Green Car Congress
JULY 21, 2014
'The e-Golf. Click to enlarge. The e-Golf (“Das e-Auto” earlier post ), the Volkswagen brand’s second series production battery-electric vehicle after the e-up!, is a key model, as it is the best and most current implementation of its strategic decision to begin providing e-mobility based on large-scale production models rather than special “small niche” cars.
Creative Greenius
JULY 22, 2014
'When we last wrote about AB 2145 it was after a trip to Sacramento to speak out against the bill at the Senate Energy Committee hearing on it. We told the bill’s author, Assemblyman Stephen Bradford that we wanted to bring Community Choice Power to the South Bay, especially cities like Inglewood and Gardena, where lowering electricity bills will have a big impact on homeowners and business owners.
Green Car Reports
JULY 29, 2014
'Tesla Motors and its normally outspoken CEO, Elon Musk, haven''t had much to say about its plans to build a battery "gigafactory" lately. Now, a new report claims Tesla has secured an important pact in making the gigafactory a reality. Tesla has reached an agreement with Panasonic--its current supplier of lithium-ion cells--that will allow the.
Green Cars News
JULY 1, 2014
'It’s very hard not to imagine someone sitting at a desk in the BBC news department tapping a chewed ball point pen on their desk as they mutter, ‘there must be another way we can spin an anti-electric car story, there must!’ Well, they obviously had a good day, the latest is a doozie. ‘Electric Ca[.].
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National Green Transportation
JULY 31, 2014
'On Thursday, the Tesla Motors letter to shareholders contained a verification of a some of us reported on the last couple weeks. Namely, there's a site near Reno Nevada where preparations are underway for what looked like.
Green Car Congress
JULY 31, 2014
'Researchers at the Fraunhofer Institute for Integrated Systems and Device Technology IISB in Erlangen, Germany are pursuing an alternative approach to inductive (wireless) charging for electric vehicles. Rather than mounting induction coils on the underside of the vehicle to work with floor-mounted charging stations, the Fraunhofer team has developed a system for charging the plug-in from the front end.
EV Driven brings together the best content on electric vehicles from the widest variety of industry thought leaders.
Green Car Congress
JULY 17, 2014
'V6 TDI bi-turbo with electric compressor. Click to enlarge. Audi has built two technology studies with the “electric biturbo” technology it is developing ( earlier post ): the Audi A6 TDI concept is equipped with a new 3.0 TDI monoturbo (i.e., a single turbo with supplementary electric compressor), while the Audi RS 5 TDI concept with a 3.0 TDI biturbo (two in-series turbochargers with supplementary electric compressor).
Green Car Congress
JULY 29, 2014
'The Electric Power Research Institute, 8 automakers and 15 utilities are working to develop and to demonstrate an open platform that would integrate plug-in electric vehicles (PEVs) with smart grid technologies enabling utilities to support PEV charging regardless of location. The open platform will simplify and streamline V2G (vehicle-to-grid) communications, enabling PEVs to provide grid services and increasing the overall value proposition of plug-in vehicles.
Green Car Congress
JULY 2, 2014
'A pilot project in BMW’s Munich vehicle assembly plan is exploring the benefits of a new and innovative ergonomic tool—a flexible finger cot, which protects workers against excess strains on the thumb joints while carrying out certain assembly activities. The project is part of a dissertation in cooperation with the Department of Ergonomics at the Technical University of Munich.
Green Car Congress
JULY 15, 2014
'Improving fuel economy exhibits diminishing returns in fuel savings, according to a brief analysis by the US Energy Information Administration (EIA). For example, switching from a 10-mile-per-gallon (mpg) vehicle to a 15-mpg vehicle saves more fuel and results in greater fuel cost savings than switching from a 25-mpg vehicle to a 75-mpg vehicle. Similarly, the fuel and cost savings of improving fuel economy from 12 mpg to 15 mpg are the same as increasing from 30 mpg to 60 mpg.
Green Car Congress
JULY 31, 2014
'Panasonic Corporation and Tesla Motors, Inc. signed an agreement that lays out their cooperation on the construction of a large-scale battery manufacturing plant in the United States (the specific location yet to be announced) known as the Gigafactory. ( Earlier post.) During Tesla’s Q4 earnings call in February, Tesla CEO Elon Musk had noted that because Panasonic is Tesla’s primary partner on battery production, the “default assumption” was that Panasonic would continue to partner with Tesla
Green Car Congress
JULY 14, 2014
'The ETHOS 2.8L demo truck. Click to enlarge. Cummins has developed an E-85-specific engine and powertrain that reduce carbon dioxide emissions by as much as 80% compared with a baseline gasoline-powered medium-duty truck. The work was jointly funded by Cummins and partners ($3,790,027) in partnership with the California Energy Commission (CEC) ($2,712,140).
Green Car Congress
JULY 14, 2014
'Crazy Diamond Performance (CDP) has developed a mono-fuel CNG Chevrolet Cruze, with intended market introduction no later than October 2014. The CDP CNG Cruze will certified to the cleanest emissions standard available for an internal combustion engine, according to CDP President Kevin Fern. Fern said that the 1.8L-equipped CNG Cruze outputs 20 hp and 24 ft-lbs torque over its competitor, while maintaining nearly the same fuel economy.
Green Car Congress
JULY 25, 2014
'The California Energy Commission (CEC) has selected 11 biofuel projects projects—including gasoline substitutes, diesel substitutes and biomethane projects—for $43,633,421 in awards under a grant solicitation released in January for the development of new, or the modification of, existing California-based biofuel production facilities that can sustainably produce low carbon transportation fuels.
Green Car Congress
JULY 8, 2014
'Daimler and BMW have agreed on jointly developing and implementing one common technology for wireless recharging high-voltage batteries of electric drive and plug-in hybrid vehicles. The wireless charging system consists of two components: a secondary coil integrated into the under tray of the car and a primary coil integrated into a floor plate that can be placed on a garage floor for instance.
Green Car Congress
JULY 29, 2014
'UK transport operator Go-Ahead Group has ordered 500 electric flywheel Gyrodrive systems from GKN Hybrid Power for use in buses. The Gyrodrive Kinetic Energy Recovery System (KERS) system (featured in Audi’s LeMans-winning R18 e-tron quattro) harvests braking energy normally lost as heat. When the driver brakes, a traction motor on one of the axles slows the vehicle, generating electricity at the same time.
Green Car Congress
JULY 26, 2014
'Audi will be the first to test its automated driving technology on the Lee Roy Selmon Expressway in Tampa, Florida—which recently was designated as an automated driving and connected car test bed—using an Audi A7 equipped to handle piloted driving functions on freeway conditions up to 40 mph (64 km/h). Audi believes this initial version of piloted driving—Traffic Jam Pilot—could be available to consumers within five years.
Green Car Congress
JULY 11, 2014
'Researchers at Japan’s National Institute for Materials Science (NIMS) have developed a highly efficient method for developing friction materials with a desired frictional property. Using the new method, it would be possible to find the appropriate crystal preferred orientation for coatings with the desired value of the coefficient of friction. The method, described in a paper in the journal Tribology Letters , could thus significantly accelerate the development of materials that have a frictio
Green Car Congress
JULY 15, 2014
'Mercedes-Benz is adding a new Estate (wagon) model to its C-Class family starting in September 2014. The powertrain range for the Estate, which includes diesel, gasoline and hybrid options, features a new 1.6-liter 4-cylinder diesel (OM 626) produced by Renault. Compared with the predecessor Estate, certain members of the line-up consume in excess of 20% less fuel.
Green Car Congress
JULY 15, 2014
'The BMW Group and Samsung SDI have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to expand their supply relationship for battery cells for electro-mobility. Samsung SDI will supply the BMW Group with battery cells for the BMW i3, BMW i8 and additional hybrid models over the coming years. The most important elements of the agreement are the increase in quantities delivered over the medium-term in response to growing demand for electro-mobility, and further technological development of battery cells
Green Car Congress
JULY 30, 2014
'Schematic illustration of the the hybrid Mg-Li battery designed in this work. This battery has a piece of Mg foil as the anode, Mo 6 S 8 as the cathode, and the electrolyte contains both Mg 2+ and Li +. Cheng et al. Click to enlarge. Researchers at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) have devised hybrid batteries assembled with a magnesium (Mg) metal anode; a Li + ion intercalation cathode (Mo 6 S 8 ), and a dual-salt electrolyte containing Mg 2+ and Li + ions.
Green Car Congress
JULY 7, 2014
'Finland now has 21 CBG100 public biogas filling stations—i.e. they sell 100% compressed biogas (CBG). All are automatic stations that are always open (but for two of them a cash option is only available during office hours). These are to be joined by 20 more planned stations by 2016. The Finnish Biogas Association began mapping their locations in 2013.
Green Car Congress
JULY 19, 2014
'Bosch has made the EVOII mechanical vacuum pump lighter and much more efficient, putting it on a par with more expensive electric vacuum pumps. The Bosch EVOII offers the best value for money on the market and reliably provides the vacuum for the brake booster, the company claims. The unit costs up to 75% less than comparable electric pumps, and offers CO 2 emissions of less than 0.4 grams per kilometer.
Green Car Congress
JULY 24, 2014
'A new satellite study finds more than 75% of the water loss in the drought-stricken Colorado River Basin since late 2004 came from underground resources. The extent of groundwater loss may pose a greater threat to the water supply of the western United States than previously thought. The Colorado River Basin (black outline) supplies water to about 40 million people in seven states.
Green Car Congress
JULY 22, 2014
'ABB and Volvo Buses are partnering to co-develop and to commercialize electric and hybrid buses with open standards-based direct current (DC) fast charging systems. The cooperation will create a city-wide standardized charging system for electric and electric hybrid buses that can charge buses quickly through an automatic roof-top connection system at bus stops or through cabled charging systems overnight.
Green Car Congress
JULY 30, 2014
'Isolated droplet combustion experiments performed on the International Space Station (ISS) by a team of international researchers have revealed a new type of cool-burning flames. The long durations of microgravity provided in the ISS enable the measurement of droplet and flame histories over an unprecedented range of conditions, enabling the discovery.
Green Car Congress
JULY 8, 2014
'Powertrain of the Volvo XC90 Twin Engine PHEV. A two-liter, four-cylinder supercharged and turbocharged Drive-E gasoline engine powers the front wheels and an 80 hp (60 kW) electric motor drives the rear wheels. The battery pack is located in the center of the vehicle. Click to enlarge. Volvo Cars’ all-new XC90 SUV, to be launched later this year, will offer up to 400 horsepower (298 kW) but with CO 2 emissions as low as around 60 g/km (NEDC driving cycle).
Green Car Congress
JULY 7, 2014
'IBM Research is launching a 10-year project to support China in transforming its national energy systems and protecting the health of citizens. Dubbed “Green Horizon”, the initiative sets out to surpass current global practices in three areas critical to China’s sustainable growth: air quality management; renewable energy forecasting; and energy optimization for industry.
Green Car Congress
JULY 4, 2014
'Autonomous driving in long-distance truck operations with the “Highway Pilot”. Click to enlarge. Mercedes-Benz unveiled the Future Truck 2025 in Magdeburg, Germany. The truck is equipped with the intelligent Highway Pilot assistance system, which enables it to drive completely autonomously at speeds of up to 85 km/h (53 mph). Daimler Trucks demonstrated the vehicle on a trip along a section of the A14 autobahn near the city of Magdeburg, in which the Future Truck drove itself under realistic dr
Green Car Congress
JULY 30, 2014
'The US Department of Energy (DOE) will award up to $11.3 million for two projects that aim to advance the production of cost-competitive, high-performance carbon fiber material from renewable, non-food-based feedstocks, such as agricultural residues and woody biomass. Carbon fiber can lower the cost and improve performance of fuel-efficient vehicles and renewable energy components such as wind turbine blades.
Green Car Congress
JULY 16, 2014
'2014 Yaris Hybrid. Click to enlarge. Toyota’s refreshed 2014 Yaris for Europe offers a choice of four powertrains, including a thoroughly reworked 3-cylinder 1.0 gasoline unit that is the first member of a new family of 14 highly efficient engines to be launched by 2015. With a thermal efficiency of 37%, the engine delivers a combined-cycle fuel consumption of 4.1 l/100 (57.4 mpg US), and CO 2 emissions reduced to 95 g/km in conjunction with a stop/start system.
Green Car Congress
JULY 15, 2014
'Rutgers researchers have synthesized cobalt-embedded nitrogen-rich carbon nanotubes (NRCNTs) that 1) can efficiently electrocatalyze the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) with activities close to that of costly platinum and 2) function well under acidic, neutral or basic media alike, allowing them to be coupled with the best available oxygen-evolving catalysts—which also play crucial roles in the overall water-splitting reaction.
Green Car Congress
JULY 7, 2014
'The number of medium- and heavy-duty vehicles (MHDVs) in use worldwide will nearly double between 2014 and 2035, according to a new forecast report by Navigant Research. Navigant projects that annual MHDV sales will grow throughout the forecast period at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 2.4%. Alternative fuel vehicles (AFVs)—including battery-electric (BEVs), plug-in hybrid (PHEVs), propane autogas (PAGVs) and natural gas vehicles (NGVs)—will grow from 5.0% of the market in 2
Green Car Congress
JULY 11, 2014
'In a new research report (“ Autonomous Vehicles ”), Navigant Research forecasts that by 2030, about 40% of new vehicles sold will have some form of autonomous driving capability installed. The company expects this to increase to 75% by 2035. Although the first vehicles with some self-driving capability will come to market in 2020, Navigant said, it expects it will take another 5 years before volumes become significant.
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