale and pilot scale projects for recovering Rare Earth Elements (REE)—a set of seventeen chemical elements in the periodic table and key components of electronics and renewable energy technologies—from coal and coal byproducts.

Coal 214
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Japan researchers propose trilithium niobate as high-energy cathode for Li-ion batteries

Green Car Congress

A team of researchers in Japan, including colleagues from the R&D Center at batter-maker GS Yuasa, are exploring Li 3 NbO 4 -based (trilithium niobate) materials as new and promising electrode materials for high-energy rechargeable lithium batteries. A paper on their work is published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS). Herein, as a compound with further excess lithium contents, a cation-ordered rocksalt phase with lithium and pentavalent niobium ions, Li 3 NbO 4 , is firs

Li-ion 209
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TransAlta to use Tesla stationary batteries in Alberta’s first large-scale commercial energy storage project

Green Car Congress

TransAlta Corporation has been awarded $250,000 from Alberta Innovates - Energy & Environment Solutions (AI-EES) to help launch Alberta’s first large-scale commercial energy storage project. TransAlta will use commercial-scale lithium-ion batteries to reduce energy costs for the customer; 5 commercial-scale Tesla Powerpack batteries will be installed, each about the size of a household fridge, in a medium-sized building, such as a large grocery store, apartment block, post-secondary institution

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New Sumitomo SiC power transistor

Green Car Congress

Sumitomo Electric has developed a new silicon carbide (SiC) power transistor which achieves low on-state resistance, high stability and other excellent performance characteristics that are suited for for electric vehicles (EV)/hybrid electric vehicles (HEV), solar power conditioners and other applications. With the increasing need for energy efficiency, reducing power conversion loss is strongly required of power semiconductors.

Power 207
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California ARB approves first commercially ready at-berth ship emissions capturing system; alternative to shore power

Green Car Congress

Clean Air Engineering-Maritime (CAEM) received California Air Resources Board (ARB) approval for the first commercially ready ship emissions capturing system called the Maritime Emissions Treatment System (METS). The METS-1 is CAEM’s first-generation system. It is mounted and deployed from a barge that is positioned alongside ships berthed at the Port of Los Angeles.

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Wireless charging company Evatran gains $1.6M strategic investment from China Tier 1 supplier

Green Car Congress

Evatran Group, Inc. has completed a strategic investment from Zhejiang VIE Science and Technology Company (VIE), a manufacturer of automotive parts based in Zhejiang Province, China. The initial investment of $1.6 million is the first phase of a planned further partnership with Evatran to introduce wireless electric vehicle (EV) charging product to China.

China 203
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National Electric Vehicle Sweden celebrates ground breaking for production and R&D in China

Green Car Congress

National Electric Vehicle Sweden (NEVS) held its project launching ceremony for the production and research & development joint ventures in Tianjin Binhai Hi-tech zone on 28th June, marking the start of NEVS’ strategic setup in China. NEVS’ Tianjin factory will be focused on new energy vehicles with an annual capacity of 200,000 units. NEVS will thus have two global production units, with the Trollhättan factory to support the Tianjin factory with manufacturing planning, workers training and pro

Sweden 203
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Amyris and Total agree to restructure renewable jet fuel joint venture; Total to own 75%

Green Car Congress

Amyris, Inc. and Total Energies Nouvelles Activités USA (a wholly owned subsidiary of Total S.A.) have agreed on the restructuring of their fuels joint venture to open the way for proceeding with commercialization of Amyris jet fuel technology over the coming years. Following the restructuring, Total would own 75% of the joint venture with Amyris, up from the current 50%. ( Earlier post.).

Renewable 197
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The Automotive Research Center at the University of Michigan’s Annual Program Review: The Driving Force Behind Autonomous Vehicles

Green Car Congress

by James Garay, ARC. “ In the fall of 1994, the U.S. Army Tank Automotive Command (TACOM) awarded MEAM [Mechanical Engineering and Applied Mechanics] a three-year, $7.5-million research grant to establish an Automotive Research Center (ARC) at the U-M. ” 1. Twenty-one years later, the ARC, which operates as a consortium of six universities [ 2 ] collaborating with partners from both industrial and government sectors, gathered once again on the University of Michigan’s North Campus for its 21 st

Universal 197
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Fuel cells: Ballard Power Systems buying Protonex for $30M

Green Car Congress

Ballard Power Systems signed a definitive agreement to acquire Protonex Technology Corporation, a designer and manufacturer of advanced power management products and portable fuel cell solutions, in a transaction valued at $30 million. Ballard is assuming and paying Protonex’s debt obligations at closing, currently estimated at approximately $4.4 million, and paying the balance of approximately $25.6 million through the issuance of 11.2 million Ballard shares.

Power 197
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Evident launches skutterudite thermoelectric product

Green Car Congress

Evident Thermoelectrics has launched the first commercial thermoelectric product using skutterudite material technology: the Evident Skutterudite Test Kit. This thermoelectric material, which was originally developed by NASA to power deep space probes, operates in the mid- to high-temperature range—suited for, among other applications, automotive.

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Volkswagen announces successful completion of 2-year drop-in renewable diesel evaluation with Solazyme and Amyris

Green Car Congress

Volkswagen of America announced the successful completion of its Renewable Diesel Evaluation Program in collaboration with Solazyme and Amyris. ( Earlier post.) Beginning in 2012, Volkswagen measured the environmental impacts from the use of pre-commercial renewable diesel formulas with TDI Clean Diesel technology found in the 2012 Passat TDI (which uses a NO x storage system) and 2012 Jetta TDI (SCR system).

Renewable 197
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Toyota’s THUMS 5 software can model occupant posture immediately before collisions

Green Car Congress

Studies show that roughly half of drivers take defensive action (such as sudden braking or steering) to avoid collisions, with vehicle occupants commonly bracing themselves at the same time. Occupant posture—whether braced or relaxed—has a significant effect on body movement during a collision. However, current human surrogate models used in virtual crash simulations are unable to simulate the reflexive defensive actions that humans take in the moments before an imminent collision, s

2004 197
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BMW shows future drive technoliges; 2 Series PHEV prototype, direct water injection in 3-cyl. engine, and fuel cell eDrive

Green Car Congress

During a driving event at the Miramas proving grounds in southern France, BMW presented future drive technologies, including the prototype of a BMW 2 Series Active Tourer with plug-in hybrid drive. This application of BMW eDrive technologies features the first PHEV system with a front/transverse-mounted. combustion engine, high-voltage generator and road-linked all-wheel drive via an electric drive system at the rear axle.

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Daimler running 6 different electrified models in Silvretta E-Car Rally; hints at Li-sulfur

Green Car Congress

Daimler is running 6 different electrified models (7 vehicles in total) in this year’s Silvretta E-Car Rally (2 to 5 July); for the first time in this competition, the current Mercedes-Benz plug-in triad will compete against each other. Mercedes-Benz is currently placing a very strong focus on its plug-in hybrid initiative: by 2017 there will be ten models in the market—requiring a new product launch every four months on average. ( Earlier post.

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Mercedes-Benz introduces next-gen OM 471 heavy-duty engine; more fuel efficient, more torque with fast build-up at very low revs

Green Car Congress

Mercedes-Benz Trucks has introduced the latest generation of its OM 471 six-cylinder, in-line heavy-duty diesel engine. The latest generation reduces fuel consumption by up to 3% while increasing torque; the new series is also spearheaded by a unit offering new top performance figures of 390 kW (530 hp) and 2600 N·m (1,918 lb-ft) of torque. Assuming an annual mileage of 130,000 km (80,778 miles) in long-distance transport and a consumption of approx. 28.5 liters/100 km (8.25 mpg US) on a

Mercedes 188
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Rolls-Royce to lead €6.6M autonomous ship research project

Green Car Congress

Rolls-Royce will lead a new €6.6-million (US$7.3-million) project that could pave the way for autonomous ships. The Advanced Autonomous Waterborne Applications Initiative will produce the specification and preliminary designs for the next generation of advanced ship solutions. The project is funded by Tekes (Finnish Funding Agency for Technology and Innovation) and will bring together universities, ship designers, equipment manufacturers, and classification societies to explore the economic, soc

Legal 188
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CNOOC takes delivery of Asia’s first LNG tug

Green Car Congress

China National Offshore Oil Corporation (CNOOC) has taken delivery of Asia’s first tugboat Hai Yang Shi You 525 , designed to operate solely on liquefied natural gas (LNG) as ship’s fuel. Hai Yang Shi You 525 , the first of two tugs built by the Zhenjiang shipyard for CNOOC, features a propulsion package based on twin Rolls-Royce Bergen C26:33L9PG engines and a pair of Rolls-Royce US 205 CP azimuth thrusters to ensure the tugs have rapid maneuvering and strong bollard pull capabilities.

Chinese 188
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Tesla reports worldwide Q2 deliveries of 11,507 Model S; up 52% y-o-y

Green Car Congress

Tesla Motors announced 11,507 Model S deliveries worldwide for Q2 2015. This was a new company record for the most cars delivered in a quarter and represents an approximate 52% increase over Q2 last year. The company noted that there may be small changes to this delivery count (usually well under 1%), as Tesla only counts a delivery if it is transferred to the end customer and all paperwork is correct.

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Duke Energy upgrading Notrees 36 MW grid storage system with Samsung SDI Li-ion batteries

Green Car Congress

Duke Energy, Samsung SDI and Younicos are partnering to update Duke Energy’s 36-megawatt (MW) energy storage and power management system at the company’s Notrees Windpower Project in west Texas. The system, one of the US’ largest, has been operating since 2012 with lead acid batteries. Over the course of 2016, these batteries will be gradually replaced with lithium-ion technology.

Grid 188