The COVID-19 pandemic has set in motion the largest drop in global energy investment in history, with spending expected to plunge in every major sector this year—from fossil fuels to renewables and efficiency—the International Energy Agency said in a new report. Energy investment is set to fall by one-fifth in... Read more →

The US Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) Office of Fossil Energy (FE) has announced up to $30 million in federal funding for cost-shared research and development projects under a funding opportunity announcement (DE-FOA-0002300) for Small-Scale Solid Oxide Fuel Cell Systems and Hybrid Energy Systems. This FOA seeks to develop advanced technologies... Read more →

Delta-Q Technologies has introduced its latest sealed charger for electric vehicles and industrial machines: the RQ350. Having found significant market success with the IC Series chargers rated from 650 to 1200 watts, Delta-Q has set its sights on lower power applications with its new 350-watt charger. This new build was... Read more →

Nuro is working with CVS Pharmacy to provide the delivery of presriptions and essentials by autonomous vehicles in Houston, Texas. More than 76% of people in the United States live within five miles of a CVS Pharmacy; every day, CVS serves 4.5 million customers across the country. CVS customers in... Read more →

Despite manufacturers’ efforts to make them safer, the smallest late-model cars remain the most dangerous, according to the most recent driver death rates calculated by the Insurance Institute of Highway Safety. Small cars and minicars accounted for 15 of the 20 models with the highest death rates for model year... Read more →

Representatives of the Lufthansa Group and Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zurich (ETH Zürich), with ETH spin-offs Climeworks and Synhelion, have signed a joint Letter of Intent for a possible cooperation to accelerate the market launch of Sustainable Aviation Fuels (SAF). The researchers and engineers at ETH Zurich have developed... Read more →

Two months after taking office as the new CEO at Audi, Markus Duesmann is establishing a unit for the accelerated development of additional automobile models. The head of the “Artemis” high-tech project will be Alex Hitzinger, a successful motorsport chief engineer and currently in charge of autonomous driving in the... Read more →

ARPA-E recently added five new topics to the “Solicitation on Topics Informing New Program Areas,” a funding opportunity (DE-FOA-0001953) that enables ARPA-E to investigate potential new program areas. The program is designed to support early stage, transformative energy technologies. New topics; approximate total amount to be awarded; and anticipated awards... Read more →

On May 22, the port of Rotterdam marked the aerial delivery by drone of a parts consignment to Allseas’ Pioneering Spirit, the biggest vessel in the world. This was the first drone delivery ever made in the Netherlands to a vessel. This pilot project, which was set up by Dutch... Read more →

Volkswagen plans to increase its share in JAC Volkswagen, its joint venture for e-mobility. Around €1 billion is to be invested. This amount includes the acquisition of 50% of JAG, the parent company of the Volkswagen partner JAC, and an increase in the stake in JAC Volkswagen from 50 to... Read more →

magniX, a company developing electric propulsion systems for aircraft, and AeroTEC, a leading independent company focused on aerospace testing, engineering and certification, announced the successful flight of an all-electric Cessna Grand Caravan 208B. The successful flight of the eCaravan, enabled by a 750-horsepower (560 kW) magni500 propulsion system, took place... Read more →

Engineering company Gaussin and energy major Total are jointly developing the first full electric aircraft refueler transporter (ART FULL ELEC). Planned for the Airbus industrial site in Toulouse, this prototype will be capable of towing two fuel tankers, with a fuel capacity of 30 tons each. Delivery is expected at... Read more →

Researchers at KAUST’s Clean Combustion Research Center have developed a method to predict and to avoid undesirable combustion events in advanced engines, such as knocking and super-knock. In a recent study, published in the journal Combustion and Flame, they report that their predictions implicate the composition and temperature of the... Read more →

MPK Poznań in Poland has ordered 37 electric buses made by Solaris. The zero-emission vehicles will be delivered in the second half of 2021. The buses will join 21 Solaris electric busesthat have been carrying Poznań residents for a few months now. Thirty-one of the new electric buses are 12-meter... Read more →

A Northwestern Engineering-led team has developed a highly porous smart sponge that selectively soaks up oil in water. With an ability to absorb more than 30 times its weight in oil, the sponge could be used to clean up oil spills inexpensively and efficiently without harming marine life. After squeezing... Read more →

The Copper Mark (earlier post) announced the first two participants in the Copper Mark Assurance Framework: Oyu Tolgoi LLC, Mongolia; and Kennecott Utah Copper LLC, USA. These two copper producers have submitted letters of commitment (publicly available here) and initiated the process to carry out the Copper Mark Assurance Process.... Read more →

WinGD (Winterthur Gas & Diesel) has received type approval for the biggest and most powerful LNG-fueled engines yet built. Class society Bureau Veritas awarded the approval for WinGD’s dual-fueled 12X92DF engines, the first series of which is currently being built by China State Shipbuilding Corp (CSSC) and will power nine... Read more →

by Michael Sivak, Sivak Applied Research. The latest data from the Federal Highway Administration on the amount of driving in the United States indicate that vehicle miles traveled (VMT) in March of this year decreased by 18.6% compared with March 2019. However, the decrease in VMT varied widely by states,... Read more →

Hydrogen researchers at Graz University of Technology (Austria), together with the Graz-based start-up Rouge H2 Engineering, have developed a cost-effective process for the decentralized production of high-purity hydrogen using chemical looping. Currently, hydrogen is mainly produced centrally from fossil resources and compressed or liquefied in an expensive and energy-intensive process... Read more →

Customers can now order Swindon Powertrain’s High Power Density (HPD) EV system with deliveries starting in August. The 80kW production unit is smaller and lighter than the concept, making it suited for sports, recreation and light commercial applications as well as classic car conversions. Prices start at £6,400 (US$7,900) +VAT... Read more →

EV battery costs have declined significantly over the past ten years, from more than $1,000 per kilowatt-hour (kWh) to less than $200/kWh. Increasing cell energy is one way to decrease cost even further, as a higher specific energy value will result in fewer materials needed for the same total battery... Read more →

The City of Pasadena announced the grand opening of the Marengo Charging Plaza, 155 E. Green Street. With a total of 44 chargers—24 Superchargers installed by Tesla and 20 fast chargers (Tritium RT50/50kW DC Fast Chargers) installed by the City of Pasadena—the Marengo Charging Plaza is the largest public electric... Read more →

FLIR Systems announced the availability of its first European thermal imaging regional dataset and the third in a series of thermal imaging datasets for machine vision testing. Designed to help researchers, developers and auto manufacturers enhance and accelerate work on safety, advanced driver assistance-systems (ADAS), automatic emergency braking (AEB) and... Read more →

Neste, the world’s largest producer of renewable diesel has deepened its partnership with one of Sweden’s largest fuel companies, OKQ8. Neste MY Renewable Diese, produced from renewable and sustainable raw materials, will become available at 130 OKQ8 network stations by the end of 2020, also for private customers. The total... Read more →

Agility Fuel Solutions (Agility), a leading global provider of clean fuel solutions for medium- and heavy-duty commercial vehicles, introduced the new fifth-generation ProRail CNG fuel system. ProRail systems are installed on one or both sides of the vehicle’s frame rail. Gen5 ProRail installed on a Peterbilt 567. Since the ProRail... Read more →

The US Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) announced nearly $20 million in small business awards for Phase I Release 2 projects under the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) programs. More than 100 projects across 26 states will... Read more →

Southwest Research Institute engineers have developed the next generation of clean diesel engine technology to reduce hazardous nitrogen oxides (NOx) and carbon dioxide emissions while minimizing fuel consumption. Working with regulatory agencies, vehicle manufacturers and suppliers, SwRI combined engine modifications with integrated aftertreatment technology and control strategies to reach near-zero... Read more →

BMW will launch the new X2 xDrive25e SAC (“Sport Activity Coupé”) PHEV, announced in January (earlier post), in Europe in July 2020 with pricing from €47,250 (US$51,800). The new BMW X2 xDrive25e features the fourth and latest generation of BMW eDrive technology developed for the plug-in hybrid models. An electric... Read more →

BMW announced the updated, 2021 7th generation 5 Series Sedan. The MY2021 models feature improvements in exterior and interior design, aerodynamics and technology, plus the introduction of a new 48-volt mild hybrid system and a new plug-in hybrid drivetrain. The 2021 BMW 5 Series lineup includes the: 248 hp 530i... Read more →

The Partnership on Sustainable, Low Carbon Transport (SLOCAT) has published a preliminary analysis of the early impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on passenger mobility in urban environments. The analysis looks at how different regions and income groups are affected, and seeks to provide a preliminary answer to the question of... Read more →

trinamiX GmbH, a leader in 3D imaging and infrared sensing technologies, announced the company’s proprietary lead selenide (PbSe) near-infrared detectors can be effectively integrated into challenging applications for carbon dioxide (CO2) measurement. Those include medical breath gas analysis (capnography) and mobile air quality monitoring. Due to their fast response time... Read more →

Daimler Truck AG and Rolls-Royce plc plan to cooperate on stationary fuel-cell generators as CO2-neutral emergency power generators for safety-critical facilities such as data centers. They are to offer emission-free alternatives to diesel engines, which are currently used as emergency power generators or to cover peak loads. Daimler Truck AG... Read more →

Local battery production is an important success factor for Mercedes-Benz AG’s electric offensive and the key element to meet the global demand for electrified vehicles flexibly and efficiently. The company is therefore investing more than €1 billion to establish a global battery production network. The network will consist of nine... Read more →

The California Air Resources Board has reached a settlement of $1,927,800 with American Honda Motor Co., Inc. (Honda) to resolve clean-air violations related to the sale of small off-road engines in California. The violations involved small off-road engines used in generators and lawn and garden equipment. Through extensive tests in... Read more →

Cracow, Poland public transport operator Miejskie Przedsiębiorstwo Komunikacyjne S.A. (MPK) has signed a contract for the purchase of 50 Solaris Urbino 18 electric buses. The new electric buses will expand the existing fleet of 400 Solaris vehicles of varying configurations, cruising the streets of Cracow—including 28 electric buses. The order... Read more →

Ruthenium dioxide is widely used in industrial processes, in which it’s particularly important for catalyzing the oxygen evolution reaction (OER) that splits molecules of water and releases oxygen. However, the exact mechanism that takes place on this material’s surface, and how that reaction is affected by the orientation of the... Read more →

The new battery-electric-powered van from Mercedes-Benz, the EQV (earlier post), can now be ordered. For the market launch, the van is available in the long wheelbase version as the EQV 300. A 90 kWh battery pack enables a range of up to 418 kilometers (260 miles). The EQV starts with... Read more →

KT Corp., South Korea’s largest telecommunications company, is using 5G self-driving carts at its logistics center, enabling a nearly 50% reduction in employees’ travel range for loading and transporting inventory. The new system marks the first use of next-generation smart logistics vehicles in the Korean communications industry. Two types of... Read more →

In 2017, Germany launched a consortium of leading industrial companies to investigate high-volume production of automotive fuel cell stacks. (Earlier post.) Now, the first development phase—Evolution 1—of the stack development is complete; the level achieved will be evaluated by the partners. The complexity and number of parts of a fuel... Read more →

Air Liquide is introducing next-generation hydrogen stations with a high capacity of 1,000 kg and dual filling positions capable of filling 250 vehicles per day. Air Liquide’s high capacity gaseous hydrogen station can provide 700 bar fills at T40 temperatures per SAE J2601 protocol. Air Liquide integrates compression, high pressure... Read more →

Researchers at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) and collaborators have used an additive manufacturing technique, called cold-spray deposition, to create thermoelectric generators that can harvest waste heat—a huge untapped resource—from previously inaccessible sources, such as pipes with complex geometries. The generators display good performance over a wide temperature range. A... Read more →

Magnesium (Mg) is a promising candidates to replace lithium for electrochemical energy storage devices due to its abundance—far greater than that of lithium—enhanced safety, and theoretical high volumetric capacity. However, Mg batteries suffer from sluggish kinetics and poor reversibility, making it difficult to achieve high volumetric capacity. Now, researchers at... Read more →

A new UCLA study in zebrafish identified the process by which air pollution can damage brain cells, potentially contributing to Parkinson’s disease. Published in the journal Toxicological Sciences, the findings show that chemicals in diesel exhaust can trigger the toxic buildup of a protein in the brain called alpha-synuclein, which... Read more →

Energy major Total has signed an agreement with PureCycle Technologies to develop a strategic partnership in plastic recycling. As part of the agreement, Total undertakes to purchase part of the output of PureCycle Technologies’ future facility in the United States and to assess the interest of developing a new plant... Read more →

After 530 days and more than 180,000 driven kilometers, the successful trial operation of the world’s first two hydrogen trains was officially completed at the end of February. Two pre-series trains of Alstom’s Coradia iLint model have been in passenger service since September 2018. (Earlier post.) From 2022, 14 Coradia... Read more →

ITM Power announced the formation of the H2OzBus Project and the signing of a memorandum of understanding with a consortium of strategic partners. The consortium comprises Transit Systems, part of the SeaLink Travel Group; Ballard Power Systems; BOC Limited; Palisade Investment Partners; and ITM Power. The partners have signed a... Read more →

Tokyo Institute of Technology and DENSO IT LABORATORY have established an innovative AI technology platform for collaboration in future mobility development. DENSO IT LAB is developing technology capable of changing the concept of next-generation mobility, concepts such as autonomous driving and advanced safety vehicles as well as other onboard systems... Read more →

Australia-based Argosy Minerals Limited confirmed the successful export shipment of five tonnes of >99.5% lithium carbonate product from its industrial-scale pilot plant operations at the Rincon Lithium Project in Salta Province, Argentina. The preliminary five tonne cargo was loaded onto the ship on Wednesday and set sail overnight from Buenos... Read more →

Seven Japan-based companies—Asahi Tanker Co., Ltd.; Idemitsu Kosan Co., Ltd.; Exeno Yamamizu Corporation; Mitsui O.S.K. Lines, Ltd.; Tokio Marine & Nichido Fire Insurance Co., Ltd.; Tokyo Electric Power Company; and Mitsubishi Corporation—have formed the e5 Consortium, with the goal of establishing new ocean shipping infrastructure services through various initiatives to... Read more →

Representatives Gilbert R. Cisneros, Jr. (D-CA-39) and Francis Rooney (R-FL-19) introduced the Department of Defense (DOD) Non-Tactical Vehicle Reduced Petroleum Consumption Act. This bill directs the DOD to replace such vehicles—from passenger cars to construction vehicles such as bulldozers and forklifts—as they age with zero-emission vehicles. The gradual procurement process... Read more →