As California searches for cheap energy storage options, a new report by the Climate Change and Business Research Initiative at the UCLA and UC Berkeley law schools suggests that used EV batteries may be the ideal solution. “Most batteries will retain much of their capacity and value after the use of the car,” said report… Read more »
An unnamed source has told Reuters that the company is rushing to finish a new version of the Fisker Karma, and hopes to reintroduce it “by next year.” “It will have to be nearly identical to the 2012 model, or it would need to go through [safety] testing and certification again,” a supplier source said…. Read more »
DENZA, the “made in China, for China” EV from Daimler’s joint venture with Chinese automaker BYD, has started rolling off the production line in Shenzhen. The joint-venture company, BYD Daimler New Technology (BDNT), was established in 2010 with a 600-million-yuan ($98 million) initial investment. The DENZA is a four-door, five-passenger sedan with an 86 kW… Read more »
Boston-Power has announced its new Ensemble Module System, a kit of standard components designed to provide a simple, cost-effective way to assemble large-format battery pack solutions for EV and stationary storage applications. Available in 155 Wh and 116 Wh increments, module designs can be created to meet a wide variety of voltage and capacity requirements…. Read more »
The first Formula E championship race provided electrifying thrills aplenty on the streets of Beijing. Winding around the Olympic Bird’s Nest stadium, the course formed a stimulating city-center circuit, with a succession of straights, chicanes and 90° bends. The weather was perfect and the stands were packed. Starting from pole position, Nicolas Prost (e.dams Renault)… Read more »
Furrer+Frey and Opbrid have developed the Opbrid Bůsbaar, an overhead high-power charging system for heavy-duty vehicles, which is now being used to charge the Volvo Electric Hybrid bus in a couple of pilot projects in Sweden. Their new product, the Opbrid Trůkbaar V3, brings automatic fast charging to electric trucks. City buses are natural candidates… Read more »
A GM R&D team has developed a way to improve the cycling stability and Coulombic efficiency of lithium-sulfur (Li/S) batteries. The new paper, Polydopamine-Coated, Nitrogen-Doped, Hollow Carbon-Sulfur Double-Layered Core-Shell Structure for Improving Lithium-Sulfur Batteries, appears in the ACS journal Nano Letters. Lithium-sulfur chemistry theoretically promises impressive energy capacity, but practical Li-S batteries have been hindered… Read more »
As some automakers such as Audi are turning to 48 V electrical systems to facilitate the integration of ever more electronic accessories, Austin, Texas-based Freescale Semiconductor (NYSE: FSL) has introduced a highly integrated 14-cell lithium-ion battery cell controller. Freescale’s MC33771 battery cell controller and companion MC33664 isolated communications interface include fourteen cell balancing transistors, a… Read more »
Is Nissan is thinking of closing its US and British battery plants? According to Reuters (via Green Car Reports), the company may end up sourcing cells from South Korea’s LG Chem. Nissan currently produces its own batteries through a joint venture with NEC. With the help of governments eager to aid domestic manufacturing, it built battery plants in… Read more »
A new study has found that fast charging and discharging of lithium-ion batteries may not be as damaging as most researchers believe. The results of the study, Current-induced Transition from Particle-by-particle to Concurrent Intercalation in Phase-separating Battery Electrodes, published in Nature Materials, challenge the conventional wisdom that fast charging necessarily shortens battery life. The authors… Read more »
