ELECTRIC PILL No 2

February 16th, 2010

Supercondensers

Supercondensers, or supercapacitators, are electrophysical energy accumulators that have been long considered one of the most interesting options for electric or partially electric drive cars. Unlike conventional electro-chemical batteries, they have higher performance (they charge and discharge energy much more quickly) but, on the other hand, their capacity is lower (they store less energy though being the same size). The simplest supercapacitator is ... more

Better Place Raises US$350m As Operations Deadline Nears

January 27th, 2010

Electric vehicle infrastructure company Better Place said it had raised US$350m in fresh equity as part of a second round of financing. Better Place, founded by former SAP executive Shai Agassi, said its target was to begin full commercial operations at the end of 2011 when partner Renault plans to offer the first car with a replaceable battery. Better Place's role is to provide a network of battery-swapping stations and Agassi estimated that his company ... more

General Motors To Make Iits Own Hybrid Electric Motors

January 27th, 2010

Will be used in the next generation two-mode hybrids due out in 2013

General Motors last night announced plans to be the first major US automaker to manufacture electric motors and said it would spend US$246m on electric motor and electric drive facilities in the US. Its first electric motors will be used in the next generation of rear wheel drive two-mode hybrids due out in 2013. GM said bringing manufacturing in-house would lower costs and improve performance, quality, reliability and manufacturability of electric motors ... more

BELGIUM: Consortium seeks EC electric vehicle funding

January 19th, 2010

A consortium designed to secure funding from Europe for electric vehicle development says it expects a decision from Brussels by late spring. The Electric Vehicles for Advanced Cities (EVA) grouping is looking for European Commission (EC) cash to promote the adoption of continent-wide electromobility, with a potential start date of 1 January next year. Some 19 European cities and regions, together with 17 major European vehicle manufacturers and 12 electricity ... more

Detroit Show: Toyota Unveils A Li-Ion Hybrid

January 11th, 2010

Toyota's FT-CH dedicated hybrid 'concept' revealed in Detroit today (11 January) has the automaker's first generation lithium-ion drive battery. When fully charged, it has a maximum electric-only range of about 13 miles (21km) and can reach over 60mph (100km/h) in electric-only mode. "This ability to utilise all-electric power for short trips or hybrid power for longer drives alleviates the issue of limited cruising range encountered with pure-electric vehicles," ... more

In 2010 a Tesla Store in Milan

January 11th, 2010

The next step of landing in Europe

Tesla is moving its pieces in the old continent. After opening a store in London, Monaco, Munich, the californian brand is looking at Italy. Tesla has hired the italian manager Cristiano Carlutti as Vice President for the company's European operations. Formerly he was responsible for the european network of Fiat showrooms. His duty at Tesla will be the coordination of the stores to purchase Tesla Roadster, Model S and future models. Gianmarco Tamburrini, ... more

From PoloIdrogeno Lazio opportunities for business

January 7th, 2010

Renewables changing from option to source for development

CIRPS Sapienza University of Rome draws the new energy scenario and shows the activities of PoloIdrogeno Lazio by Lazio Region and higlights the chances it can bring for the companies seeing renewable sources of energy not an alternative but a key factor to development. During the meeting open to the public, reasearchers from the PoloIdrogeno will display the latest results gained and will debate with institutions and companies about the crucial energy issues ... more

ELECTRIC PILL N.1

January 5th, 2010

The electric car is a system composed basically of batteries, inverter, electric motor, transmission, wheels. In such a system the efficiency is the ratio between the energy exploited and the one requested by wheel transmission. Internal combustion engines have a maximum 30% efficiency rate, but rarely in real everyday use the global efficiency is more than 10%, because of factors like engine size, way of driving, environmental conditions. This reduction ... more