Electric Car Charging Stations Network
Wednesday, December 1st, 2010
Electric cars are not going to be popular unless they can be charged with a minimum of ease at charging stations. That means setting up a network of charging stations just like existing network of fuel pumps. So far, nobody seems to have taken a lead in creating such a network, including governments.
It is in this context that the eVgo initiative NRG Energy becomes significant. Under the initiative, the company is building the first privately funded, comprehensive electric vehicle ecosystem. There will be two types of charging stations:
* Freedom stations that will have Level 2 and DC chargers available 24/7 and
* Convenience stations hosted by retailers with Level 2 chargers available during their working hours
The company’s goal statement says: “Our goal is to provide complete range confidence across the metropolitan areas where eVgo operates. That means placing charging stations at the city center and at locations extending outward along major thoroughfares and at strategic destination points. In Houston, for example, charging stations are near the city center, at 25 miles out in all directions, and at points in between.”
Single family homes can have home charging docks. The company is now inviting the public to suggest retail and multifamily community locations for the eVgo stations, and planning to invest $10 million in expanding the network to cover the whole of Houston. Ironically, $10 million is not likely to be adequate for setting up more than two conventional fuel stations.
Tags: electric vehicles, ev charging stations, fossil fuels
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Electric Vehicles: Why they are Superior
Sunday, October 24th, 2010
The energy needed by Internal Combustion Engines (ICE) in our cars comes from fossil fuels, which are not only getting exhausted but are also causing harm to the environment through their emissions. Electricity, on the other hand, can be generated from many sources, including sustainable sources such as sunlight, wind and ocean tides. Vehicles that are powered by electricity are thus superior in terms of sustainability to ICE powered vehicles.
Electric vehicles cover a wide range of vehicles that use electric motors (rather than ICEs) for propulsion. The range includes not only cars and trucks but everything from smaller material handling vehicles through trains to spacecraft. Actually, it is only the cars and trucks that are still dominated by ICE power.
Electric vehicles have also the added benefit of converting the energy used in braking to electricity for further use.
Nations are trying to develop economic and convenient electric cars that can perform as well as ICE vehicles. Electric cars are non-polluting and can also free us from dependence on the depleting petroleum resources. As supply of fossil fuels decline, its price can shoot up, as we have already experienced.
An Electric Vehicles Market Research Report analyzes the market for electric vehicles segmented into Battery Powered Electric Vehicles (BPEVs), Hybrid Electric Vehicles (HEVs), and Fuel Cell Electric Vehicles (FCEVs). It includes a historic analysis of electric vehicles market and forecasts to 2015.
Tags: electric car, electric vehicles, energy, renewable energy
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Energy Efficiency: The Significance
Monday, September 20th, 2010
Energy and water are considered to be the two critical issues that can determine the very survival of our planet. If action is not taken to replace non-renewable sources such as fossil-fuel based energy with renewable sources such as sunlight and wind, we might find ourselves going back in time to the days when animal and human energy dominated daily life. And this time around, the world would also be a very unpleasant place with completely unpredictable climate, caused by all the global warming caused by the greenhouse gases.
Energy efficiency is one way to tackle the energy issue. Energy efficiency can come through more efficient use of energy, i.e. reducing the energy needed to provide products and services, e.g. using CFL lamps instead of incandescent lights. It can also take the forms of more efficient conversion of energy, i.e. producing more useful energy output from the same input and conscious efforts to conserve energy by eliminating wastage and higher efficiency in using the energy, e.g. switching off the lights when you leave the room.
With all the media attention that the topic of energy efficiency receives, it has caught popular fancy. The market for energy efficiency products and services is burgeoning. One Dow Jones report mentions that during 2009, energy efficiency ventures got nearly one-third of all the clean-tech funding, with more and more private companies focusing on developing green and efficient technologies.
In the U.S. military establishments and government buildings are excellent targets for energy efficient products and services. Actually, any business can increase its profits by reducing energy consumption and bringing down costs of operation.
An energy efficiency report from Market Publishers looks at the technologies and strategies to improve energy efficiency.
Tags: energy conservation, energy efficiency, energy efficiency business
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Renewable Chemicals: Boon or Bane?
Wednesday, September 15th, 2010
Renewable chemicals are produced from agricultural feedstock such as grain and cellulose, i.e. renewable raw materials. Refining these bio products can produce a range of products. Polymers, bio-fuels, green solvents and fibers are examples.
In Brazil, Dow Chemicals has set up a plant to produce ethylene and polyethylene from sugarcane. Bio-plastics made from agricultural feedstock is considered carbon neutral as the carbon dioxide is absorbed while growing the sugarcane to offset the carbon released during the production process and during the final decomposition process. Petroleum based plastics, on the other hand, leave a large carbon footprint, and also contribute to waste accumulation unless they have been treated to be biodegradable.
Production of renewable plastics from agricultural feedstock typically involves processes such as fermentation, dehydration and polymerization. Presently, the renewable chemicals market is dominated by alcohol. Renewable polymers production is the sector that is expected to grow fastest in the immediate future.
Food packaging made with biodegradable plastics made from renewable sources can, in addition to reducing carbon emissions, make municipal waste more manageable. Presently, these have become somewhat unmanageable as even a small quantity of non-biodegradable plastic in the landfills makes it unacceptable for composting.
On the other hand, renewable chemicals using corn and soybean can reduce the availability of food and lead to higher food prices.
Tags: biodegradable plastics, bioplastics, biotechnology, carbon emissions, renewable chemicals
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Fuel Cells: Significance and Markets
Monday, September 13th, 2010
Fuel cells can theoretically provide energy for everything from running a power plant to running your computer. And they provide it with high efficiency, low emissions and quietly, with the byproducts being heat and water, not carbon dioxide. It is no wonder that governments, businesses and academic institutions are working towards producing this green source of energy.
In essence, a fuel cell combines hydrogen and oxygen to make water, and generates electricity in the process. And unlike a battery, the chemicals needed for a fuel cell, viz. hydrogen and oxygen, do not get exhausted all that easily. What this means is that the fuel cell is not likely to go dead, unlike the battery.
Fuel cell technologies come in different varieties such as PEMFC, SOFC, AFC, MCFC, PAFC and DMFC. Some are more suited for one purpose while others are best in other contexts, such as transportation systems, large power plants and stationary power generators.
Honda’s concept car based on fuel cells has a reported energy efficiency of 60 percent, i.e. 60 percent of the energy that goes in comes out in the form of moving the car. Compare this to the 20 percent efficiency of the fossil fuel burning car, where most of the energy is wasted as heat and for powering incidentals.
Though a battery-powered electric car has an efficiency of 72 percent, the battery has to be charged using AC power, which has a low efficiency, and the charging process itself causes some loss of efficiency. Compared to the 60 percent overall efficiency of the fuel cell, the net battery efficiency is just 26 percent.(See How Fuel Cells Work).
The research report Fuel Cell Technologies Worldwide provides insights into the end user markets for fuel cells and also the various technologies used for making fuel cells.
Tags: energy efficiency, fuel cell technology, green energy, nanotechnology
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Energy Efficient Cars: A Focus Area in China
Thursday, September 9th, 2010
With its emission reduction commitments, China is exploring different ways to enhance energy efficiency. Recently, the government had ordered the shutting down of energy inefficient factories. The latest news report is that China is now working on new energy vehicles and energy efficient automobiles, with the prospect of 200 million autos on the roads by 2020.
Wang Fuchang, deputy director-general of the equipment industry with the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT), stated the goal thus: “In the coming 10 years, China should attach great importance to the research and development of core technologies in green vehicles, aiming for a global lead in this field by 2020.”
In pursuit of the goal, China plans to increase the market share of electric vehicles, both pure and plug-in, and also to enhance the competitiveness of energy-efficient automakers and parts producers. According to ministry spokesperson, China now has a head start “in transitioning from research and development to industrialization in the electric vehicle sector.”
In cooperation with MIIT, the ministry is mapping out industry standards and regulations for new energy vehicles, especially electric vehicles.
According to Chen Bin, director of Industry Coordination for the National Development and Reform Commission, China might be faced with an overcapacity in the automobile industry.
Read the full report at People Daily.
Tags: electric cars, emission reduction, energy efficiency, energy efficient vehicles
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Challenge to develop the next Generation Power Grid
Thursday, July 15th, 2010
General Electric, in partnership with venture capital firms Emerald Technology Ventures, Foundation Capital, Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers and RockPort Capital have announced a $200 million innovation challenge. The challenge asks technologists, entrepreneurs and startups to share their best ideas for an electric power grid that will meet the needs of the 21st century. The challenge, announced on July 13, 2010, is named as “GE ecomagination Challenge: Powering the Grid.”
The challenge, open immediately at Ecomagination Website is reportedly one of the largest of challenges ever announced.
The goals are to find ways to reduce the carbon footprint during electricity generation, optimize the flow of energy through distribution systems to minimize power losses and use energy more efficiently through better designed buildings and in other ways.
GE is already offering digital energy grids and wants to make it a comprehensive one by working with ideas generated globally. By accelerating the development of a cleaner, more efficient and economically viable grid through collaboration, GE hopes to “jump-start new ideas and deploy them on a scale that will modernize the electrical grid around the world.”
The fund of $200 million will be invested globally into promising startups and ideas. GE will also help the entrants in other ways. Read the news release at MarketWatch.
Tags: cleaner energy generation, digital electricity grids, energy efficiency, power transmission losses
Posted in business, clean technology, energy distribution, energy efficiency, energy generation, environment, information technology, innovation | 1 Comment »
Investing in Clean Technology is a Trend and Opportunity
Sunday, April 18th, 2010
Technology has provided several benefits to human societies. At the same time, technological progress extracted a price in several forms including depletion of resources critical to our well-being, pollution of air and water and health hazards from toxic wastes. This has led to a focus on clean technology.
By clean technology, we mean any technology that uses resources sustainably, minimizes pollution and avoids toxic discharges. Eenergy generation from renewable sources such as wind and sunlight, use of information technology for enhancing productivity, transport alternatives that have low impact on the environment and chemical processes that minimize the use and generation of hazardous substances are specific illustrations of clean technology areas.
Investment in clean technology is a growing trend and opportunity. Building construction methods that lead to efficient use of energy and mimimizes environmental pollution, and use of lights and devices that consume less power are examples of clean technology processes and products.
Investments in clean technology is being encouraged through incentives like special funding and carbon credits. Companies in the field can also use it as a selling point that is increasingly effective among consumers.
A Reuters Report says that solar power, wind and biotech made record money last year and promise excellent results in the future.
Tags: clean technology, cleantech, energy use, information technology, pollution, toxic waste
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