A new report from the US Department of Energy (DOE) Co-Optima initiative identifies the top 13 diesel fuel blendstocks from biomass resources that could reduce harmful emissions from medium- to heavy-duty diesel vehicles. The top 13 blendstocks include hydrocarbons, esters, and ethers that have the potential to reduce GHG emissions... Read more →

Hyundai Motor become a partner in H2 MOBILITY, a company that sets up and coordinates the nationwide hydrogen infrastructure in Germany. (Earlier post.) The Hyundai Motor Company will be represented by Hyundai Motor Deutschland GmbH at the shareholders’ meeting. Hyundai is the seventh shareholder alongside the founding members Total, Shell,... Read more →

US-based startup Pajarito Powder has received a Series-B investment from Hyundai Motor Company. The investment is intended to allow Hyundai Motor to expand its portfolio in the value chain of the hydrogen industry and strengthen the establishment of the hydrogen ecosystem. Based in Albuquerque, New Mexico, Pajarito Powder develops and... Read more →

SK Innovation has decided to spin off its battery production and exploration & production (E&P) business as independent companies. SK Innovation will be a holding company that plays the role of the “Green Portfolio Designer & Developer” and puts greater emphasis on the improvement of the enterprise value. The upcoming... Read more →

Ford’s electrified vehicle portfolio achieved a new July sales record, while expanding Ford’s electrified presence in California. Ford’s electrified vehicle sales were up 57.5% on sales of 9,103 vehicles, with Mustang Mach-E and F-150 PowerBoost Hybrid leading the way with sales of 2,854 and 4,498, respectively. Sales of Ford’s Mustang... Read more →

Volvo Cars’ Recharge line-up of chargeable Volvo models continued its strong momentum in July, accounting for 25.5% of all cars sold in the month. In Europe, more than 43% of all cars sold in July was from the Recharge line-up. Overall, Volvo Cars reported global sales of 56,883 cars in... Read more →

Universal Hydrogen, magniX, Plug Power and AeroTEC have established a Hydrogen Aviation Test and Service Center at Grant County International Airport in Moses Lake, Washington. The center will focus on the test flight and certification of Universal Hydrogen’s retrofit conversion of a Dash-8 regional turboprop aircraft, scheduled for entry into... Read more →

California Ethanol + Power (CE+P) is partnering with the Joint BioEnergy Institute (JBEI), a Bioenergy Research Center of the US Department of Energy (DOE), to develop scalable next-generation renewable energy products using biomass from CE+P’s planned sugarcane ethanol facility in Imperial County, California. In addition, CE+P Permitting Manager Nathan M.... Read more →

Spain-based global energy company Repsol and Talgo, a manufacturer of intercity, standard, and high speed passenger trains, will promote a renewable-hydrogen-powered train, fostering emission-free rail transport in the Iberian Peninsula. Repsol is the leading producer and consumer of hydrogen in the Iberian Peninsula and operates the largest hydrogen plant of... Read more →

The California Fuel Cell Partnership (CaFCP) released a new foundational document for heavy-duty class 8 fuel cell electric trucks (FCETs), “Fuel Cell Electric Trucks: A Vision for Freight Movement in California and Beyond,” that envisions 70,000 trucks supported by 200 heavy-duty truck stations by 2035. The vision emphasizes the need... Read more →

McDermott International, a premier, fully-integrated provider of engineering and construction solutions (ECS) to the energy industry, has joined a consortium of public, private and academic partners collaborating on a US Department of Energy (DOE) project—Demonstration and Framework for H2@Scale in Texas and Beyond. The project is supported by DOE’s Hydrogen... Read more →

DHL Express has ordered 12 all-electric Alice eCargo planes from Eviation. (Earlier post.) Eviation expects to deliver the Alice electric aircraft to DHL Express in 2024. Alice can be flown by a single pilot and will carry 1,200 kilograms (2,600 lbs). It will require 30 minutes or less to charge... Read more →

Rolls-Royce has launched a new major investment project with Purdue University to develop new test facilities for high-altitude and hybrid-electric engines to power the next generation of US military aircraft. Gas turbine engine test cells must offer flexible operation to qualify engines for customer use. However, true high-altitude test cells... Read more →

The US Department of Energy (DOE) will award nearly $34 million in funding for 11 projects that will support high-impact research and development to improve and produce biofuels, biopower, and bioproducts. Biomass feedstocks can be produced by municipal solid waste (MSW) streams and algae and converted into low-carbon fuels that... Read more →

Keysight Technologies announced the Scienlab SL1700A Series, the next-generation battery pack test system for high voltage battery packs—up to 1500 V for automotive and industrial application. Customers need labs with multiple test channels to develop batteries, but space and power supplies are limited. Keysight’s SL1700A Series utilizes new high voltage... Read more →

To help industrialize production of future generation batteries, Mercedes-Benz is intensifying its cooperation with its longstanding partner GROB-WERKE GmbH & Co. KG, a German world market leader in highly innovative battery production and automation systems. The cooperation will focus on the system technology of future generations of Mercedes-Benz battery systems... Read more →

Identifying defect sources, determining the optimal maintenance schedule, improving manufacturing processes: until now, artificial intelligence only made this possible in a paint shop equipped with state-of-the-art robots. Now, however, Dürr is significantly expanding the scope of its AI applications with the enablement of analysis software from the DXQ product family... Read more →

A team at the University of Münster has reviewed 53 studies that provide time- or technology-specific cost estimates for lithium-ion, solid-state, lithium–sulfur and lithium–air batteries among more than 2,000 publications related to the topic. In an effort to provide a degree of transparency to the large variance of forecasted costs... Read more →

Israel-based Foresight Autonomous Holdings Ltd. (earlier post) signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) for a multiphase business cooperation with Wuhu Chery Technology Co., LTD (Chery), a global Chinese vehicle manufacturer and Xuanyuan Idrive Technology Co. Ltd. (XY), a subsidiary of Wuhan Guide Infrared Co. (Guide Infrared), a leading Chinese developer... Read more →

GAC Group and Huawei: the two firms are partnering to develop a medium- to large-size electric SUV Level 4 autonomous driving capabilities. Mass production is targeted for the end of 2023. The SUV will be the first joint product of the two enterprises. GAC is also working with Didi on... Read more →

Using existing fish processing plants, kelp and fish waste can be turned into a diesel-like fuel to power generators or fishing boats in rural, coastal Alaska, according to a team from Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL). Many isolated communities rely on diesel generators for energy; diesel, however, is expensive since... Read more →

Itochu Corporation and Irkutsk Oil Company (IOC); Japan Oil, Gas and Metals National Corporation (JOGMEC); and Toyo Engineering Corporation (TOYO) have agreed to undertake a detailed study for the commercialization of a blue ammonia value chain between Eastern Siberia and Japan. This study will be Phase 2, following Phase 1... Read more →

A common farm weed could make a jet fuel with fewer production-related environmental impacts than other biofuels, according to a new lifecycle study by researchers at The Ohio State University. Growing the weed, pennycress—often called stinkweed—as a crop requires less fertilizer and fewer pesticides than other plants that can be... Read more →

Oak Ridge National Laboratory researchers have developed a new catalyst for converting ethanol into C3+ olefins—the chemical building blocks for renewable jet fuel and diesel—that pushes selectivity to a record-high 88%, a more than 10% gain over their previously developed catalyst. (Earlier post.) A paper on the new work is... Read more →

The US Army has awarded Cummins an $87-million contract to complete the development of the Advanced Combat Engine (ACE), a modular and scalable diesel engine solution, capable of hybridization, that uses innovative opposed-piston (OP) technology to provide leap-ahead capabilities in power density and heat rejection not available in the current... Read more →

Komatsu and its mining customers Rio Tinto, BHP, Codelco and Boliden have formed the Komatsu Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Alliance. Through the alliance framework, Komatsu’s GHG partners will work directly with Komatsu to collaborate on product planning, development, testing and deployment of the next generation of zero-emission mining equipment and infrastructure.... Read more →

Researchers in China have developed a novel nickel-molybdenum (NiMo)-yttira-stabilized zirconia (YSZ) catalyst-layer supported tubular single cell for solid oxide fuel cells running on methane. The NiMo-YSZ layer provides dual functionality of mechanical support and reforming of methane. A paper on the work is published in the Journal of Power Sources... Read more →

Micro-mobility company Helbiz is exploring the electrification of its fleet with Lightning eMotors. Following the completion of the current pilot program, Helbiz plans to deploy Lightning Electric Ford Transit 350HD vans throughout Miami and Washington DC to manage its intra-urban operations. These zero-emission electric vehicles will replace the existing gas-powered... Read more →

The US Department of Energy (DOE) announced a $42.3-million funding opportunity (DOE-FOA-0002553) to support manufacturing innovations for high performance clean energy technologies to drive economy-wide reductions in carbon emissions, including: Topic area 1: Manufacturing Process Innovation. Next-generation manufacturing processes that improve energy efficiency and reduce the carbon footprint of energy-intensive... Read more →

Volkswagen is strengthening its expertise in the integration of automotive software. At present, high-performance automotive functions can only be achieved by networking many individual software and hardware components. Integrating these components and testing the resulting assembly is a key development task for Volkswagen. As part of its ACCELERATE strategy, Volkswagen... Read more →