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electric vehicles

How green is your EV?

April 18, 2012 by Michael Giberson
with 161 views
0

On Monday the Union of Concerned Scientists released an analysis estimating the MPG equivalence of electric vehicles. The point of the analysis is this: taking as given an objective of greenhouse gas emission reduction, how do electric vehicles compare to internal combustion vehicles in that dimension? To do such an analysis requires... [read more]

How Green Is My Electric Vehicle?

April 18, 2012 by Geoffrey Styles
with 272 views
6

One of the biggest challenges in assessing the environmental benefits of electric vehicles is that electricity is generated in so many different ways, with differing costs and consequences, and that patterns of generation vary by region, season, and time of day. As a result, categorical claims that EVs are always greener than the hybrids... [read more]

The Smart Grid Can Change the Energy Agenda

March 19, 2012 by Christine Hertzog
with 636 views
9

President Obama focused on energy and gas prices in recent speeches, deriding the opposition party’s outright preference for all things oil. “They dismiss wind power,” he said. “They dismiss solar power.… We’re trying to move towards the future, and they want to be stuck in the past.” Their peculiar focus on this singularly bad fossil... [read more]

If GM Volt is in such low demand why is it so hard for people to get one?

March 7, 2012 by Tyler Hamilton
with 525 views
2

By now most people who follow green technology developments know that GM has temporarily suspended production of its Volt plug-in hybrid.  Specifically, production will be shut down for five weeks so that GM can “align production with demand.” A post-crash-test battery fire with the Volt last year (which was overblown, but... [read more]

What Does an EV-Friendly City Look Like?

March 5, 2012 by Nino Marchetti
with 389 views
3

What does it take to make a community friendly to electric vehicles (EV)? The Electric Drive Transportation Association has a pretty good idea, and is currently highlighting communities across the country that are employing effective strategies to encourage EV adoption. [read more]

Yet Another Battery Breakthrough

January 8, 2012 by Lou Grinzo
with 2,096 views
1

Photo by mariordo59 via Flickr, Creative Commons

If you could wave your handy dandy magic wand and create a single technological breakthrough that would make a huge impact on our intertwined climate and energy challenges, you’d be hard pressed to come up with something better than a killer battery.Find a way to make a battery pack that greatly exceeds the range of those in the Leaf,... [read more]

Renewables, Energy Storage & Data Analytics: The 3 Sisters of the Smart Grid

December 19, 2011 by Christine Hertzog
with 581 views
0

American history buffs and foodies know the story of the three sisters of agriculture, a brilliant combinatorial planting technique practiced by Native Americans.  This uniquely American agricultural invention elegantly illustrates the concept of synergy.  Synergy is defined as the interactions of two or more things combined to... [read more]

China's Rare Earths Monopoly

December 16, 2011 by Silvio Marcacci
with 686 views
0

Rare earth minerals may be the most important, let least understood factor in America’s transition to a low-carbon, clean-tech future. They’re essential to virtually every source of renewable energy and consumer technology we use today. But China dominates worldwide rare earth supplies and production, and their monopoly could corner the world economy. energyNOW! chief correspondent Tyler Suiters explores how U.S. dependence on China’s rare earths could affect our energy future and high-tech lifestyles. [read more]

Hold On for the Plug-in Prius

December 9, 2011 by Jay Stein
with 523 views
1

Electric vehicle sales disappointed their manufacturers in 2011, but don’t get discouraged about this technology just yet. [read more]

Toward 2 Way Powerflow on the Smartgrid

December 6, 2011 by Dick DeBlasio
with 297 views
0

Through Smart Grid rollout over decades, the world could bring reliable electricity delivery to more regions, create new economic opportunities, reduce carbon footprint andcreate a more cost-efficient facility for power delivery. But all of those potential benefits,to varying degree, are predicated on enabling an end-to-end system of two-way powerflow in which consumers would not only draw from the grid but also store and feed energy back to it. [read more]

Next-Generation EV Batteries Zap Range Anxiety

November 28, 2011 by Silvio Marcacci
with 715 views
0

Range anxiety, or concerns about how far electric vehicles will travel on a single charge, is one of the biggest limitations facing the EV industry. In fact, a recent survey said only 20 percent of American drivers would consider buying an EV with a 100-mile range. But what if EVs could drive 500 miles on a single charge? That’s exactly what one of America’s most innovative companies is working on. energyNOW! correspondent Josh Zepps looked under the hood of a next generation battery design that uses nanotechnology to make EVs more powerful than ever. [read more]

Map of Hybrid/Electric Vehicle Sales Across the US

November 23, 2011 by Tom Konrad
with 443 views
0

NPR is doing a series looking at automakers’ push to meet the new CAFE standards. Included is this map of hybrid/electric vehicle sales across the US by market: http://api.tiles.mapbox.com/v2/npr.basemap-world,npr.hybrid-sales/mm/zoompan,tooltips,legend,share.html#4/36.65000000000001/-96.96999999999997 I thought it would be interesting... [read more]

What A Difference A Decade Makes: Electric Vehicles Mainstream at LA Auto Show

November 17, 2011 by Simon Mui
with 270 views
0

Remember Back to the Future, when Marty McFly (played by Michael J. Fox) jumps into the Lotus DeLorean and unintentionally travels back in time by 30 years, only to find a very different world?  Now at the 2011 LA Auto Show, I decided to jump in the BMW’s i8 – a plug-in electric hybrid also equipped with gull wing doors – to do my... [read more]

Government Support for Electric Drive Must Continue

November 13, 2011 by James Greenberger
with 592 views
8

Vehicle electrification is simply a hedge against a petroleum crisis that we know to a certainty is coming. Within the transportation sector, electrification is the most complete, technologically feasible and cost effective hedge that we know of. More efficient ICE’s may offer improved fuel efficiency, but they offer no such hedge. The Chinese government, which is estimated to have spent about three times what the U.S. government has spent on vehicle electrification technology, has made the same calculation. The Chinese interest in vehicle electrification has less to do with its desire to compete with the West than with its concern for economic survival in a post-peak oil world. [read more]

Guest Post: Evergreen Brick Works in Toronto to Host 'EV Fest' for Electric Car Lovers

October 20, 2011 by Tyler Hamilton
with 158 views
1

People know that Evergreen Brick Works celebrates both the natural and cultural heritage of Toronto. But what role does it play in shaping the future of sustainable transportation in this city and beyond? Evergreen Brick Works is more than a vibrant space for community festivals and appreciating nature in the city. It is also a living lab and a hub for green innovation, where like-minded people and businesses can explore, advance and apply urban sustainability solutions. [read more]