A study by a team of researchers from the US, Germany and Canada has found that sustainable aviation jet fuels show up to a 70% reduction in particle mass emission compared to a fossil fuel. The study, which summarizes the results from a ground-based measurement activity conducted in January 2018... Read more →

The rapidly growing space industry may have a greater climate effect than the aviation industry and undo repair to the protective ozone layer if left unregulated, according to a new study led by UCL and published in the journal Earth’s Future as an open-access paper. The space industry is one... Read more →

ArcelorMittal published a concept for a low-carbon emissions steel standard to help incentivize the decarbonization of steelmaking globally and support the creation of market demand for physical steel products which would be classified as lower, and ultimately near-zero, carbon emissions steel. The creation of clear definitions for low-carbon emissions physical... Read more →

Finnish shipping company ESL Shipping will become the world’s first shipping company to start utilizing new low-emission Neste Marine 0.1 co-processed marine fuel (earlier post) in its vessels in Finland and Sweden. The ISCC PLUS certified marine fuel enables up to 80% reduced greenhouse gas emissions over the life cycle... Read more →

Alcoa Corporation announced a $51-million project to increase the production capacity at its Mosjøen smelter in Norway by 14,000 metric tons per year (mtpy). Alcoa’s Mosjøen location currently has a nameplate capacity of 200,000 mtpy, and the investment is expected to increase that capacity to 214,000 mtpy by the end... Read more →

A team at Chalmers University in Sweden has analyzed the results of the integration of a chemical looping gasification (CLG) process with a Fischer-Tropsch synthesis (FTS) process and found that this biomass-to-liquids process can produce FT crude with net-negative CO2 emissions. An open-access paper on the study appears in the... Read more →

After systematically studying multiple catalyst compositions, researchers at KAUST and Umicore have clarified the role of cerium (Ce) in Mn-based oxide catalysts for the selective catalytic reduction (SCR) of NOx with NH3 at temperatures below 200 °C. An open-access paper on the study appears in Nature Communications. Recent developments in... Read more →

FEV, a leading service provider in vehicle and propulsion system development and testing, has evaluated the performance of the Transient Plasma Systems Inc. (TPS) nanosecond pulsed power ignition system (earlier post) on the current Toyota 2.5-liter, direct and port fueled injection, inline 4-cylinder gasoline engine commonly used in the Camry... Read more →

Rio Tinto and the Salzgitter Group have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to work together towards carbon-free steelmaking by studying optimization of Rio Tinto’s high-quality Canadian and Australian iron ore products for use in Salzgitter’s SALCOS (SAlzgitter Low CO2-Steelmaking) green steel project in Germany. (Earlier post.) Under the SALCOS... Read more →

Gevo has entered into a partner agreement with Google Cloud to measure and verify the efficacy of next-generation biofuels across the supply chain via full lifecycle sustainability data tracking. Utilizing technology developed by Verity Tracking , a division of Gevo, the collaboration is expected to enable users to track and... Read more →

A team at the University of Madison-Wisconsin studied critical sooting equivalence ratios and subsequent particulate formation during spark-ignition combustion for blends of ethanol, isobutanol (2-methyl-1-propanol), and methylbutenol (2-methyl-3-buten-2-ol) with gasoline using premixed prevaporized (PMPV) fueling. Broadly, they found that increases in alcohol content consistently decreased the chemical sooting tendency and... Read more →

Components for the production of batteries at Audi’s Brussels plant will no longer be delivered by truck from Hungary, but by rail with DB Cargo. The move will significantly reduce Audi’s carbon emissions and also save money. The switch in means of delivery between Hungary and Brussels, which was started... Read more →

Yamaha Corporation and Sumitomo Corporation Power & Mobility Co., Ltd., a Sumitomo Corporation Group company, jointly demonstrated a new waste heat recovery system based on a thermoelectric generator (TEG), which generates electrical power via exhaust gas heat. The TEG, which is installed in a part of vehicle exhaust system, can... Read more →

Stellantis N.V. and Controlled Thermal Resources Ltd. (CTR) signed a binding offtake agreement for CTR to supply battery-grade lithium hydroxide for use in Stellantis’ North America electrified vehicle production. CTR’s Hell’s Kitchen Project in California’s Imperial County (earlier post) will recover lithium from geothermal brines using renewable energy and steam... Read more →

The road transport sector could still reach net-zero emissions by 2050 through electrification, but urgent action would be required from policymakers and industry participants, according to research company BloombergNEF’s (BNEF) latest annual Long-Term Electric Vehicle Outlook (EVO). Certain segments, such as buses and two- and three-wheelers are close to being... Read more →

Volvo Cars is the first car maker to sign up to the SteelZero initiative, which aims to increase demand for fossil-free steel and accelerate a transition to carbon neutrality in the global steel industry. As well as a long-term commitment to procure 100% fossil-free steel by 2050, SteelZero signatories also... Read more →

The extended drought in California could cut the state’s summer electricity generation from hydropower nearly in half compared with normal precipitation conditions, according to an analysis by the US Energy Information Administration (EIA). EIA’s analysis indicates that hydropower would produce 8% of California’s electricity generation in a drought year, compared... Read more →

Purem by Eberspaecher is introducing efficient exhaust technology for hydrogen engines. At the Hannover Messe, the company will be presenting its H2-ICE exhaust system for the first time. The H2-ICE exhaust system for hydrogen engines from Purem by Eberspaecher. Hydrogen engines have potential as a drive type with CO2-neutral fuel,... Read more →

An international team of researchers has shed light on one way new particles are forming in the upper troposphere. The open-access study, published in Nature, reveals an unexpected volatile reaction between nitric acid, sulfuric acid, and ammonia, synergistically creating new particles at a rapid rate. The findings suggest that in... Read more →

EPA’s new Clean School Bus Program will provide $5 billion over the next five years (FY 2022-2026) to replace existing school buses with zero-emission and low-emission models. EPA is now offering $500 million through the 2022 Clean School Bus Rebates for zero-emission and low-emission school bus rebates as the first... Read more →

Together with its partner Nordic Marine Oil, Neste is piloting a new Neste Marine 0.1 Co-processed marine fuel in Scandinavia, a solution helping the maritime sector to reduce the greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. The ISCC PLUS-certified marine fuel enables up to 80% GHG emission reduction over the lifecycle compared to... Read more →

Kobe Steel will launch “Kobenable Steel” and become Japan’s first provider of low-CO2 blast furnace steel products with significantly reduced CO2 emissions during the blast furnace ironmaking process. The company plans to start selling the new products this fiscal year. Kobenable Steel is based on the KOBELCO Group’s CO2 Reduction... Read more →

The California Air Resources Board (CARB) announced the second round of its Clean Off-Road Equipment Voucher Incentive Project (CORE), tripling the amount of allocated funding from the previous round for equipment used in agriculture, airport, railyard, port, construction, and marine operations. The project is administered by CALSTART, a national clean... Read more →

In 2010, researchers from the Beijing Institute of Technology proposed a new combustion system for diesel engines: the Double Swirl Combustion System (DSCS) (Li et al. 2010). Within the DSCS, the Double Swirl (DS) chamber is one of the most noticeable factors in the new system. The configuration of DS... Read more →

Last week, US Senator Alex Padilla (D-Calif.), Congresswoman Nanette Diaz Barragán (D-Calif.-44), Senator Cory Booker (D-N.J.), Congressman Donald McEachin (D-Va.-04), and Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.-07) led 61 of their colleagues in both the US Senate and House of Representatives in sending a letter urging the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to... Read more →

The European Parliament Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety (ENVI) adopted this week, with 46 votes in favor, 40 against and two abstentions, a position on proposed rules to revise the CO2 emission performance standards for new cars and vans in line with the EU’s increased climate... Read more →

A new NOAA study covering four decades of tropical cyclones found that reducing particulate air pollution in Europe and North America has contributed to an increase in the number of tropical cyclones in the North Atlantic basin and a decrease in the number of these storms in the Southern Hemisphere.... Read more →

In early 2020, UK-based independent testing firm Emissions Analytics published a study claiming that tire particulate wear emissions were 1,000 times worse than exhaust emissions (earlier post). Since that study, which was transparently designed to quantify the worst-case tire emissions under legal driving, Emissions Analytics has been testing and analyzing... Read more →

The BMW Group is using innovative technologies in its efforts to improve sustainability and taking advantage of new options to conserve resources and reduce emissions from painting bodywork. The BMW Group is the first automotive manufacturer worldwide to use matt paints made from biomass instead of crude oil at its... Read more →

All regions of the world do not—and will not—experience the effects of CO2 emissions in the same way. Some will suffer greatly from climate change, while others may even benefit. These heterogeneous effects mean that different countries will have differing incentives to abide by the Paris Agreement, which aims to... Read more →

Southwest Research Institute (SwRI) demonstrated the effectiveness of its patented and award-winning CAT-DEF technology during the WCX World Congress Experience in Detroit in April. CAT-DEF—Catalyzed Diesel Exhaust Fluid—is an SwRI-developed catalyst- and surfactant-modified diesel exhaust fluid (DEF) solution. The internally funded advancement successfully reduced heavy-duty diesel engine nitrogen oxide (NOx)... Read more →

The New Mexico Environmental Improvement Board (EIB) and the Albuquerque-Bernalillo County Air Quality Control Board (AQCB) have each adopted the Clean Car Rule after a joint public hearing. Their independent approval of the Clean Car Rule allows California’s Advanced Clean Cars to be implemented statewide in New Mexico beginning 1... Read more →

A recent study by leading UK-based independent emissions testing company Emissions Analytics tested four apparently similar pairs of gasoline-fueled vehicles between the US (without gasoline particulate filters (GPFs)) and Europe (with GPFs). The US vehicles were tested in Michigan, and the European vehicles in the UK. The vehicles were: 3.0l... Read more →

Westport Fuel Systems revealed its H2 HPDI fuel system in a demonstrator truck. Westport’s HPDI fuel system technology (earlier post) enables heavy-duty trucks to operate on bio-methane (renewable natural gas) and natural gas with the same power, torque, efficiency, and performance as diesel engines—with even better results running on hydrogen—all... Read more →

The European Association for Emissions Control by Catalyst (AECC) presented its zero-impact emissions demonstrator car at the Vienna Motor Symposium, 27-29 April. The demonstrator reduces pollutant emissions across a wide range of driving conditions using advanced emission control technologies with an electrified combustion engine (48V mild hybrid). At the same... Read more →

ClearFlame Engine Technologies, a startup developing net-zero engine technology (earlier post), announced the publication of an independent study that finds ClearFlame’s technology could help fleet owners and other heavy-duty truck operators lower total costs while meeting sustainability goals sooner than currently available alternatives. The study was conducted by Gladstein, Neandross... Read more →

Four key Hyundai Motor Group affiliate companies—Hyundai Motor Company (Hyundai Motor), Kia Corporation (Kia), Hyundai Mobis, and Hyundai Wia—are now members of Climate Group’s RE100, a global initiative committed to large corporates moving toward 100% renewable electricity. All four affiliates join more than 350 other global firms in the initiative,... Read more →

Scientists at Sandia National Laboratories and Los Alamos National Laboratory have recently published research data demonstrating how cycloalkanes, when used in jet fuel, may reduce condensation trail formation and soot emissions as compared to current fuels. The team detailed its findings in an open-access paper published in Frontiers in Energy... Read more →

Achates Power has released initial in-use NOx measurements from the cleaner, heavy-duty diesel engine it developed in a project funded by the California Air Resources Board (CARB) and several partners. Achates Power previously announced the opposed-piston has entered fleet service with WALMART Corporation in a Peterbilt 579 tractor. (Earlier post.)... Read more →

A team at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) has developed a new computational model of a two-stroke scaled marine engine, with reduced chemical mechanisms for diesel, biodiesel, bio-oil, and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH). In a new open-access study published in the journal Fuel, the ORNL researchers used their model to... Read more →

Argonne National Laboratory (ANL) will host a short public webinar on 11 May, 11:15am CT, on using hydrogen in businesses. Replacing fossil fuels with hydrogen could turn manufacturing and transportation into green industries. Companies can use hydrogen to reduce their carbon footprint in many ways—for example, to generate electricity; to... Read more →

At its first digital ESG (Environment, Social and Governance) Conference for investors and analysts, Mercedes-Benz announced aims to at least halve CO2 emissions per passenger car over the lifecycle by the end of this decade compared to 2020 levels. To achieve this goal, the key factors include: electrifying the vehicle... Read more →

A study by a team from The Ohio State University and Ford is providing insight into the deactivation mechanism of rhodium in three-way catalysts (TWC) for automotive emissions control. The study, which could enable more efficient usage of rhodium in TWCs, is published in the ACS journal Chemistry of Materials.... Read more →

Essam El-Hannouny, a principal mechanical engineer at the Department of Energy’s (DOE) Argonne National Laboratory, won a Technology Commercialization Fund (TCF) Award from DOE to expand his research on how a renewable alcohol-based biofuel can serve as a dual fuel to help decarbonize locomotive engines. His research is also relevant... Read more →

Achates Power announced that the 10.6-liter, heavy-duty opposed-piston, three-cylinder diesel engine it developed in a project funded by the California Air Resources Board (CARB) and several partners (earlier post) has entered fleet service with WALMART Corporation in a Peterbilt 579 tractor. It is the only diesel engine operating on the... Read more →

Blending ammonia with a small amount of dimethyl ether (DME) gives a liquid fuel with low-temperature combustion properties very similar to gasoline, researchers at KAUST have shown. The development of such fuels could provide an option—in addition to electric cars—for “clean” power for the transportation sector. A paper on their... Read more →

By the middle of this decade greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from Canadian oil sands production should be in decline even as production continues to grow, according to a new comprehensive report by S&P Global Commodity Insights that takes into account current technology trends and production growth. Entitled The Trajectory of... Read more →

Virginia Tech researchers, in collaboration with Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, have discovered that key parts of the global carbon cycle used to track movement of carbon dioxide in the environment are not correct, which could significantly alter conventional carbon cycle models. The findings are published in an open-access paper in... Read more →

Nevada Governor Steve Sisolak signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) committing Nevada to work collaboratively to advance and accelerate the market for electric medium- and heavy-duty vehicles, including large pickup trucks and vans, delivery trucks, box trucks, school and transit buses, and long-haul delivery trucks (big-rigs). Nevada joins 16 other... Read more →

California’s HVIP (Hybrid and Zero-Emission Truck and Bus Voucher Incentive Project) re-opened to voucher requests at 10:00 a.m. Pacific 30 March 2022. (Earlier post.) In the first 24 hours, a cumulative total of $272 million was requested across standard HVIP funds and the set-asides for drayage trucks, transit, and school... Read more →