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Yet Another Battery Breakthrough

January 8, 2012 by Lou Grinzo
with 1,996 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 508 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 604 views
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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 505 views
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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 252 views
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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 591 views
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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 408 views
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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 236 views
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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 559 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 139 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]

Survey Predicts: Uphill Battle for EVs … What Are The Implications for Smart Grid?

October 6, 2011 by Allison Eckelkamp
with 316 views
5

I was once entirely convinced that electric vehicles (EVs) might just be the “killer app” for smart grid.  But, for EVs to create a demand for smart grid technologies and applications, there first needs to be a demand for EVs.The previous EV forecasts for electric vehicles have been good, and with President Obama’s stated goal of... [read more]

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Volvo, Siemens Team To Develop Europe's Electric Vehicle Market

September 21, 2011 by Helmuth Ziegler
with 673 views
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In late August Siemens and the Swedish automobile manufacturer Volvo announced a comprehensive strategic partnership to promote the development of electric cars. Now Siemens presents its huge range of products in the field of e-mobility at the International Motor Show IAA in Frankfurt,... [read more]

World's First Complete Electric Vehicle Charging Network Launched

July 29, 2011 by David Thorpe
with 516 views
2

Ecotricity and Welcome Break have today launched the first of a national network of free electric car charging points situated at motorway services and powered by the renewable electricity company's wind turbines.Dubbed the Electric Highway, the network will, when completed in three months, allow EV drivers to travel from Exeter to... [read more]

Think Transportation, Not Cars

July 11, 2011 by Gernot Wagner
with 231 views
1

The Sunday New York Times comes with its own Automobiles section. Nothing unusual about that. Many papers have one as a convenient way to cash in on whatever is left of the classifieds. Certified pre-owned BMWs anyone? The section also comes with a couple of articles, none worthy of a Pulitzer but many illuminating nonetheless. As... [read more]

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Where Do You Plug In?

July 7, 2011 by Sheila Oliva
with 404 views
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A signal that plug-in transportation isn’t just for California any more, the Electric Power Research Institute brings its Plug-In Conference and Exposition to the East Coast on July 18, 2011. In its 4th year, the conference makes one giant leap out of its comfort zone in California and heads all the way to Raleigh, North Carolina.It will... [read more]