Engineers have been searching for ways to mitigate the risk of fire with Li-ion batteries since the technology was first commercialized. Chemists are creating new cell formulations that are less prone to problems, electronics experts are designing fail-safe battery management systems, and mechanical engineers are building complex cooling and fire suppression systems. A common rule… Read more »
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I tried to power three EVs with solar panels
It’s a compelling vision of the future: empowered consumers generating their own clean electricity to power their state-of-the-art EVs. But is it practical today? Popular Mechanics writer Ezra Dyer set out to find out. Dyer installed a rooftop solar array consisting of 24 310-watt LG panels, with a nominal capacity of 7.4 kilowatts. The system… Read more »
Nikola unveils Class 8 hydrogen-electric truck (Updated: Company unveiling video)
Nikola Motor Company, named for a certain Serbian-American inventor, recently unveiled its Nikola One electric semi-truck at its Salt Lake City headquarters. The Nikola One has an electric drivetrain powered by lithium batteries, as well as a hydrogen fuel cell. It has a range of 800-1,200 miles, and delivers over 1,000 hp and 2,000 ft-lbs… Read more »
Leclanché and Narada Power form strategic alliance for Li-ion technology
Swiss battery manufacturer Leclanché and China-based battery manufacturer Zhejiang Narada Power Source have announced a strategic partnership to manufacture and develop lithium-ion battery technology for the Chinese and global markets. Narada aims to achieve low-cost, scale manufacturing of Leclanché’s proprietary high-cycling and fast-charging lithium titanate (LTO) and high-energy-density graphite nickel manganese cobalt (G-NMC) battery technologies…. Read more »
Toyota confirms it will develop EVs
Toyota will set up a special team in early 2017 to develop EVs, according to Japan’s Nikkei newspaper (via Reuters). The four-person team will include representatives from Toyota Motor, Aisin Seiki, Denso and Toyota Industries, with instructions to develop a long-range EV that will go on sale in 2020 in Japan, and possibly in California… Read more »
Cummins working on plug-in Class 6 truck, Class 7 and 8 buses
At the recent Range Extenders for Electric Vehicles Symposium in Knoxville, Tennessee (via Green Car Congress), engine manufacturer Cummins outlined two plug-in hybrid projects for heavy commercial vehicles. The first project, in partnership with Ohio State University, PACCAR, NREL and Argonne National Laboratory, is a Class 6 plug-in hybrid truck that the company says will reduce… Read more »
BYD and Wayne Engineering unveil electric refuse truck
Electrification isn’t just for glamorous sports cars – the humble garbage truck is a likely candidate too. Companies including Motiv Power Systems and Wrightspeed have deployed plug-in refuse trucks. Now Chinese automaker BYD and Wayne Engineering, a manufacturer of chassis-mounted productivity solutions for the solid waste industry, have announced the launch of a pure electric… Read more »
Wireless battery management system improves reliability, enables new features
Linear Technology, a maker of battery stack monitoring ICs for EVs and hybrids, demonstrated a concept car featuring a wireless battery management system (BMS) at the recent Electronica Show in Munich. The concept vehicle, developed by design partner LION Smart, combines Linear’s battery stack monitors with its SmartMesh wireless mesh networking products in a BMW… Read more »
LORD Corporation builds on its work potting electric motors, reducing hot spots by up to 40%
In 2013, Shafigh Nategh completed his doctoral thesis on the thermal management of high-performance electrical machines at the KTH Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm, Sweden, and by 2014, the results of his doctoral work had begun to pique the interest of some heavy hitters in the electric motor industry. For his thesis, Nategh designed… Read more »
Henrik Fisker to launch new company, build 400-mile EV
Danish-born car designer and entrepreneur Henrik Fisker has relaunched his namesake company, and plans to showcase a vehicle in the second half of 2017. The new luxury EV will be a “spiritual successor” to the ill-fated Fisker Karma, and will use proprietary batteries made by a new Fisker subsidiary, Fisker Nanotech. “We have really been… Read more »