EDITOR'S CHOICE

Will Hydrogen Overtake Batteries In The Race For Zero-Emission Cars?

16 Feb 2024 | Synopsis

"The key problem for hydrogen cars is not the fuel cell but actually getting the clean hydrogen where it is needed...must be stored under pressure and leaks easily. It also carries less energy per unit volume than fossil fuels...Compare nine UK hydrogen stations with 8,300 petrol stations or 31,000 public charging locations (not counting plugs at homes).

"Even Toyota acknowledges that hydrogen in cars has so far 'not been successful.'

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Why You Shouldn't Freak Out About Electric Car Depreciation

16 Feb 2024 | Synopsis

"...fear of depreciation hangs a certain cloud over the entire battery-powered car market...Fast forward to 2023, and we're seeing much slower depreciation on used EVs than we did before the pandemic...take the headline of EVs averaging 49.1 percent depreciation with a grain of salt. The fastest depreciating EV in the study, the Tesla Model S, depreciated 55.5 percent over five years... it's actually on par with several midsize luxury sedans...

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How Sulfur Could Be A Surprise Ingredient In Cheaper, Better Batteries

16 Feb 2024 | Synopsis

"Sulfur is widely abundant and inexpensive...The cost of materials is around half that of lithium-ion cells...they could also beat out lithium-ion on a crucial metric: energy density. A lithium-sulfur battery can pack in nearly twice the energy as a lithium-ion battery of the same weight

"...there are still major technical barriers...Chief among them is getting batteries to last..."

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Where Has Your Lithium Battery Been? Try a Digital Passport.

16 Feb 2024 | Synopsis

"A digital battery passport provides easy access to structured, reliable, and complete information about the battery. This digital battery passport offers a streamlined gateway to trustworthy and comprehensive battery data...introduces a few major demands for the batteries sold in the EU...All battery packs having a capacity over 2 kWh will need to have a digital battery passport to carry a disclosure..."

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Can I Fly With An Electric Bike? Airline Ebike Regulations And Battery Power Limits Explained

16 Feb 2024 | Synopsis

"Some airlines ban electric bikes altogether, while others may accept an ebike if the battery is removed. In any case, there’s a blanket upper limit of 160Wh for battery capacity and you may need pre-authorisation to carry one over 100Wh. Most ebike batteries exceed these figures.

"Alaska Airlines allows you to bring an electric bike, provided the battery is removed from the bike and carried as hand luggage."

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Why Climbing Star Alex Honold Says His Electric Pickup Is Like Driving A Spaceship: Once You Experience That, It’’s Really Hard to Go Back

14 Feb 2024 | Synopsis

"...celebrated rock climber and star of the Academy Award-winning documentary 'Free Solo' [views his R1T as] 'by far the best truck ever.'

"Rivian is challenging industry incumbents like Ford with their best-selling F-150 Lightning and EV leader Tesla...Once you get used to it being faster, silent, and cheaper to maintain, everything about it is just better...Once you experience that, it's really hard to go back."

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NTSB Cites Blade Separation in Electric Aircraft Accident: Joby eVTOL Was Operating Unmanned

14 Feb 2024 | Synopsis

"The National Transportation Safety Board is citing blade failure as the cause of the crash of a remotely piloted Joby Aviation electric aircraft in 2022...The remote pilot in command (PIC) put the aircraft into a descent..

"As the aircraft passed through 8,900 feet the propeller from propulsion station 3 located on the right inboard wing experienced oscillations in rpm and motor vibrations.

"...second preproduction prototype aircraft has flown nearly 25,000 miles, including more than 100 flights flown by a pilot on board..."

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Greenland's Melting Ice Sheet Is Causing a Vegetation Boom, Climate Experts Are Worried

14 Feb 2024 | Synopsis

"According to the study (published in journal Scientific Reports) estimated 11,000 square miles of Greenland's ice sheet and glaciers have melted in the 1980s...amounting to 1.6% of Greenland's total ice cover...Climate experts worry that the increased vegetation exacerbates Greenland's ice loss, creating a troubling feedback loop. Beyond its immediate environmental impact, Greenland's ice loss poses a significant threat to global sea levels."

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This Company Is Salvaging EV Parts From Old Airplanes

14 Feb 2024 | Synopsis

"There's currently some 8,000-plus retired aircraft all over the world...The number of retired aircraft around the world is set to [soar] to over 20,000 planes by the end of the decade...salvaging parts from obsolete jets could yield tens of millions of battery cases...[Singapore-based Nandia REM] is also apparently looking for ways to repurpose plastics and other materials that could be useful in cars..."

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Japan's Oldest Outboard Builder Silences Seas With All-Electric Motor

14 Feb 2024 | Synopsis

"Tohatsu Corporation beat [Yamaha] to market by a couple years back in the mid-20th century to become the country's first outboard producer.

"Tohatsu began building motor products with its founding in 1922, but it wasn't until the 1950s that it turned its attention to marine outboards...The first outboard scheduled for launch is a 6-kW (8-hp) unit. Tohatsu and Ilmor will hold an official premiere for their 6-kW e-outboard at this year's Miami Boat Show."

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