The Energy Blog

Project A Better Place Expands to Denmark

Project Better Place (PBC), California, has signed a letter of intent with Danish energy company DONG Energy aimed at reducing CO2 emissions from the Danish car fleet by providing electric cars, batteries and the infrastructure required for implementing a sustainable transportation energy solution. Together with PBC, DONG Energy will work on the further development of the project to give Danish consumers access to buying environmentally friendly electric vehicles (EVs) at attractive prices. 

Denmark is the second country in which such a transportation solution is being planned, Israel, previous post, being the first.

The presentation, below, by Shai Agassi, founder and CEO of PBC, at a New Democrat Network meeting gives a very good explanation of the business model that will be used by PBC to implement the electric car fleet and required infrastructure (drag slider to 4:15 to avoid introduction), my short explanation is given following the video.

Through the PBC and Renault-Nissan Alliance partnership announced last January, Renault will provide Better Place Denmark with zero emissions electric vehicles that offer driving performances similar to a gasoline engine. Nissan, through its joint venture with NEC of Japan, has created an advanced Lithium Iron Phosphate (LiFePO4) battery pack, using currently available technology, that meets the requirements of the electric vehicle and will be mass-produced.

GM will use Lithium-ion Batteries with its "Mild" Hybrid Drivetrains

The Wall Street Journal reports that GM will announce an upgrade of its "mild" powertrain, the "Belt Alternator Starter," (BAS) drivetrain that is used on hybrids such as the Saturn Aura and Chevrolet Malibu at the Geneva Motor Show.

The new system, "BAS-plus," will use lithium-ion batteries supplied by Japan's Hitachi Ltd. The upgrade to lithium-ion batteries will allow the new hybrid system to produce "limited electric drive" during the "extremely fuel-consumptive phase of initial acceleration."

The system will increase mileage "better than the 12% to 15% benefit" of GM's current BAS system.

Mr. Lutz, GM Vice Chairman, stressed that the system is less expensive than other electric-only driving hybrid systems and therefore more cost-effective for consumers.

Johnson Controls, Partner to Open Lithium-ion Battery Factory in France

Johnson Controls Inc. (NYSE:JCI) and its French joint venture partner, Saft, soon will open their first factory to build lithium-ion batteries for a plug-in version of a Mercedes-Benz sedan.

The company also is making batteries for Dodge Sprinters that are being tested in Los Angeles and New York. 

The company announced last year that it is engaged in development work with multiple automakers for hybrid batteries for hybrid electric cars and plug-in vehicles, including the plug-in Saturn Vue under development by General Motors.

The new Johnson Controls-Saft factory in Nersac, France, will open this month. That factory will begin production this year of lithium-ion batteries that will be supplied to Daimler AG for its Mercedes S-Class 400 hybrid. . . . more

In another announcement Johnson Controls said its lithium-ion battery would last 10 years and that it would take up one-third less space and weigh 50 percent less than nickel-metal hydride batteries.

This is just what the LI-ion business needs, as the demand for these batteries will soon outstrip the supply.

GM Forms New Organization for Hybrids, Plug-ins and Advanced Batteries

General Motors has formed a new engineering organization especially dedicated to implementing hybrid and extended- range electric vehicles (E-REV) and advanced battery technology. The global team will be led by Robert Kruse, executive director of vehicle engineering for hybrids, electric vehicle and batteries.

"The future of automotive transportation will be based on electrification of our vehicles," "By having a vehicle engineering team in place and focused on delivering the technical aspects of hybrids and E-REVs, we can accelerate these programs and get them into production quickly and efficiently."

-- Jim Queen, GM group vice president of Global Engineering

GM's newest vehicle engineering team will develop vehicles using a variety of propulsion systems including gas-electric hybrids and GM's innovative E-Flex architecture. Vehicles that will be engineered by this team include the production E-REVs based on E-Flex architectures; Chevrolet Tahoe and Silverado 2 Mode; Chevrolet Malibu Hybrid; Saturn Vue 2 Mode Plug-in; Saturn Vue and Aura Hybrid; GMC Yukon and Sierra 2 Mode; and the Cadillac Escalade 2 Mode.

This should be great news for the affected technologies.  GM seems to be recognizing the importance of these technologies.  The Volt is not mentioned, I believe they already have a separate organization for it. It uses a different and hopefully more advanced technology, which is quite far along in development. It seems they want some common design elements in the mentioned vehicles.  I hope this is a step foreword and not just a bureaucracy for the sake of the media.

FYI: Renault Nissan Considers Using A123Systems Batteries in Addition to Their Own

The Wall Street Jounal reports that Renault and its partner Nissan Motor Co., which this week announced a major commitment to develop battery-powered cars, are considering using lithium-ion batteries both from their in-house team and the American battery start-up A123 Systems.

"In some markets we will use Nissan-NEC battery technology and in others we are thinking about adopting technology from A123 Systems," one person said.

One is their partnership with former SAP AG executive Shai Agassi that aims to set up a network for charging ...

Renault-Nissan and Project Better Place to Supply Israel with Recharging Grid and Electric Vehicles

Renault-Nissan Alliance and Project Better Place aim to create a breakthrough with electric vehicles in Israel. This comes in response to the Israeli State's challenge to migrate the country's transportation infrastructure to renewable sources of energy. The Israeli government would provide tax incentives to customers, Renault would supply the electric vehicles, and Project Better Place would construct and operate an Electric Recharge Grid across the entire country. Electric vehicles will be available for customers in 2011.

According to the New York Times, Renault (EPA: RNO) will offer a small number of electric models of existing vehicles, like the Megane sedan, at prices roughly comparable to gasoline models. The vehicles will run on pure electricity for all functions. The objective of zero emissions will be achieved, while at the same time offering driving performances similar to a 1.6 liter gasoline engine. Renault's electric vehicles will be equipped with lithium-ion batteries, ensuring greater driving range and longevity.

"Dozens of electric cars will go on the roads for thorough testing this year. There's already an operational prototype. I've driven it, and it goes from 0 to 100 kmh in 7.5 seconds. In other words, there's a product and it's one of the fastest cars on the road." 

Shai Agassi, CEO A Better Place, Globes Online Feb. 22, 2008

FYI: UltraBattery Sets New Standard for HEVs

The odometer of a low emission hybrid electric test vehicle reached 100,000 miles as the car circled a track in the UK using the power of an advanced CSIRO battery system.

The UltraBattery combines a supercapacitor and a lead acid battery in a single unit, creating a hybrid car battery that lasts longer, costs less and is more powerful than current technologies used in hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs). . . .

“Previous tests show the UltraBattery has a life cycle that is at least four times longer and produces 50 per cent more power than conventional battery systems. It’s also about 70 per cent cheaper than the batteries currently used in HEVs,” said David Lamb, Low Emissions Transport Leader, Energy Transformed Flagship, CISRO, Australia.  . . . more

Also see: UltraBattery: no ordinary battery

Firefly's First Battery for Plug-in Hybrids Presented to Sen. Dick Durbin

The first Firefly Energy battery aimed at the plug-in hybrid market was mounted on a plaque presented to U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., on Friday January 11. This was the company's way of thanking Durbin for helping get federal funds for research into the high-tech batteries being developed at Firefly since the companies start-up in 2003.

Firefly co-founder Mil Ovan said Firefly planned to send samples of hybrid batteries to the Argonne National Laboratory near Chicago this spring for testing.

Ovan said the company now employs 45 people, up from three when the firm was spun off from Caterpillar five years ago.

Firefly has two similar, but different, technologies using Microcell Technology™, designated as the 3D and 3D². Their breakthrough foam electrode structure results in a redistribution of most of the electrolyte (the biggest “resistor” in a lead acid battery) into the pores of the foam plate, in closer proximity to the lead chemistry. The 3D cell architecture involves replacing the conventional lead metal-based negative plate with a foam electrode.  The 3D² battery uses the porous material for both the negative and positive plates, replacing up to 70% of the lead utilized in traditional lead-acid batteries. 

See their Technical White Paper for more details on their technology.

It is speculated that batteries using the 3D² technology, which is lighter in weight and has higher energy density, will be required to meet the needs of the PHEV market.  If so, this is the first public indication of the status of that technology. Their website, in a 2006 statement, says:

. . . we hope to be making batteries for this (automotive) important application. We have no plans however to offer individual batteries to the general public for at least the next two years.

Firefly is already producing 3D batteries for trucks and for mobile lawn equipment.

FYI: Compact Power to Develop Batteries for PHEV10s

The United States Advanced Battery Consortium (USABC) announced that Compact Power, Inc. (CPI), has been awarded a contract to develop lithium-ion battery technology for 10-mile range PHEVs plug-in hybrid-electric vehicle (PHEV10) applications. The contract will be for a 27-month period, beginning in January of 2008, to develop batteries using high energy and high power manganese-spinel cathode chemistry. CPI’s contract is valued at $12.9 million, with $4.5 million funded through a cost share by the USABC.

The main advantages of LG Chem/CPI large format cells are:

1) Safer chemistry (without compromises in performance or life) – specifically LG Chem/CPI use manganese-based cathode chemistry with additives to improve calendar life under high temperature conditions.

2) Special high temperature separators (the membranes between the electrodes) – the semi-permeable insulating membranes separating the electrodes in LG Chem/CPI cells are mechanically and thermally far superior to commonly used separators in lithium-ion cells. This property enables LG Chem/CPI cells to withstand abuse situations such as internal shorts and overcharges without undergoing thermal runaway.

3) A safer laminated package – designed to be more forgiving than a metal can under abuse conditions and does not lead to explosions.

The work under this new contract is complimentary to the work CPI is doing with General Motors on the Volt/E-Flex development program.

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FYI: Altairnano Ships $1 million Storage System

Altair Nanotechnologies, Inc. (Nasdaq: ALTI), a leading manufacturer of lithium-titanate battery and energy storage products, announced today that it completed the manufacturing of battery packs to be used in a two (2) megawatt energy storage system ordered by the AES Corporation (NYSE: AES). The $1 million purchase initiated by AES was previously announced in August 2007. Altairnano expects the system to be connected to the grid and tested during the first quarter of 2008.  . . . more