Most of you reading this are already inclined toward green-type technology, whether that’s clean power generation, electric transportation, or more efficient ways to do things. Today, I’m going to give you one more reason to stop supporting – or at least vocally dislike – big gas and big oil. Yes, We’ve All Heard About This There are a number of people who will happily speak at length about dependence on foreign oil and how it leads to American troops being sent over to oil-rich hotspots to make sure we can still get affordable gas at the pump. There was a pun a while back about how Operation: Iraqi Freedom should have been called Operation: Iraqi Liberation (or O.I.L.), for example. I’m not really one of those people, but I listen when they talk. Oil is not cheap; from the ...

October 23, 2012 8:00 am

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October 26, 2012 6:00 pm

Electric Mobility Canada and Hydro-Québec are pleased to welcome you to Montréal for the EV 2012 VÉ Electric Vehicles Conference and Trade Show.

The 2012 edition of the conference will highlight new business opportunities for various types of electric transportation. In 2011 and 2012, we saw many models of electric vehicles come on the market and the deployment of public charging infrastructure. We are now firmly committed to a new era of possibilities that, until now, seemed futuristic.

The Conference will underscore the efforts made by car manufacturers, suppliers, electric utilities and governments to make electric transportation a reality. We will discuss technological breakthroughs, business perspectives and the priorities of this industry, which plays an essential role in sustainable development.

With our solid program offering and thanks to the unique charm of Montréal and Québec, we are confident that your participation to this conference …

TESLA ROADSTER

If Chris Paine’s earlier movie, “Who Killed the Electric Car” (WKtEC), was about people being deprived of their vehicles and used as pawns in a struggle between government regulations and established business, then his latest film, “Revenge of the Electric Car,” is about the Kings.

The Journey For the trip to the theater, I used an electric vehicle,.. though many don’t consider how the subway’s are powered. The train was stopped two stations short of my destination for a passenger with a seizure and I decided to walk. Many can be subject to what affects one train, but is this so different than a traffic accident on a highway? The air was crisp and most New Yorkers are under-dressed for spending much time outside. Along the way, newspapers proclaimed in headlines the demise of ...

Tesla’s Roadster is one of the sexiest electric cars on the road, and their new sedan looks pretty sweet, too. Not only does it seat up to 7, there’s also a performance model available (0-60 in 4.5 seconds!). Helping keep costs down so more of us can ride in this sweet silent sedan is Panasonic, providing the lithium-ion battery cells.

Both companies say that the agreement will help Tesla meet its costs and margin targets for the Model S, according to a statement released Tuesday. As the base model is priced at $57,400 (before the applicable federal tax credit, which is $7,500 and any other incentives), it’s anyone’s guess what that margin is. The Roadster, in comparison, costs upwards of $109,000 (presumably using the same type of batteries, but hey, it’s a sports car).

Panasonic’s involvement with Tesla ...

As long as there are complaints about electric cars, Nissan just isn’t satisfied. Having already resolved the bulky home charger issue with a smaller version, Nissan will next tackle the time it takes to charge an EV.

DC quick chargers can take an EV up to about 80% capacity in just thirty minutes – not bad, when the alternative is charging the car overnight. But thirty minutes is still more time than you might want to spend off the road, or waiting in the morning before heading out to wherever. Nissan’s new technology, if all goes according to projections, will charge an EV battery completely in 10 minutes – less time than it takes to drive to the gas station and fill up.

Kansai University is the hot spot for Nissan – engineers and researchers there have a capacitor electrode made ...

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Some crazy concept cars have emerged since the electric car frenzy hit the market in 2008. Where are they now? We caught up with 29 electric car manufacturers and developers to find out what they’re doing today. Some are still going strong, some have begun actively producing their cars, and some … well, not every startup can survive. Most major car companies have begun working on a hybrid electric car or a pure battery-powered electric car. The Nissan Leaf and the Chevy Volt, two of the cheapest electric cars on the market, now cost less than $50,000. And there are plenty of other battery-powered and hybrid electric cars in the pipeline that will bring those costs even lower. This list is sorted according to car availability and release ...

“Range anxiety” for pure battery-powered electric car owners wears off quickly as a driver begins to understand the capabilities and charging patterns of their car, according to a new study by the Technology Strategy Board. Around 35 percent of electric car owners were concerned about reaching a destination before running out of juice three months after buying a car, compared to 100 percent of car owners when they first bought the electric car, according to the report. More car owners drove the cars until the battery fell below 50 percent charge. But the report also showed that electric car owners still desire longer ranges. Most battery-powered electric cars are limited in their range, which can make car purchasers skittish and less likely to buy a pure battery-powered electric car. It’s ...

Car manufacturers Ford and Toyota announced today that the companies will collaborate on a hybrid-electric car powertrain for sport utility vehicles and light trucks. Ford and Toyota will jointly develop a rear-wheel drive electric powertrain and then introduce the powertrain in separate vehicle lines for each company. The light trucks and SUVs should arrive sometime later this decade, the companies said in an official announcement. “The companies are likely looking to reduce cost of the drivetrain to grow the hybrid market, and they don’t see each other as much as direct competitors in the SUV/truck market as with light duty cars,” Pike Research analyst John Gartner told VentureBeat. “There is enough differentiation in the rest of the vehicle design that a common drivetrain with a competitor should not be problematic.” Toyota is already collaborating with Tesla Motors, makers of the battery-powered Tesla Roadster electric ...

graphene surface-enabled lithium ion-exchanging cells / surface-mediated cells (SMCs)

Electrical energy has been stored in electrochemical batteries, capacitors, and double layer or ultra capacitors. Other mechanisms like pumped hydro, thermal systems, and even flywheels store energy that can be used to generate electricity. Surface-mediated cells (SMC) offer us the advantage of increasing both power and energy densities.

Power Density is a measure of how quickly a charge can be transferred. It is typically measured in units of power (watts, KW, joules/second) over weight. Power is what we need in an electric car to start the vehicle moving, to accelerate, and for regenerative braking. Some devices are known for their high power ratings. Capacitors, ultra caps (often measured in mF and Farads) and flywheels are particularly good with power density because the electricity is held as a static charge ...

Tesla Motors will unveil it’s sport utility electric vehicle sometime in December after finishing up development of an alpha model of the car, chief executive Elon Musk said in the company’s quarterly earnings call. The Model X uses the same powertrain and technology the other electric cars Tesla Motors produces employ, which cut the development time for the Model X in half. It cost around a third of the upfront capital expenditures to begin producing the Model X as well, Musk said. “The plan is to have an unveiling of the Model X prototype in the mid-December time frame,” Musk said. “So far it’s looking good, I don’t think anything will cause an issue.” The company raised an extra $210 million in June to fund development of the Model X and the Model S. Musk ...