Peugeot Releases Specs, Pricing Package for the iOn EV
6 September 2010
 |
| The iOn with (1) Motor, (2) Traction battery pack, (3) Inverter and (4) On-board charger. Click to enlarge. |
Peugeot has released the specifications for the iOn EV—based on the Mitsubishi iMiEV (earlier post)—in advance of the Paris Auto Show. Peugeot is planning to put the electric vehicle on sale at the end of this year.
Peugeot says that it will market the iOn based mainly on an “all-inclusive” mobility offer. As an example, in France this offer lasts for five years and costs €499 (US$643) including VAT per month, which includes: the vehicle and its battery; 5-year warranty covering the battery and electric power train; servicing and maintenance for five years
or 50,000 km (31,000 miles); specific electric assistance; and Peugeot
Connect, Electric Driving (smartphone application) services and access to the
Mu by Peugeot mobility program.
More...
| Comments (0)
| TrackBack (0)
Ultrathin LiMn2O4 Nanowire Cathode Materials for Higher Li-ion Power Densities for HEV and EV Applications
4 September 2010
 |
| Discharge curves at different rates after charging at 1C. Credit: ACS, Lee et al. Click to enlarge. |
A team of researchers from the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, Università degli Studi di Milano-Bicocca (Italy), and Stanford University have synthesized ultrathin LiMn2O4 nanowires for use as a Li-ion cathode material offering high power densities.
Galvanostatic battery testing showed that the ultrathin LiMn2O4 nanowires deliver 100 and 78 mAh/g at very high rate (60C and 150C, respectively) in a larger potential window with very good capacity retention and outstanding structural stability. Such performances are due to both the favorable morphology and the high crystallinity of nanowires, the researchers said in a paper published online 26 August in the ACS journal NanoLetters.
More...
| Comments (12)
| TrackBack (0)
Novolyte Technologies and Foosung Form JV for Li-ion Electrolytes
3 September 2010
Novolyte Technologies, a leading manufacturer and supplier of specialty electrolyte materials for lithium-ion battery and energy storage applications, high performance solvents and other specialty chemicals, has signed a definitive agreement with Foosung Co., Ltd., a leading global producer of specialty lithium salts for lithium batteries, to form a new joint venture platform that will create an integrated global producer of lithium battery electrolytes.
The US-based new joint venture entity will retain the Novolyte Technologies name and will be managed by Novolyte’s current management team from its existing Cleveland headquarters. Concurrent with the formation of this joint venture, Novolyte will rename its solvents, phosphines, and custom manufacturing businesses Novolyte Performance Materials, LLC, which will be operated separately by Novolyte’s current management team.
More...
| Comments (0)
| TrackBack (0)
Consumer Federation of America Calls for LDV CAFE Standard of 60 MPG for 2025
3 September 2010
A new economic analysis in an issue brief from the Consumer Federation of America (CFA) is recommending that the Obama Administration set a fleet-wide car and light truck fuel economy standard of 60 mpg (3.92 L/100km) by 2025. The Obama Administration will release a Notice of Intent for 2017-2025 light duty fuel economy standards on 30 September.
The current CAFE standard calls for fleet fuel economy of approximately 34 mpg in 2016—a target that the CFA termed “very modest”. The CFA brief says that:“The analysis showed that it would have been economically and environmentally beneficial to set a much higher standard.”
More...
| Comments (18)
| TrackBack (0)
Lexus Provides A Little More Detail on the Four Driving Modes for the CT 200h Hybrid
3 September 2010
 |
| The CT 200h instrument panel, backlit in red to designate Sport mode. The panel is backlit in blue in Normal, ECO and EV modes. Click to enlarge. |
Lexus has provided a little more detail on the four drive modes—Normal, Eco, Sport and EV—to be offered by the new 2011 Lexus CT 200h premium compact hybrid. (Earlier post.)
The CT 200h, Lexus’s second dedicated hybrid (the 250h being the first), benefits from a new platform incorporating numerous, exclusively developed body, chassis and Lexus Hybrid Drive engineering applications designed to offer customers a choice of distinct driving modes: Sport, when the driver wants a more dynamic experience, or Normal, Eco, or EV to satisfy more typical day-to-day driving needs.
More...
| Comments (3)
| TrackBack (0)
DOE to Award $25M to Two Consortia for US-China Clean Energy Research with Combined Funding of $100M; Focus on EVs and Carbon Capture and Sequestration
2 September 2010
The US Department of Energy (DOE) will award two consortia—one led by the University of Michigan and one led by the West Virginia University—a total of $25 million over the next five years under the US-China Clean Energy Research Center (CERC). The funding will be matched by the grantees to provide at least $50 million in total US funding and will facilitate joint research and development of clean energy technologies by the United States and China. Chinese counterparts will contribute an additional $50 million, with combined funding from both countries totaling $100 million.
The University of Michigan’s award will advance technologies for clean vehicles, while West Virginia University will use its funding to focus on the next generation of coal technologies, including carbon capture and storage. The announcement of another $12.5 million to a third winning consortium focused on building energy efficiency will be made this fall.
More...
| Comments (4)
| TrackBack (0)
USDA and DOE Partnership Awards $8.9M to 9 Projects to Develop Better Plants for Biofuels
2 September 2010
The US Departments of Agriculture (USDA) and Energy (DOE) are awarding $8.9 million to projects aimed at improving and accelerating genetic breeding programs to create plants better suited for bioenergy production. The research grants will be awarded under the joint DOE-USDA Plant Feedstocks Genomics for Bioenergy program, which is focused on fundamental investigations of biomass genomics to harness lignocellulosic materials for biofuels production.
The emphasis is on perennials, including trees and other nonfood plants that can be used as dedicated biofuel crops. Since such crops tend to require less intensive production practices and can grow on somewhat poorer quality land than food crops, they will be a critical element in a strategy of sustainable biofuels production that avoids competition with crops grown for food, according to the partners.
More...
| Comments (8)
| TrackBack (0)
Study Finds That Tripling US LDV New Fleet Fuel Efficiency by 2035 Through Evolutionary Change is Ambitious But Doable
2 September 2010
 |
| New fleet efficiency horizon in terms of energy intensity and fuel consumption
rate compared to historical fleet averages and recent US regulations. Source: DeCicco 2010. Click to enlarge. |
Tripling US new light-duty vehicle fleet fuel efficiency by 2035 through evolutionary change—e.g., relying heavily on improvements in advanced engines and in the application of hybrid drive technology—rather than on revolutionary alternatives such as plug-in vehicles or hydrogen requiring extensive new infrastructure is an “ambitious but defensible horizon” according to a new study by John DeCicco, a senior lecturer at the University of Michigan’s School of Natural Resources and Environment and faculty fellow.
DeCicco’s analysis shows that optimizing internal combustion engines plus rising adoption of grid-free hybrids will enable new fleet fuel economy (unadjusted) to reach 52 mpg (4.52 L/100km) by 2025 and 74 mpg (3.18 L/100km) by 2035. Adjusted on-road fuel economy correspondingly would be 41 mpg (5.74 L/100km) and 60 mpg (3.92 L/100km). CO2 emissions, with AC, would reach 104 g/mi in 2035. The study, “A Fuel Efficiency Horizon for US Automobiles”, was prepared for The Energy Foundation.
More...
| Comments (25)
| TrackBack (0)
Mercedes-Benz Revamps Vito and Viano; Up to 15% Reduction in Fuel Consumption, BlueEFFICIENCY
2 September 2010
 |
| OM651: new generation of four-cylinder diesel engines. Click to enlarge. |
Mercedes-Benz has revamped the Vito light van and Viano—a large capacity van based on the Vito.
New engines and new transmissions in the Vito and Viano reduce emissions and fuel consumption by up to 15% while enhancing performance. All engines comply with the Euro 5 emissions standard. In addition to the new ECO Gear six-speed manual transmission, the BlueEFFICIENCY technology with ECO start/stop which comes as standard is an option.
More...
| Comments (2)
| TrackBack (0)
Honeywell UOP Technology Selected to Support Conversion of Biomass to Fuel at California Renewable Energy Facility
1 September 2010
UOP LLC, a Honeywell company, announced that its technology has been selected for use in Rentech, Inc.’s Rialto Renewable Energy Center for the conversion of biomass to transportation fuels.
The renewable energy center, to be built in Rialto, Calif., will convert biomass, such as yard and tree trimmings, into renewable diesel fuel and renewable electricity. In the new unit the Rentech-SilvaGas biomass gasification system will be used to produce syngas from biomass feedstock which is converted to hydrocarbons using Rentech’s proprietary Fischer-Tropsch process and catalyst. The UOP Unionfining and Unicracking technologies will then be used to upgrade the hydrocarbons to ultra-clean jet and diesel fuel as well as specialty waxes and chemicals.
More...
| Comments (6)
| TrackBack (0)
Porous Metal-Organic Frameworks Made from Food-Grade Natural Products; Edible MOFs for Gas Storage and Other Applications
1 September 2010
 |
| A rendering of an element of a CD-MOF. Click to enlarge. |
A team of researchers from Northwestern University, UCLA and the University of St. Andrews (UK) have developed new robust nanoporous metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) using a sugar—γ-cyclodextrin (γ-CD), mass-produced enzymatically from biorenewable cornstarch—salt and alcohol. A report on their work appears in the journal Angewandte Chemie.
Metal-organic frameworks (MOF) are well-ordered, lattice-like crystals. The nodes of the lattices are complexes of transition metals (such as copper, zinc, nickel, or cobalt); organic molecules make up the connections between the nodes. Within their pores, the MOFs can store gases such as hydrogen or carbon dioxide. Furthermore, they can be used for separation of materials, for catalysis, or for the targeted transport of drugs in the body. Most previously prepared MOFs are made of building blocks that stem from petrochemicals.
More...
| Comments (1)
| TrackBack (0)
Twitter headlines
