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'Capacity vs. cycle number. Source: Power Japan Plus. Click to enlarge. Start-up Power Japan Plus announced plans to commercialize a dual-carbon battery technology, which it calls the Ryden dual carbon battery. Power Japan Plus says that its battery currently offers energy density comparable to a lithium-ion battery, but with a much more rapid rate of charge and the ability for full discharge over a much longer functional lifetime with improved safety and cradle-to-cradle sustainability.
'Joe Galliani in Keep Hermosa Hermosa hat receiving his 2014 Environmental Hero Award from the City of Manhattan Beach and V.O.I.C.E. with Sona Kalapura, Manhattan Beach Mayor Amy Howorth, State Assemblyman Al Muratsuchi, Kaye Gagnon of V.O.I.C.E and Councilman Wayne Powell. To those of you who know me best and have been reading Creative Greenius since we started publishing in October 2007 it seems pretty silly that any candidate for elected office would seek my endorsement or think that it woul
'Earlier this month, we asked whether solar roads could generate enough energy to serve some of the nation''s power needs. With tens of thousands of miles of solar-power generating roads, parking lots, sidewalks and other open spaces--without needing to clear space in untouched, natural areas--it seems like an ideal, if expensive solution. It''s one.
'Caterpillar engineers have been exploring a novel 6-stroke compression ignition engine cycle in search of a low-emission system that retains fuel efficiency. In a paper presented at the SAE 2014 World Congress, they reported on their investigations of the 6-stroke cycle for near-stoichiometric and lean operation. The primary difference between the conventional 4-stroke and Caterpillar 6-stroke cycle is the addition of a second compression and combustion stroke immediately following the primary
'A study by European researchers has found that two-stroke (2S) scooters, although constituting a small fraction of the fleet, can dominate urban vehicular pollution through organic aerosol and aromatic emission factors up to thousands of times higher than from other vehicle classes. The study by the team led by researchers from the Laboratory of Atmospheric Chemistry, Paul Scherrer Institute, Switzerland, appears in the journal Nature Communications.
'Section of the MkII Clarke-Brayton split-cycle engine. Note the three different cylinder sizes. Air moves sequentially from induction (top cylinder) to combustion (middle cylinder) to expansion (bottom cylinder). Click to enlarge. Motiv Engines, LLC introduced the second-generation of its engine concept dubbed the MkII Clarke-Brayton Engine, which it intends to develop into a heavy-duty on-highway engine fueled by liquid natural gas (LNG).
'BYD Company Ltd. has received a record-setting order for their new energy vehicles from the City of Hangzhou, which is situated in east China along the Qiantang River. The order for 2,000 long-range, battery-electric transit buses and 1,000 long-range, pure-electric cars was signed this week by the Mayor of Hangzhou, Hongming Zhang, and is one of the world’s largest all-electric fleets yet ordered.
'BYD Company Ltd. has received a record-setting order for their new energy vehicles from the City of Hangzhou, which is situated in east China along the Qiantang River. The order for 2,000 long-range, battery-electric transit buses and 1,000 long-range, pure-electric cars was signed this week by the Mayor of Hangzhou, Hongming Zhang, and is one of the world’s largest all-electric fleets yet ordered.
'A production line for carbon fiber takes the PAN precursor through two stages (stabilization/oxidation and carbonization) and then to winding. Source: SGLACF. Click to enlarge. Due to the high demand for carbon fiber in automotive production, SGL Automotive Carbon Fibers , a joint venture between the BMW Group and the SGL Group, will triple the capacity of the carbon fiber plant in Moses Lake, Washington.
'The international media launch of the BMW i8 in Los Angeles will include the presentation of a solar carport concept developed by BMW Group DesignworksUSA for the use of renewable energy. It combines high-grade technology for generating electricity from solar power with an innovative design that complements the BMW i models. BMW solar carport with i3.
'The first of Hyundai’s Tucson Fuel Cell CUVs arrived in Southern California; first retail sales are expected in the next few weeks. Under the Hyundai leasing program, approved lessees can drive Hyundai’s next-generation Tucson Fuel Cell for $499 per month, including unlimited free hydrogen refueling and “At Your Service” valet maintenance at no extra cost.
'A new project launched by the US Department of Energy (DOE) and led by Sandia National Laboratories and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) will work in support of H 2 USA, the public private partnership introduced in 2013 by the Energy Department and industry stakeholders to address the challenge of hydrogen infrastructure. ( Earlier post.).
'DELIVER. Click to enlarge. Liberty Electric Cars, the European subsidiary of Green Automotive Company, has completed the build of the first fully functioning example of “DELIVER”—an electric light commercial delivery vehicle funded by the European Commissions’ 7 th Framework Programme. DELIVER will have its world premiere at FISITA World Automotive Congress, which starts on 2 June 2014 in Maastricht (NL).
'The Michelin Group has taken a significant minority stake in French fuel cell company Symbio FCell as part of the company’s second round of funding. Michelin joins existing shareholders including the founders, managers and several investment funds: IPSA and CEA Investments (through the CEA strategic fund and its ATI seed-stage fund). Symbio FCell is the provider of a fuel cell range extender for the Renault Kangoo ZE commercial electrical utility vehicle.
'Overview of the three vehicle classes identified in the study, and their corresponding battery technologies. Click to enlarge. There would be a significant impact on the overall performance and cost of vehicles, plus an effect on targets for fuel efficiency and reduced CO 2 emissions, if established battery applications were to be replaced with alternative technologies, according to a new study published by associations representing the European, Japanese and Korean automotive industry (ACEA, J
'Schematic cell configurations for the four types of Li?air batteries. Credit ACS, Lu et al. Click to enlarge. A new review of Li-air battery technology by a team from Argonne National Laboratory, Beijing Institue of Technology and Hanyang University focuses on the most critical issues that must be addressed for the successful development and commercialization of high energy density Li-air batteries.
'Click to enlarge. In its sixth sales-weighted analysis of emissions from 8 major automakers’ 2013 model year vehicles, the Union of Concerned Scientists’ (UCS) latest Automaker Rankings report found that Hyundai-Kia unseated Honda as the “Greenest Automaker.” Honda came in second, with Toyota, Nissan, and Volkswagen in a three-way tie for third place.
'BMW delivered the first all-electric BMW i3 (earlier post) in the US to Boston electric vehicle advocate and Tufts University professor of practice Charles Rabie at the BMW of Boston dealership. The company said that “hundreds” of BMW i3 vehicles are currently at US facilities and ready to be delivered to customers nationwide. The BMW i3 is the first of the BMW i vehicles constructed from the ground up primarily of carbon fiber to enter the US market.
'Toyota intends to leverage the benefits of high frequency and high efficiency of SiC power semiconductors to enable PCU downsizing of 80%. Click to enlarge. Toyota Motor Corporation, in collaboration with Denso Corporation (Denso) and Toyota Central R&D Labs., Inc. (Toyota CRDL), has developed a silicon carbide (SiC) power semiconductor for use in automotive power control units (PCUs).
'Fiat Chrysler Automobiles’ (FCA) Chrysler Brand will launch two plug-in hybrid vehicles (PHEV) over the next several years, said Al Gardner, President and CEO of the Chrysler Brand, during the FCA Investor Day presentations at Auburn Hills, Mi. One will be a PHEV version of the new Chrysler Town & Country minivan to be introduced in 2016; the second will be a PHEV version of a new full-size crossover vehicle to be introduced in 2017.
'Researchers from the Samsung Advanced Institute of Technology report enhancing the energy density of manganese oxide (Na x MnO 2 ) cathode materials for sodium rechargeable batteries by incorporating aluminum. A paper describing their discovery is published in the journal ChemSusChem. Han et al. Click to enlarge. Although there is growing interest in Na-ion batteries (NIBs) as an alternative to Li-ion batteries (LIBs), NIB overall electrochemical performance remains inferior to Li chemistry. (
'Pinnacle Engines, developer of a highly efficient 4-stroke, spark-ignited (SI), opposed-piston, sleeve-valve architecture engine ( earlier post ), has appointed five industry leaders to its newly formed Asian Business Advisory Board. Pinnacle Engines also announced closure of its Series C financing, bringing total investment in the company to more than $30 million.
'While overall Volkswagen of America, Inc. sales in April were down 8.4% to 30,831 units year-on-year, the company reported that TDI diesels represented 30.6% of its sales in April, marking the best April for TDI vehicles on record and also the best year-to date results. The Chattanooga-built Passat totaled 9,315 units delivered for the month. In April the Passat TDI delivered 3,923 clean diesels or 42.1% of total Passat sales.
'The Bultaco Rapitán. Click to enlarge. A start-up is bringing the old Bultaco motorcycle brand back to the market with the planned launch of a line of electric two-wheelers. The new company unveiled the Rapitán and Rapitán Sport prototypes—close approximations to the Bultaco motorcycles that will be brought to market later in 2014. The Rapitán & Rapitán Sport will be powered by a 40 kW air-cooled brushless induction motor delivering 125 N·m (92 lb-ft) of torque, and a Li-ion batter
'Schematic of the “New Grid Testbed” components, including renewable energy generation, energy storage, smart distribution and electric transportation Click to enlarge. The University of California, Riverside is opening its Sustainable Integrated Grid Initiative to research the integration of: intermittent renewable energy, such as photovoltaic solar panels; energy storage, such as batteries; and all types of electric and hybrid electric vehicles.
'The C evolution. Click to enlarge. BMW Motorrad is launching its battery-electric C evolution maxi scooter. ( Earlier post.) Its two conventionally powered maxi scooter model—C 600 Sport and C 650 GT—combine the ride qualities of a motorcycle with the specific agility and comfort of a scooter; the C evolution adds the dynamism and emissions-free operation of an electric vehicle.
'Among the features of the coming eighth-generation Passat is a lighter weight design and a new 2.0L bi-turbo diesel. A plug-in hybrid drivetrain will be on offer, also, making Passat Volkswagen’s third model with a PHEV option. Click to enlarge. Volkswagen has revealed the first technical details of the all-new Passat sedan and wagon—including the plug-in hybrid drive option—ahead of the cars’ unveiling in July, their public premiere at the Paris Motor Show in October, and their arr
'The Energy Department announced up to $2 million to develop the domestic supply chain for hydrogen and fuel cell technologies and to study the competitiveness of US hydrogen and fuel cell system and component manufacturing. ( DE-FOA-0000854 ) ( Earlier post.). This funding will support projects that focus on scaling-up the production of today’s hydrogen and fuel cell components and systems to commercial scale.
'Microstructure of RGM electrode. (a) Schematic illustration of the preparation process of RGM nanostructure foam. SEM images of (b–c) as-grown GM foam (d) Lightly loaded RGM, and (e) heavily loaded RGM. Source: UCR. Click to enlarge. Researchers at the University of California, Riverside have developed a novel nanometer scale ruthenium oxide (RuO 2 ) anchored graphene and CNT foam architecture (RGM) for high-performance supercapacitor electrodes.
'Researchers from Forschungszentrum Jülich and the FH Aachen University of Applied Sciences (Jülich Campus) are building and testing a light transport electric vehicle using a direct methanol fuel cell (DMFC) as a range extender. The team presented the SILENT-F vehicle for the first time on the Forschungszentrum campus earlier this month. By the end of the project, which began in 2013, a demonstration vehicle equipped with a DMFC hybrid system will be ready for application-oriented tests.
'Toyota Motor Corporation, Nissan Motor Co., Ltd., Honda Motor Co., Ltd., and Mitsubishi Motors Corporation have jointly established a new company, Nippon Charge Service, LLC, to promote the installation of chargers for plug-in electric vehicles (PHVs, PHEVs, EVs). The goal is to help build a charging network that offers more convenience to drivers in Japan.
'Researchers at Nanyang Technological University (NTU) in Singapore, Tsinghua University in China, and Case Western Reserve University have developed a flexible micro-scale supercapacitor with what they believe is the highest reported volumetric energy density for carbon-based microscale supercapacitors to date: 6.3 µWh per cubic millimeter. The hierarchically structured carbon microfiber made of an interconnected network of aligned single-walled carbon nanotubes with interposed nitrogen-d
'The IBM-led researchers show that the formation of a trifunctional cross-link point through reaction of a diamine and paraformaldehyde leads to a thermally stable and mechanically ductile thermoset. Low pH triggers the reversal of the thermoset architecture to the corresponding monomers. Credit: K. Zhang/Virginia Tech. Click to enlarge. Using a novel computational chemistry hybrid approach, scientists from IBM Research have successfully discovered a new class of polymer materials—the firs
'The Volkswagen Group continues to make progress on the way to its goal of becoming the world’s most sustainable automaker, according to its 2014 sustainability report. The report provides information on the progress achieved in economic, environmental and social sustainability in 2013, and was drawn up in accordance with the G3 Guidelines of the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI).
'During the first quarter of 2014, Tesla Motors produced a record 7,535 Model S vehicles for global delivery; the company also delivered 6,457 cars worldwide—slightly exceeding guidance—while also filling the pipeline of deliveries into Europe and Asia. North American net orders grew sequentially by more than 10% in the quarter. Tesla delivered 1,181 cars with a resale value guarantee (RVG) in Q1.
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