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Archive for the 'Research' Category

IBM Launches 500 Mile Range Battery Development Project

October 4th, 2009 | Posted in: Battery, Research with 150 Comments

IBM has a long history of putting its brainpower behind projects of significant societal importance.
Apparently they have chosen to focus a new endeavor on the electric car.
The so-called “Battery 500″ project is staffed by a consortium of the nation’s leading scientists and engineers, and the inaugural meeting kicked off last week in California.
IBM believes that [...]

Posted by: Lyle with 150 Comments

Interview with CEO of eTec on Charging Infrastructure

September 28th, 2009 | Posted in: Charging, Grid, Original GM-Volt Interviews, Research with 153 Comments

eTec is the wholly-owned and largest subsidiary of Ecotality (ETLY.OB) and recently received a $99 million matched DOE grant to deploy and study EV charging infrastructure using Nissan LEAF vehicles.
I had the chance to speak with eTec’s CEO Don Karner about the coming electric car charging infrastructure revolution.
Tell us about your recent DOE grant and [...]

Posted by: Lyle with 153 Comments

Survey Says 48% of US Consumers Interested in Purchasing a 40 Mile Range Plug-in Hybrid

September 10th, 2009 | Posted in: Public Opinion, Research with 210 Comments

Sometimes in our little world of GM-Volt.com it becomes hard to know how much consumer interest there really is in cars like the Volt.
Clearly there is interest, but how widespread is it, and more so how many people are actually considering buying one?
Pike research did a study to determine just these facts.
In a web-based prospective [...]

Posted by: Lyle with 210 Comments

Study Shows Range Anxiety is Significant

September 6th, 2009 | Posted in: Research with 246 Comments

Research suggests that most of the electrified cars that will be entering the North America market over the next several years will be pure battery electrics as opposed to plug-in hybrids like the Volt.
According to California based Aerovironment 60% of the 30 electric models known to be in the pipeline globally for 2012 will be [...]

Posted by: Lyle with 246 Comments

GM Advanced Battery Lab Tour w/ Video Part II

July 1st, 2009 | Posted in: Battery, Research, Video with 259 Comments

I recently had the chance to tour GM’s newly opened 33,000 square foot advanced battery lab in Warren Michigan.  The first video is here.  This is where the Volt’s batteries are being lab tested.  Other hybrid systems are being tested here as are cells from outside suppliers.
In this video we see a presentation by Dr. [...]

Posted by: Lyle with 259 Comments

Argonne Study Suggests Chevy Volt Would Get 157 MPG

June 14th, 2009 | Posted in: Efficiency, PHEV, Research with 119 Comments

Researchers at the Argonne National Lab studied four plug-in hybrid car configurations and determined the fuel economy they would get using real-world driving cycles.
The four configurations studied were a 4 kwh and 8 kwh PHEV and a 12 kwh and 16 kwh EREV.
The researchers modelled the cars’ fuel economy if they were driven over cycles [...]

Posted by: Lyle with 119 Comments

GM Opens Global Battery Systems Lab

June 8th, 2009 | Posted in: Battery, Research with 126 Comments

On Monday June 8th, GM despite being amidst a chapter 11 bankruptcy, formally opened its new expansive advanced automotive battery systems lab. I was present for the press conference and heard the announcement live.
The lab is the largest and most technologically advanced automotive battery lab in the United States.
Located in the sprawling 1 mile square [...]

Posted by: Lyle with 126 Comments

GM Committed to Study the Application of Ultracapacitors to Future Chevy Volts

May 23rd, 2009 | Posted in: Battery, Gen II, Research with 83 Comments

Argonne National Laboratory has been pursuing a research project since mid 2007.  The idea is to blend ultracapcitors with lithium-ion batteries in the energy storage system of a PHEV.  Lithium-ion batteries are particularly good at energy density whereas ultracapacitors are best in terms of power density.  High energy density is needed for traveling long distances, [...]

Posted by: Lyle with 83 Comments

Study Calls Environmental Benefits of Electric Cars ‘Fiction’

April 19th, 2009 | Posted in: Climate, Environment, Research with 147 Comments

There are two major reason why people want electric cars. To achieve energy independence, to help the environment, or both.
While the first benefit can’t be disputed, a newly publicized study suggests that electric car use may actually be worse for the environment.
The study was performed by the group Transport Watch and found that [...]

Posted by: Lyle with 147 Comments

Q&A With Lithium Battery Charging Breakthrough Inventor Byoungwoo Kang, and What Does This Mean for Electric Cars?

March 13th, 2009 | Posted in: Battery, Research with 164 Comments

On March 11th, the world heard about a new breakthrough in lithium-ion battery technology. Researchers Gerbrand Ceder and Byoungwoo Kang created a new technique that gives lithium-ion batteries a 100 fold increase in power density. These new batteries when moved from lab to factory could allow charging at 100 times the speed and release [...]

Posted by: Lyle with 164 Comments

100-Fold Lithium-ion Battery Breakthrough

March 11th, 2009 | Posted in: Battery, Research with 232 Comments

A battery research group out of MIT and led by Dr. Gerbrand Ceder just published remarkable research findings in the journal Nature.
The scientists were able to develop a new formulation of lithium iron phosphate that allows for extremely rapid charging, and massive specific power.
In the typical lithium ion cell when a current is applied to [...]

Posted by: Lyle with 232 Comments

GM VP Jon Lauckner Blasts Carnegie-Mellon PHEV Study and Says Volt Cells Several Hundreds Less Than $1000 per kWh

March 4th, 2009 | Posted in: Battery, Financial, Research with 187 Comments

The other day we (and many others) reported on a study from Carnegie Mellon which concluded a PHEV with 7 mile electric range like a plug-in Prius was more cost-effective than a series hybrid with 40 miles electric range like the Volt. The primary reason for the study’s conclusion was the prohibitive costs of cutting [...]

Posted by: Lyle with 187 Comments

RSS Recent GM-Volt Forum Posts

  • Chrysler dismantles electric car plans under Fiat November 7, 2009
    DETROIT (Reuters) - Chrysler has disbanded a team of engineers dedicated to rushing a range of electric vehicles to showrooms and dropped ambitious... […]
    Texas
  • First Solar buys 117 MW project from solar startup Ausra November 7, 2009
    First Solar buys 117 MW project from solar startup Ausra: _Link_ (http://www.reuters.com/article/mergersNews/idUSN046821420091105) Given that water... […]
    Jason M. Hendler
  • True believers swamp Fisker opening November 7, 2009
    True believers swamp Fisker opening _Link_ (http://www.autonews.com/article/20091106/ANA05/911069996/1137) Can you imagine what the roll-out of the... […]
    Jason M. Hendler
  • Zero Motorcycles Announces Consumer Financing November 7, 2009
    Zero Motorcycles Announces Consumer Financing: _Link_ (http://www.allcarselectric.com/blog/1037942_zero-motorcycles-announces-consumer-financing) […]
    Jason M. Hendler
  • LeRoy1974 November 6, 2009
    Does the Volt have a trunk in which we can put groceries or a couple of golf bags? All the photos and drawings of the Volt look like it was in an... […]
    LeRoy1974
  • Embrace technology to turn nuclear energy into environmental solution November 6, 2009
    From the Seattle Times: "STEWART Brand, author of "The Whole Earth Catalog," visited Seattle last week, promoting his latest environmental manifesto... […]
    misslexi
  • Lutz to Head Opel November 6, 2009
    Der Spiegel reports that Lutz is going to head up Opel: Spiegel Online(link)... […]
    dagwood55