Green Car Congress

NOVEMBER 19, 2014

'LiquidPiston X1 engine features three separate combustion chambers creating 3 power strokes per revolution for high power density. Source: LPI. Click to enlarge. LiquidPiston, Inc. (LPI) the developer of engines based on its High Efficiency Hybrid Cycle (HEHC) ( earlier post ), has unveiled the alpha prototype of the X Mini—a power-dense, low-vibration, quiet, 70cc spark-ignited, non-Wankel rotary embodiment of the HEHC.

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Gasoline Engine Power Powered 379

Green Car Reports

NOVEMBER 21, 2014

'The Audi R8 e-tron electric sports car has been cancelled and revived numerous times, but now it appears that not only will the e-tron enter production, it will also be the stepping stone to a more mainstream electric car. At this week''s 2014 Los Angeles Auto Show, Audi officials indicated that the carmaker is planning an all-electric family car.

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Audi Los Angeles Electric Cars 2017 167

Green Cars News

NOVEMBER 17, 2014

'Audi is to add new fuel efficiency stars to its new A1 range, with fuel economy now rated as high as 80.7mpg. The new refreshed models, due to go on sale later this month, will be offered with the highly frugal 1.6 TDI engine which will emit as little as 92g/km CO2 and achieve up to 80.7mpg, compa[.].

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Audi CO2 Fuel Economy Emissions 57

Green Car Congress

NOVEMBER 19, 2014

'A team from ETH Zurich in Switzerland has demonstrated the use of vanadate-borate glasses (Li 2 O-B 2 O 3 -V 2 O 5 , referred to as V 2 O 5-LiBO 2 ) as high-capacity cathode materials for rechargeable Li-ion batteries for the first time. The composite electrodes with reduced graphite oxide (RGO) deliver specific energies around 1,000 Wh/kg and retain high specific capacities in the range of ~ 300 mAh/g for the first 100 cycles.

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Li-ion Batteries Battery Recharge 318

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Norway

Green Car Congress

NOVEMBER 21, 2014

'The Volkswagen Group will invest a total of €85.6 billion (US$106 billion) in new models, innovative technologies and its global presence in its Automotive Division over the coming five years. Around two-thirds of the total investment amount will flow into increasingly efficient vehicles, drives and more environmentally friendly production. Investments in property, plant and equipment, investment property and intangible assets, excluding capitalized development costs (capex) in the Automotive D

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Poland 2018 2019 2015 317

Green Car Congress

NOVEMBER 21, 2014

'Maxwell Technologies has enhanced its 48V ultracapacitor module product, which now includes the benefits of the company’s new DuraBlue Advanced Shock and Vibration Cell Technology. ( Earlier post.). The new module has been tested to meet and exceed the industry’s highest shock (IEC 60068-2-27 and 2-29) and vibration (ISO 16750-3, Tables 12 and 14) ratings for ultracapacitor modules, exceeding the most demanding testing requirements for mass transportation applications, such as in hybrid buses,

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Energy Storage Hybrid Environment China 304

Green Car Congress

NOVEMBER 20, 2014

'Seeking to expand California’s public hydrogen refueling station network as a means to support the wider introduction of fuel-cell vehicles, Honda will provide $13.8 million in financial assistance to FirstElement Fuel to build additional hydrogen refueling stations around the state. Additional state grants, combined with the Honda financing, could enable FirstElement to add at least 12 stations to its California hydrogen network.

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Honda Hydrogen California Building 281

Green Car Congress

NOVEMBER 16, 2014

'Akio Toyoda, President and Member of the Board of Toyota Motor, used a web video to announce the name of the company’s new fuel cell sedan ( earlier post ), to be launched officially on the eve of the Los Angeles Auto Show: “Mirai”. In Japanese, Mirai means “future”, Toyoda said, while expounding on the virtues of the car.

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Los Angeles Fuel Toyota Auto 273

Green Car Congress

NOVEMBER 20, 2014

'Chevrolet says it has made the charging system in the next-generation Volt even easier for customers to recharge the battery and to check the charge status. The next-generation Volt debuts in January in Detroit at the North American International Auto Show. The new and enhanced features include: GPS location-based charging. Owners will now be able to set their charging preferences exclusively for their “home” charging location and the vehicle will automatically adjust to that setting when it is

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Volt Charging Detroit Chevrolet 268

Green Car Congress

NOVEMBER 21, 2014

'EPA’s Office of Transportation and Air Quality (OTAQ) will award up to $5M combined for proposals ( EPA-OAR-OTAQ-14-07 ) that achieve significant reductions in diesel emissions in terms of tons of pollution produced by diesel engines and diesel emissions exposure, from fleets operating at marine and inland water ports located in areas of poor air quality.

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EPA Diesel Emissions Mariner 261

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Green Car Congress

NOVEMBER 20, 2014

'Volkswagen unveiled the Golf Sportwagen HyMotion hydrogen fuel cell hybrid research vehicle demonstrator yesterday at the Los Angeles Auto Show ( earlier post ). Volkswagen has also built several research vehicles based on the US version of the Passat using the same hydrogen drivetrain components as fitted in the Golf SportWagen HyMotion. The fleet of Passat HyMotion vehicles is currently being tested on the streets of California.

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Hydrogen Fuel Hybrid Li-ion 259

Green Car Congress

NOVEMBER 16, 2014

'A heavy-duty exhaust valve guide with thermal deformation and temperature color scaling demonstrates high side load at high temperatures in contact with the exhaust gas. Federal-Mogul is developing powertrain materials to address conditions such as these. Source: Federal-Mogul. Click to enlarge. Federal-Mogul Holdings Corporation’s Powertrain Division has expanded its range of high performance materials for valve guides, seats and turbocharger bushings that support the commercial vehicle indust

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Engine Diesel Exhaust Oil 257

Green Car Congress

NOVEMBER 15, 2014

'by Nick Cunningham of Oilprice.com. Despite what appears to be a saturated oil market in 2014, oil producers around the world will struggle to meet rising demand over the next few decades. In its latest annual World Energy Outlook , the International Energy Agency (IEA) warned that the current period of oil abundance may be fleeting, and in fact, without heroic levels of production increases, oil markets will grow dangerously tight in the coming years.

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Oil Iraq Oil-Sands Supplies 257

Green Car Congress

NOVEMBER 19, 2014

'The new 2016 Ford Explorer SUV is making its global debut today at Los Angeles Auto Show with a new available 2.3-liter EcoBoost four-cylinder engine that delivers more horsepower and torque than the 2.0L EcoBoost four-cylinder it replaces, with no compromise in fuel economy anticipated. New 2.3-liter EcoBoost delivers more power and torque than the outgoing 2.0L EcoBoost but with expected same fuel consumption.

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Fuel Economy 2016 Ford Economy 255

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Guyana

Green Car Congress

NOVEMBER 17, 2014

'The Honda FCV Concept, Honda’s latest fuel-cell vehicle concept, made its world debut today in Japan. The Honda FCV Concept showcases the styling evolution of Honda’s fuel-cell vehicle anticipated to launch in Japan by March of 2016, followed by the US and Europe. Honda also unveiled the Honda Power Exporter Concept, a concept model for an external power feeding device that enables AC power output from the FCV with maximum output of 9 kW.

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Honda Concept Japan Los Angeles 255

Green Car Congress

NOVEMBER 20, 2014

'Mitsubishi Concept XR-PHEV on stage in LA. Click to enlarge. Mitsubishi Motors North America, Inc. (MMNA) gave the Mitsubishi Concept XR-PHEV ( earlier post ) plug-in hybrid its North American debut at the 2014 Los Angeles Auto Show. Mitsubishi said that the Concept XR-PHEV crossover hints at its future design direction for production vehicles in North America and further reaffirms the automaker’s commitment to the US market.

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Green Car Congress

NOVEMBER 20, 2014

'Miami-Dade County, Fla., placed its third order for Autocar E3 hybrid refuse trucks that feature Parker’s fuel-saving RunWise Advanced Series Hybrid Drive System. ( Earlier post.) The additional purchase of 29 new hybrid trucks brings the total fleet to 64. The hydraulic hybrid technology can reduce fuel consumption by up to 50%. With more than 1 million miles of operation, the RunWise-equipped refuse trucks capture more than 71% of a vehicle’s otherwise lost braking energy, which can save up t

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Miami Hybrid Sacramento Houston 252

Green Car Congress

NOVEMBER 17, 2014

'The US Naval Research Laboratory (NRL) is partnering with a power company to apply its pulsed electron beam technology to reduce NO x emissions from coal-fired power plants. Today, industry uses Selective Catalytic Reduction to reduce NO x , but the scrubbers are expensive to build and to operate. Dr. John Sethian, the plasma physicist leading the project at NRL, says that if NRL’s technology works as expected, it would be about 10-20% the cost of a catalytic scrubber for energy, and with no by

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Fusion Coal Power Powered 244

Green Car Congress

NOVEMBER 16, 2014

'The US Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) intends ( DE-FOA-0001243 ) to issue, on behalf of the Vehicle Technologies Office (VTO), a Funding Opportunity Announcement titled “FY 2015 Vehicle Technologies Office Incubator” (DE-FOA-0001213). The VTO runs a significant R&D portfolio in support of the development and deployment of a broad range of efficient and environmentally friendly highway transportation technologies.

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2015 Vehicles 2014 Transportation 244

Green Car Congress

NOVEMBER 18, 2014

'The Japan Times reported that Japan-based battery maker GS Yuasa Corp. said it has developed a next-generation lithium-sulfur battery with three times the capacity of existing products. The battery reportedly uses sulfur as a key material in the cathode and a silicon-based anode. The company said it now aims to improve the durability of the anode , so it can commercialize the next-generation lithium-ion battery by 2020.

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2020 Lithium Sulfur Commercial Lithium Ion 240

Green Car Congress

NOVEMBER 20, 2014

'Toyota Motor Corporation has enhanced its Intelligence Clearance Sonar (ICS) technology, which helps prevent or mitigate collisions when parking or starting off. In addition, a new viewing mode has been added to Toyota’s Panoramic View Monitor, which helps drivers check their surroundings before setting off. Toyota plans to use these updated systems in models launched in 2015.

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Toyota Japan 2015 Corporation 239

Green Car Congress

NOVEMBER 18, 2014

'At the Los Angeles Auto Show this week, Audi will present the Audi A7 Sportback h-tron quattro technology demonstrator, a plug-in hybrid with hydrogen fuel cell. In addition, Audi is presenting the first show car created by new design chief Marc Lichte, with an interior and exterior to redefine the benchmark. In addition to the concept car and the Audi A7 Sportback h-tron quattro study, Audi is giving several models their first showing in the United States, including the Audi TTS Coupé, Audi TT

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Green Car Congress

NOVEMBER 21, 2014

'by Nick Cunningham of Oilprice.com. As November draws to a close, there are two major events that could profoundly change the oil markets. With the clock ticking, the 5 permanent members of the UN Security Council plus Germany (P5 plus 1) are negotiating down to the wire with Iran over its nuclear program. The two sides have made substantial progress, but some difficult issues remain unresolved ahead of the November 24 deadline.

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Iran Oil Saudi Arabia Market 236

Green Car Congress

NOVEMBER 20, 2014

'Australia-based Syrah Resources has successfully produced uncoated battery grade spherical graphite, using natural flake graphite from its Balama Graphite & Vanadium Project in Mozambique. The battery market currently represents approximately 23% of global flake graphite output and is expected to be a rapidly growing sector due to lithium ion (Li-ion) battery demand (Source: Benchmark Minerals).

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Li-ion Mozambique Market Batteries 236

Green Car Congress

NOVEMBER 19, 2014

'At the Los Angeles Auto Show this week, Marc Lichte, Head of Design, is presenting the Audi prologue concept car. Lichte is giving the Audi brand a new styling direction in the large coupe. Among the many advanced technology features of this “foretaste of the future of Audi” is a new 48?volt subsystem of the vehicle electrical system—this is a technology that will soon be introduced to production cars at Audi. ( Earlier post.).

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Los Angeles Design Audi Volt 236

Green Car Congress

NOVEMBER 19, 2014

'TÜV SÜD Japan Ltd. is partnering with ESPEC Cooperation to build a test center for large battery systems in Japan. The aim is to offer a complete range of testing for traction batteries for electric vehicles in Japan in 2015. The new Japan lab will become the seventh in TÜV SÜD’s international network of battery labs. Testing will range from cells to modules to packs, following international specifications and standards.

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Japan Batteries Battery Singapore 236

Green Car Congress

NOVEMBER 18, 2014

'EnerG2, a Seattle-based company manufacturing advanced carbon materials for next-generation energy storage devices ( earlier post ), and BASF have entered a strategic partnership to collaborate to improve and to scale-up the production of EnerG2’s proprietary carbon materials for use in supercapacitor electrodes and as a performance additive in start-stop lead-acid batteries.

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Carbon Lead Acid Energy Storage Batteries 236

Green Car Congress

NOVEMBER 17, 2014

'Five major European bus manufacturers—Daimler Buses (EvoBus), MAN, Solaris, Van Hool and VDL Bus & Coach—last week signed a joint Letter of Understanding at the Fuel Cells and Hydrogen Joint Undertaking’s (FCH JU) Stakeholders Forum in Brussels. The Letter underlines the commitment of bus manufacturers towards the commercialisation and market introduction of fuel cell electric buses in urban public transport.

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Manufacturer Commercial Fuel London 236

Green Car Congress

NOVEMBER 15, 2014

'Volkswagen is introducing its first fuel-saving BlueMotion vehicle with a gasoline-fueled TSI engine with the Polo TSI BlueMotion. ( Earlier post.) Improvements to the TSI engine management system have made it possible to reduce fuel consumption by a further 0.2 liters to 4.1 l/100 km (57 mpg US) and emissions to 94 g/km CO 2. 1.0 TSI engine. Click to enlarge.

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Gasoline MPG Engine Fuel 236

Green Car Congress

NOVEMBER 21, 2014

'Siemens and LG Chem have agreed to collaborate more closely on project development and marketing of industrial battery storage systems, and have signed a memorandum of understanding to this effect. Siemens will supply the converters and controller for the joint storage solutions and also handle the project planning and implementation as well as the integration of the storage systems into distribution grids and microgrids.

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Lithium Ion Batteries Battery Energy Storage 231

Green Car Congress

NOVEMBER 19, 2014

'Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) researchers have developed an efficient method to measure residual stress in metal parts produced by powder-bed fusion additive manufacturing. This 3D printing process produces metal parts layer by layer using a high-energy laser beam to fuse metal powder particles. When each layer is complete, the build platform moves downward by the thickness of one layer, and a new powder layer is spread on the previous layer.

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Parts Fusion Building Manufacturer 231

Green Car Congress

NOVEMBER 18, 2014

'The Volkswagen brand’s “Think Blue. Factory.” environmental program remains on track to meet its 2018 goals of reducing energy and water consumption as well as the share in waste, CO 2 and solvent emissions at all Volkswagen plants throughout the world by 25% compared with 2010 levels by 2018. This was the [link] of an interim assessment made by more than 250 environmental experts from 27 plants of the Volkswagen Passenger Cars brand, the Components business area and Volkswagen Commercial Vehic

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2018 2010 Slovakia Brazil 231

Green Car Congress

NOVEMBER 18, 2014

'Haldor Topsoe A/S announced that Huineng, a large-scale SNG (Substitute Natural Gas) plant, went successfully on-stream near the city of Ordos, located in Inner Mongolia in the northern part of China. Topsoe has designed the methanation section of this plant, which is the company’s second large-scale coal-based industrial SNG reference to begin operations in China following last years’ opening of Qinghua, the world’s largest SNG plant located in the Xinjiang region.

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Coal Gas China Mongolia 231

Green Car Congress

NOVEMBER 18, 2014

'Japan-based Toray Industries, Inc. has agreed in principle to supply carbon fiber TORAYCA prepreg for the production of the new 777X aircraft by The Boeing Company. The companies have signed a memorandum of agreement confirming that the two companies will negotiate extension of their existing comprehensive agreement (signed in November 2005) to supply prepreg for the 787 Dreamliner with aim to extend its contract period for more than ten years and to include 777X to the supply scope, targeting

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Carbon Fiber Carbon Supplies South Carolina 231