SmartEnergyViews

The US Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) has issued a Broad Agency Announcement (BAA-2010-1) soliciting a variety of basic and applied technology research proposals to advance the state of the art in the high-speed rail and intercity passenger service area. Estimated... Mike Millikin

Ocean Power Technologies, Inc. UK-based subsidiary, Ocean Power Technologies, Ltd, has been awarded a £1.5 million (approximately $2.3 million) grant from the South West of England Regional Development Agency (SWRDA) for the development of its next-generation 500kW PowerBuoy wave power... Mike Millikin

TRW Automotive Holdings Corp. is forecasting—based on vehicle manufacturer data—that Electric Park Brake (EPB) technology will be standard on one in five of all European-built vehicles by 2015. Its projections also show that approximately half of the mid- to larger-sized... Mike Millikin

Capstone HEV truck solution. Source: Capstone. Click to enlarge. Capstone Turbine Corporation has initiated a demonstration project with a major US manufacturer of Class 5 through Class 8 heavy duty trucks that will utilize a Capstone 65 kW microturbine as... Mike Millikin

Nexteer’s eccentric rack bearing reduces EPS systems’ noise and friction, important factors in a vehicle’s perceived quality. Click to enlarge. Electric power steering specialist Nexteer Automotive has developed a polyamide eccentric rack bearing that has superior NVH (noise, vibration and... Mike Millikin

CORE BioFuel Inc., a Canadian biofuel company that is commercializing an advanced biomass-to-gasoline production process (earlier post), has engaged RECAT Technologies to complete a pilot of gasoline production reactors. The MKS process is a thermochemical process combining gasification and catalysts... Mike Millikin

Controlling soot from fossil fuels and solid biofuels may be a faster method of reducing Arctic ice loss and global warming than other options, including controlling CH4 or CO2, although all controls are needed, according to a new study by... Mike Millikin

Success greets the research team of National Research Council’s National Institute for Nanotechnology (NINT) and the University of Alberta. The plastic solar cells have now an operating life of 8 months instead of mere hours. And they are low-cost, environmentally efficient, unsealed plastic dollar cells – a green energy source. Developing economically viable plastic [...]
Posted in: Industry, PhotoVoltaics, Solar Power

Eaton Corporation and the City of Ann Arbor announced the first deployment in Michigan of recycling trucks that utilize Eaton’s Hydraulic Launch Assist (HLA) hybrid power system. (Earlier post.) The four trucks, based on the Peterbilt Model 320 Hybrid with... Mike Millikin

Technology and Policy Program (TPP) graduate student Max Parness has been selected as a Switzer Environmental Fellow by the Robert and Patricia Switzer Foundation.

This year, the Switzer Foundation awarded 21 fellowships for emerging environmental leaders who are pursuing graduate degrees and are dedicated to positive environmental change in their careers.

Parness is currently pursuing a master's in the TPP. His research concerns the use of electric vehicles as a form of distributed battery storage, in part to help reduce air pollution. Prior to attending MIT, he worked at the Natural Resources Defense Council in Beijing on energy efficiency. In the future, he hopes to work with rapidly developing countries to help establish policies that encourage long-term sustainable electricity generation, transmission and use. Parness holds an SB in electrical engineering from Drexel University.

On Tuesday, US Senate Majority leader Harry Reid released the “Clean Energy Jobs 5 and Oil Company Accountability Act of 2010”—the latest version of the energy bill to emerge from the Senate. Division B of the bill outlines two major... Mike Millikin

Blink residential unit. Source: Ecotality. Click to enlarge. With the market increasingly focusing on infrastructure to support the anticipated surge of plug-in vehicles produced and planned, electric vehicle supply equipment (charging stations)—including a new inductive charging system—appeared prominently on the... Mike Millikin

Nissan’s LEAF EV first will be available to consumers in December, in California, Washington, Oregon, Arizona and Tennessee. These areas are home to The EV Project—the largest electric vehicle and infrastructure deployment yet undertaken. The EV Project is a result... Mike Millikin

UK Transport Secretary Philip Hammond confirmed today that motorists will receive up to £5,000 (US$7,800) towards purchase of an ultra-low carbon car from January 2011. The consumer grant will reduce the up-front cost of eligible vehicles by 25%, capped at... Mike Millikin

Mitsubishi Fuso has introduced a double-clutch transmission in commercial vehicles. Known as the "Duonic", this double-clutch transmission combines automated driving with the advantages of a manual transmission. The new double-clutch transmission for commercial vehicles drives like an automatic transmission, but... Mike Millikin

The US Departments of Energy (DOE) and Defense (DOD) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to accelerate clean energy innovation and enhance national energy security. The MOU covers efforts in the areas of energy efficiency, renewable energy, water efficiency,... Mike Millikin

Nine Finalist teams in the Progressive Insurance Automotive X PRIZE have made it through on-track testing at Michigan International Speedway (MIS) and now move into a Validation stage before prize money will be awarded this September. What began as a... Mike Millikin

OriginOil, Inc. recently notified Australia-based MBD Energy Limited that it is ready to ship a Quantum Fracturing System for algae, the first unit in a multi-phase commercialization program. (Earlier post.) The notification triggers a payment under a purchase order from... Mike Millikin

RheTech, Inc., a thermoplastics compounder, has launched a new product line of biocomposite materials. Called RheVision, the proprietary product is a sustainable alternative to traditional mineral- or glass-reinforced polypropylene. RheVision uses bio-fibers from waste materials (initially wood fiber, rice hulls... Mike Millikin

ClipperCreek, Inc., a producer of plug-in electric vehicle charging infrastructure, and partner Silver Spring Networks, a provider of smart grid solutions, are participating in a plug-in electric vehicle (EV) pilot program sponsored by the Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E)... Mike Millikin