Newswire

Green Tesla embraces carbon-intensive bitcoin

Elon Musk is by nature an iconoclast, a disrupter, an upsetter of applecarts and a slayer of sacred cows, so his long-standing interest in bitcoin, which has been described as “a techno-anarchist project” and “a way to separate money from the state,” is not at all surprising. Now Tesla has purchased $1.5 billion worth of… Read more »

Harvard University deploys four electric buses

Harvard University recently purchased four Proterra electric buses, along with the necessary charging infrastructure. The new buses, which will replace four biodiesel-powered vehicles, represent about a third of Harvard’s fleet. Each 35-foot Proterra transit bus has a seating capacity of 29, and features a 450 kWh battery pack and an 800-volt system architecture. The shuttles… Read more »

Millor will manufacture cobalt-free lithium-ion batteries in Europe

The COBRA (CObalt-free Batteries for FutuRe Automotive Applications), a European consortium that aims to develop a new cobalt-free lithium-ion battery technology, has chosen Millor Battery to make the prototypes and first batteries. COBRA and Millor Battery seek to reduce the proportion of critical raw materials in batteries without compromising energy and energy performance. Among these… Read more »

Freightliner electric trucks to use proprietary Detroit ePowertrain

Daimler Trucks North America (DTNA) has announced that its proprietary Detroit ePowertrain will power the upcoming Freightliner eCascadia and Freightliner eM2, as part of Daimler Trucks’ strategy to establish a uniform basic architecture for its global line-up of battery-electric vehicles. Daimler also announced plans to invest $20 million in its subsidiary Detroit’s manufacturing facility located… Read more »

DOE announces additional $47 million for transformational energy technology projects

The DOE has announced $47 million in new funding for seven projects as part of the Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy’s (ARPA-E) Seeding Critical Advances for Leading Energy technologies with Untapped Potential (SCALEUP) program. These selections bring total SCALEUP program funding to over $70 million, building on $24 million in previously announced SCALEUP “Fast Track” selections…. Read more »

AKASOL partners with Fraunhofer to develop automated battery recycling

German battery manufacturer AKASOL is has partnered with the Fraunhofer Research Institution to develop automated recycling processes for battery packs. “The rising demand for high-performance battery systems means that more raw materials, such as lithium, cobalt or nickel, are needed to manufacture these energy-storage technologies,” explains AKASOL Head of Product Management Dr. Björn Eberleh. “In… Read more »

Effenco offers its heavy-duty EV powertrain at the same purchase price as diesel alternatives

Effenco, a designer of electric propulsion systems for heavy-duty commercial vehicles, says its new electric solution is available at the same purchase price as diesel alternatives. Effenco’s powertrain uses ultracapacitors to optimize the battery load and increase efficiency. The company says its ultracapacitors also enable much faster charging than competing systems, and it’s equipped with… Read more »

Refreshed Tesla Models S and X to ditch lead-acid for Li-ion 12 V battery

Elon Musk and Sandy Munro covered a lot of ground in their recent video chat, discussing a great number of advances and improvements to Tesla’s vehicles and manufacturing processes. Here’s just one tidbit that many may have overlooked: beginning with the upcoming Model S/X refresh, Tesla plans to abandon the century-old lead-acid battery technology in… Read more »