Volkswagen is increasing its stake in QuantumScape, making an additional investment of up to $200 million in the US battery specialist. “We are making technological progress with our partner QuantumScape. The additional investment will effectively strengthen and accelerate our joint development work,” said VW Chairman Thomas Schmall. Volkswagen and QuantumScape have been collaborating in a… Read more »
As ride-hailing apps such as Uber, Lyft, Bolt and Kapten continue to explode in popularity, the environmental costs are becoming apparent. These services not only draw riders away from greener public transport options, but they result in more passenger-miles driven than when people drive themselves. The need to electrify ride-hailing vehicles is obvious. The good… Read more »
Launched in 2017, the Battery500 Consortium is a multi-institution program working to develop next-generation lithium metal anode cells delivering gravimetric energy density of up to 500 Wh/kg. The Battery500 team is composed of scientists and engineers from four national laboratories and five universities. Two of the researchers on the team, Professor Stanley Whittingham of Binghamton… Read more »
EV fast chargers bypass the vehicle’s on-board chargers (OBCs) for rapid direct battery charging. This allows batteries to be charged in just 30 minutes versus 4+ hours from OBCs. But the demands of these systems are significant. Design goals for fast chargers call for highly efficient power electronics and very high power density that’s possible… Read more »
The DOE is soliciting proposals from the national laboratories and industry partners to pursue radical innovations for American battery manufacturing leadership. The agency will directly fund the national labs to establish public-private partnerships that solve engineering challenges for advanced battery materials and devices, with a focus on de-risking, scaling and accelerating the adoption of new… Read more »
Peugeot’s new e-Expert is an electric version of the popular fossil-fueled Peugeot Expert commercial van. It will offer two different range options and three body lengths. The new van will be available with a battery capacity of 50 kWh of 75 kWh, depending on the body size. The Compact and Standard variants come with a… Read more »
Swiss electric utilities Primeo Energie and Alpiq E-Mobility have opened a pair of highway charging stations in Switzerland that feature battery energy storage and an energy management solution from ABB. Switzerland’s Federal Roads Office hopes to install chargers at approximately 100 motorway rest areas over the next few years. Many of these locations have little… Read more »
Transdev Canada, a private operator of school buses, has ordered 27 new electric school buses from Québec firm Lion Electric, an investment of just under $4.5 million (Canadian). The company’s fleet of 31 e-buses will be gradually introduced on school transport networks in the Estrie and Montérégie regions of Québec, beginning with the start of… Read more »
The second of Ricardo Software’s quarterly product releases for 2020 adds new capabilities in the area of EV powertrains. Both the Ricardo VECTIS CFD package and IGNITE complex systems modeling product now provide solutions for optimizing battery systems. These include modeling of the detailed heat exchange and cell degradation that occurs through use and storage. … Read more »
Norwegian ferry operator Boreal Sjö has ordered two custom-designed battery-electric ferries from technology group Wärtsilä. One is a 30-meter vessel capable of carrying 10 cars and approximately 100 passengers, while the other is a 50-meter vessel for 35 cars and 149 passengers and crew. The two double-ended shuttle ferries are to be built at Holland… Read more »
