Sat.Jul 11, 2015 - Fri.Jul 17, 2015

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Audi e-gas plant qualified to participate in balancing market to stabilize grid

Green Car Congress

The Audi e-gas plant in the city of Werlte in Lower Saxony ( earlier post ) produces CO 2 neutral-fuel (synthetic methane from water, renewable electricity and CO 2 ); it now also contributes toward stabilizing the public power grid. After successfully completing a test sequence, the plant is now qualified for participating in the electricity balancing market.

Audi 283
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UPDATED: Tesla Model S Gets New 90-kWh Battery, 'Ludicrous' Performance Mode

Green Car Reports

The Tesla Model S luxury electric sedan will get an upgrade of its highest-capacity battery pack, from 85 to 90 kilowatt-hours, as well as a new optional high-performance mode called "Ludicrous" mode. The news was announced today by Tesla Motors CEO Elon Musk during a press conference (and followed one hour later by an update on the rocketry.

Tesla 131
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Lightning Hybrids’ lightweight composite accumulator for hydraulic hybrid systems

Green Car Congress

Lightning Hybrids, developer and manufacturer of hydraulic hybrid systems for medium- and heavy-duty trucks and buses ( earlier post ), has provided some detail and background on a core component of its system: the hydraulic accumulator, or “mechanical battery”. In the hydraulic hybrid system, hydraulic pumps and the lightweight accumulator store braking energy; upon acceleration the stored energy provides torque to the wheels.

Hybrid 281
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SFU researchers find promise for plug-in vehicles in Canada, but need for increased supply and policy support

Green Car Congress

New work by a team at Simon Fraser University (SFU) in Canada has found that more than one-third of Canadian buyers want a plug-in vehicle (PEV), with the majority of those (89—93%) wanting a plug-in hybrid rather than a pure electric vehicle. However, less than 1% of vehicle sales in Canada are electric because of low consumer awareness and limited vehicle choice.

Canada 273
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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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Frost & Sullivan: carsharing membership to reach 9.8M in 2025; 19.9% CAGR

Green Car Congress

New analysis from Frost & Sullivan finds that carsharing membership will grow from the mere 1.3 million in 2014 to reach 9.8 million in 2025, growing at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 19.9%. Uber ascendant. Travel and expense management company Certify’s Q2 analysis on business expense trends found that Uber, the popular ridesharing service, continues to grow with business travelers, comprising 55% of ground transportation receipts compared with taxi services at 43%.

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Ford’s first mass-produced carbon fiber wheels

Green Car Congress

To source the new lightweight track-capable carbon fiber wheels that are standard on the new Shelby GT350R Mustang, Ford partnered with Australia-based Carbon Revolution. Carbon Revolution first began delivering composite wheels in 2004 for Formula SAE campaigns. The company now is producing its “CR-9” wheel series in limited numbers for Porsche, BMW M3, Audi R8, Lamborghini and McLaren MP4-12C within Europe, Japan and North America.

More Trending

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BMW launches operations at Center of Urban Mobility Competence; boosting electromobility through EV sharing

Green Car Congress

BMW Group has officially launched operations at its Center of Urban Mobility Competence, which it established earlier this year. Its experts are working with cities and the relevant stakeholders to develop sustainable concepts for future mobility in urban areas. BMW established the Competence Center to help bring the goal of creating a sustainable model for urban mobility, reducing traffic volumes and improving the quality of life in cities within reach, through partnerships with cities themselv

BMW 230
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Audi RS 7 piloted driving concept turns in best performance so far at Sonoma Raceway

Green Car Congress

Audi ran the latest generation of its Audi RS 7 piloted driving concept at the Sonoma Raceway in California, surpassing prior performance. The RS 7 took just 2:01.01 minutes to complete the 4,050-meter (2.5 mi) circuit. Audi will be offering piloted driving for the first time in the upcoming generation of the Audi A8; the systems can assume control of the car during parking or in stop-and-go traffic on freeways at speeds up to 60 km/h (37.3 mph).

Audi 230
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Total hydrogen station in Munich first to feature standard compressed H2 and BMW cryo-compressed H2 technology

Green Car Congress

Total has opened a hydrogen filling station on Munich’s Detmoldstraße. The station, which completes the European HyFIVE project’s South Cluster—comprising Stuttgart, Munich, Innsbruck and Bolsano—is the first public filling station at which the two pumps dispense hydrogen using two different types of refueling technology: industry-standard 700 bar CGH 2 hydrogen storage technology ( SAE J2601 ); and cryo-compressed hydrogen storage technology (CCH 2 ).

Hydrogen 228
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Euro Parliament Environment Committee votes for tightened air pollution targets

Green Car Congress

The Environment Committee (ENVI) of the European Parliament tightened up a European Commission proposal and called for more ambitious national caps on emissions of six main pollutants in order to cut emissions by 70% across the EU and save €40 billion (US$44 billion) in air pollution costs by 2030. MEPs also want to include emissions reduction ceilings on mercury, and a midpoint target for most caps of 2025.

Pollution 223
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Faurecia and Accenture partner on products and services for connected and autonomous vehicles

Brief

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Study finds surprisingly high geothermal heating beneath West Antarctic Ice Sheet

Green Car Congress

The amount of heat flowing toward the base of the West Antarctic ice sheet from geothermal sources deep within the Earth is surprisingly high, according to a new study led by UC Santa Cruz researchers. The results, published in an open access paper in Science Advances , provide important data for researchers trying to predict the fate of the ice sheet, which has experienced rapid melting over the past decade.

Water 220
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ELIX Wireless introduces MDC-based 10kW wireless charging solution

Green Car Congress

ELIX Wireless introduced the E10K Wireless Charging System, a wireless charging solution that delivers a full 10kW of wireless power transfer. The E10K Wireless Charging System is based on ELIX Wireless’ patented Magneto-Dynamic Coupling (MDC) technology. MDC, developed at the University of British Columbia, is based on two rotating permanent magnets in transmitter and receiver, rather than resonant inductive technology. ( Earlier post.

Charging 214
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Syntactic foam composite for lightweight yet strong materials; bending strength for automotive applications

Green Car Congress

A team of researchers reports success in pioneering tests of a layered material with a lightweight metal matrix syntactic foam core that holds significant potential for automobiles, trains, ships, and other applications requiring lightweight structural components that retain their strength even when bent or compressed. (Syntactic foams are materials with pre-formed hollow spheres as a main constituent.

Ohio 209
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EU project V-Charge makes final demonstration of automated valet-parking and inductive charging system

Green Car Congress

The V-Charge (Valet Charge) research project, a four-year, €5.63-million (US$6.21-million) effort partly funded through the EU’s Seventh Framework Programme for Research to develop systems for automated valet-parking and inductive charging for electric vehicles, has made the final presentation of its work in a demonstration at the Excellence Parking Garage at Amsterdam airport.

Charging 209
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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 selects 16 research projects for more than $19M in funding to advance Solid Oxide Fuel Cell technology

Green Car Congress

The Department of Energy’s (DOE) National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL) has selected 16 solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) technology research projects for a total of more than $19 million ($19,358,915) in funding. In Fiscal Year (FY) 2015, NETL issued two funding opportunities announcements (FOAs) to support programs that enable the development and deployment of this energy technology.

Fuel 209
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BorgWarner to acquire Remy International

Green Car Congress

BorgWarner has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Remy International, Inc., a global market leading producer of rotating electrical components. With key technologies and operations in ten countries on five different continents, Remy is strongly positioned to benefit from global growth. As of December 31, 2014 the company employed 6,600 people and, for the fiscal year, it generated sales of $1.2 billion.

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City of Santa Monica converting bus fleet to renewable natural gas

Green Car Congress

The City of Santa Monica’s Big Blue Bus (BBB) has become one of the country’s first municipal transit authorities to convert its fleet to renewable natural gas (RNG), rated 90% cleaner than diesel. Earlier this year, BBB modified its original agreement with Clean Energy Fuels Corp to transition the supply of Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) for its fleet to Clean Energy’s Redeem renewable LNG, which is non-fracked methane harvested from organic waste in landfills.

Renewable 207
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Solar Impulse grounded until 2016 due to battery damage; team studying better thermal management

Green Car Congress

Solar Impulse, the solar-powered electric aircraft attempting to fly around the world, will be grounded in Hawaii until early spring 2016 due to damage to the batteries which overheated in the record-breaking oceanic flight from Nagoya to Hawaii. Following this longest and most difficult leg of the round-the-world journey which lasted 5 days and 5 nights (117 hours and 52 minutes), Solar Impulse will undergo maintenance repairs on the batteries due to damages brought about by overheating.

2016 207
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Magna to acquire Getrag for approximately €1.75B

Green Car Congress

Magna International Inc. signed an agreement to acquire the Getrag Group of Companies for approximately €1.75 billion (US$1.9 billion). This represents an enterprise value of approximately €2.45 billion (US$2.7 billion) less proportionate net debt and proportionate pension liabilities, which together are estimated to be approximately €700 million (US$762 million) at closing.

Volvo 203
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Dynapower to supply 250kW energy storage inverters for Tesla Powerpack

Green Car Congress

Dynapower Company will be supplying the 250 kW energy storage inverters as an integral part of Tesla’s recently announced Powerpack Commercial battery systems for large commercial and utility customers. The Dynapower MPS-250 inverter is a UL-listed, field-proven product. Tesla selected the Dynapower system based on the company’s technology, track record, and long-term viability.

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DOE to solicit projects for medium- and heavy-duty vehicle powertrain electrification and fleet demonstrations

Green Car Congress

The US Department of Energy (DOE) intends to issue, on behalf of its Vehicle Technologies Office (VTO), a Funding Opportunity Announcement (DE-FOA-0001349) entitled entitled “Medium and Heavy Duty Vehicle Powertrain Electrification and Dual Fuel Fleet Demonstration.” DOE expects the FOA will include the following Areas of Interest: Area of Interest 1 – Medium and Heavy Duty Vehicle Powertrain Electrification.

Fleet 203
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Volvo Cars buys 100% of Polestar; performance PHEVs

Green Car Congress

Volvo Cars has acquired 100 per cent of Polestar, the Swedish high performance car company, including the Polestar brand. Polestar will now be used as the model name for special high performance Volvos. Polestar will also in future utilize Volvo’s twin engine electrification technology (plug-in hybrid) to develop next-generation performance cars. Volvo and Polestar have been working in motor sport since 1996 and in recent years signed a cooperation agreement jointly to develop Polestar versions

Volvo 203
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Genovation Cars nearing completion of prototype electric Corvette

Green Car Congress

Genovation Cars is nearing the completion of a prototype high-performance all-electric Corvette called the Genovation Extreme Electric (GXE). Assembly of the GXE will be completed by the end of July, followed by a three-week testing phase. The GXE is based on a 2006 Z06 Corvette. The car will produce in excess of 700-hp and 600 lb-ft of torque, said Genovation CEO Andrew Saul. “ We expect the car to achieve 0-60 mph in around three seconds and have a top speed of over 200 mph. ”.

MPH 203
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California customer request portal for Toyota Mirai fuel cell vehicle opens 20 July

Green Car Congress

Beginning 20 July, California custners can request a Toyota fuel cell Mirai by visiting www.toyota.com/mirai. All requests will be made through www.toyota.com/mirai. Eligible customers will ultimately choose one of the eight authorized California dealers for Mirai delivery. After placing a request, potential Mirai drivers will be contacted directly by a Toyota representative to explore the possibility of Mirai ownership.

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Upcoming Mercedes-Benz E-Class driver assistance package to enable semi-automated driving

Green Car Congress

Mercedes-Benz will introduce a new driver assistance package for the E-Class coming next spring which will enable semi-automated driving on freeways, highways and in city traffic; allow the car to be moved into and out of tight parking spaces from outside using a smartphone app; and facilitate autonomous braking to mitigate dangerous situations. Components of the new Driver Assistance Package for the future E-Class include: Intelligent Drive next Level; Active Brake Assist; Evasive Steering Assi

Mercedes 199
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Tesla offers Model S upgrade to 90 kWh pack; “ludicrous speed” option for performance model

Green Car Congress

Tesla is offering an upgrade for its top end Model S 85 and P85D (Performance) models to a 90 kWh pack. The $3,000 upgrade provides an extra 5% range, according to the company. (Base range for the Model S 85 rear wheel drive is 265 miles; base range for the Model S P85D is 253 miles.). In addition, the Model S P85D now has an available $10,000 “Ludicrous Speed” upgrade that reduces the 0-60 mph time from 3.1 seconds in the base P85D model to 2.8 seconds, with a quarter-mile time of 10.9 seconds.

MPH 197
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UMTRI survey finds drivers’ cautious attitude toward autonomous vehicles little changed over past year

Green Car Congress

Researchers at University of Michigan Transportation Research Institute (UMTRI) have found little movement over the past year in motorists’ attitudes toward the prospect of autonomous vehicles. A new survey of 505 licensed drivers in the US found that the most frequent preference (43.8%) for vehicle automation was for no self-driving capability. Partially self-driving vehicles was the second more frequent preference (40.6%), with completely self-driving vehicles being the least-preferred choice

Vehicles 197
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ArcelorMittal, LanzaTech and Primetals to build €87M commercial-scale waste-gas-to-ethanol plant

Green Car Congress

ArcelorMittal, the world’s leading steel and mining company; LanzaTech; and Primetals Technologies, a leading technology and service provider to the iron and steel industry have entered into a letter of intent to construct Europe’s first commercial-scale production facility to create bioethanol from waste gases produced during the steelmaking process. ( Earlier post.).

Waste 197
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New curly MnOx nanomembrane cathode for high-performance Li-O2 battery; improved stability

Green Car Congress

Researchers at the Leibniz Institute for Solid State and Materials Research Dresden (IFW Dresden) have prepared new curly manganese oxide (MnO x ) nanomembranes for use as cathode materials for rechargeable Li-air systems. The Li–O 2 battery using such curly MnO x nanomembranes as the cathode delivers a specific discharge capacity of 4610 mAh g C −1 at a current density of 70 mA g C −1 which is higher than that of carbon black.

Batteries 197
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New zeolites more effective at removal of CO2 from gas mixtures

Green Car Congress

Researchers from South Korea, the UK and Sweden have identified and prepared a new family of zeolites—crystalline aluminosilicates with frameworks that contain windows and cavities the size of small molecules—that can separate out carbon dioxide more effectively from fuel gases than those previously known. A paper on their work is published in Nature.

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New non-metallic molecular catalyst system approaches efficiency of platinum in fuel cell oxygen reduction reaction

Green Car Congress

A team of chemists from the University of Wisconsin-Madison has demonstrated a new molecular (i.e., non-metallic) catalyst system for the fuel cell oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) that approaches the efficiency of platinum. Although molecular catalysts have been explored before, earlier examples were much less efficient than the traditional platinum catalyst.

Fuel 188
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DuPont licenses cellulosic ethanol technology to NTL; beginning development of largest cellulosic ethanol plant in China

Green Car Congress

DuPont and Jilin Province New Tianlong Industry Co., Ltd., ( NTL ) announced a licensing agreement to begin the development of China’s largest cellulosic ethanol manufacturing plant, located in Siping City, Jilin Province, China. The agreement allows NTL to license DuPont’s cellulosic ethanol technology and use DuPont Accellerase enzymes to produce renewable biofuel from the leftover biomass on Jilin Province’s corn farms.

China 188
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Kettering University researchers working on more efficient Level 2 charger for HELLA

Green Car Congress

Researchers in Kettering University’s Advanced Power Electronics Lab (APEL) are working with HELLA on a more efficient Level-2 EV charger. Presently, level-2 EV chargers on the market have a three-stage design—converting AC grid voltage to 400 VDC; inverting this DC to high frequency AC to feed the transformer; and then rectifying AC to DC again to charge the battery.

Universal 188
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Hyundai Heavy Industries and Accenture to design connected smart ships

Green Car Congress

Hyundai Heavy Industries and Accenture are collaborating to design a ‘connected smart ship’ that will enable ship owners to better manage their fleets and achieve potential operational savings through the application of digital technologies. Using a network of sensors that will be built into new vessels, ship owners will be able to capture a range of ship voyage information including location, weather, and ocean current data, as well as on-board equipment and cargo status data.

Connect 188