Scientists from the Department of Energy’s SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory and Stanford University have used cryogenic electron microscopy, or cryo-EM, to produce high-resolution images of the solid-electrolyte interphase (SEI) layer that forms on lithium metal anodes in an approach that may improve lithium metal battery design. The scientists developed a way of collecting the SEI… Read more »
Commercial EV supplier Vicinity Motor Corp. (NASDAQ: VEV) and Proterra (NASDAQ: PTRA) have announced a new collaboration to power Vicinity’s electric transit buses and work trucks with Proterra’s battery technology. Under a new, multi-year supply agreement, Proterra battery systems will power the Vicinity Lightning 28-foot electric transit bus, and Vicinity’s strip chassis platform, which supports… Read more »
Specialty chemicals firm Albemarle has signed a joint development agreement with materials management specialist 6K to use 6K’s patented UniMelt plasma technology to develop lithium battery materials. Albemarle has also made an undisclosed investment in 6K through venture capital firm Volta Energy Technologies. UniMelt is a microwave-controlled plasma technology, and Albemarle says a 16 GWh… Read more »
Talon Nickel, a US subsidiary of Canada-based Talon Metals (TSX: TLO), has secured an agreement with Tesla to supply nickel concentrate from its Tamarack Nickel Project, a joint venture with mining giant Rio Tinto, in Aitkin County, Minnesota. Under the terms of the agreement, Tesla has committed to purchase 75,000 metric tons (165 million lbs)… Read more »
DuPont Interconnect Solutions (ICS) plans to introduce its Pyralux HP laminate adhesive system for high-performance electronics at the upcoming Institute for Printed Circuits (IPC) APEX Exposition in San Diego. The system is part of the Pyralux product line and will be available for the telecommunications, networking, medical, industrial, military and aerospace markets. The IPC-certified Pyralux… Read more »
Volkswagen Group and Cambridge, Massachusetts-based battery developer 24M Technologies have formed a strategic partnership under which VW will manufacture EV batteries using 24M’s SemiSolid platform. VW has acquired a 25% stake in 24M, and will establish a wholly-owned subsidiary that will collaborate with 24M to develop SemiSolid battery cell production technology for automotive applications. “The… Read more »
WirelessCar, a provider of digital services for connected vehicles, has launched Smart EV Routing, a product designed to enable EV drivers to optimize their long-distance journeys. WirelessCar’s Smart EV Routing uses real-time dynamic vehicle data combined with intelligent routing algorithms to offer a sophisticated route planner. WirelessCar’s Smart EV Routing uses an array of input… Read more »
As the world’s appetite for raw materials grows, interest in polymetallic nodules—nuggets of nickel, cobalt, manganese and other in-demand metals found on the sea floor—is exploding. Several companies are pursuing plans to extract the mysterious lumps, which Gerard Barron, the CEO of seabed-mining firm The Metals Company, calls “a battery in a rock.” Barron’s company… Read more »
The European oil companies BP, Shell and Total have been buying up assets in the EV charging value chain, and some suspect there’s a sinister strategy—could the oil barons monopolize public charging in key markets, jack up the prices, and kill the electric car once and for all? Maybe. But what if the companies find… Read more »
California clean-energy agency CALSTART has released a new report, Zeroing in on Electric School Buses, which describes the current state of the elect. As of September 2021, there were 1,738 ESBs (every good public-sector report must introduce at least one new acronym) awarded, ordered, delivered and deployed across the US. In total, there are some… Read more »
