ZeroAvia, which specialises in electric aircraft propulsion systems, has now completed the maiden flight of a six-seater battery-electric aircraft at Cranfield Airport as part of the HyFlyer project supported by the British government.
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Electric trio: Jaguar Land Rover graced the Low Carbon Vehicle Event with three electrified concept cars. The Concept_e MHEV is a mild hybrid based on the Range Rover Evoque, while the Concept_e PHEV leans on the Range Rover Sport. The presented all-electric Concept_e BEV features two electric drives. All three use the in-house developed electric drive module (eDM).
autoexpress.co.uk, autoevolution.com
Fuel cell trio: Intelligent Energy showcased its fuel cell technology at Millbrook. The ZERE van utilises a fuel cell as range extender, while the London Taxi on display runs solely on hydrogen, as does the ENV (Emissions Neutral Vehicle) motorcycle and Burgman scooter developed together with Suzuki.
alternativeenergyhq.com
Electric bus range: British Wrightbus is working on a series of electric buses said to be ready for testing early 2016. The company is building the vehicles to a modular concept so that it can offer single- and double-deck buses on the same platform. Inductive charging is an option as well.
transportengineer.org.uk
Li-ion research: Researchers from MIT, Argonne National Laboratory and UC Berkeley developed a new class of high capacity cation-disordered oxides for Li-ion battery cathodes. The disordered material is said to facilitate diffusion.
greencarcongress.com
Hydrogen lorry: A consortium led by Intelligent Energy and backed by British Gas, DHL and others is to develop a fuel cell commercial vehicle destined for mass production. The three-year project is estimated to cost 12.7 million pounds (18.6m dollars).
leicestermercury.co.uk, hydrogenfuelnews.com
Google battery research: The internet corporation’s research arm, Google X, is working on improving battery technology with a focus on Li-Ion and solid-state power packs, Wall Street Journal reports. The batteries could serve in Google’s own EVs in the future.
wsj.com
9 million dollars will be invested by the California Energy Commission in three companies that are looking into electrifying heavy-duty vehicles and their components in the Golden State. Proterra, TransPower, and Efficient Drivetrains are to get about 3m dollars each.
greencarcongress.com
Mild hybrid Ferraris: The Italian sports car brand says it would keep its V12 engine as pure as possible but has to look into electrification. Instead of a turbo, future V12’s will be complemented by 48-volt systems, helping Ferrari to comply to tightening EU regulations.
autocar.co.uk via digitaltrends.com
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New fuel cell system: British Intelligent Energy is offering a 100-kW fuel cell architecture. The system will be made available to vehicle manufacturers through licensing and joint development agreements. Power density is given at 3.5 kW/l which would place it slightly above Toyota’s Mirai (3.1 kW/l).
greencarcongress.com, intelligent-energy.com
Silk-based battery: Researchers from Beijing Institute of Technology say they have identified a new material for anodes derived from natural silk which is weaved into carbon-based nanosheets. It allegedly can store five times more lithium ions than graphite while being more stable.
nanotech-now.com, business-standard.com
Supercap electrode: Researchers from the Indian S.N. Bose National Centre for Basic Sciences (SNBNCBS) have developed a novel supercapacitor electrode based on a hybrid nanostructure made from a hybrid nickel oxide-iron oxide exterior shell and a conductive iron-nickel core. The electrode is said to retain nearly 95 percent of capacity after 3,000 charge cycles.
nanotech-now.com, eetindia.co.in
Follow up: All informations on the “SecMobil” project in which engineers at the Ruhr University Bochum (RUB) and partners have developed a security sensor for charging stations (we reported) are now available in English. Kindly follow the link below.
azosensors.com
Most clicked link on Thursday was the report about Chinese carmaker Changan planning to launch 27 new electric models and seven new hybrid models by 2025.
gasgoo.com
Reading tip: Dr. Henri Winand, CEO of Intelligent Energy, wants to show that fuel cell vehicles are viable for the mass market. He therefore aims to debunk the myths around the use, power efficiency and cost of fuel cells.
greencarcongress.com
Click tip: Bosch presents a world map of drivetrains. It shows i.e. that almost every fifth newly bought vehicle in Japan is a hybrid. Bosch forecasts that of a predicted 113 million total vehicles sold worldwide in 2020, 6.5 million will be hybrids, 3 million will be plug-in hybrids, and 2.5 million will be all-electric.
greencarcongress.com
Walmart to stock up on fuel cells: The company just extended its deal with Plug Power to receive additional 286 GenKey units on top of their initial order of 1,783 units (we reported). The GenDrive fuel cells are used in electric forklifts and Plug Power will also provide refuelling and servicing infrastructure to a total of now seven sites.
online.wsj.com
Multi-million fuel cell deal: Intelligent Energy says it signed a two-year “multi-million” pound contract with an unnamed Japanese automotive company. The British fuel cell maker already works with Suzuki and will use the money to further develop its products.
bloomberg.com
40-A charge connector: Leviton officially introduced their 40-amps charge connector assembly. This single-phase Type 1/J1772 connector will allow for charging rates of up to 9.7 kW and is used in Leviton’s Evr-Green 400 Charging Station. In the U.S., Levington is the preferred level-2 charging supplier for Toyota,
greencarcongress.com
E-Up joins German army: The Bundeswehr has taken delivery of ten electric Volkswagen. The E-Ups are part of a newly set up carsharing project in Koblenz/Lahnstein where they will serve the ‘Federal Office of Bundeswehr Equipment, Information Technology and In-Service Support’ (BAAINBw).
firmenauto.de, autoflotte.de (both in German)
A world with superchargers: The Verge has published three animated maps showing the planned growth of Tesla’s Supercharger network in North America, Europe and China. In the states the company plans to cover 98% of the population with its charging stations by 2015.
theverge.com
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Why Li-ion batteries get old: U.S. researchers have been able to analyse the changes in Li-ion cells during charging and discharging. The reason the cells degrade over time is a pattern of erosion that happens on the cathode and anode ends. The phenomenon is said to be comparable to that of rusting steel. Also similar is that a coating could help prevent degradation due to age.
bnl.gov, power-eetimes.com
DOE asks for input about FCVs: The U.S. Department of Energy asked researchers, industry, governmental bodies and stakeholders about the technical and economic feasibility of commercialising fuel cell range extenders. Among the specific questions raised is also whether it is possible to put refuelling infrastructure in place in the U.S.
greencarcongress.com
Intelligent Energy raises millions: 55 million pounds or 94 million dollars, to be exact. The money was generated through the sale of stakes and will be used to bring a new technology for mobile phone chargers on the market. The company is Britain’s leading hydrogen and fuel cell company, with its main focus on the automotive industry and the development of high-density fuel cell stacks.
reuters.com, cleantechinvestor.com
Munich University makes batteries: The Institute for Machine Tool and Industrial Management there, has begun operations of its own research production line for lithium-ion batteries. The 200-square meter facility houses 20 productions stations, as well as a drying- and a cleanroom.
tum.de (in German)
Blink charger upgrade: After Tesla made its patents public, the Car Charging Group announced that it will integrate Tesla charging technology into its 119 Blink quick chargers in the USA. Before, Model S drivers needed an adapter to use Blink’s CHAdeMO chargers.
green.autoblog.com, electriccarsreport.com
E-bus investment: Electric bus manufacturer Proterra received 30 million dollars from GM Ventures, Kleiner Perkins and Tao Invest to further develop its vehicles. Furthermore, the company expects to generate another ten million dollars funding within the coming weeks.
automotive-business-review.com, electriccarsreport.com
Five millions for infrastructure: The Californian Energy Commission is funding the installation of 475 EV chargers in the Sunshine State with five million dollars. The funding is spread over 15 grants which come from the Alternative and Renewable Fuel and Vehicle Technology Program (ARFVTP).
greencarcongress.com, energy.ca.gov, earthtechling.com
British-American knowledge transfer: With British ‘Intelligent Energy’ the U.S. hydrogen initiative ‘H2USA’ will gain another supporter. Intelligent Energy will join the consortium to transfer knowledge and experience, which the developer of fuel cell systems won from hydrogen programs in Germany, the UK, and France.
greencarcongress.com, marketwatch.com
Renault and LG Chem forged a strategic alliance to develop long-range Li-ion batteries for EVs. The partnership agreement will see the two companies combining their R&D efforts to produce a new vehicle using a high density battery to be developed by LG Chem which is said to double the current range of 93 miles.
industryweek.com, businesskorea.co.kr, koreaittimes.com
Long-lasting transducers: BYD Microelectronics (BME) announced that the multi-channel, current transducers, namely the BLX9, in BYD’s EVs have been running faultlessly for 130,000,000 miles in the last five years with each electric car running for more than 400,000 miles.
greencarcongress.com
Air-cooled, compact fuel cell system: Intelligent Energy presented its Gen4 fuel cell power unit, which has been developed together with Suzuki, at the 2014 JSAE (Society of Automotive Engineers of Japan) Annual Congress in Yokohama. The unit is designed for smaller EVs but comes with an optional range extender for application in larger vehicles.
greencarcongress.com
Google Glass to find charging stations: Charging station operator SemaConnect has developed an app to be used with Google Glass. Drivers can use Google’s wearable computer to locate the nearest charging point within a 20-mile radius. However, the app will only list ChargePro stations – currently over 300 in the U.S. and Canada.
greencarreports.com
Nissan ZEOD RC exposed: The Japanese carmaker released an explosion drawing of its hybrid race car. The CAD graphic shows most components of the ZEOD RC prototype which Nissan built to take to Garage 56 at this year’s Le Mans 24 Hours competition.
hybridcars.com
