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by Craig ShieldsPosted on Posted in Electric Vehicles

A recent article in Japan’s Nikkei newspaper urges the country’s automakers to head directly to battery EVs, rather than further protracting the lives of hybrids.  The piece suggests that both Toyota and Honda must shift towards EVs, or risk having the nation of Japan fall behind the competition:

…both Toyota and Honda had until recently thought that the era of hybrids would continue for a while before electric vehicles began to gain popularity. But the automakers are now accelerating their efforts to develop electric cars, and there are two main reasons for this. One is the tough new fuel economy rules the US administration of President Barack Obama will introduce in 2012…The second reason for the heightened focus on electric cars is China’s move to promote them.

 This advice, which is what millions of other people and I have been saying for years, is so obvious that it’s really rather ridiculous. Both Toyota and Honda, with their huge balance sheets and engineering staffs, could have done this in a heartbeat anytime they wanted over the past decade. Why didn’t they? I can think of only one reason – that they were already perceived as green – and saw no reason (other than decency) in offering a product that would bring an end to an existing profit stream.

Now, their backs are up against the wall, forced to move fast to avoid being marginalized in a world that’s running 100 MPH towards EVs. I hate to sound like a Monday-morning quarterback, but couldn’t someone somewhere have seen this coming?

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by Craig ShieldsPosted on Posted in Photovoltaics

The company Applied Materials (NASDAQ: AMAT), a leading supplier of solar panel manufacturing equipment, recently commissioned a new survey on solar energy to gauge the public’s current views and knowledge on the subject.

Here is what was revealed: (more…)

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by Craig ShieldsPosted on Posted in Energy Storage

I hope the world is paying close attention to the development of molten salt technology to store solar energy as heat, for later conversion to electricty at night and on cloudy days. As reported here by The Guardian, the Italian utility Enel just unveiled “Archimede,” apparently the first solar thermal / concentrated solar power (CSP) plant to use molten salts for heat transfer and storage.

This subject came up in detail in the interview I conducted with Dr. David Mills for the chapter on the subject in my book. It was clear to me at the time that molten salt has a long way to go if it is to scale to the extent that it will move the needle in terms of facilitating the penetration of renewables. However, this is a true breakthrough.

I only wish Sicily were in my travel plans; I’d love an excuse for a visit at this momentous occasion.

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by Craig ShieldsPosted on Posted in Renewables - Business

PhotobucketA few people commented on my piece about nuclear energy last week, and scolded me for believing that shortages of uranium may be one of many serious issues confronting this beleaguered industry. I’m not the only one who sees this, however. Editor of Peak Oil Review and former CIA analyst Tom Whipple writes this week:

China’s demand for uranium may rise to 20,000 tons a year by 2020. That translates into more than a third of the 50,500 tons mined globally last year. All of the world’s current uranium output currently has a market, supplying the existing global demand for uranium. Don’t be surprised to see uranium in shortage by the second half of this decade. Looking ahead, there’s just not enough new production in the planning stages. The world needs new mines, but startup costs are much higher than 10 or 20 years ago.

China currently has 12 reactors in operation and another 23 under construction, with others in development, according to the World Nuclear Association.

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by Craig ShieldsPosted on Posted in Electric Vehicles

One of my duties as a partner in www.EVWorld.com is occasional proofreading; every few weeks, Bill Moore asks me to review his newsletter, The Insider. I look forward to this, as it forces me to keep up on the news in electric transportation, and the proofreading requires almost no more time than would be consumed in simply reading Bill’s insightful writing. And frequently it makes me smile.

You may have noticed that last week brought us another wrinkle in the litigation in which Florida-based Paice Corporation sued Toyota and Ford Motor Company – a dispute involving Paice’s assertion that both the Toyota and Ford hybrid drive systems violate its patent and that it is entitled to compensation.

When I came across this sentence: As you might imagine, Toyota certainly wasn’t happy about the Texas jury’s decision, nor when they lost their apparel to the U.S. Supreme Court, it took we a few seconds to discern what Bill had intended. They lost their shirts, perhaps? No, I ultimately realized that what they had lost was their appeal, not their apparel.

So what was the news? None of the parties in the lawsuit will say how they settled, but Bill thinks “we can safely assume that Paice and its attorneys broke out bottles of bubbly last week, even if they it means they’ll likely never do business in Detroit again.”

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by Craig ShieldsPosted on Posted in Electric Vehicles

The Vector believes that a paradigm shift is coming, and coming quickly, in the way the U.S. consumers views their cars.

Here is why: (more…)

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by Craig ShieldsPosted on Posted in Electric Vehicles
Courtesy WTRG Economics

As transportation takes the lion’s share of our oil consumption, illustrated in the chart here (compliments of WTRG Economics), it is worthwhile clarifying some of the various terms defining innovations and types of vehicles you may see, which we will write about in Vector.     

  • Alternative-fuel vehicles do not burn gasoline – they are powered by other sources such as electricity, propane, ethanol, etc.  
  • Fuel-flex vehicles run on gasoline and another source, such as ethanol.  
  • Hybrids combine two propulsion systems, typically electric with a gasoline or diesel engine that acts as a generator when the battery runs low. Often these cars are referred to as Plug-in Hybrids due to the electrical system that is charged by plugging in to the electrical grid.  
  • EV or Electric Vehicle refers to pure electrical vehicles. 

A short summary of fuel types: (more…)

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by Craig ShieldsPosted on Posted in Renewables - Politics

Any energy newsletter, including those covering renewable energy, must pay attention to what is happening with oil and other fossil fuels. Vector is no exception.

Oil currently dominates the energy world. Let’s understand energy use in the U.S., courtesy of the Energy Information Agency (EIA):

Oil and other fossil fuels, as can be seen in the chart, clearly dominate. Oil is in the limelight right now due to the disastrous Deepwater Horizon Gulf spill, and was in similarly the object of attention two years ago when prices rose to an unprecedented $140 +/- per barrel (prices have “stabilized” between $70 – $80 per barrel over the last year.)
There are many issues related to oil that Vector will cover each month that play into the renewable energy story.

Oil is unsustainable for at least six reasons:

(more…)

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by Craig ShieldsPosted on Posted in Electric Vehicles

[blip.tv http://blip.tv/play/hed1gebSWQA]

Here’s the entire 30-minute show with DieselTek’s president Lance Miller. There is no doubt in my mind that the clean diesel industry will be making extremely important contributions to the world of sustainability over the coming decades — as diesel itself is gradually phased out in favor of technology that is intrinsically far cleaner.

DieselTek has a number of different approaches that have been shown in the laboratory to be effective at improving engine performance while dramatically lowering gaseous and particulate emissions. Check them out at Dieseltek.com.

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by Craig ShieldsPosted on Posted in Renewables - Politics

Nipton, California Will Generate 85% of its Electricity from Skyline Solar

Skyline Solar announced the first commercial installation of its High Gain Solar (HGS) 1000 system in a new municipal solar plant of the desert town. The 80 kilowatt plant is an upgradeable solar power system that has been planned since 2008, when it secured financing. Skyline’s HGS patented architecture uses photovoltaic, tracking, cooling and concentration components, and reduces the amount of silicon needed. The power-producing components are upgradeable – which allows the owners to “future proof” their investment.

“As a gateway community to the Mojave Desert, Nipton seeks to be a good steward of the environment. Sustainability is paramount…” said Gerald Freeman, Principal Administrator for Nipton.

And Here’s What’s Happening at the New York Power Authority: (more…)

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