A research team led by Profs. CHEN Wei and WEI Wei from the Shanghai Advanced Research Institute (SARI) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences has developed novel graphene/silicon carbide (SiC) catalysts for efficient CO2 photoelectroreduction to ethanol (C2H5OH). The results were published in Angewandte Chemie International Edition. The composite catalyst,... Read more →

EKPO Fuel Cell Technologies GmbH (EKPO), an entity fully consolidated within the Group of majority shareholder ElringKlinger AG, and operated in partnership with French automotive supplier Plastic Omnium, which holds the remaining ownership interests, secured a contract from a global automotive manufacturer to supply mass-produced bipolar plates for the carmaker’s... Read more →

Fusion Fuel has been awarded €3.6 million in grant funding through Component 5 (‘C-5’) of Portugal’s Recovery and Resilience Plan to develop a 1 MW decentralized green hydrogen production facility co-located with a hydrogen refueling station in Elvas, Portugal. Fusion Fuel had previously been awarded €36 million in C-5 funding... Read more →

Microchip Technology introduced the MPLAB SiC Power Simulator that quickly evaluates Microchip’s silicon carbide (SiC) power devices and modules across various topologies before committing a design to hardware. Microchip’s MPLAB SiC Power Simulator is a PLECS (Piecewise Linear Electrical Circuit Simulation)-based software environment designed in collaboration with Plexim (the providers... Read more →

CISSOID and Silicon Mobility have partnered to introduce a complete and modular Silicon Carbide (SiC) inverter reference design, providing customers with an innovative and customizable solution for electric motor drives up to 350kW/850V. The reference design includes a high voltage SiC-based power module, integrated Gate Driver board, Control board, DC... Read more →

Daimler Truck subsidiary Torc Robotics, a pioneer in commercializing self-driving vehicle technology, signed an agreement to acquire Algolux Inc. Torc is acquiring Algolux for its award-winning intellectual property and expertise in the areas of computer vision and machine learning. Algolux perception technology in two views, combining both regular computer vision... Read more →

The US Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) intends to issue a funding opportunity announcement (DE-FOS-0003023) that will boost the domestic production of large metallic near net shape (NNS) components. This FOA will impact a broad cross-section of the US manufacturing sector including clean... Read more →

Elcora Advanced Materials has begun operations on the 16 km² manganese mining concession in Morocco for which it had acquired exclusive rights earlier. (Earlier post.) The SGS-certified African Laboratory for Mining and Environment (AFRILAB) team evaluated onsite that already extracted Manganese (Mn) piles contain about 5,500 metric tonnes of manganese... Read more →

The US Trade and Development Agency (USTDA) awarded a grant to PLN Indonesia Power (Indonesia Power) for technical assistance to help develop the country’s first small modular reactor (SMR) nuclear power plant. Indonesia Power selected Oregon-based NuScale Power OVS, LLC (NuScale) to carry out the assistance in partnership with a... Read more →

Large-scale deployment of battery electric vehicle (BEV) and photovoltaic (PV) electricity technologies could raise electricity costs by increasing peak evening electricity demand and causing overgeneration of electricity during midday. A new study by MIT researchers examines these risks and how they amplify or mitigate each other. The researchers used data... Read more →

JCB publicly unveiled its new port fuel injected, 4.8L inline-four hydrogen combustion engine (448 ABH2)—the company’s zero-carbon emissions solution for construction and agricultural equipment—at the Conexpo 2023 show in Las Vegas as part of the International Fluid Power Exposition (IFPE). JCB is investing £100 million in the project to produce... Read more →

Yamaha Motor made an investment in Andes Ag, Inc., a US-based startup pursuing research into beneficial microorganism technologies to remove CO₂ from the air. This marks the first investment made through the US$100-million Yamaha Motor Sustainability Fund established in June last year specifically for investing in early stage companies working... Read more →

A team from Lehigh University has developed a Lewis acid-base interaction–derived hybrid sorbent with polyamine-Cu(II) complex (Polyam-N-Cu2+) enabling more than 5.0 mol of CO2 capture/kg sorbent—nearly two to three times greater capacity than most of the DAC sorbents reported to date. The sorbent is mechanically strong, chemically stable, and amenable... Read more →

Scientists have transformed single-cell algae into functional perovskite materials. The team led by scientists at the B CUBE—Center for Molecular Bioengineering at TU Dresden—converted mineral shells of algae into lead halide perovskites with tunable physical properties. The new perovskites have unique nano-architectures unachievable by conventional synthetic production. The method can... Read more →

Poland-based Hynfra has signed a framework cooperation agreement with Amarenco MENA, a major developer of renewable energy projects in the Middle East and North Africa and part of Amarenco Group. The strategic partnership is aimed at building infrastructure for the production of hydrogen and its derivatives, primarily ammonia, using electrolysis... Read more →

Emerging lithium producer Sayona Mining Limited reported the successful production of the first saleable spodumene (lithium) concentrate at its North American Lithium (NAL) operation in Québec, Canada. NAL is a brownfield open pit mining operation with a concentrator, with more than C$400 million having been invested in the operation by... Read more →

Saudi Arabia-based Aramco, one of the world’s leading integrated energy and chemicals companies, and Linde Engineering, a global leader in the production and processing of gases, signed an agreement jointly to develop a new ammonia cracking technology. The collaboration between the two companies will combine Linde Engineering and Aramco’s experience... Read more →

The Volkswagen Group’s PowerCo broke ground for construction of its second PowerCo cell factory. Gigafactory Valencia will start production of the unified cell in 2026 and will directly employ more than 3,000 people in the future, with a further up to 30,000 indirect jobs potentially being created at suppliers and... Read more →

As a result of acquisitions and investment, Cummins is focusing on three key areas for hydrogen: the production of green hydrogen; the management and transportation of hydrogen; and the application of hydrogen in engines and fuel cells. At Con Expo, Accelera, the new brand for Cummins’ New Power business segment,... Read more →

The US Department of Energy (DOE) will award $590 million to renew its four existing Bioenergy Research Centers (BRCs). This funding will help support the Department’s research into the next generation of sustainable, cost-effective bioproducts and bioenergy from domestic biomass resources. Each of the four centers, led by a National... Read more →

Public transport provider Verkehrsbetriebe-Hamburg-Holstein GmbH (VHH) has ordered 95 Mercedes-Benz eCitaro/eCitaro G buses. The first of the fully electrically powered and locally emission-free buses is expected to be delivered by the end of this year, while the other vehicles will be delivered in the first half of 2024. In addition,... Read more →

Volvo Buses is changing its business model in Europe and will apply the same successful model as it has in several other markets. This means that Volvo Buses will focus its production on chassis and together with external bodybuilders offer customers in Europe a complete range of city and intercity... Read more →

Altilium Metals, a UK clean energy group, plans to accelerate the development of the UK’s largest EV battery recycling plant, following completion of a six-month feasibility study, funded partly by the UK government’s Automotive Transformation Fund, and the first successful demonstration of its proprietary technology at its newly opened analytical... Read more →

Nikola Corporation said that its move to transition battery manufacturing from Cypress, Calif. to its Coolidge, Ariz. manufacturing facility—following the acquisition of Cypres-based Romeo Power (earlier post)—is expected to be complete by April 2023, months ahead of the original schedule. T he ability to expedite this process further supports Nikola’s... Read more →

The European Commission (EC) unveiled two draft laws in response to the US subsidies that the Commission fears are luring European clean-tech companies to North America. The European Critical Raw Materials Act would help the bloc secure supply of the metals needed to build batteries, wind turbines and other green... Read more →

A pre-print study by European environmental scientists assesses the direct impact of the recent sabotage of the undersea Nord Stream pipelines on marine ecosystem. The explosions that ripped open the gas pipelines in the Baltic Sea last September released more than 100,000 tonnes of methane—which was widely covered in the... Read more →

Chart Industries and ZEV Stations executed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) enabling the two companies to collaborate on novel deployment for US-based, multimodal hydrogen stations with Chart equipment. Working together, the companies’ goal is development of fast-fuel multiple modes for heavy-duty transportation at the same station, uniting different standards of... Read more →

Controlled Thermal Resources (CTR) (earlier post) and Fuji Electric Corp. of America (FEA) signed a Memorandum of Understanding to complete multiple Equipment, Procurement, and Construction (EPC) contracts for the delivery of geothermal power facilities at CTR’s Hell’s Kitchen Lithium and Power Project located in Imperial County, California. The EPC contracts... Read more →

Toyota’s #32 ORC ROOKIE GR Corolla H2 Concept (hydrogen-powered Corolla) (earlier post), which was scheduled to participate in the ENEOS Super Taikyu Series 2023 Powered by Hankook Round 1 Suzuka to be held on 18 and 19 March 2023, will not be racing. During a private test run at Fuji... Read more →

At CONEXPO, Cummins showcased its new fuel-agnostic 15-liter engine platform with hydrogen, natural gas and advanced diesel engines offering low-to-zero carbon fuel capability. The next-generation engine is designed to accelerate the decarbonization of heavy-duty off-highway applications. Cummins’ all-new platform takes internal combustion to a new level, capable of meeting future... Read more →

The US Department of Energy (DOE) will award up to $750 million for research, development, and demonstration efforts to reduce the cost of clean hydrogen. (DE-FOA-0002922) This funding launches the first tranche of implementation of two provisions of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, which authorizes $1 billion for research, development, demonstration,... Read more →

The US Department of Energy’s (DOE) Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy announced a $156-million funding opportunity (DE-FOA-0002997) that will advance high impact applied research, development, and demonstration (RD&D) projects to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions across the US industrial sector. In 2020, the industrial sector accounted for 33%... Read more →

The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company introduced the Powerload lineup to the North America construction, loading, logistics support and landscaping markets. The new Powerload lineup, now available in North America, has advanced features and technologies specifically designed to deliver traction and durability for compact wheel loaders and graders, regardless of... Read more →

Sumitomo Rubber Industries will launch FALKEN e. ZIEX as a new line of replacement tires for electric vehicles (EV) in Europe, where the market for EV has been growing rapidly. Featuring the highest level of fuel (energy) efficiency of any tire that the company has offered to date, e. ZIEX... Read more →

Lamborghini’s HPEV (High Performance Electrified Vehicle) hybrid super sports car, codenamed LB744, (earlier post) is based on a new aeronautics-inspired chassis, the monofuselage. As well as a monocoque made entirely of multi-technology carbon fiber, it features a front structure in Forged Composites; a special material made of short carbon fibers... Read more →

JetBlue and Shell Aviation are collaborating to bring additional supply of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) to Los Angeles International Airport (LAX), targeting commencement of delivery in the first half of 2023. Within the terms of the agreement, JetBlue is expected to take delivery of 10,000,000 gallons of blended SAF at... Read more →

SAKOR Technologies, a recognized leader in the area of high-performance dynamometer systems, is introducing the DynoLAB GenV next-generation test automation controller, which allows even a non-programmer to implement complex test systems and testing standards. Delivering a new benchmark in modularity, performance, robustness, and expandability, DynoLAB GenV is built on the... Read more →

Porsche AG and its partner UP.Labs have jointly founded their first company; Los Angeles-based startup Pull Systems is developing a machine-learning-as-a-service solution for capturing and analyzing vehicle data. Pull Systems’ intelligent platform aims to generate important information about the vehicle—such as the condition of the vehicle’s battery or power electronics—quickly... Read more →

Honda announced key next steps in the establishment of its EV Hub in Ohio. In October 2022, Honda announced that it would invest $700 million to retool several of its existing auto and powertrain plants to establish the new EV Hub in Ohio, to prepare for the production of battery... Read more →

The first round of funding of up to $700M from the US Department of Transportation’s new $2.5-billion Charging and Fueling Infrastructure (CFI) Discretionary Grant Program has opened. The $700 million is allocated for Fiscal Years (FY) 2022 and 2023 to deploy EV charging and other alternative vehicle-fueling infrastructure projects strategically... Read more →

Elcora Advanced Materials has signed, through its Ermazon SARL wholly owned subsidiary, a binding agreement with exclusive long-term mining production rights and option to purchase a 16 km² manganese mining concession in Morocco. This manganese deposit had been mined until a few years ago when COVID rules prevented further development.... Read more →

In 2022, US natural gas consumption averaged a record 88.5 billion cubic feet per day (Bcf/d)—the highest annual natural gas consumption, according to records beginning in 1949, according to the US Energy Information Administration (EIA). US natural gas consumption last year increased 5% (4.5 Bcf/d) from 2021, the second-fastest year-over-year... Read more →

Viridos (founded as Synthetic Genomics (SGI) in 2005) (earlier post) has raised a $25-million Series A equity investment. The Series A was led by Breakthrough Energy Ventures (BEV) and joined by Chevron USA . and United Airlines Ventures. The funding will be used for R&D to further increase algae oil... Read more →

Classification society RINA has granted an Approval in Principle (AiP) certificate to MAN Energy Solutions for its methanol-ready MAN L/V 32/44CR engine. The AiP covers an upgrade concept for the four-stroke engine for conversion to dual-fuel running on methanol to provide greater flexibility to shipowners. This AiP is based on... Read more →

Electra Battery Materials Corporation has successfully recovered lithium in its black mass recycling trial being conducted at its refinery north of Toronto. (Earlier post.) Electra said that the recovery and subsequent production of a technical-grade lithium carbonate product in a plant-scale setting validates its proprietary hydrometallurgical process and efforts to... Read more →

US Department of the Interior has approved a scaled-back version of ConocoPhillips’ Willow Master Development Plan in the National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska (NPR-A). (Earlier post.) The Record of Decision (ROD) reduces the size of the project by denying two of the original five drill sites proposed by ConocoPhillips, which is seeking... Read more →

IDTechEx forecasts that the second-life EV battery market will reach US$7B in value by 2033. The second-life EV battery market adds value to future energy infrastructure, creates a circular economy for electric vehicle (EV) batteries, and provides a lower levelized cost of storage compared to new batteries. A new IDTechEx... Read more →

Rio Tinto has begun underground production from the Oyu Tolgoi copper mine in the Gobi Desert. (Earlier post.) Oyu Tolgoi is expected to become the fourth-largest copper mine in the world by 2030, operating in the first quartile of the copper equivalent cost curve. Since the agreement between the Government... Read more →

In 2022, US ethane demand increased by approximately 9%, or almost 0.2 million barrels per day (b/d), according to the US Energy Information Administration’s (EIA’s) Petroleum Supply Monthly. US production and consumption of ethane (a hydrocarbon gas liquid used almost exclusively as a feedstock in the petrochemical industry) has grown... Read more →

Volta Trucks has received European Whole Vehicle Type Approval for its 16-tonne all-electric Volta Zero truck. (Earlier post.) The European Community Whole Vehicle Type Approval (ECWVTA) certification allows Volta Trucks to produce and sell the all-electric Volta Zero in volume. It’s the process used to ensure that all vehicles meet... Read more →