2013

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PSA Peugeot Citroën and Bosch developing hydraulic hybrid powertrain for passenger cars; 30% reduction in fuel consumption in NEDC, up to 45% urban; B-segment application in 2016

Green Car Congress

Elements of the “Hybrid Air” hydraulic hybrid powertrain under development for B, C, and D vehicles. Click to enlarge. Following the introduction of the Bosch electric axle-split hybrid in PSA Peugeot Citroën diesel vehicles ( earlier post ), the two companies are now planning to develop a hydraulic hybrid powertrain for passenger cars. The hydraulic system, which uses compressed air for energy storage, basically comprises two hydraulic units and their pressure accumulators.

Hybrid 391
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I’ve Done The Math – Now I’m Doing Something About It

Creative Greenius

'Why would your Creative Greenius walk away from his high-paying, highly rewarding executive role at CBS EcoMedia where I was working to fund environmental, education, and wellness projects all across the USA, just as the company hit more growth milestones and was likely to pay generous bonuses? The answer is simple and direct – because I have done The Math. .

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National Plug In Day(s), Sept 28-29

Electric Cars are for Girls

'National Plug In Day is a nationwide celebration to heighten awareness of today''s widespread availability of plug-in vehicles and highlight the benefits of all-electric and plug-in hybrid-electric cars, trucks, motorcycles, and more. They are fun to drive, are less expensive and more convenient to fuel than gasoline vehicles, are better for the environment, promote local jobs, and reduce our dependence on foreign oil.

Plug-in 229
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Electric Cars So Disruptive, Gas Cars Will Be Obsolete In 2016, Says Futurist

Green Car Reports

'Many people like to think they can predict the future, but only futurists (and psychics) get paid to do it. And futurist Lars Thomsen thinks that electric cars are such a disruptive technology that they will make gasoline cars obsolete--starting in 2016, or much earlier than most other analysts suggest. Thomsen delivered a speech this past.

2016 167
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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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SF Bay Area gets largest yet electric car deployment to municipal fleets

National Green Transportation

'On Thursday, the largest municipal fleet deployment of electric cars in the U.S. took place when Mitsubishi Motors deployed 50 i-MiEV's to four Bay Area local government fleets – San Jose, Los Gatos, Campbell and Mill.

San Jose 104
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Volkswagen named most sustainable carmaker

Green Cars News

'For the first time in its history, Volkswagen has been declared as the most sustainable carmaker in the world, as part of the Dow Jones Sustainability Indices. As part of a 2013 review, the analysis looked at the environmental, economic and social sustainability performance of 31 automotive compani[.].

2013 84

More Trending

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EPA recognizes Volkswagen Chattanooga with a Green Power Leadership Award for on-site generation

Green Car Congress

'The 9.5 MW solar park at Chattanooga is owned and operated by Silicon Ranch; VW has signed a 20-year power purchase agreement. Click to enlarge. Volkswagen Chattanooga has received a 2013 Green Power Leadership Award from the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)—the only automaker to be so recognized. The annual awards recognize the country’s leading green power users for their commitment and contribution to helping advance the development of the nation’s voluntary green power market.

EPA 385
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NASA Glenn develops automated flywheel pulse-and-glide system; improving fuel economy up to 40-100%

Green Car Congress

'Innovators at NASA’s Glenn Research Center have developed an automated pulse-and-glide technique using a flywheel energy storage system for on-road vehicles; the technology, which NASA Glenn says can improve fuel economy over existing internal combustion or battery hybrid systems by 40-100%, is available for licensing. Drivers can use a manual “pulse-and-glide” (PnG) driving technique—accelerating and decelerating an automobile in cycles of approximately 10-30 seconds—as a way to im

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ExxonMobil: diesel will surpass gasoline as the number one global transportation fuel by 2020

Green Car Congress

Transportation fuel mix in millions of oil-equivalent barrels through 2020. Source: ExxonMobil Outlook. Click to enlarge. Diesel will surpass gasoline as the number one transportation fuel worldwide by 2020 and continue to increase its share through 2040, according to ExxonMobil’s recently published Outlook For Energy: A View To 2040. The relative shift away from motor gasoline to diesel is driven by improving light-duty vehicle fuel economy and the growth in commercial transportation activity.

Gasoline 383
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Ford doubles electric drive market share in US from 2012 to 2013; surging with plug-in hybrids

Green Car Congress

'Ford’s changing share of the hybrid-electric, plug-in hybrid electric, battery-electric vehicle segments and total ED market in the US in 2012 and YTD 2013. Data: EDTA, Ford Motor. Click to enlarge. Ford Motor Company’s C-platform electric drive strategy has driven an increase in Ford’s overall electric drive market share (hybrid, plug-in hybrid and battery-electric) from 7.3% in calendar year 2012 to 14.7% for the first nine months of 2013.

Plug-in 381
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Faurecia and Accenture partner on products and services for connected and autonomous vehicles

Brief

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Volkswagen to produce XL1 diesel plug-in hybrid at Osnabrück; 261 mpg US

Green Car Congress

The XL1. Click to enlarge. Volkswagen has confirmed that its XL1 Super Efficient Vehicle, featuring fuel consumption of 0.9 l/100 km (approx. 261 mpg US), will go into limited production at the company’s Osnabrück factory in Germany. The plug-in diesel-electric hybrid, which Volkswagen will showcase at the Geneva show, can cover a distance of up to 50 km (31 miles) in all-electric mode.

Plug-in 382
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Alabama, Mississippi to assess oil sands resources in their states

Green Car Congress

'Alabama and Mississippi are forming a partnership to further study the oil sands resources in the two states, Alabama Governor Robert Bentley and Mississippi Governor Phil Bryant announced on Saturday while speaking to the Southern States Energy Board. The State of Alabama has the third largest oil sands resource in the United States, which may extend into the State of Mississippi.

Oil-Sands 379
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MIT study says combustion emissions cause ~200,000 premature deaths/year in US; vehicles and power generation top sources

Green Car Congress

'Annual average concentrations of fine particulates from US sources of combustion emissions from (a) electric power generation; (b) industry; (c) commercial and residential sources; (d) road transportation; (e) marine transportation; (f) rail transportation; (g) sum of all combustion sources; (h) all sources. Source: MIT. Click to enlarge. Researchers from MIT’s Laboratory for Aviation and the Environment have concluded that ground-level PM 2.5 emissions from combustion sources such as industria

MIT 378
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Hybrids take 7% of California market in 1H 2013; PHEVs 0.7%; EVs 1.1%

Green Car Congress

'Hybrid, plug-in hybrid, and battery electric vehicle share of the California retail market. Source: California Auto Outlook. Click to enlarge. Hybrid vehicle market share (excluding plug-in hybrids) in California increased to 7% in the first half of 2013, up from 6.2% in 2012, according to the California Auto Outlook for the second quarter of 2013.

2013 372
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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 awards $10 million to 5 projects for advanced biofuels and bio-based products

Green Car Congress

The US Department of Energy announced more than $10 million in funding to five new projects that will develop new synthetic biological and chemical techniques to convert biomass into advanced biofuels and bioproducts such as plastics and chemical intermediates. Two of these projects will develop cost-effective ways to produce intermediates from the deconstruction of lignocellulosic biomass, while three projects will propose new conversion techniques to transform biomass intermediates into advanc

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Oak Ridge-GM prototype low-viscosity ionic liquid-additized engine oil delivers 2% fuel economy improvement over 5W-30

Green Car Congress

'A team from Oak Ridge National Laboratory and General Motors, led by ORNL researcher Dr. Jun Qu, has developed a new group of ionic liquids as lubricant additives that could help improve the energy efficiency of cars and trucks. Prototype low-viscosity ionic liquid-additized engine oil demonstrated a 2% improved fuel economy compared to Mobil 1 5W-30 engine oil (3.93% over the 20W-30 baseline oil) in standard fuel efficiency engine dynamometer tests.

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Volvo Car Group testing lightweight structural energy storage material applied in trunk lid and plenum cover

Green Car Congress

'A composite blend of carbon fibers and polymer resin is being developed that can store and charge more energy faster than conventional batteries can. Volvo Cars is the only car manufacturer participating in the EU-funded project, which started in early 2010. Click to enlarge. Volvo Car Group—the only automaker participating in a 3.5-year EU-funded project developing a prototype material which can store and discharge electrical energy and which is also strong and lightweight enough to be u

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API: January petroleum demand in US lowest in 18 years

Green Car Congress

Total US petroleum deliveries (a measure of demand) were down 1.7% for January against the same month a year ago to just under 18 million barrels per day—the lowest level for the month in 18 years, according to figures from the American Petroleum Institute (API). The January numbers reprise last year’s theme of weak demand. This isn’t surprising given an economy that’s still treading water.

2012 368
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Audi banking on Gen 2 3.0L TDI diesel for US sales; calls for a “fair shot” for diesel

Green Car Congress

'Audi''s Gen 2 3.0L TDI. Click to enlarge. Audi of America introduced four new TDI clean diesel models for the US market this year—the Audi A8, A7, A6, Q5—along with an updated Q7 TDI, all equipped with a second-generation 3.0L V6 TDI diesel engine. ( Earlier post.) This week in Washington, the company held a series of media drives (“TDI Efficiency Rally”) for the Q5, A6 and A7 diesel models to highlight their efficiency and performance, and also offered up its—as well as sever

Diesel 366
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Renault makes public its lifecycle study of Fluence ICE vs Fluence EV

Green Car Congress

'Renault’s comparison of the carbon footprint of EV and ICE vehicles over production, operation and end of life. The EV footprint (Fluence Z.E.) is shown with both UK and French grid mixes. Click to enlarge. Renault recently made public the findings of an internal study, published first in October 2011, detailing and comparing the lifecycle assessments (LCAs) of the battery-electric and two internal combustion engined versions (gasoline and diesel) of the Renault Fluence.

Li-ion 364
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UPS deploys 100 commercial EVs in California

Green Car Congress

UPS announced the deployment of 100 fully electric commercial vehicles that will be delivering packages around the state. The vehicles were manufactured in Stockton, California by Electric Vehicles International ( EVI ). ( Earlier post.). These UPS electric trucks will reduce the consumption of conventional motor fuel by approximately 126,000 gallons per year.

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Field test shows Volvo Buses’ plug-in hybrid reduces fuel consumption by 81% and energy consumption by 61%; 21 mpg

Green Car Congress

'Volvo Bus’ plug-in hybrid. The pantograph for rapid charging can be seen on the roof. Click to enlarge. Field tests being conducted in Gothenburg show that Volvo Buses’ plug-in hybrid reduces fuel consumption by 81% and total energy consumption (diesel plus electricity) by 61% compared to a comparable Euro 5 diesel bus. ( Earlier post.). The field test in Gothenburg began in June 2013 and includes three plug-in hybrid buses, the batteries of which are rapidly recharged at the terminals.

Volvo 362
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Bosch Automotive Service Solutions introduces sub-$450 Level 2 EV charging station

Green Car Congress

'Bosch Automotive Service Solutions, formerly SPX Service Solutions, has introduced Power Max, a plug-in vehicle residential charging station with a starting price point of less than $450. The Power Max, which offers Level 2 240V charging in 16 or 30 amp models, will retail for roughly half the cost of current EV charging stations. Power Max 16A / 12’ cord entry level model.

Charging 363
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Major spill from the ExxonMobil Pegasus pipeline in Arkansas

Green Car Congress

Route of the Pegasus pipeline. Source: ExxonMobil. Click to enlarge. A breach in ExxonMobil’s Pegasus crude oil pipeline occurred late Friday afternoon near Mayflower, AR (about 20 miles north northwest of Little Rock and at the southeastern end of the Lake Conway reservoir). The pipeline has been shut in and crews are working to contain the spill. The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) categorizes the incident as a “major spill”—i.e., greater than 250 barrels (10,500 gallons).

Arkansas 363
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Georgia Tech life-cycle study finds TCO of medium-duty electric and diesel delivery trucks similar; electric life-cycle energy use and GHG lower than diesel

Green Car Congress

'Life-cycle energy use and GHG emissions normalized with NYCC diesel case (8.06 MJ/t·km and 0.63 kgCO 2 e/t·km) at 100%. Numbers in red are net total including recycling effect. Credit: ACS, Lee et al. Click to enlarge. Comparing life-cycle energy consumption, greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, and total cost of ownership (TCO) of medium-duty electric and diesel urban delivery trucks for a range of drive cycles and electricity generation scenarios, a team from Georgia Tech found that all in all, th

Diesel 361
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ARPA-E awarding $36M to 22 projects in RANGE program for transformative EV storage

Green Car Congress

'The US Department of Energy (DOE) Advanced Research Projects Agency - Energy (ARPA-E) will award approximately $36 million to 22 projects to develop transformational electric vehicle (EV) energy storage systems using innovative chemistries, architectures and designs. ARPA-E’s new program, Robust Affordable Next Generation Energy Storage Systems (RANGE) ( earlier post ), aims to accelerate widespread EV adoption by dramatically improving driving range and reliability, and by providing low-cost,

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Bosch chairman expects EVs to have a range of at least 300 km by 2020

Green Car Congress

'At a panel discussion on the topic of “research and development perspectives in electromobility” in Berlin, Dr. Volkmar Denner, the chairman of the board of management of Robert Bosch GmbH said that he expected that by 2020, electric cars will have a range of at least 300 kilometers (186 miles). Electromobility is currently still a niche business, but after 2020 it could very well become a mass market.

2020 360
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Berkeley Lab team demonstrates high-rate, high-energy, long-life Li/S battery in the lab; looking for industry partners

Green Car Congress

'Long-term cycling test results of the Li/S cell with CTAB-modified S?GO composite cathodes. This result represents the longest cycle life (exceeding 1,500 cycles) with an extremely low decay rate (0.039% per cycle) demonstrated so far for a Li/S cell. Credit: ACS, Song et al. Click to enlarge. Researchers at the US Department of Energy’s Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory have demonstrated in the laboratory a lithium-sulfur (Li/S) battery that has more than twice the specific energy of lithi

Li-ion 359
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Nissan cuts entry-level MSRP for 2013 LEAF by 18% to $28,800

Green Car Congress

Nissan announced that US pricing for the updated 2013 Nissan LEAF electric vehicle ( earlier post ) will start at an MSRP of $28,800 for the newly-added entry-level S grade—an 18% reduction from the $35,200 MSRP of the 2012 LEAF entry model, the SV. The entry-level 2013 LEAF S becomes the lowest priced five-passenger electric vehicle sold in the United States.

2013 360
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Univ. of Calgary team developing nanocatalysts for underground upgrading of heavy oil and bitumen; possible “next generation” of oil sands production

Green Car Congress

Total injected hot fluid and total produced liquid for the nanocatalyst experiments at temperatures of 320 and 340 °C. Credit: ACS, Hashemi et al. Click to enlarge. Researchers at the University of Calgary are developing ultra-dispersed (UD) nanocatalysts for the in situ upgrading of heavy oil and bitumen from deep reservoirs. Such an “underground refinery” approach is one of the alternatives to surface upgrading that may become the next-generation of oil sands industry improvement, they suggest

Oil-Sands 358
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New Ford Mustang receives its own 2.3L EcoBoost variant

Green Car Congress

'Mustang 2.3L EcoBoost. Click to enlarge. Ford revealed its new 2015 version of the Mustang (with great fanfare simultaneously in six cities on four continents and CEO Alan Mulally on ABC’s Good Morning America ) with a choice of three powertrains: a upgraded 5.0L V8, a 3.7-liter V6 and an all-new 2.3-liter EcoBoost engine developed specifically for Mustang.

Ford 355
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UMTRI: average fuel-economy of new vehicles in the US in October rose to 24.8 mpg

Green Car Congress

'The average fuel-economy (window-sticker) value of new vehicles sold in the US in October was 24.8 mpg (9.49 l/100km), up 0.2 mpg from September, according to the monthly analysis from Michael Sivak and Brendan Schoettle from the University of Michigan Transportation Research Institute (UMTRI). Vehicle fuel economy is up 4.7 mpg since October 2007 (the first month of their monitoring).

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ExxonMobil to proceed with $14B Hebron heavy oil project off Canada’s East Coast; more than 700B barrels of oil

Green Car Congress

Exxon Mobil Corporation will develop the Hebron oil field offshore the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador using a gravity-based structure that will recover more than 700 million barrels of oil, an increase from earlier estimates. Capital cost for the project, which is expected to begin oil production around the end of 2017, is estimated at $14 billion.

Oil 356
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Study estimates 6% of lung cancer deaths in US and UK attributable to diesel exhaust

Green Car Congress

'In 2012, the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), which is part of the World Health Organization (WHO), classified diesel engine exhaust (DEE) as carcinogenic to humans (Group 1). ( Earlier post.). Now, a study by researchers from the Netherlands, the US, and France estimates that approximately 6% of annual lung cancer deaths in the US and UK—combining both environmental and occupational exposures—may be due to DEE exposure.

Exhaust 353