Gas 2.0

Tesla: Elon Musk on Gavin Newsom’s Radio Show

Joanna Schroeder — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 22:30:05 +0000

Unless you were sleeping, you should know that last week, San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom challenged Portland Mayor Sam Adams to the Great Electric Vehicle Race. It took no time for Seattle Mayor Greg Nickels to get into the game. So it comes as no surprise that on Saturday, July 13th, Gavin had Tesla founder, Elon Musk as a guest on his show.

California based Tesla produces the only highway legal electric vehicle on the road. Last month, Tesla secured $465 million in federal low interest loans through the U.S. Department of Energy as part of the administration’s plan to have one million plug-in electric cars on the road by 2015.

Read more of this story »

Students Build Hydrogen Vehicle That Gets 1,336 MPG

Jerry James Stone — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 16:56:29 +0000

Turkish students at Sakarya University have built a hydrogen car that gets 1,336 mpg. Well, sorta.

Called the SAHİMO, the vehicle’s current range is about 353 miles on a quarter gallon of fuel (568 kilometers on 1 liter). It travels such an obscene distance with so little fuel due to the vehicle’s uber-light weight: it weighs only 240 pounds (110 kilograms). The car’s made up of 90-percent carbon fiber.

Read more of this story »

Plug-in Vehicle Tracker Now Available

Joanna Schroeder — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 15:18:01 +0000

With announcements being made every day about new plug-in electric vehicles, it’s hard to keep track of what’s what. Well, that problem, in part, has been solved with the new plug-in vehicle tracker that has been launched by Plug In America.

The tracker is updated monthly and includes highway-capable cars and trucks, 2 and 3 wheeled and commercial vehicles. Low-speed electric vehicles (or neighborhood electric vehicles) such as the Maya 300 and conversions are not included.

You can submit updates to the list by emailing Plug In America at info@pluginamerica.org.

Propane Powered Mowers Cut Grass, Emissions, and Prices

Christopher DeMorro — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 15:14:18 +0000

I have a guilty concscience. You see, even though I aspire for literary greatness one day (hey, we all need dreams) most of my jobs have involved menial, manual labor. Right now, that is landscaping in a fancy-pants Connecticut town where most of the people have more money than free time.

But landscaping is a dirty, dirty business. My boss will sometimes go through a 100 gallons of gas in a week between his trucks, mowers, blowers, and trimmers. What’s more, although the EPA is imposing new regulations for small gasoline engines, they don’t take effect until 2012 (although California has already enacted its own standards). Engines under 50 horsepower can contribute significant smog emissions in some states because most of these mowers don’t even have basic catalytic converters, and run on mixed gas-oil fuel.

But there is an even better solution, one that for some landscaping companies seems only…natural. Natural gas, to be exact.

Read more of this story »

Ecotality to Enter Huge Chinese EV Market

Susan Kraemer — Sun, 12 Jul 2009 23:00:19 +0000

Electric transport and infrastructure company ECOtality has made a move to expand its manufacturing and distribution operations for electric vehicle charging systems in China by entering into a joint venture with the Chinese firm Shenzhen Goch Investment to establish a manufacturing base in China.

In return for a $10 million investment, Shenzhen Goch Investment will have exclusive sale and distribution rights for ECOtality’s charging stations in China.

The Chinese government has instituted incentives designed to leapfrog the gasoline-based car industry. The state electricity grid has been ordered to set up electric car charging stations in Beijing, Shanghai and Tianjin, and government research subsidies for electric car designs are increasing rapidly in China.

And an interagency panel is planning tax credits for consumers who buy alternative energy vehicles. Already the Chinese government is offering subsidies of up to $8,800 to taxi fleets and local government agencies in 13 Chinese cities for each electric (or hybrid) vehicle they purchase. Shah Agassi’s Better Place is also moving into the potential tipping point Chinese EV charging market.

The New York Times noted a report by McKinsey & Company last fall estimated that replacing a gasoline-powered car with a similar-size electric car in China would reduce greenhouse emissions by “only 19 percent” (since the country gets three quarters of its electricity from coal).

But 19 percent is actually a pretty sizable reduction in carbon emissions. And there is always the chance; (by adding more wind and solar on a massive scale) of being able to increasingly green the grid in the future.

By contrast, gasoline cars will increasingly run on rivers of blood as we begin to scrape the bottom of the peak oil barrel.

Image via ECOtality

California to Require 95% Lower Sulphur in Marine Fuel

Susan Kraemer — Sun, 12 Jul 2009 17:22:36 +0000

California has ruled that all ocean-going vessels within 24 nautical miles of California’s coastline must now use cleaner burning diesel fuel; which by 2012 will have have reduced sulphur emissions by 95%.

Read more of this story »

Toyota Plug-in Hybrid: Another Interpretation

Clayton B. Cornell — Fri, 10 Jul 2009 20:31:56 +0000

More: Toyota to Launch Overpriced Plug-in Prius in 2012: $48,000 for a Minor Upgrade

Cartoon by Jerry King.

First Ever Manned Hydrogen-Powered Aircraft Takes to the Air

Andrew Williams — Fri, 10 Jul 2009 10:25:58 +0000

Earlier this week, the world’s first piloted aircraft powered solely by hydrogen fuel cells, took to the skies above Hamburg Airport, Germany, producing zero carbon dioxide emissions.

The Antares DLR-H2, jointly developed by the German aerospace centre DLR, Lange Aviation, BASF Fuel Cells and Denmark’s Serenergy, has a range of 750km (390nm) and can stay airborne for 5 hours at top flying speeds of about 90kt (170km/h).

According to DLR, a main hurdle was improving fuel cell performance capabilities and efficiency to such an extent that the motor glider could take off using fuel cell power alone. DLR’s Johann-Dietrich told reporters, “This enables us to demonstrate the true potential of this technology.” (see more pictures after the jump).

Read more of this story »

Seattle will be the Leader in Clean Energy and Electric Vehicles

Greg Nickels — Fri, 10 Jul 2009 10:24:31 +0000

Editor’s Note: This is the first contribution to gas2.org by Seattle Mayor Greg Nickels. Mayor Nickels is President of the US Conference of Mayors and was awarded the E-Visionary Award by the World Electric Vehicle Association. For more, see electriccarrace.org.

When it comes to electric transportation, Seattle has a significant advantage.

Our city-owned utility, Seattle City Light, was the first large electric utility in the country to become carbon-neutral using hydropower, innovative energy efficiency solutions, and carbon offsets. When you are driving on City Light electricity, you are truly driving a zero emission vehicle.

As a new generation of electric vehicles prepare to enter the market, cities along the West Coast from Vancouver B.C. to San Diego are taking steps to get plug-in ready. Because of Seattle’s partnership with Nissan, we will be leading the way and expect to be one of the first markets in the country to see Nissan’s highway-capable EV for sale in fall 2010.

Read more of this story »

Zipcar Launches All-Electric Car-Share Scheme

Andrew Williams — Fri, 10 Jul 2009 09:20:55 +0000

US-based car-share giant Zipcar Inc. has launched its first ever Electric Vehicle Pod, featuring an all-electric Citroen C1 and a Plug-In Toyota Prius. The vehicles, among the most efficient and technologically advanced on the road today, can be hired by the hour for a fraction of the cost of owning one.

The company figures that EVs are ideally suited for early, large-scale use in Zipcar’s car sharing platform since the average Zipcar trip lasts just under four hours and less than 25 miles, well within the range of a typical EV.

Read more of this story »