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plug-in hybrid

'Smart' electric grids to ease zap from plug-ins?

A project funded by the Department of Energy's Idaho National Laboratory will test bidirectional battery chargers and "smart" grids that could prevent U.S. electric grid overload from plug-in vehicles.

Ecotality is best known for the Hydratus, its onboard hydrogen fuel generator for buses, that grew out of a NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory project. Its subsidiary, eTec, makes chargers for rechargeable lithium ion and lead acid batteries used in electric light-construction vehicles.

Through this project, eTec will test battery-charging technology that could eventually be used to mitigate the anticipated strain on the U.S. electric grid from … Read more

GM partners with utilities to advance plug-in hybrids

SAN JOSE, Calif.--General Motors is teaming up with 30 utilities in 37 states and with the Electric Power Research Institute to develop a charging infrastructure for electric cars.

They aim to fine-tune the technology, safety, and customer experience for car-charging stations by 2010, when the Chevy Volt is due to be produced.

The challenges include providing an affordable, reliable electricity source that's weather-proof and child-proof at locations such as public garages, curbside meters, and workplace parking lots.

Another aim is to prevent utilities from being overwhelmed during peak hours when the grid is already challenged. Electric cars can … Read more

Coulomb unveils electric-car charging stations

The city of San Jose, Calif., will be the first to test electric-car charging stations from start-up Coulomb Technologies.

The company's products include 110-volt outlets that can be outfitted in public and mounted on poles, such as streetlights.

Coulomb is designing ChargePoint Network stations to scale to the national level, with a projected need of two stations per car, as electricity-powered vehicles become popular. Each Smartlet station would cost between $1,000 and $2,000 for a business or municipality to set up.

The company aims to demonstrate its technology on Tuesday on a Saturn Vue plug-in hybrid at … Read more

Toyota to make plug-in hybrid by 2010

Toyota Motor plans to produce lithium ion batteries next year for a plug-in hybrid vehicle available in 2010.

The company on Wednesday said that the plug-in hybrid will be "geared toward fleet customers in Japan, (the) United States, and Europe."

A joint venture between Toyota and Panasonic EV Energy plans to begin production of lithium ion batteries next year and move to full-scale production in 2010. Using the battery, Toyota plans to introduce a small electric vehicle for mass production.

Toyota's Prius, numbering a million sold, uses a nickel metal hydride battery. Lithium ion batteries, which are … Read more

Electric cars: iPhones of the auto industry?

Depending on who you talk to, electric cars pack the disruptive force of either Dell PCs or the Apple iPhone.

Regardless of your choice of analogy, the auto industry is facing the kind of technology-based competition it hasn't seen in years.

And in this game, start-ups claim to have the upper hand on the incumbents.

"This is probably something that has not been seen since we moved from the horse to the engine," said Henrik Fisker, the CEO of Fisker Automotive, which is designing a luxury hybrid electric car, the Karma.

"We suddenly have an open … Read more

Want a plug-in hybrid? Get in line for a battery

A123 Systems has created a Web site where Toyota Prius owners can preorder a battery to convert their cars to plug-in hybrids capable of getting well over 100 miles per gallon.

The switch from hybrid to plug-in hybrid doesn't come cheap, though. The battery and installation costs $9,995, plus an extra $400 "destination fee" and taxes.

The battery, called Hymotion 5, is designed to fit into the spare tire slot underneath the trunk of Prius model years 2004 to 2008. The company didn't say when the batteries would be available.

A123 Systems said the extended-life … Read more

Will plug-in hybrids crash the grid? Duke Energy says no

Duke Energy and smart grid company GridPoint said on Thursday that they have found a way for people to charge plug-in hybrid cars in a way that won't bring the power grid to its knees.

The companies said that they have completed a test using GridPoint's SmartGrid Platform device to charge up cars after 10 p.m.

The timing of when during the day plug-in hybrid cars are charged is crucial.

Oak Bridge National Laboratories earlier this month released a study that found that timing is everything when it comes to plug-in hybrids.

In the worst-case scenario, the … Read more

The payoff for plug-in hybrids: 95 years?

Plug-in hybrids get far better mileage than standard cars or regular hybrids--and emit far less pollution.

But they are also tough to justify economically at the moment with existing technology, according to the first several months of data from RechargeIT.org, which is studying how well plug-in hybrids work in real-world circumstances.

Plug-ins, in fact, only cut gas consumption by about 88 gallons a year over regular Priuses in urban driving. That comes to an annual savings of $158 to $250 (when you factor in the cost of electricity too). With the conversion running around $15,000, the payoff … Read more

Will plug-in hybrids stress the grid?

Plug-in hybrids are coming. General Motors, Tesla Motors, Fisker Automotive and Toyota are all coming out with gas-electric cars that can be charged from a socket.

The question now is can the grid handle it. The latest voice on the debate, Stan Hadley of the Cooling, Heating and Power Technologies Program at Oak Ridge National Laboratories, says it won't be easy. Hadley examined 182 scenarios on how plug-ins might be used in different regions in the U.S. between 2020 and 2030. Hadley assumed a 25 percent penetration of plug-ins by 2020.

In a worst case scenario, Hadley postulated … Read more