News

August 17, 2015

Volkswagen Names LG Electronics One of its FAST Suppliers

The Volkswagen Group has nominated 44 of its suppliers to collaborate on a new strategic level under the Future Automotive Supply Tracks (FAST) initiative. One of the first batch of preferred suppliers is LG Electronics, which provides high-voltage batteries for the Group’s various plug-in vehicles. Volkswagen launched the FAST program […]
August 15, 2015

500-Kilometer All-Electric Audi SUV Will Use LG Chem + Samsung SDI Battery Cells

Utilizing battery cells from LG Chem as well as Samsung SDI, Audi has announced that it is planning to produce a fully electric SUV with 311 miles (500 kilometers) of range. If that wasn’t enough to get you sitting up much straighter in your chair, Audi says that it will […]
August 14, 2015

SkelStart Engine Start Module Uses Ultracapacitors to Eliminate Dead Batteries

Skeleton Technologies’ new ultracapacitor-based 24 V Engine Start Module (SkelStart ESM) is designed to ensure trouble-free engine starting in any conditions. Batteries are a major headache in the trucking industry, particularly in cold climates. Long-haul drivers often leave engines idling for long periods to keep batteries charged. Starting failures occur […]
August 13, 2015

3M Licenses NMC Patents to LG Chem

3M and LG Chem have formed a patent license agreement to allow the Korean battery-maker to use 3M’s formulation of nickel manganese cobalt oxide (NMC) cathode materials in lithium-ion batteries. NMC, valued for its balance of power, energy, thermal stability and low cost, has been the subject of some rivalry […]
July 24, 2015

French Chemical Giant and Utility Join to Create Energy Storage R&D Lab

Arkema, a global chemical company, and SCE France, a subsidiary of Canadian electricity producer Hydro-Québec, plan to create a joint laboratory that will focus on developing a new generation of materials for the manufacture of lithium-ion batteries, in particular new electrolytes (solvents, lithium salts) and conduction agents (carbon nanotubes, conductive […]
July 23, 2015

The Electric Vehicle Battery “Can And Should Be Recycled”

Critics of electric vehicles like to argue that they’re really not greener than gas-powered cars: those tailpipe emissions just move to the source of electricity (which, in the US, is often coal or natural gas), and that electric vehicle battery will eventually require disposal. The first argument doesn’t take into […]
July 19, 2015

Faraday Future Unstealths, Full Of Former Tesla Motors Staff

Electric car enthusiasts are pretty quick to drop the term “vaporware” these days… because there’s a lot of vaporware in this market. Heck, there’s a lot of vaporware in the car market in general. So, when Faraday Future* unveiled plans this week to build high-performance electric cars, it decided to jump straight […]
July 16, 2015

BioSolar Claims Polymer Cathode Can Deliver Twice the Range at a Quarter the Cost

Energy storage startup BioSolar (OTCQB: BSRC) will extend a sponsored research program at the University of California, Santa Barbara to further develop its “super battery technology.” The extension funds the research program until June 2016. BioSolar’s baby is a novel polymer cathode that leverages fast redox-reaction properties, rather than conventional […]
July 15, 2015

Bosch + GS Yuasa “On Target” To Offer Lithium-Ion Batteries With Twice The Energy Density At Half The Cost By 2020

With Tesla’s Gigafactory apparently now set to end up far larger than was originally reported, others in the race towards dominance of the lithium-ion battery industry are apparently unwilling to keep silent either, based on recent comments from the head of Bosch Japan. Bosch and its partner GS Yuasa are […]
July 4, 2015

EV Battery Second Use Can Improve Grid Stability, NREL Reports

The National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) has recommended battery second use (B2U) as a way to offset the cost of electric vehicles and improve electricity grid stability. What is B2U? Battery second use is just another term for battery repurposing. NREL conducted a study on the viability of reusing discarded […]
July 2, 2015

DOE Report Examines Opportunities for US Battery Manufacturers

Asia currently dominates automotive lithium-ion cell production – it controls around 79% of the market. However, a recent report by the DOE’s Clean Energy Manufacturing Analysis Center (CEMAC) found that the US has a growing opportunity in the industry, which is expected to swell from the current $9 billion to […]
July 1, 2015

Innovative Clean Energy Technologies — From Concept to Market

Transformative technologies are fundamentally driving the acceleration of the clean energy field. From more efficient solar photovoltaics and larger wind turbines, to grid-scale energy storage and small, high-capacity electric vehicle batteries – innovative technologies continue to develop the clean energy industry and increase cost-effectiveness for consumers. Imagine the amount of […]