A new paper by an MIT team and colleagues in Singapore, China, Italy and Denmark, drawing on global data, finds that people visit places more frequently when they have to travel shorter distances to get there. By examining cellphone data on four continents, the researchers were able to arrive at... Read more →

The European Commission’s Joint Research Center recently published a report analyzing research and innovation (R&I) in low-emission alternative energy for transport in Europe. The analysis focuses on selected EU-funded projects from TRIMIS with end dates from 2019 onwards. The Transport Research and Innovation Monitoring and Information System (TRIMIS) is the... Read more →

The Long Beach Board of Harbor Commissioners earlier this month approved changes centered around incorporating the international Environmental Ship Index (ESI) into the Port’s Green Ship Incentive Program, which began in 2012. A voluntary system, the ESI identifies seagoing ships exceeding the current emission standards of the International Maritime Organization.... Read more →

Wärtsilä will supply its Wärtsilä HY Module, a containerized hybrid battery power and energy storage system to Maersk Supply Service, the Denmark-based provider of offshore marine services and integrated solutions for the global energy sector. The Wärtsilä system will support Maersk’s goal of reducing the carbon intensity of its fleet... Read more →

A total investment of $8.1 trillion in nature is required over the next three decades to successfully tackle the climate, biodiversity, and land degradation crises, according to the State of Finance for Nature report released by the World Economic Forum, UN Environment Programme (UNEP), and the Economics of Land Degradation... Read more →

The Electric Circuit, in partnership with Québec’s municipalities, will be rolling out 4,500 standard charging stations (240 V, 7 kW) by 2028, to meet the needs of electric vehicle drivers who do not have access to home charging. To support this initiative, a grant program is being offered exclusively to... Read more →

by Michael Sivak, Sivak Applied Research. As shown in my ongoing monitoring of monthly changes in key transportation indexes, the amount of driving (adjusted for population) during the pandemic decreased substantially. This brief post examines the relationship between driving and GDP during the pandemic. The raw data for the analysis... Read more →

Researchers in the European AMAPOLA (A Marketable Polymer based Al-S battery) project are analyzing the combination of sulfur and aluminum in a battery; both elements are abundant in the earth’s crust. The goal is to enable greater energy storage capabilities compared to Li–ion batteries at a lower price for selected... Read more →

Fastmarkets reported that the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has banned the export of copper and cobalt concentrate. Fastmarkets confirmed with three companies operating copper and cobalt mines in DRC that they all received the notice, although the effective date of the order is not mentioned and trucks carrying the... Read more →

In Japan, JERA and IHI Corporation will conduct a demonstration project under the New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization’s “Development of Technologies for Carbon Recycling and Next-Generation Thermal Power Generation / Research, Development and Demonstration of Technologies for Ammonia Co-Firing Thermal Power Generation” program. This will be the world’s... Read more →

In a perspective piece in the journal Joule, researchers at the University of Michigan lay out the main questions facing lithium-metal, solid-state batteries. To develop the questions, they worked in close collaboration with leaders in the auto industry. Major automakers are going all-in on electric vehicles this year, with many... Read more →

Albertsons Companies, the second-largest grocery chain in the US, recently took delivery of two Volvo VNR Electric trucks at its distribution center in Irvine, California. The VNR Electric models from Volvo Trucks North America are the first zero-tailpipe emission, battery-electric Class 8 trucks to be deployed in Albertsons Cos. company-wide... Read more →

Germany’s Federal Ministry of Economics (BMWi) and the Federal Ministry of Transport (BMVI) selected 62 large-scale hydrogen projects this week, which are to be state-funded as part of a joint European hydrogen project (Important Project of Common European Interest, IPCEI). We are making Germany a hydrogen country. In doing so,... Read more →

Germany’s Federal Council has passed the “Law for the Provision of Comprehensive Fast Charging Infrastructure for Pure Battery Electric Vehicles”, or SchnellLG for short. With this law, the Federal Ministry of Transport and Digital Infrastructure (BMVI) has the legal basis for the targeted expansion of a Germany-wide network of fast-charging... Read more →

The average retail price for regular gasoline in the United States on 24 May, the Monday before the Memorial Day weekend, was $3.02 per gallon (gal), the highest gasoline price before Memorial Day since 2014, according to the US Energy Information Administration’s (EIA’s) weekly Gasoline and Diesel Fuel Update. The... Read more →

As part of its mission to make world-class electric drives accessible, Integral e-Drive has made available a family of three ultra-high-performance machines off-the-shelf in single sample quantities. Leveraging Integral Powertrain’s ‘Core Technology’ the CTSM242 series uses a combination of advanced electromagnetic design and a high-performance thermal management system cooling both... Read more →

Benchmark Mineral Intelligence has elevated Chinese lithium-ion battery cell and automaker BYD to Benchmark’s top tier EV battery cell manufacturer status joining CATL, Envision AESC, LG Energy Solution, Panasonic, Samsung, and SK Innovation as tier one cell manufacturers. BYD is only the second Chinese lithium ion cell producer to reach... Read more →

Biocrude oil produced via hydrothermal liquefaction (HTL) of biomass could provide a low-carbon supplement for transportation fuel supply. However, biocrude’s poor chemical (heteroatom content, energy content); physical (viscosity, density); and thermal (boiling point distribution, cetane value, cold-flow properties) characteristics limit commercial application. Hydrothermal liquefaction (HTL) is a thermochemical depolymerisation process... Read more →

The all-new Qashqai will be Nissan’s first model built in Europe using a significant number of lightweight aluminum panels. The hood, doors and front fenders are stamped from aluminum alloy, which makes the body of the Qashqai 60 kg lighter. This improves efficiency and thereby contributes to reduced emissions. In... Read more →

Johnson Matthey has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Plug Power. Under the MoU, the companies will develop a roadmap to accelerate the joint development of high-performance electrolyzer technology with improved durability, increased performance, and greater energy efficiency than systems available today. The collaboration will focus on the development, validation... Read more →

Rio Tinto and Comptech are partnering to bring a new generation of aluminum alloys to the market for use in advanced technologies such as electric vehicles and 5G antennas. Rio Tinto’s metallurgical experts have designed the alloys for the semi-solid Rheocasting process offered by Comptech, to meet the requirements of... Read more →

CO2 emissions from private jets in Europe increased by nearly a third (31%) between 2005 and 2019, rising faster than commercial aviation emissions, according to a new report from environmental campaign group Transport & Environment (T&E). The report, Private jets: can the super-rich supercharge zero emission aviation?, finds that private... Read more →

If a ban were introduced on the sale of new gasoline and diesel cars, and they were replaced by electric cars, the result would be a significant reduction in lifecycle carbon dioxide emissions primarily due to reduced tailpipe CO2 emissions, according to a new lifecycle study by researchers at Chalmers... Read more →

PEUGEOT has become one of the first manufacturers to offer in series production, from 2021 onwards in the compact utility van segment, an electric version powered by a hydrogen fuel cell in addition to its battery-electric version. The new PEUGEOT e-EXPERT Hydrogen includes a new mid-power plug-in hydrogen fuel cell... Read more →

During Ford Capital Markets Day, Hau Thai-Tang, Chief Product Platform and Operations Officer, said that Ford anticipates 40% of Ford’s global vehicle volume will be fully electric by 2030—“a massive shift from the low single digits today.” Our goal is to win with BEVS and achieve equal to higher market... Read more →

Volvo Cars announced that its Torslanda site in Sweden is its first car manufacturing plant to reach fully climate-neutral status. This makes Torslanda the second plant in its overall manufacturing network to reach this status, after the Skövde engine plant in Sweden became climate-neutral in 2018. Torslanda plant Volvo Cars... Read more →

Production of fifth-generation high-voltage batteries and battery modules for use in the BMW iX and BMW i4 is now underway at the BMW’s Competence Center for E-Drive Production in Dingolfing. At the same time, the company is also increasing production capacity for its fifth-generation electric motor, which has been built... Read more →

The Toyota Research Institute (TRI) is helping to accelerate the field of soft robotics by sharing the design source files and full build instruction for its innovative domestic robot hands. Today, any research institution or aspiring roboticist can visit punyo.tech and build their own Punyo Soft Bubble Gripper. TRI Soft... Read more →

Hyzon Motors, a leading global supplier of hydrogen fuel cell powered commercial vehicles, has developed a new eAxle design which provides extremely high efficiency for 6x4 Class-8 commercial vehicles. Hyzon’s eAxle eliminates right-angle hypoid gears, and uses one motor per wheel with optimized performances both at low speed and high... Read more →

Canada-based HPQ Silicon Resources, PyroGenesis Canada and the Énergie Matériaux Télécommunications Centre (ETM) of the Institut National de Recherche Scientifique (INRS) have set up a research project focused on the development of silicon (Si)-based materials as active anode materials for Lithium-ion batteries. With a budget of $500,000, the project is... Read more →

Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (VWGoA) and the City of Carmel, IN, are working together on a research project that uses existing city cameras and Volkswagen machine-vision software to help optimize traffic flows, analyze street usage patterns and support emergency response. This joint project is the first of its kind... Read more →

UK-based ULEMCo signed an exclusive MoU with ENGV Pty Ltd to collaborate on developing a market for its hydrogen dual fuel technology in Australia. The scope of the agreement extends across Australia and into commercial vehicles, particularly heavy-duty applications like refuse collection, urban trucks, buses and prime movers. By using... Read more →

NuScale Power finalized an investment agreement with IHI, a comprehensive heavy-industry engineering and manufacturing company headquartered in Japan. As part of a commercial relationship with NuScale, IHI will provide cash investment in NuScale Power. The IHI-NuScale relationship results in IHI becoming a strategic supplier for NuScale Plants, whereby IHI will... Read more →

Rheinmetall AG, the German technology group, and Tongji University in Shanghai have recently set up a joint lab to foster cooperation in new energy vehicle technology. The joint lab, which will focus primarily on research and innovation in fuel cells, forms part of an endowed chair at the School of... Read more →

AMPLY Power is working with Duke Energy Sustainable Solutions to expand fleet electrification offerings, including the first commercially available combination solar canopy and overhead electric vehicle charging solution covered by a power purchase agreement (PPA) leasing and financing model. The field-tested solution, enabled by the patent-pending Pantograph In-Depot Equipment (PIDE)... Read more →

In its report of first quarter 2021 financial results and outlook, Lordstown Motors, a startup developing electric light duty trucks focused on the commercial fleet market (earlier post), said that the expected production of its Endurance full-size electric pickup in 2021 will be limited—at best 50% of prior expectations. The... Read more →

Mercedes-Benz AG is the first car manufacturer to take an equity stake in Swedish start-up H2 Green Steel (H2GS) as a way to introduce CO2 free steel into series production. Together with its steel suppliers, the company is retooling its supply chain to focus on the prevention and reduction of... Read more →

A research team in China has developed a one-pot method to produce octane from bio-derived furans under low temperatures. In an open-access paper in the RSC journal Green Chemistry, they report a 96.6% yield of octane obtained by catalytic conversion with Pd/C and phosphotungstic acid (HPW) under 1 MPa H2... Read more →

Rio Tinto and InoBat, a European battery technology and manufacturing company, signed a Memorandum of Understanding to work together to accelerate the establishment of a “cradle-to-cradle” battery manufacturing and recycling value chain in Serbia. The partnership will cover the full commodity life-cycle from mining through to recycling of lithium. Rio... Read more →

Infinitum Electric, developer of the printed circuit board (PCB) motor (earlier post), raised $40 million in Series C funding to scale production of its ultra-high-efficiency, lightweight motors. The investment will be used to expand production of the company’s IEs Series motors for commercial and industrial applications and complete development of... Read more →

Together, Haldor Topsoe and Preem—Sweden’s largest fuel company—have concluded the revamp of Preem’s Gothenburg refinery, which is part of Preem’s endeavors to reduce Sweden’s total carbon emissions by 20%. This is the second revamp of the hydrotreater, following a revamp in 2010 that upgraded the unit to co-process 30% renewable... Read more →

HMM has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with LOTTE Fine Chemical, Lotte Global Logistics, POSCO, Korean Register (KR), and Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering (KSOE) to seek feasible solutions on the green ammonia supply chain. Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering (KSOE) plans to develop an ammonia-powered ship, which will... Read more →

A new lifecycle analysis by researchers at Argonne National Laboratory has found that the carbon intensity of corn ethanol has decreased 23%—from 58 to 45 gCO2e/MJ—from 2005 to 2019. Their open-access paper is published in the journal Biofuels, Bioproducts and Biorefining. Carbon intensity (gCO2e/MJ undenatured ethanol) of corn ethanol without... Read more →

CSIRO, Australia’s national science agency, launched a new $68-million Hydrogen Industry Mission. The research mission is intended to help drive down the cost of hydrogen production to below $2 per kilogram, making the fuel more affordable and helping to position Australia to lead the world in exporting hydrogen by 2030.... Read more →

Borealis, a leading supplier of polyolefin plastic materials for engineering applications in the automotive industry, announced the availability of Borcycle, its polyolefin-based solution composed of both virgin and post-consumer recyclate (PCR) for the North American automotive market. The Borcycle family of products have been conceived for interior, exterior and under-the-hood... Read more →

Cummins Inc. joined government leaders and partner Iberdrola, one of the world’s largest energy companies, to announce its plans for one of the world’s largest electrolyzer plants for the production of green hydrogen to be located in Castilla-La Mancha, Spain. This investment in Spain comes on the heels of Iberdrola... Read more →

Hyundai Motor Company released images of its newly upgraded XCIENT Fuel Cell, the world’s first mass-produced, heavy-duty truck powered by hydrogen. The upgraded heavy-duty XCIENT features design and performance updates. Hyundai will begin production of 2021 XCIENT Fuel Cell in August this year. 2021 XCIENT Fuel Cell is equipped with... Read more →

Researchers at the US Department of Energy’s Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) have developed a sensor system called IntelliVent that can prevent dangerous conditions from developing in outdoor battery cabinets. Although energy storage systems with cabinet-type enclosures can be advantageous due to capacity, footprint and access, the cabinets leave little... Read more →

Audi is working on a concept for quick charging for premium-level electromobility: the Audi charging hub. A pilot project in the second half of the year will provide a specific outlook and a practical test for a possible serial roll-out. For the first time, more than half of Audi’s newly... Read more →

Solid Power, a producer of all-solid-state batteries for electric vehicles, provided details on its All-Solid-State Platform technology and the three unique battery designs it enables. Solid Power has also announced the successful transition of its high-content silicon all-solid-state battery to the company’s Colorado-based production line. Solid Power’s proprietary sulfide solid... Read more →