The Comité Français du Butane et du Propane (CFBP), the industry organization representing gas supply distribution companies Antargaz, Butagaz Finagaz, Primagaz, Vitogaz and Campingaz, together with Global Bioenergies, a company developing a processes to convert renewable resources into hydrocarbons through fermentation (earlier post), have formed a partnership to incorporate renewable... Read more →

Automotive software company Elektrobit (a wholly-owned subsidiary of Continental AG) is working with Infineon Technologies, a leading semiconductor supplier for autonomous driving, and NVIDIA, the world leader in visual computing, to make it easier for automakers and their suppliers to create advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) that integrate the highest... Read more →

Honda unveiled the new 10th-generation 2016 Civic Sedan, slated for sale in the US this fall. The Civic Sedan is the first in a series of new 10th-generation Civic models that will include a sedan, coupe, high-performance Si models, a 5-door hatchback and the first-ever Civic Type-R model for the... Read more →

Toyota introduced a new C-HR Concept (its proportions place it between the B-SUV and C-SUV segments) at the 2015 Frankfurt motor show. The 2015 version follows on the first C-HR Concept, a 3-door concept introduced in 2014 at the Paris motor show. Featuring a 5-door cabin, this new design study... Read more →

The partnership between the Renault-Nissan Alliance and Daimler AG accelerated and strengthened as it entered its sixth year in 2015, the companies’ leaders said today in a media update given during the Frankfurt International Motor Show. When the Daimler-Alliance partnership was launched in April 2010, the scope of the original... Read more →

In anticipation of increasing demand for start-stop systems, Johnson Controls is adding Absorbent Glass Mat (AGM) battery production capacity. AGM battery technology is at this point the dominant start-stop energy storage technology. The market for new vehicle and aftermarket Start-Stop batteries could rise to 56 million worldwide by 2020, compared... Read more →

Tenneco introduced its oval-shaped gasoline particulate filter design at the 2015 Frankfurt Motor Show . The filters are designed for gasoline direct injection (GDI) engines to reduce particulate emissions in compliance with the Euro 6c emissions regulations, which take effect on 1 September 2017. GDI engines help improve fuel economy... Read more →

Tenneco unveiled its latest generation of electronically controlled valves at the 2015 Frankfurt Motor Show. The valves, which are designed to support low pressure exhaust gas recirculation (EGR) for diesel engines and acoustic tuning for gasoline engines, feature a new modular design which offers vehicle manufacturers custom flexibility and adaptability... Read more →

IBM is introducing a new IBM Cloud-based service to help automakers turn driver and vehicle data into actionable insights for predictive vehicle maintenance, real-time diagnostics on engine trouble,and to guide drivers to the most efficient traffic routes. By 2020, 90% of new cars will be equipped with extensive connectivity services,... Read more →

At the Frankfurt Motor Show, Samsung SDI is showcasing its EV battery business as well as its automobile material business and SDIBS (SDI Battery systems), and battery pack development business undertaken from Magna this past May. Samsung SDI is the only major global battery manufacturer participating in the show; Audi... Read more →

Mahle has developed a new thermal spray coating for modern high-output direct-injection turbocharged gasoline engines (GTDI). Under development since 2011 at Mahle’s thermal spray development labs in Michigan, the new process initially was designed for high-output GTDI engines currently in production by two US domestic automakers. The market for high-output... Read more →

Ford Motor Company and Alcoa Inc. are collaborating to produce next-generation automotive aluminum alloys that are more formable and design-friendly. Ford will use Alcoa’s Micromill material (earlier post) in multiple components on the 2016 F-150, becoming the first automaker to use the advanced automotive aluminum commercially. The companies entered into... Read more →

At the Frankfurt Motor Show (IAA), Bosch is highlighting its solid-state Li-ion battery technology, saying that the technology for electric cars could be production-ready in as little as five years. The acquisition of the US start-up Seeo Inc. (earlier post) will help make this possible, Bosch said. In addition to... Read more →

Mercedes-Benz unveiled the “Concept IAA” (Intelligent Aerodynamic Automobile) at the Frankfurt Motor Show. The study switches automatically from a four-door coupé with a fascinating design to an aerodynamic world record breaker with a Cd figure of 0.19 when the vehicle reaches a speed of 80 km/h (50 mph), at which... Read more →

Nissan unveiled a new compact crossover concept, the Nissan Gripz Concept, at the Frankfurt Motor Show. The Gripz Concept is a series-hybrid system in which a small efficient gasoline engine is used to power the electric motor found in the Nissan LEAF. Nissan calls the series-hybrid system “Pure Drive e-Power”.... Read more →

Maxwell Technologies, Inc. announced that Continental Automotive Systems’ Maxwell-powered voltage stabilization system (VSS) will be a standard feature on 2016 Cadillac ATS and CTS sedans. General Motors is the first North American automotive OEM to integrate the Continental ultracapacitor-based voltage stabilization as part of the enhanced start-stop system, which lowers... Read more →

Volkswagen introduced the second-generation Tiguan SUV at the IAA in Frankfurt. The second generation Tiguan is the first Volkswagen Group SUV whose design is based on the MQB platform. Volkswagen has sold some 2.6 million units of the first generation version since its introduction in 2007. Volkswagen presented four versions... Read more →

The US Department of Transportation (DOT) will award up to $42 million to New York City, Wyoming, and Tampa, FL will receive up to $42 million to pilot next-generation technology in infrastructure and in vehicles to share and communicate anonymous information with each other and their surroundings in real time,... Read more →

Offering ethanol made from algae for the first time commercially, Algenol Biotech LLC and Protec Fuel Management, LLC have entered into an agreement to market and distribute ethanol from Algenol’s Fort Myers, Fla., commercial demonstration module. The two will also offer Algenol’s future 18 million gallons per year from its... Read more →

At Volkswagen AG’s Group Night preview Monday of what will come on Tuesday at the Frankfurt Motor Show, Audi unveiled its MLB evo (second-generation MLB)-based e-tron quattro battery-electric vehicle (earlier post); Porsche rolled out the Mission E, its first battery-electric four-seat sports car which offers a 500 km (311 mile)... Read more →

The latest E-Mobility Index from Roland Berger and Forschungsgesellschaft Kraftfahrwesen mbH Aachen (fka) for the third quarter of 2015 finds that the market share of electric vehicles in the seven leading automotive nations—Germany, France, Italy, the USA, Japan, China and South Korea—remains stubbornly low. “The major growth impetus that would... Read more →

Electrovaya, under New York Governor Andrew M. Cuomo’s Reforming the Energy Vision (REV) strategy, will design, build and deliver a 500 kW lithium-ion battery system to add energy resilience and efficiency to electric grid. The advanced Transportable Energy Storage System (TESS) is an adoption of Electrovaya’s standard stationary energy storage... Read more →

Researchers at Carnegie Mellon University have discovered how nanoscale polymer films limit future cost reductions in fuel cell electric vehicles. Moving forward, this result will direct research and development efforts to address the problem of the electrolyte acid’s interaction with the platinum instead of focusing on the oxygen transport properties.... Read more →

The National Academies have released a third review of the 21st Century Truck Partnership (21CTP); the review follows the Phase 1 and Phase 2 reviews by the National Research Council in 2008 and 2012 (earlier post) and assesses the progress the partnership has made. The report highlights goals that have... Read more →

Researchers in S. Korea have developed a simple synthetic method for producing carbon-based hybrid cellular nanosheets that exhibit strong electrochemical performance for many key aspects of high-performance lithium-ion battery anodes. The nanosheets consist of close-packed cubic cavity cells partitioned by carbon walls, resembling plant leaf tissue. Loading the carbon cellular... Read more →

ams AG, a leading provider of high performance sensors and analog ICs, has introduced launched a reference board for a small, high-performance and simple 48V automotive battery monitoring system. The board is suitable for use in the next generation of single 48V lithium battery systems, and in dual 48V/12V battery... Read more →

Ford will be introducing the Euro-spec version of its Edge SUV at the IAA in Frankfurt this week. The large SUV will be offered in Europe with a choice of 180PS 2.0-liter TDCi diesel engine with six-speed manual transmission, or 210 PS bi-turbo 2.0‑liter TDCi diesel with six-speed PowerShift automatic... Read more →

Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti on Friday announced a commitment to lease 160 pure battery EV vehicles, a move that will give Los Angeles the largest city-owned pure EV fleet in the US. The program commits city departments to the leasing of pure battery electric vehicles (BEVs) and plug-in hybrid... Read more →

After benchmarking 12 leading power electronics companies on performance and execution, Lux Research has concluded that Infineon is a “clear winner” on both metrics. To assess “innovation,” Lux analyzed R&D spending and the last five years of patent portfolios, innovation-impacting acquisitions, divestments and partnerships, and overall new product portfolio. To... Read more →

China-based automaker BAIC has opened its first overseas research and development center, the BAIC EV R&D Center in Silicon Valley, California. Beijing Electric Vehicle Co., Ltd. (BAIC BJEV), a subsidiary of BAIC, is a developer of new energy vehicles in China. This new center, established in affiliation with the Beijing... Read more →

Volkswagen reports that it is on track with its “Think Blue. Factory.” environmental program: since 2011, the consumption of resources in vehicle production has been reduced by an average of 24.3% (Earlier post.) To achieve that, Volkswagen has successfully implemented more than 3,400 environmental measures and projects in production at... Read more →

Volkswagen Group took the top spot again as the world’s most sustainable automaker in RobecoSAM AG’s 2015 annual review of the Dow Jones Sustainability Indices (DJSI). As in 2013, Volkswagen is thus one of only two automakers to be listed in both DJSI World and DJSI Europe. Launched in 1999,... Read more →

Professor Alireza Khaligh and and Professor Patrick McCluskey at the University of Maryland Energy Research Center have received a three-year Grant Opportunity for Academic Liaison with Industry (GOALI) valued at $460K from the National Science Foundation. Their project, "Integrated On-Board Universal SiC-based Fast Charging for Plug-In Electric Vehicles centers on... Read more →

Ford Motor Company is leading a €3.5-million (US$3.9-million) research project to investigate the use of alternative fuels that could offer customers the power and performance of modern internal combustion engines with environmental benefits comparable to an electric vehicle. The German government is co-funding the three-year project that will test the... Read more →

Ten major vehicle manufacturers have committed to making automatic emergency braking (AEB) a standard feature on all new vehicles built, the US Department of Transportation, its National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) announced today. The announcement, made at the dedication of IIHS’s... Read more →

Bosch is leading a consortium in a German government-funded project to develop a direct injection system for monovalent natural gas engines—i.e., engines that run exclusively on CNG. Compared with present systems that use manifold gas injection, a direct injection system for natural gas could deliver as much as 60% more... Read more →

Williams Advanced Engineering, the sole supplier of the battery packs for the FIA Formula E Championship, confirmed that the maximum power output of the batteries for the racers will increase to 170kW during each race in season two of the Championship. The 28 kWh (maximum usable) battery packs, which use... Read more →

Building on the success of Ford’s Innovate Mobility Challenge Series (IMCS) 1.0 in 2014 (earlier post), Ford has launched the Hsuehshan Tunnel Transformer Challenge in Taiwan, which asks developers to submit traffic-busting solutions for the main highway artery between Taipei and popular tourist destination Yilan. The Hsuehshan Tunnel Transformer Challenge... Read more →

The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) recently granted Ensyn Corporation (earlier post) Part 79 registration for its renewable diesel product, RFDiesel. This registration, pursuant to Title 40 CFR Part 79 of the Clean Air Act, is required for the sale of RFDiesel in the US. RFDiesel, a drop-in diesel transportation... Read more →

The National Science Foundation will provide $2.42 million to develop a unique facility for refining complex, physics-based computer models with big data techniques at the University of Michigan. The university will provide an additional $1.04 million. The focal point of the project will be a new computing resource, called ConFlux,... Read more →

Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced that 21 states will receive $100 million in grants through the Biofuel Infrastructure Partnership (BIP) to add infrastructure needed to supply more renewable fuel to drivers in the US. Since announcing the program in May 2015, the US. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Farm Service Agency... Read more →

IHS revised downward its forecast for light vehicle sales in China, projecting a decline of 3 to 4 percent from previous estimates for 2015. IHS Automotive has reduced its full year 2015 light vehicle sales forecast for China to 23.4 million units, reflecting a growth rate over 2014 of just... Read more →

New research led by scientists from the Department of Energy’s SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory and Stanford University reveals how individual atoms move in trillionths of a second to form wrinkles on a three-atom-thick material. Visualized by a new “electron camera,” one of the world’s speediest, this unprecedented level of detail... Read more →

BMW held a cornerstone-laying ceremony for its new Lightweight Design Center at BMW’s Landshut site. Some 160 engineers will research innovative materials and manufacturing processes for future vehicle, starting at the end of 2016. BMW is investing about €20 million (US$22 million) in the center. Lightweight construction is one of... Read more →

ITM Power has signed a strategic siting partnership with Shell for the delivery of Hydrogen Refueling Stations (HRS) on three Shell retail forecourts in the UK. These three HRS deployments will be the first to be integrated onto forecourts in the UK. ITM Power announced on 28 March 2015 that... Read more →

Audi is providing €1 million (US$1.1 million) in emergency aid available for refugees in Europe. The company is using the funds to support aid initiatives at its production sites in Ingolstadt, Neckarsulm, Brussels and Győr. We have been shocked by the great suffering of the refugees in Europe. People at... Read more →

Nissan introduced the 2016 all-electric LEAF with an available 30 kWh battery that provides an EPA-estimated range of 107 miles (172 km)—a 27% increase over the previous 24 kWH battery. All LEAF models feature an 80kW AC synchronous motor that generates 80 kW (107 hp) and 254 N·m (187 lb-ft)... Read more →

Because heating, ventilation and air conditioning systems (HVAC) consume substantial amounts of energy—and therefore fuel, or electrical energy stored in the battery of a Battery Electric Vehicle (BEV)—Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) is working on research projects that could significantly reduce the energy consumed when heating and cooling a vehicle. Rather... Read more →

The US Department of Energy (DOE) has issued a funding opportunity (DE-FOA-0001349 ) announcement for up to $11 million to support projects covering two areas of technical interest. The first is medium- and heavy-duty powertrain electrification; the second is a dual fuel fleet demonstration. DOE anticipates making approximately 2 to... Read more →

Peak-time emissions from diesel trains at London’s Paddington Station exceed the European recommendations for outdoor air quality, and are higher than nearby roadsides on the majority of days, according to a new study published as an open access paper in the IOP journal Environmental Research Letters. Air quality has been... Read more →