Renault Trucks and Groupe Delanchy have just developed an all-electric truck equipped with a refrigerated box for delivering fresh produce. Groupe Delanchy will deliver produce to Les Halles de Lyon Paul Bocuse (France’s largest covered food market) using this low-noise, electric 13-tonne Renault Trucks D experimental vehicle. Renault’s D trucks... Read more →

Renault Trucks has won the “Low Emissions Driveline Award” for its laboratory distribution vehicle, Urban Lab 2. This prize, awarded by the LUTB Transport & Mobility Systems cluster and the PFA Automotive Industry and Mobilities, as part of the Solutrans Innovation Awards, was presented to the manufacturer at the Lyon... Read more →

BP, Eni, ExxonMobil, Repsol, Shell, Statoil, Total and Wintershall committed to reduce further methane emissions from the natural gas assets they operate around the world. The energy companies also agreed to encourage others across the natural gas value chain—from production to the final consumer—to do the same. The commitment was... Read more →

China Yuchai International, a leading manufacturer and distributor of engines for on- and off-road applications in China through its main operating subsidiary, Guangxi Yuchai Machinery Company Limited (GYMCL), announced that GYMCL has received its first order from Beijing Automotive Group Co., Ltd. (BAIC) for 600 YC4Y20 engines that will be... Read more →

KOHLER has introduced a new global emissions platform for its award winning KOHLER Direct Injection (KDI) diesel engine line. KOHLER Flex, unveiled at Agritechnica 2017 in Hanover, Germany, is a suite of advanced engine systems which are integrated into the KDI line—based on the specific needs of global equipment manufacturers—to... Read more →

Buick launched the 2018 Buick Envision in China with a new nine-speed transmission, updated design and enhanced connectivity. The Envision originally went on sale in China in October 2014. It remains Buick’s most popular SUV and second most popular model overall, with deliveries of 169,227 units in the first 10... Read more →

The UK’s Chancellor of the Exchequer, Philip Hammond, presented his Autumn Budget to Parliament. Among the elements in the budget are the launch of a new £400-million (US$530-million) Charging Investment Infrastructure Fund and the provision of an extra £100 million (US$133 million) towards helping people buy battery-electric cars. The government... Read more →

As a strong indication of its growing presence in North America, Mahindra Automotive North America (MANA) has opened a new North American HQ and manufacturing operation in the Detroit area—the first such new OEM facility in Southeast Michigan in more than 25 years. The new facility will produce an off-highway... Read more →

Thirteen environmental groups working on clean transportation solutions sent a letter to the United States Postal Service (USPS) urging it to select plug-in electric vehicles (EVs) for the next generation of delivery vehicles (NGDV). The USPS fleet travels more than 1.3 billion miles every year and uses more than 180... Read more →

Plug-in electric vehicles sales surged to a record in the third quarter, largely driven by strong demand in China, according to a new report from Bloomberg New Energy Finance (BNEF). Sales of battery-electric vehicles and plug-in hybrids exceeded 287,000 units in the quarter, 63% higher than the same quarter a... Read more →

Velodyne LiDAR is partnering with Unmanned Solution (UMS) of South Korea to integrate its advanced LiDAR sensors into UMS’ expansive autonomous technology development program. UMS’ autonomous program represents a broad spectrum of activities, including on-road vehicles, agricultural equipment, robots, and autonomous systems integration, as well as the development of an... Read more →

Under the “data.camp” slogan, Audi has started an employee training campaign focused on big data and artificial intelligence. Expertise in these areas is an essential basis for the development of cars driving in piloted mode, intelligent robots and digital mobility services. One important element here is Audi’s cooperation with the... Read more →

Arun Raju, director of the Center for Renewable Natural Gas at UC Riverside, recently received a $146,000 grant from Southern California Gas Co. (SoCalGas) to examine the proposed 100% Renewable Portfolio Standard (RPS) and explore options that can help achieve emission reduction goals more efficiently and at lower costs. State... Read more →

The chief executive of Eni, Claudio Descalzi, and the chief executive of FCA, Sergio Marchionne, signed a Memorandum of Understanding for the joint development of research projects and technological applications aimed at reducing CO2 emissions from road transport vehicles. The two companies, renewing their strategic commitment to a low-carbon future... Read more →

According to the Baden-Württemberg state environmental agency, brakes and tires are responsible for 32% of driving-related particulate emissions—roughly half of which is brake dust. Significantly reducing brake dust is therefore essential to improving the air, especially in cities. Now, the Bosch subsidiary Buderus Guss has developed the iDisc, a brake... Read more →

Vanderbilt University’s Ken Pence, professor of the practice of engineering management, and Tim Potteiger, a Ph.D. student in electrical engineering, have developed a battery management device that reconfigures battery modules in electric cars to be online or offline depending on whether or not they’re going to pull down the other... Read more →

Toyota Financial Services (TFS) issued its first euro-denominated unsecured Green Bond today, expanding its commitment to the sale of environmentally friendly vehicles. The €600-million (US$704-million) bond will be used to fund the acquisition of new retail finance contracts and beneficial interests in lease contracts for Toyota and Lexus vehicles that... Read more →

A team from UCLA and colleagues from Tarbiat Modares University and Shahed University in Iran have devised an integrated solar-powered system for both electrochemical energy storage and water electrolysis. They synthesized a nickel-cobalt-iron layered double hydroxide (Ni-Co-Fe LDH) on a nickel foam substrate using a fast, one-step electrodeposition approach. The... Read more →

Toyota Motor revealed T-HR3, the company’s third-generation humanoid robot. Toyota’s latest robotics platform, designed and developed by Toyota’s Partner Robot Division, will explore new technologies for safely managing physical interactions between robots and their surroundings, as well as a new remote maneuvering system that mirrors user movements to the robot.... Read more →

Neste US, Inc. has entered exclusive partnerships with four fuel distributors in California—IPC (USA), Inc.; Ramos Oil Company, Van De Pol Petroleum; and Western States Oil—to supply Neste MY Renewable Diesel through these partners in their respective territories. Neste MY Renewable Diesel is a sustainable drop-in fuel, and meets conventional... Read more →

The technology group Wärtsilä will supply the engines, the navigation system, and a broad scope of other products and systems for a new luxury and environmentally friendly ferry being built for the Finland based operator, Viking Line, at the Xiamen Shipbuilding Industry yard in China. Six Wärtsilä 31DF dual-fuel engines... Read more →

The South Coast British Columbia Transportation Authority (TransLink) has awarded New Flyer with a contract for 106 Xcelsior compressed natural gas (CNG) forty-foot, heavy-duty transit buses. The CNG buses will be equipped with 2018 Cummins L9N engines, which provide a significantly reduced carbon footprint supporting TransLink’s planned fleet rejuvenation initiative... Read more →

Connected Energy, a UK provider of site-integrated energy storage solutions, is heading a £1.3-million (US$1.7-million) research collaboration with Jaguar Land Rover, WMG at University of Warwick and Videre Global to establish key components of a second-life battery value chain. The project is co-funded by an Innovate UK grant, awarded in... Read more →

In 2016, California had the highest concentration of plug-in vehicles relative to population with 6.65 PEVs per 1,000 people, according to figures from the US Department of Energy (DOE). Hawaii had the second highest concentration with nearly four PEVs per 1,000 people followed by Washington and Oregon with about three... Read more →

Emirates Transport (ET), the UAE government owned public transport provider, recently launched the final phase of testing for the first electric-powered school bus in the region. The 45-seater bus was manufactured in close cooperation with the Shanghai Sunwin Bus Cooperation. During the pilot phase, the bus will operate on full... Read more →

Axel Springer Digital Ventures and Porsche Digital will establish a new, joint start-up accelerator. The companies signed an agreement on entering into a joint venture in which each holds a half share. Together, both companies aim to support digital business ideas that have high market potential and the chance to... Read more →

UPS announced an agreement with Big Ox Energy (a wholly owned subsidiary of Environmental Energy Capital LLC) to purchase 10 million gallon equivalents of renewable natural gas (RNG) per year. This is the largest investment in RNG to date for the company, and the agreement runs through 2024. Use of... Read more →

DuPont Industrial Biosciences launched the SYNERXIA THRIVE Fermentation System, the newest innovation in the company’s synergistic fermentation system technologies. The new fermentation system will deliver up to 4% higher ethanol yields in dry grind facilities, improved robustness during thermal excursions and improved performance. SYNERXIA THRIVE is the result of a... Read more →

Mercedes-Benz Vans will offer electric drive options on all its commercial van model lines. This will start with the mid-size eVito, with deliveries commencing in the second half of 2018. Further model ranges will follow, starting in 2019. The eVito, the second all-electric production model from Mercedes-Benz Vans after the... Read more →

Volvo Cars has signed a framework agreement with Uber to provide “tens of thousands” of autonomous-driving-compatible base vehicles between 2019 and 2021. The base vehicles are developed on Volvo Cars’ fully modular, in-house developed Scalable Product Architecture (SPA). SPA is currently used on Volvo Cars’ 90 series cars as well... Read more →

Earlier this year, Ford revealed the world’s first-ever pursuit-rated hybrid police vehicle. (Earlier post.) Now, the company is introducing a plug-in hybrid vehicle with an all-electric range of 21 miles for police and government customers. The Special Service Plug-In Hybrid Sedan, the first PHEV police vehicle from Ford, is designed... Read more →

Mazda Motor will unveil an updated Mazda6 sedan (known as Mazda Atenza in Japan) at the Los Angeles Auto Show. The Mazda6 is the flagship of Mazda’s passenger car lineup. The powertrain lineup in this round of updates—the third since the model was fully redesigned in 2012—adopts new technologies, including... Read more →

Shell and bio-bean are parterning to produce a B20 biofuel made partly from waste coffee grounds. The biofuel is being added to the London bus fuel supply chain and will help to power some of the buses. Founded in 2013, bio-bean manufactures a range of products from waste coffee grounds;... Read more →

A team of scientists from CoorsTek Membrane Sciences, the University of Oslo (Norway) and the Instituto de Tecnología Química (Spain) have successfully completed laboratory testing of a ceramic membrane that generates compressed hydrogen from natural gas and electricity in a one-step process with near-zero energy loss. The research, reported in... Read more →

GAZ Group, Russia’s largest manufacturer of commercial motor vehicles, has introduced new compressed natural gas (CNG) models of specialized vehicles: a garbage truck with rear loading and a repair mobile workshop created on the base of a GAZon Next CNG medium-duty truck. The medium-duty garbage trucks are suited for use... Read more →

As part of a projected €22.8 billion (US$26.9 billion) investment in its plants worldwide, the Volkswagen Group will invest about €1 billion (US$1.2 billion) into its Zwickau, Germany plant to convert it into a pure-play e-mobility facility. As the Group announced earlier (earlier post), the Zwickau site is being remodeled... Read more →

CRI/Criterion Catalyst Company LTD (CRIUK), a global catalyst technology company wholly owned by Royal Dutch Shell, has awarded an FEL-2 license agreement for the IH2 technology which converts biomass to liquid transportation fuels (earlier post), to Norway-based Biozin Holding AS (BZH). Norwegian saw mill company Bergene Holm AS and the... Read more →

In a new study published in the journal Nano Energy, researchers from Forschungszentrum Jülich in Germany and Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) provide in-depth insight into the electrochemically induced surface reaction processes on iron anodes in concentrated alkaline electrolyte in iron-air batteries. Using in-situ electrochemical atomic force microscopy (in-situ EC-AFM)... Read more →

The Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (Metro) and Via, a provider of on-demand shared rides are partnering to offer an affordable, equitable, and accessible option to connect to major train and bus stations. The project is funded in part by the largest federal grant of its kind—a $1.35-million grant... Read more →

Total petroleum deliveries in October moved up by 1.1% from October 2016 to average 19.9 million barrels per day, according to data from the American Petroleum Institute (API). These were the highest October deliveries since 2007. Compared with September, total domestic petroleum deliveries, a measure of US petroleum demand, decreased... Read more →

Researchers at the University of California Santa Barbara have developed catalytic molten metals to pyrolize methane to release hydrogen and to form solid carbon. The insoluble carbon floats to the surface of the melt, where it can be removed and stored or incorporated into composite materials. This method also avoids... Read more →

Toyota Motor and Suzuki Motor have concluded a memorandum of understanding (MOU) on moving forward in considering a cooperative structure for introducing electric vehicles (EVs) in the Indian market in around 2020. Specifically, Suzuki will produce EVs for the Indian market and will supply some to Toyota, while Toyota is... Read more →

The Volkswagen Group will spend more than €34 billion (US$40 billion) by the end of 2022 on the development of electric mobility, autonomous driving, new mobility services and digitalization. Most of this investment will go into the electrification and hybridization of all Group models. This marks another move to advance... Read more →

A University of Washington team is trying to make poplar an economically viable biofuel feedstock by testing the production of younger poplar trees that could be harvested more frequently—after only two or three years—instead of the usual 10- to 20-year cycle. These juvenile trees are planted closer together and cut... Read more →

Sumitomo Electric Industries and the University of Toyama have developed a high heat-resistant magnesium alloy for die casting applications. In die casting, a molten metal is injected into a die under high pressure and quickly cooled and solidified into the final part. Owing to its high productivity, die casting is... Read more →

The new Nissan LEAF makes its China debut at the 15th China (Guangzhou) International Automobile Exhibition. Nissan is also exhibiting the Vmotion 2.0 concept car, providing a glimpse of the future of sedans. Venucia, the local brand of Dongfeng Venucia Motor Co. within Nissan’s joint venture in China, will also... Read more →

TransLoc, a technology provider of flexible agency-owned microtransit solutions, is partnering with three California transit agencies readying to deploy microtransit in their respective communities: Orange County Transportation Authority (OCTA), Central Contra Costa Transit Authority (CCCTA) and the San Joaquin Regional Transit District (SJRTD). Microtransit is a highly flexible, on-demand mode... Read more →

At Auto Guangzhou 2017, Toyota Motor announced it will introduce an electric vehicle under the Toyota brand in the Chinese market in 2020, and that the scope of a fuel-cell vehicle feasibility study will be expanded to cover commercial vehicles such as buses. For years, Toyota has developed China-made hybrid... Read more →

Emphasizing “BAMF” performance, Tesla CEO Elon Musk introduced the Tesla Semi in an evening event. The sleek electric truck, with a 0.36 coefficient of drag (supported by intelligent flaps that support a range of trailers), will accelerate from 0-60 mph in 5 seconds, charge up a 5% grade at 65... Read more →

PPG has entered into a partnership with SiNode Systems to accelerate the commercialization of high-energy silicon-graphene anode materials for advanced battery applications in electric vehicles. The 30-month project will enable the partners to rapidly develop and demonstrate anode materials that will store more energy than conventional lithium-ion battery materials, enabling... Read more →