The California Air Resources Board (CARB) announced that 500,000 heavy-duty trucks manufactured by Cummins Inc. will be recalled due to excess emissions caused by defective catalysts. The cause of the excess emissions was purely mechanical—the faster-than-expected degradation of the catalyst—and not the product of a defeat device. The degrading catalysts... Read more →

SPARX Group has established its Mirai Creation Fund II. The two seed LPs for Mirai Creation Fund I—Toyota Motor Corporation and Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation —have decided again to participate as initial investors in Fund II. In addition to the three areas of concentration—Intelligent Technology (e.g. artificial intelligence), Robotics, and... Read more →

Terves broke ground on a 12,000 sq. ft. expansion to its magnesium foundry. This H3-classified magnesium metal processing facility expansion enables Terves to further expand its metal processing, heat treatment, machining, and storage capabilities. The expansion plans include additional permanent mold and materials handling and storage space, and the addition... Read more →

Rahul Panat, an associate professor of mechanical engineering at Carnegie Mellon University, and a team of researchers from Carnegie Mellon in collaboration with Missouri University of Science and Technology have developed a new method of aerosol jet (AJ) 3-D printing battery electrodes that creates a 3-D microlattice structure with controlled... Read more →

Researchers at the University of Waterloo have found a better way to identify atomic structures, an essential step in improving materials selection in the aviation, construction and automotive industries. The findings of the open-access study, published in the journal Nature Communications, could result in greater confidence when determining the integrity... Read more →

Researchers at Los Alamos National Laboratory, with colleagues at NREL and the University of Georgia report that a freshwater production strain of microalgae, Auxenochlorella protothecoides UTEX 25, is capable of directly degrading and utilizing non-food plant substrates, such as switchgrass, for cell growth. In addition, the use of plant substrates... Read more →

Developed for hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs) and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs), BorgWarner’s innovative Exhaust Heat Recovery System (EHRS) can improve fuel economy by up to 8.5% and reduce emissions significantly. The EHRS enters production later this year for vehicles from a major North American automaker. By using the heat... Read more →

According to the newly released 2017 National Household Travel Survey (NHTS) by the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), the average light vehicle occupancy in 2017 was 1.67—unchanged from 2009. By vehicle type, cars and pickups remained nearly the same, while vans and motorcycles had higher occupancy in 2017 than in 2009.... Read more →

Toyota unveiled the second iteration of its hydrogen fuel cell electric Class 8 truck (earlier post) during the Center for Automotive Research (CAR) Management Briefing Seminars in Northern Michigan. The new truck, known internally as “Beta,” expands on the capabilities of Toyota’s first Project Portal test vehicle by increasing the... Read more →

BYD has joined CharIN, the Charging Interface Initiative (CharIN e.V.), as it works to establish global standards for charging battery-electric vehicles. The CharIN coalition is developing the Combined Charging System (CCS), an open, universal and international charging system for electric vehicles based on international standards. CCS is currently the world’s... Read more →

Workhorse Group Inc. reported that in real-world pilot-testing,the N-GEN all-electric delivery van has demonstrated a fuel efficiency, as expressed in miles per gallon equivalent (MPGe), that averages 40 MPGe for its 450 cubic foot electric van, and 75MPGe for its 200 cubic foot electric van, representing up to a 500%... Read more →

A new report by the progressive policy institute Center for American Progress estimates that the US needs to add 14 million new PEVs and more than 330,000 new public charging outlets by the end of 2025 in order to meet its Paris Agreement targets. The report, which focuses specifically on... Read more →

The first complete body-in-white (BiW) for the Faraday Future FF 91 all-purpose fully connected luxury EV has successfully begun full-vehicle assembly, following its arrival at the new FF Hanford factory two days ahead of schedule. Awaiting further assembly. FF 91, first introduced to the public and media at the January... Read more →

Audi will reveal a supercar concept car with electric drive during the 2018 Pebble Beach Car Week in California. The abbreviated name for the Audi premiere—Audi PB18 e-tron—refers to the Pebble Beach venue and the year of the debut. It likewise recalls the LeMans-series winner Audi R18 e-tron, whose technology... Read more →

China and India are going to be the growth engines of the global refining industry as they are set to add the most refining capacity of all countries over the period 2018-2022, according to data and analytics company GlobalData. The company’s report ‘Global Refining Industry Outlook to 2022’ forecasts global... Read more →

Researchers at Jilin University in China have proposed a new strategy for designing hydrogen storage alloys with high capacity and long cycling life to improve the discharge capacity and cycling life of nickel metal hydride (NiMH) batteries. Their candidate alloy—La0.62Mg0.08Ce0.2Y0.1Ni3.25Co0.75Mn0.2Al0.3 [corresponding to (LaCeYMg) (NiCoMnAl)4.5] exhibits a high capacity of 326.7... Read more →

In March 2017, the Belgian organization WaterstofNet received approval for the €3.52-million () project ‘H2-Share’ from Interreg North-West Europe (NWE). TNO, the Netherlands Organization for applied scientific research TNO, has now joined in this partnership as an evaluation partner. The project aims to build and demonstrate a 27-ton rigid hydrogen... Read more →

Connected Energy has successfully adapted its E-STOR energy storage technology to integrate second-life Jaguar Land Rover batteries. The provider of site-integrated energy storage solutions is in a £1.3-million (US$1.7-million) collaboration with Jaguar Land Rover to establish key components of a second-life battery value chain. Connected Energy’s technical team adapted their... Read more →

The newly appointed CEO of South Korean steelmaker Posco, Choi Jeong-woo, sees battery materials for electric vehicles as a new growth driver, according to a report in the Nikkei. Choi said that Posco group units making anode and cathode materials will be combined. The company will accelerate development and production... Read more →

Teijin Frontier Co., Ltd., the Teijin Group’s fiber and products converting company, agreed to acquire J.H. Ziegler GmbH (Ziegler), a leading supplier of automotive interior materials in Germany, at a cost of approximately €125 million (US$146 million). Ziegler will become a wholly-owned subsidiary of Teijin Frontier. Since its establishment in... Read more →

Considering electrification, autonomy and sharing (the “Three Revolutions”), a team from Boston University and the University of California, Berkeley projects that electricity use from light duty vehicle (LDV) transport will likely be in the 570–1140 TWh range—13–26%—respectively, of total electricity demand in 2050. Their open-access study appears in the journal Energy... Read more →

Researchers from Nanjing University have developed a new method for the extraction of lithium metal from seawater using solar-powered electrolysis with a NASICON solid-state electrolyte as the selective membrane. In a paper in the journal Joule, they report that their electrolysis method made the lithium extraction process faster and more... Read more →

Cepton Technologies, Inc., a provider of 3D LiDAR solutions for automotive, industrial, and mapping applications, will provide Koito Manufacturing Co., Ltd., a leading global tier-one supplier of exterior automotive lighting, with its miniaturized LiDAR solution for autonomous driving. The compact design of Cepton’s high performance LiDAR sensors enables direct integration... Read more →

By Irina Slav for Oilprice.com. The strength of the U.S. dollar poses an obstacle to further gains in oil prices. President Trump’s trade war with China, which is still in its early stages, has already battered the yuan. The dollar has gained more than 8 percent against the Chinese currency... Read more →

The 2019 Lexus ES 300h’s US EPA mileage estimates of 43 mpg city, 45 mpg highway and 44 mpg (5.47 l/100 km) combined make it the most fuel-efficient luxury vehicle without a plug. The ES 300h uses a new, fourth-generation Hybrid Drive System. In addition to delivering stronger performance and... Read more →

Novelis Inc., the leading producer of flat-rolled aluminum products and the world’s largest recycler of aluminum, has signed a definitive agreement to acquire Aleris Corporation, a global supplier of aerospace and automotive rolled aluminum products, for approximately $2.6 billion including the assumption of debt. Aleris has been an important supplier... Read more →

The Pikes Peak International Hill Climb is unique in many ways, one of them being the heavily restricted test drives. Volkswagen Motorsport wasn’t able to complete hundreds of laps during the development of its record-setting electric I.D. R Pikes Peak (earlier post), as Formula 1 teams are allowed to do... Read more →

The 3M Industrial Mineral Products Division recently launched 3M Smog-reducing Granules to help remove NOx using roofing shingles. Integrated throughout a shingle’s surface, 3M’s roofing granules are designed with a specialized photocatalytic coating applied to the base mineral. The specialized coating on the granule is activated by the sun’s UV... Read more →

Researchers at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln (UNL), with colleagues from North Carolina State University and the University of Connecticut, have engineered the hyperthermophilic anaerobe Thermotoga maritima to produce 46% more hydrogen per cell than the wild type. The team’s highest reported yield—5.7 units of hydrogen for every unit of glucose... Read more →

BP has agreed to acquire a portfolio of world-class unconventional oil and gas assets from BHP. The acquisition will bring BP extensive oil and gas production and resources in the liquids-rich regions of the Permian and Eagle Ford basins in Texas and in the Haynesville gas basin in Texas and... Read more →

Rio Tinto has become the first mining and metals company to be granted the aluminum industry’s Chain of Custody certification by the Aluminum Stewardship Initiative (ASI). The certification means Rio Tinto will be the only company selling aluminum that customers can be assured has been produced to the highest environmental,... Read more →

thyssenkrupp recently introduced industrial-scale water electrolysis for large projects. By splitting water into hydrogen and oxygen, this technology delivers “green” hydrogen, a clean, CO2-free energy carrier. The only inputs needed are water and renewable electricity from wind, hydro power or photovoltaics. 20 MW module. “Green” hydrogen production is suited for... Read more →

The Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) and Tongji University in Shanghai are researching standardizable methods for joint technology development in dispersed locations. In the research project Project MovE2China, funded by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) and the Chinese government, engineers in Germany and China will simultaneously... Read more →

The 2019 Audi e-tron, the first all-electric vehicle from Audi, will make its global debut on 17 September at an event in San Francisco. US customers will be able to configure and reserve their 2019 Audi e-tron on that date as well. Full e-tron specifications, including pricing, will be available... Read more →

The Board of Management and Supervisory Board of Daimler AG has approved a new corporate structure for Daimler AG. The new structure comprises three legally independent entities—Mercedes-Benz AG, Daimler Truck AG and Daimler Mobility AG—under the umbrella of Daimler AG. In the fall of 2017 the first preparatory measures were... Read more →

Silexica, developer of the SLX programming tools, joined the AWare ecosystem of Renovo, a mobility software technology company. Developers of technology for highly automated vehicles (SAE Level 4 and 5) that use Renovo’s AWare OS can now gain access to Silexica’s powerful SLX Programming Tools which analyze and optimize software... Read more →

GM’s Maven is expanding its car-sharing platform to include a peer-to-peer offering that enables owners and eligible lessees to earn money by renting their personal Chevrolet, Buick, GMC or Cadillac car or truck model year 2015 and newer to driving members. The service is available now in beta in Chicago,... Read more →

Tier-1 supplier Hyundai Mobis has developed an electric power steering system which uses the redundant control mode that takes advantage of two electronic circuits during autonomous driving to maintain normal steering capabilities under any circumstances. The system is an advanced technology with no case of mass-production as of yet. The... Read more →

Chemists at Ruhr-Universität Bochum (RUB) have developed a new, low-cost catalyst for plastic production. It turns a biorefinery product into a starting material for the synthesis of plastics, which could represent a sustainable alternative to widespread PET. At the same time, hydrogen can also be formed during the reaction. The... Read more →

Researchers from the University of Cambridge, with colleagues from Argonne National Laboratory in the US and Diamond Light Source, Harwell Science and Innovation Campus, UK, have identified a group of materials—niobium tungsten oxides—that could be used to make even higher power batteries. The researchers, led by Professor Clare Grey, found... Read more →

The US Department of Energy (DOE) announced a final rule that will provide for faster approval of applications for small-scale exports of natural gas, including liquefied natural gas (LNG), from US export facilities. Under the Natural Gas Act, DOE has jurisdiction over imports and exports of natural gas. This deregulatory... Read more →

NTT DOCOMO, INC. (DOCOMO) and AGC Inc. (AGC) achieved the world’s first 8 Gbps 5G communications with a fast-moving vehicle equipped with “vehicle glass mounted antennas” (On-Glass Antennas) in a field trial conducted in conjunction with Ericsson Japan. System configuration. The 5G 28 GHz band compatible On-Glass Antennas used in... Read more →

A new Gallup poll found that while almost one in three Americans overall use ride-sharing services, but who uses them varies substantially by age, income and place of residence. Forty-five percent of adults aged 18 to 29 say they use ride-sharing services such as Uber and Lyft, whereas this drops... Read more →

Ford Motor Company has created Ford Autonomous Vehicles LLC, a new organization charged with accelerating Ford’s autonomous vehicles (AV) business to capitalize on market opportunities. Ford Autonomous Vehicles LLC will include Ford’s self-driving systems integration, autonomous vehicle research and advanced engineering, AV transportation-as-a-service network development, user experience, business strategy and... Read more →

EV startup Faraday Future (FF) has joined MOBI, the Mobility Open Blockchain Initiative (earlier post), to explore blockchain and distributed ledger technology (DLT) for use in the development of a digital mobility ecosystem that could make transportation safer, more affordable, and more widely available. MOBI is the Mobility Open Blockchain... Read more →

With collaboration between German and Chinese companies accelerating in the areas of automated driving and intelligent connected vehicles, Daimler and Baidu recently signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to enhance their Sino-German cooperation in these strategic fields. The two companies have agreed to deepen their partnership through joint automated driving... Read more →

Global VC funding (venture capital, private equity, and corporate venture capital) of $839 million for Battery Storage, Smart Grid, and Efficiency companies in 1H 2018 was 18% lower compared to the more than $1 billion raised in 1H 2017, according to a new report from India-based Mercom Capital Group, llc,... Read more →

Vista Unified School District (VUSD), a public school district based in San Diego County, California, has switched its fleet of 53 school buses to run on Neste MY Renewable Diesel. VUSD is the 4th largest school district in San Diego County and comprises 32 schools. VUSD serves more than 23,000... Read more →

The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued a final notice determining biodiesel and heating oil produced from distillers sorghum oil via a transesterification process, and renewable diesel, jet fuel, heating oil, naphtha, and liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) produced from distillers sorghum oil via a hydrotreating process, would meet the lifecycle... Read more →

BASF announced the commercial launch of Fourte—a new generation of Fluid Catalytic Cracking (FCC) catalysts for gasoil feedstock. Fourte is based on BASF’s new multiple framework topology (MFT) technology offering, and has been optimized to deliver superior selectivity to butylenes while maintaining catalyst activity, which helps refineries maximize their profits.... Read more →