World Changing
12-17-06
The Week in Sustainable Mobility
Mike Millikin
The global mean surface temperature in 2006 is currently estimated to be + 0.42°C above the 1961-1990 annual average (14°C / 57.2°F), according to the records maintained by Members of the World Meteorological Organization (WMO). The year 2006 is currently estimated to be the sixth warmest year on record. Final figures will not be released until March 2007. More=.
Even under the most optimistic current scenarios for managing the expansion of road traffic in Asia, emissions of carbon dioxide from the transport sector will triple over the next 25 years, according to a new study backed by the Asian Development Bank (ADB). More...
According to a report published by the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization, the livestock sector generates more greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions as measured in CO2 equivalent than transport. It is also a major source of land and water degradation. More...
Both Houses of Congress passed final legislation that includes provisions opening 8.3 million acres in the Gulf of Mexico to new oil and natural gas production. More...
The European Parliament this week adopted a legislative report for the implementation of Euro 5 emissions standards beginning 1 September 2009 for private cars (M1), with a transition period extending up to 1 January 2011. Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) regarded the 18-month implementation deadline suggested by the Commission—which wanted to introduce Euro 5 standards in mid-2008—as too early.
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EPA has issued its final rule on new methods to determine the miles per gallon (MPG) estimates that appear on new vehicle window stickers. The new standards will take effect for model year 2008 vehicles. Compared to today’s estimates, the city mpg estimates for the manufacturers of most vehicles will drop by about 12% on average, and by as much as 30% for some vehicles. The highway mpg estimates will drop on average by about 8%, and by as much as 25% for some vehicles. More...
Japan;s Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, in partnership with the Ministry of Transport, has proposed new fuel efficiency regulations that would boost the fuel efficiency of passenger cars by an average of 23.5% by fiscal 2015. More...
Nissan Motor in Japan a new environmental action plan—Nissan Green Program 2010 (NGP 2010)—that makes CO2 reduction a key management performance indicator, and outlines a broad product strategy including a 78mpg gasoline car; Tier 2 Bin 5 diesels, an electric vehicle launch, Nissan-developed hybrids and accelerated development of plug-in hybrids.More...
Isuzu Motors has introduced the first model of its fully remodeled ELF truck—the sixth generation of the popular commercial vehicle. Automatic start-stop systems are now standard equipment in the non-hybrid ELF models. ELF is the first truck to implement this type of fuel-saving system as standard. Isuzu also offers a hybrid version of the ELF. More...
New Zealand Energy and Climate Change Minister David Parker has released the Government's draft energy strategy. The strategy outlines major efforts in making electricity generation more renewable and in reducing GHG emissions from transport via a number of initiatives, including renewable fuels, increasing vehicle efficiency, and introducing plug-in hybrid electric vehicles. More...
Clif Bar & Co has launched a “Cool Commute” program for its employees. The Cool Commute incentive program pays $5,000 to employees who switch to biodiesel (B100) cars for their commutes. In addition to a cash incentive for biodiesel, Clif Bar also will pay $5,000 to its people who buy a hybrid vehicle. More...
HYBRIDS and PLUG-IN HYBRIDS
A new study for the US Department of Energy finds that off-peak electricity production and transmission capacity could power 84% of the country’s 220 million vehicles if they were plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs).
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Virginia’s Fairfax County Department of Vehicle Services, which already has conventional hybrids in its fleet, took delivery last week of a Toyota Prius PHEV conversion from Hymotion of Toronto, Canada. The vehicle is part of the county’s regular motor pool, and is available to employees traveling on county business.More...
The California Energy Commission has approved $3 million to University of California, Davis for a plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV) research center. The funds will be allocated over three years and use the UCD Institute of Transportation Studies as its hub. (More...)
A new partnership between Westfield Sportscars Ltd. based in Kingswinford, West Midlands, and the University of Warwick’s Warwick Manufacturing Group will explore the potential for hybrid versions of Westfield’s sports car products. More...
ENERGY STORAGE AND ELECTRIC VEHICLES
Westminster City Council in London has introduced two free street recharging points for electric cars—the first on-street points in the UK. Westminster already provides 48 free recharging stations, but these are located in 13 of the city’s parking garages. More...
The UK’s GoinGreen has introduced the first of the new, improved performance Reva G-Wiz AC drive electric cars. Launched at the British Motor Show in the summer, the G-Wiz AC replaces the current G-WizDC. More...
As part of the Renault Commitment 2009, the company is working on an electric vehicle for introduction into the market by 2010. Renault is jointly developing the technology with Alliance partner Nissan. More...
Enova Systems has partnered with Tokyo R&D to supply an electric bus to the Hokuriku Electric Power Company in Japan. The bus will now undergo testing and evaluation by the company to evaluate the market potential for this type of vehicle. More...
A Swiss designer intends to drive a solar-powered three-wheeled electric vehicle around the world to educate people about global warming and what can be done about it. More...
BIOFUELS
In a speech to the International Plant Breeding Symposium, DuPont Vice President Bill Niebur, who leads DuPont Crop Genetics Research and Development, stressed the need for "epic gains in crop production to meet the global demand for food, feed, fiber, fuel and materials in the years ahead."More...
Researchers at IowaStateUniversity are developing a single-pass system that will harvest corn kernels as well as the stover: stalks, cobs and leaves. The stover can serve as feedstock for cellulosic ethanol. More...
BlueFire Ethanol has selected its contractor and is moving ahead on its plans to to design, develop and construct 20 biomass-to-ethanol plants in the next 6 years totaling 1.5 billion gallons in production and approximately $2.7 billion in gross revenue by 2012 with earnings in excess of $1.6 billion. More...
Xethanol Corporation has formed a venture with Renewable Spirits, LLC to build a biomass-based pilot production facility that will utilize waste citrus peels as feedstock for ethanol production. Citrus waste is rich in pectin, cellulose and hemicellusic polysaccharides, which can be hydrolyzed into sugars and fermented into ethanol. A citrus-to-ethanol process could yield up to 80 million gallons of ethanol per year just from Florida citrus waste, according to the US Department of Agriculture (USDA).More...
The Corn Plus ethanol plant in Winnebago, Minnesota, will install two wind turbines that ultimately will provide about 45% of the electricity the plant requires. More...
In October 2006, Underwriters Laboratories suspended the authorization to use UL Markings (Listing or Recognition) on components for fuel dispensing devices that specifically reference compatibility with alcohol-blended fuels that contain greater than 15% alcohol—e.g., E85. After a set of technical meetings in November, UL is still unable to establish a list of generically acceptable metals or non-metals for use in E85 fueling systems. More...
Petrobras and Mitsui & Co. have finalized a plan to export ethanol to Japan beginning in 2010 for use in power plants and as a transportation fuel. Petrobras will lay pipelines in Brazil and secure tankers for transport to Japan. Mitsui will secure sugarcane fields and build a facility to produce the ethanol. More...
Both Houses of the US Congress voted to extend the 54-cent-per-gallon tariff on imported ethanol through January 1, 2009. The ethanol tariff was scheduled to expire in October 2007. More...
Honda Motor has begun manufacturing a flexible-fuel version of the Fit subcompact at its plant in Brazil. It is the second flex-fuel car to be produced at the factory following the Civic compact sedan, which it started to make in November. More...
MaricopaCounty’s (Arizona) entire diesel fleet now runs on a B20 biodiesel blend. The change occurred over the summer—by July, all 629 of the county’s diesel vehicles were running on the new fuel. More...
China Clean Energy Inc. (CCE), a producer of biodiesel fuel and green specialty chemical products in China, plans to build a new biodiesel plant that will expand its production capacity by an additional 100,000 tonnes (30 million gallons US) per year. More...
Second-generation biofuels such as Fischer-Tropsch Biomass-to-Liquids (BtL) are technically feasible and one of the most promising options for future fuels, according to a study just released by the German Energy Agency (Deutsche Energie-Agentur GmbH—dena). Germany has sufficient biomass available for large-scale BtL production which could meet 20% of today’s fuel requirements, according to the study. That could increase to 35% by 2030 as technology improves. More...
HYDROGEN
Ford of Canada recently became the first automaker to deliver hydrogen-fueled vehicles for fleet use in Canada. Three Canadian-made hydrogen-fueled internal combustion engine-powered shuttle buses are replacing gasoline-powered buses used by the Senate of Canada in Ottawa. More...
HydrogenEngineCenter (HEC) has received a Letter of Intent from an investment group representing Turkish boat builder Labranda that puts the company in position to design, test, build and ship up to 200 alternative-fueled marine engines capable of running on compressed natural gas (CNG) and/or hydrogen for use in water taxis. More...
The University of Hertfordshire (UK) is opening the Sustainable Energy Technologies Centre (SETCE), an operation focused on developing significant advances in the move to zero-carbon fuels. As part of this direction, the University has entered into a Knowledge Transfer Project (KTP) with ITM Power Plc in developing the use of electrolytic hydrogen in vehicle engines, which will be developed at SETCE. More...
BASF Future Business GmbH (Ludwigshafen, Germany) will acquire Frankfurt-based PEMEAS GmbH, a leading supplier of fuel-cell components, from a group made up of seven investors. No financial details were disclosed. The acquisition will be completed by the end of January. More...
SYNTHETICS
China will invest more than one trillion yuan (US$128 billion) to develop alternative coal-based synthetic fuels to ease the country’s dependence on oil imports, according to the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC). The project aims to produce 30 million tons of liquefied coal and 20 million tons of dimethyl ether (DME) by 2020. Coal-to-olefin (CTO) output is expected to hit 8 million tons and coal methanol to reach 66 million tons. More...
OTHER
EPA is proposing rules requiring the use of onboard diagnostic (OBD) systems to monitor the emissions control systems of large diesel and gasoline highway trucks and buses weighing more than 14,000 pounds. More...
BASF will acquire a motorcycle catalyst business in mainland China to meet the growing global demand for emissions-control technology. More...
Lear Corporation, one of the world’s leading automotive interior suppliers, has developed a soybean oil-based flexible foam material—SoyFoam—for automotive interior applications. More...