China-based Didi Chuxing, the world’s largest mobile transportation platform, together with Chinese traffic management authorities, has launched an integrated solution for smart city traffic management, nicknamed “DiDi Smart Transportation Brain.” The DiDi Smart Transportation Brain has been adopted by more than 20 Chinese cities and is guided by three principal... Read more →

National Research Council of Canada (NRC) researchers Fabrice Bernier and Jean-Michel Lamarre have developed a cold-spray additive-manufacturing process to fabricate permanent magnets for electric motors. Currently, high-performance magnets used in electric motors are typically made using processes such as powder compaction (for sintered magnets) or injection moulding (for bonded magnets).... Read more →

In a new user experience evaluation report, Strategy Analytics has slammed the Tesla Model 3, calling the experience “inferior to that of other Tesla systems.” Author Chris Schreiner said that the 15" touchscreen seems designed for driving use cases that are currently unavailable, resulting in a “suboptimal experience”. While simplicity... Read more →

Researchers at Argonne National Laboratory have developed a novel model that allows industry, the US Department of Energy (DOE) and others to gauge the impact of recycling batteries in electric vehicles. From cathodes to anodes and electrolytes, Argonne’s understanding of batteries, combined with ReCell, a closed-loop battery recycling model, offers... Read more →

On the heels of an quarterly report marked by an underwhelming profit, and amid a general “lack of fitness” according to CFO Bob Shanks, Ford Motor announced that it is accelerating and expanding its activities in 2018 to deliver a broad suite of mobility products and services to personal vehicle... Read more →

Engineers at the University of California San Diego and the University of California Los Angeles have developed an energy-efficient approach to regenerate Li-ion battery cathode materials (using LiCoO2 as a model material) by hydrothermal treatment of cycled electrode particles followed by short annealing. Unlike the conventional chemical leaching or solid-state... Read more →

Scania, a member of the Volkswagen Group, and Northvolt, a 2016 startup building a European Gigafactory (planned 32 GWh annual capacity) for Li-ion batteries (earlier post), have agreed to develop and commercialize battery cell technology for heavy commercial vehicles. Scania is investing €10 million (US$12.5 million) in the partnership to... Read more →

The Port of Rotterdam Authority has put a new hybrid patrol vessel into operation. The RPA 8 is 25 meters in length and can run on both diesel and diesel-electric. The vessel causes considerably less vessel wake and is much more efficient than other Port Authority vessels. It replaces the... Read more →

Nexar, a vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) technology company, closed a $30 million round of financing led by Ibex Investors, with participation from Alibaba Innovation Ventures, US-based Nationwide, and previous investors Aleph, Mosaic Ventures, Slow Ventures, True Ventures, and Tusk Ventures. The company provides consumers, insurance companies, and automakers with safe driving tools... Read more →

A new metal mesh membrane developed by researchers at MIT could advance the use of the Na–NiCl2 displacement battery, which has eluded widespread adoption owing to the fragility of the β"-Al2O3 membrane. A battery, based on electrodes made of sodium and nickel chloride and using thea new type of metal... Read more →

A study conducted before and after the 2004 closure of a coal-burning power plant in Tongliang, China, found that children born before the closure had shorter telomeres than those conceived and born after the plant stopped polluting the air. Results appear in the journal Environment International. Telomeres are specialized sections... Read more →

After testing truck platooning in Europe (earlier post) and the US (earlier post), Daimler Trucks has begun testing platooning in Japan with its FUSO brand. During these tests, a heavy-duty FUSO Super Great operates electronically connected and semi autonomously in a platoon with trucks of other Japanese commercial vehicle manufacturers.... Read more →

South Korea-based steelmaker POSCO will establish two Li-ion battery material joint ventures in China with leading cobalt supplier Zhejiang Huayou Cobalt. One company will focus on precursors; the other will produce cathodes. Huayou Cobalt will own a 60% stake in the joint venture for precursors and POSCO the remaining 40%.... Read more →

The US Department of Energy (DOE) has announced a coming $3-million prize competition to reenergize innovation in US solar manufacturing. The American Made Solar Prize is in addition to total DOE funding of up to $400 million for solar projects and technologies in 2017. The Solar Prize will identify innovative... Read more →

Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper released of the Colorado Electric Vehicle (EV) Plan, delivering on a directive set forth in the July 2017 Executive Order, “Supporting Colorado’s Clean Energy Transition.” The plan details a series of actions supporting EV infrastructure along Colorado’s corridors. It also lays out goals to accelerate adoption... Read more →

In 2016, the US Department of Energy (DOE) and Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) released a study concluding that within 25 years, the US could produce enough biomass to support a bioeconomy, including renewable aquatic and terrestrial biomass resources that could be used for energy and to develop products for... Read more →

Auto manufacturers are fully engaged in the global movement toward battery electric vehicles (BEVs) as part of their efforts to comply with emission requirements, but the transition will pressure their returns, according to a new report from Moody’s Investors Service. Moody’s expects BEVs to represent approximately 7%-8% of global new... Read more →

In Japan, buyers of the new Nissan LEAF in a region of western Japan will earn points that they can use to help pay their utility bills, as part of a partnership to promote electric cars. Beginning 1 February, customers of Shikoku Electric Power Co. who purchase a new Nissan... Read more →

Nanyang Technological University, Singapore (NTU Singapore) and BlueSG Pte Ltd, a subsidiary of Blue Solutions owned by the Bolloré Group, have launched Singapore’s first flash-charging electric shuttle. Named the NTU-Blue Solutions Flash Shuttle, the fully electric vehicle only requires 20 seconds to recharge at stations which are fitted for its... Read more →

Under a proposal submitted to the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) this week, San Diego-based SDG&E is seeking approval to build charging infrastructure to enable about 3,000 medium/heavy-duty vehicles to go electric. To clean up the air in areas suffering from the highest levels of tailpipe emissions, 40% of the... Read more →

The 2018 Environmental Performance Index (EPI) finds that air quality is the leading environmental threat to public health. The EPI uses three indicators to measure air quality: household solid fuel use; PM2.5 average exposure, and PM2.5 exceedance of WHO thresholds. Recent research cited by the EPI suggests that around five... Read more →

Groupe PSA will establish its new North American headquarters in Atlanta. The headquarters will be operational by February 2018. A core team has already been set up to build the strategy and steer its execution. The decision to locate in Atlanta came after a yearlong, nationwide search to find the... Read more →

Tesla announced a new 10-year CEO performance award for Elon Musk with vesting entirely contingent on achieving market cap and operational milestones that would make Tesla one of the most valuable companies in the world. In order for Musk’s compensation to vest fully, Tesla’s market cap would have to grow... Read more →

An influx of plug-in electric vehicles (PEVs) charging without coordination could prove challenging to the nation’s electric grid, according to research conducted by the US Department of Energy’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL). Dr. Matteo Muratori, a transportation and energy systems engineer at NREL, developed highly resolved models of residential... Read more →

VIA Motors International is partnering with China-based Zhejiang Geely New Energy Vehicle Co. Ltd., a subsidiary of Zhejiang Geely Commercial Vehicle Group, to co-develop a medium-duty extended range electric truck. The truck will incorporate VIA’s proprietary vehicle software and systems control technology, for launch in China and the Americas in... Read more →

Volvo Trucks will start selling electric trucks in Europe in 2019, and the first units will be put into operation with select customers in 2018. Electromobility is fully in line with Volvo Trucks’ long-term commitment to sustainable urban development and zero emissions. We believe in full electrification for urban distribution... Read more →

A new report by the UK-based Institution of Mechanical Engineers (IMechE) calls for urgent action to tackle the damage to health caused by air pollution. Health problems range from slowing the proper development of children’s lungs through to respiratory and cardiovascular diseases among the elderly. A 2016 report by the... Read more →

Sales of the Toyota Mirai hydrogen fuel cell electric vehicle has surpassed 3,000 units in California. Having reached this new milestone, Mirai make up more than 80% of all hydrogen fuel cell vehicles in the United States. The Toyota Mirai, a four-door, mid-size sedan, is a zero-emission hydrogen vehicle with... Read more →

Novelis Inc., world leader in aluminum rolling and recycling, plans to build an approximately $300-million automotive aluminum sheet manufacturing facility in Guthrie, Kentucky. The greenfield facility, with an annual nameplate capacity of 200,000 metric tons, will include heat treatment and pre-treatment lines, which prepare aluminum for use in vehicle parts... Read more →

Oil, gas and fuels producer Neste reached its highest-ever ranking by placing 2nd on the Global 100 list of the world’s most sustainable companies. This is the 12th time that Neste, the leading producer of renewable diesel, is included on the list. The company has been included on the list... Read more →

Electrify America has selected Greenlots, a leading provider of grid-enabled electric vehicle (EV) smart charging solutions, to deliver the operating platform for its network of high-power fast chargers that will greatly expand highway and other EV charging capabilities across the United States. As part of its $2-billion investment in EV... Read more →

Researchers at the University of Twente’s MESA+ research institute have made significant efficiency improvements to the technology used to generate solar fuels. They fabricated a highly efficient photocathode by spatially and functionally decoupling light absorption and catalytic activity. As reported in a paper in the journal Nature Energy, their silicon... Read more →

The US Energy Information Administration’s (EIA’s) January 2018 Short-Term Energy Outlook (STEO) forecasts that natural gas will remain the primary source of US electricity generation for at least the next two years. The share of total electricity supplied by natural gas-fired power plants is expected to average 33% in 2018... Read more →

For this year’s annual World Economic Forum (23-26 January 2018), the city of Davos and ABB have teamed up in a long-term partnership to provide e-infrastructure for public and private transportation. Davos residents and WEF guests can experience the pioneering TOSA bus (earlier post) for themselves. The award-winning TOSA e-bus,... Read more →

In the UK, Nissan launched Nissan Energy Solar, combining residential solar panels with an energy storage system. The solution has been designed to allow UK homeowners to reduce their energy bills and get more independence from the grid and enabling to live more sustainably. The new product includes a home... Read more →

Electrify America, which is building a robust national charging network and increasing electric vehicle awareness across the United States (earlier post), has issued a call for comments, proposals and recommendations that provide guidance and data to help guide the company’s next set of Zero Emission Vehicle (ZEV) investments in California... Read more →

Researchers in China have developed a new hydroprocessing catalyst—nickel (Ni) and phosphotungstic acid (HPW) supported on carbon nanotubes (CNT)—to produce alkanes from vegetable oils. In an open-access paper in the journal NANO, they report that the distribution of products can be adjusted by reaction temperature. At 320 ˚C, the yield... Read more →

Researchers at the University of California, Riverside, with colleagues at Stanford have developed a general approach for the production of inexpensive, efficient and durable catalysts for PEM fuel cells: 1D porous nitrogen-doped graphitic carbon fibers embedded with active oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) catalyst components (M/MOx, i.e., metal or metal oxide... Read more →

Canada-based waste-to-biofuels and renewable chemicals producer Enerkem Inc. signed an agreement with Sinobioway Group worth more than C$125 million (US$100 million) in the form of equity investment in Enerkem Inc., future licenses, equipment manufacturing and sales, as well as for the creation of a major joint venture that will lead... Read more →

Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (VWGoA) has officially joined the LIFT (Lightweight Innovations For Tomorrow) institute as a Silver Member to advance the group’s research into lightweight metals, therefore reducing the weight of future vehicles. The group comprises Volkswagen, Audi, Bentley, Lamborghini and Bugatti; VWGoA is the first automotive OEM... Read more →

Japan-based Suntory Holdings Limited, one of the world’s leading consumer beverage companies, has invested an additional $9 million in Anellotech’s Bio-TCat technology. This latest tranche, which is part of a new $15-million package based on Anellotech achieving specific milestones, brings Suntory’s total investment in Anellotech to more than $25 million... Read more →

The European Parliament last week endorsed a series of proposals setting targets for cleaner, more efficient energy use. Among those was a proposal for a binding EU-level target of a 12% share of energy from renewable sources in transport, by 2030. Members of Parliament also endorsed setting a 35% improvement... Read more →

Xinhua reports that Wuhan, capital city of central China’s Hubei Province in Central China, will build itself into a “hydrogen city” through developing a hydrogen energy industry, according to a city development plan. The city will advance hydrogen production, storage and transport, and improve hydrogen infrastructure, along with a hydrogen... Read more →

GKN Driveline announced that its order book for electric driveline (eDrive) technologies hit a record £2 billion (US$2.8 billion) by the end of 2017 following a series of significant program wins with major global automakers. Sales, which were previously forecast to rise from £33 million (US$45.7 million) in 2017 to... Read more →

Delphi Technologies PLC, a leader in vehicle propulsion technologies, has invested in PolyCharge America, Inc, a start-up established to commercialize a new capacitor technology. This technology helps to make high-power inverters smaller, lighter and more tolerant to high temperatures. The minority equity investment, for an undisclosed sum, builds on an... Read more →

MIT researchers have discovered a way to increase the efficiency of thermoelectric materials threefold by using “topological” materials, which have unique electronic properties. While past work has suggested that topological materials may serve as efficient thermoelectric systems, there has been little understanding as to how electrons in such topological materials... Read more →

Lithium metal—with its high theoretical capcity and low electrochemical potential—is an ideal anode for Li-ion batteries, and is the material of choice for advanced batteries such as Li-sulfur and Li-O2. However, dendritic growth on the anode leads to an unstable solid electrolyte interphase, volume fluctuation, and even shorting of the... Read more →

Saudi Aramco, through its wholly-owned subsidiary Saudi Aramco Technologies, signed a three-party Joint Development Agreement (JDA) with CB&I, a US-based provider of technology and infrastructure for the energy industry, and Chevron Lummus Global (CLG), a joint venture between CB&I and Chevron USA Inc., and a leading process technology licensor. The... Read more →

The Volkswagen brand is gearing up for the production of the next generation of the Golf family—the Golf 8. Volkswagen plans to invest €1.8 billion (US$2.2 billion) in the model family. In 75 weeks, the eighth generation of this bestseller in the compact segment will roll off the production lines... Read more →

As part of a research project, Audi is running a pilot project with households in the Ingolstadt area and the Zurich region in conjunction with other partners. This involves combining various sizes of photovoltaic systems with stationary storage batteries. The control software by the Zurich start-up company Ampard distributes the... Read more →