Latest on energy storage and charging infrastructure - Electric Japan Weekly No46

This Japan column reports on promising developments in energy density of EV batteries from Toyota, wireless charging experiments, which are part of a Smart City Project, and the growing charging infrastructure in the Kanto area. Also, the end of the Eco Car subsidy program was marked by a total government assistance of €2.7bil.

Toyota develops a new all-solid battery type with 5 times higher power density

Last week at an event in Tokyo, Toyota presented its latest achievements in energy storage technology. In the prototype battery the lithium-ion battery electrolyte was replaced by all solid electrolyte improving overall compactness. According to Toyota this world leading technology considerably improves the transfer of ions. The results show 5x increased power output per unit of volume. The new all-solid battery is in the development stage, in order to make practical use of the technology an inexpensive substitute to Germanium will be necessary.



Source: Toyota


Experimental installation of cutting edge wireless charging technology

As a part of the Smart City Project in Kashiwa, Chiba prefecture, an experimental test of a smart house equipped with the latest environmental and energy conscious technology will begin in November 2012. Among the technologies that deserve the most attention is the EV wireless charging system installed in the parking space of the house. The wireless charging system works on the principle of magnetic field resonance.



Source: Mitsui Home


Over 50 charging spots in Kanto area – newly launched service of the Japan Charge Network

A new charging network with a membership system will be launched in October. Japan Charge Network is working on this project with several major infrastructure operators, retail store and restaurants chains. Over 50 charging spots will be available at highways, convenience stores, airport, family restaurants and other often visited locations. The members of the network will be offered several price plans from “single charge” to “super value plan”. Similar initiatives are contributing to the rapidly increasing number of charging stations throughout Japan – building up essential infrastructure making the wider spread of EVs possible. Similar to the “Coco Juden” project mapping charging stations in Japan, Nissan Motor company is a 30% share holder of the Japan Charge Network.



Source: Japan Charge Network


Electric vehicle technology development exhibition - EVEX 2012

Tokyo Big Sight was the place to be last week for all the fans of latest EV industry research and development. Over three days, the EVEX 2012 exhibition informed visitors on various infrastructure and vehicle solutions. Particular focus seemed to be on the charging stations. Technology examples ranging from small portable or coin chargers to large fast charging stations can be found in the photos gallery of the original article (here) in Japanese.


End of the Eco Car subsidy program

September 21st was the last day to apply for a subsidy from the Japanese Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry for the purchase of a personal eco car. Considered under the eco car category are electric vehicles (EV), hybrid electric vehicles (HEV), plug-in HEV, but also low emission vehicles with an internal combustion engine. The subsidy program started on the 2nd April, and on the very last day received 34,000 applications, totalling €32.7mil. The total amount granted in subsidies for the duration of the program was €2.7bil.

The original articles are listed below in the order of appearance in the column.

MORE INFORMATION

• 【トヨタ 環境技術発表】出力密度を5倍に高めた全固体電池の電解質をž
• 電気自動車にワイヤレスで電力を供給、ケーブルやコンセントが不要
• JRや空港など関東50か所で充電可能に - ジャパンチャージネットワークのEVߩ
• EVEX2012 フォトギャラリー
• エコカー補助金の申請受付 9月21日受理分で終了

How to reach EV mass market by 2025

The environmental law centres at UCLA and UC Berkeley Schools of Law have published “Electric Drive by ’25’, analysing actions needed to ensure that California catalyses mass adoption of electric vehicles by 2025, with the goal of building a long-term market in the US.

“Increased adoption of electric vehicles will improve California’s environment and economy”, states the report. At stake is the future of the electric vehicle market. California accounts for 11 percent of the national market for annual new car sales, as well as more than 20 percent of non plug-in hybrid vehicle sales in the US. With such a significant market share and volume of cars, California can help launch a sustainable and more robust electric vehicle market, with the country and world benefitting as a result.

Top three barriers to mass consumer EV adoption

The report highlights the following three obstacles as among the most significant:

• Lack of consumer awareness and information. Many consumers are unfamiliar with electric vehicles and their performance, while at the same time they may harbor common misperceptions about vehicle types, safety, range, impact on their electricity bills, and other facets of electric vehicle ownership.
• Lack of appeal to a broader market. The higher initial costs and limited battery range of some electric vehicles may make them less attractive to a broader market segment beyond early adopters.
• Lack of access to charging infrastructure outside of the home. Potential electric vehicle customers may be deterred by a non-home charging infrastructure that seems inadequate, difficult to navigate, and unpredictable in its pricing.

Summary of solutions to overcome the long-term EV challenges

Based on a workshop discussion, this paper identifies the actions that EV manufacturers, stakeholders, advocates, and government leaders can take to ensure that California catalyses mass adoption of electric vehicles by 2025. Policy-makers, industry leaders, and advocates will need to:

• Educate consumers, the media, and elected officials through a simple and effective outreach campaign about the benefits and joy of driving electric vehicles;
• Reduce fees, taxes, and upfront costs for electric vehicle owners and invest in battery research; and
• Plan for and facilitate deployment of a well-planned and easy-to-use charging infrastructure network.

Conclusion: The Future of Electric Vehicles

California has a strong interest in promoting the adoption of electric vehicles, based on the benefits to the economy, environment, and quality of life. With electric vehicle sales likely to increase in the long term given projected improvements to battery life and likely cost reductions, the state should begin planning now to address the challenges associated with large-scale adoption of the vehicle technologies. Heightened public awareness, easy access to financing, reduced barriers to purchase, and a well-planned and maintained charging infrastructure will help the state become a leader in electric vehicle deployment by 2025. The state and local momentum to facilitate consumer adoption of electric vehicles will ultimately help California contribute to the global changes now underway in how consumers power their vehicles.

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• Electric Drive '25

Where The Real Battle For Electric Cars Is Happening

Where The Real Battle For Electric Cars Is Happening

By Nicolas Zart on Fri, 09/07/2012 - 12:56 

Auto News

Forget Detroit, forget even European carmakers when you try to decipher the electric car market. The real action is in China and South Korea.

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Not to burst anyone’s bubble but the real action defining tomorrow’s alternative energy cars is happening well away from our domestic concerns equally shared between China and South Korea.

Chinese Manufacturing Might. While politicians debate moot points of helping companies build domestically, it’s hard to argue against paying an international worker the fraction of the price it takes to get the same done domestically. China has a glut of manpower and is barely getting started on building its very own automobile market. While the country makes cars, it has also invested heavily in alternative energy sources and its manufacturing with battery packs are built and assembled right there.

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South Korea's Slow Progression. Right below the Chinese media radar is a country that has consistently and quietly infiltrated every part of the automobile world, South Korea. LG Chem is THE company to watch as it continues to produce most of electric and plug in vehicle’s battery packs. Don’t believe me? GM Volt and by the same extension Opel’s Ampera, Ford’s Fusion and C-MAX hybrid and plug-in hybrids version, Renault’s Z.E. line is expected to use LG Chem’s cells. These are the world’s Top 4 carmakers sharing the same supplier for electric car batteries.

For China, the prospect of an untapped and budding market means serious cash that manufacturers and assembles almost all battery packs for electric cars, as well as producing the almost entirety of solar panels, wind turbines, and other alternative energy sources. For South Korea, it’s a little different. LG Chem is not interested in loud and futuristic predictions of exotic lithium chemistries, although its R&D is certainly working on that. It is working in the here and now, making a heck of a lot of Lithium-ion batteries, effectively lowering the cost of manufacturing and production, and dominating the market with quality products.

This leaves us, the West, chronically embattled in sterile debates over world market domination. The West, Europe included has slowly become over the decades the market outlet for Asia. The advent of electric cars and plug-in hybrids opened a new market type, something Asia was quick to react to. In the meantime, the West continues to manipulate unrealistic political theories.

While we watch endless bi-partisan political conflicts in the West, China and South Korea have had ample time to get to work and theorize less, giving them a complete market dominance. In the meantime, forget domestic market shares and eventual ingenious breakthroughs. Sit down, watch and enjoy Asia teaching the West a mighty lesson or two by manufacturing the next wave of electric and plug-in hybrid cars destined for our roads.

Electric cars now primary vehicles | UTSanDiego.com

Electric cars now primary vehicles | UTSanDiego.com

Electric cars now primary vehicles

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Written by

Morgan Lee

6 a.m., Sept. 3, 2012

San Diego is leading the rest of the country in putting electric cars on the road and is building an infrastructure of charging stations to support an expected influx of plug-in vehicles over the next few years. U-T

The majority of plug-in electrical vehicles in California are identified as a primary car by their owners, according to a statewide survey by the California Center for Sustainable Energy.

Documents »

Download: Owner Survey: Plug-in Cars

Nine out of 10 owners said plug-in vehicles represent their primary ride -- though almost all had a second, conventional car, according to a survey with more than 1,400 respondents released this month. The study was conducted by the California Center for Sustainable Energy in coordination with the state Air Resources Board.

Monthly mileage averaged about 800 -- the equivalent of almost 10,000 miles a year.

"These aren't hobby cars, these aren't weekend cars," said Mike Ferry, transportation programs manager for the energy center. "They are everyday use cars."

The questionnaires were sent out earlier this year to people who have owned their plug-in vehicles for six months or more, allowing enough time for the drivers to settle into commuting and battery charging routines.

Results highlighted new strides toward greater adoption of zero-emission personal transportation -- along with some enduring barriers.

About two-thirds of plug-in vehicle charging took place during over-night hours, placing minimal stress on the power grid, according to the survey. That bodes well for expanding electric vehicle ownership without major infrastructure upgrades, Ferry said.

Plug-in vehicles are a key component of the state's goals for greening its car fleet. Gov. Jerry Brown recently set a goal of 1.5 million zero-emission vehicles (electric and hydrogen-powered) by 2025.

But hurdles still stand in the way.

Of plug-in owners surveyed, 97 percent live in a single-family homes that easily accommodate car charging equipment. That leaves 3 percent of owners living in a multi-dwelling units or other housing situations.

"To make it practical to own a plug-in car, you have to have some place where you can park it overnight and plug it in," Ferry said. "If we want to expand this market, we need to make it available to people in all kinds of settings."

California, with more than 12,000 plug-in vehicles, accounts for one-in-three plug-in electric vehicle in circulation nationwide.

Government incentives still help sustain the plug-in car market. The state's Clean Vehicle Rebate Project provides a rebate of $2,500 on pure-battery electrics like the Nissan Leaf, or $1,500 for plug-in hybrids like the Chevy Volt or plug-in Toyota Prius. A federal tax credit can offset up to an additional $7,500 of a vehicle's cost.

The survey found more than half of owners also received subsidies for a high-voltage home charging station.

Large batteries and other technology make plug-in electric vehicles more expensive than their gasoline power equivalents. Prospective buyers still must weigh that initial investment against the pay-off from lower fuel costs combined with government incentives.

Special utility rates for the San Diego area allow plug-in vehicles to recharge for the energy equivalent of between 90 cents and $1.90 a gallon of gasoline, according to the energy center. Net metering provisions for solar customers can also provide savings.

Ferry said high-mileage drivers in some instances are achieving immediate savings through competitively priced leases.

Most plug-in car buyers are motivated by the potential for savings on long daily commutes, said Yeves Perez, a 32-year-old Chevy Volt owner in Rancho San Diego who organizes social gatherings among fellow Volt owners through a Facebook page.

Perez, who works at an ad agency, has logged over 20,000 miles in his Volt since early 2011. The car’s hybrid technology is a source of fascination and entertainment in itself, as owners compete for efficient driving marks at the website and smart-phone app Volt Stats.

The service tracks “real world usage of Chevy Volts in the wild,” as owners squeeze the most out of batteries before the hybrid car's gasoline engine kicks in as designed.

Of the respondents to the the statewide survey, 71 percent said they had access to public-access or work-related charging station. Those charging locations help extend the effective range of a plug-in car's battery power.

Plug-in electric vehicles account for a small but growing fraction of the California vehicle fleet -- 0.9 percent of new passenger car sales since the introduction of the Nissan Leaf in May 2011, according to data from the California New Car Dealers Association.

EV market projections: Part I - OEM capacity production and vision

cars21.com - Everything Electric

28 August 2012experts added their view about EV market developments over the last years, a variety of forecasts for 2015, 2020 or beyond emerged, creating more market insecurity than clarity, it seemed. This first article tries to add some facts regarding the current EV industry production capacity, and also the medium/long term companies’ visions.

General Motors (GM) was planning to sell 60,000 Volt/Ampera in 2012, but the US market is not getting as much traction as the European market does for PHEVs, and GM had to stop for several weeks the production of the Volt to save costs. According to Automotive News, the company is again about to idle its plant for 4 weeks in September/October. In Europe the Opel Ampera has high demand and the Ampera sales should reach 15,000-20,000 in 2012 (Opel’s objective was 10,000).

GM was announcing last year that its production capacity would ramp up progressively in the next years to triple or quadruple comparing to the 60,000 target set for 2012, meaning the company could annually sell close to 250,000 Volt/Ampera by 2015.

Ford has experienced some delays with its electric vehicle line launch, postponing therefore the sales, but the company is now ready to commercialise its PHEVs. The company has announced they will produce 100,000 EVs annually, starting in 2013. Ford’s EV market vision? Hybrids, plug-in hybrids, and all-electric cars will account for as much as 25 per cent of new vehicle sales by 2020.

Renault-Nissan Alliance is keeping its strong position of selling a total of 1.5 million electric vehicles by 2016. If the 2012 projections of 50,000 might sounds quite low compared to the 2016 target, it is because the Alliance is expecting much of the volume to be made by the Renault ZOE, which will be available sometime next year. Carlos Ghosn, Renault-Nissan CEO, also thinks that 10 per cent of new car sales will be full electric cars by 2020.

Tesla Motors is following its own path, with the release of the Tesla Model S end of June 2012, which is expected to represent 90 percent of the company revenues this year. The company plans to sell 5,000 EVs this year and 20,000 in 2013.

Tesla has also worked with Toyota on the RAV4, now coming to the market. The initial partnership is set for 2,600 cars, but if the car is well received and orders come in large numbers, the companies have the room to extend the production up to 25,000 cars, according to Toyota’s Executive Program Manager. Tesla’s EV vision? Elon Musk, Tesla CEO, is expecting 50% of new car sales to be full electric cars by 2032.

BMW is delivering on its electric vehicle commercialization plan. After the trials with the MiniE and the ActiveE, they will start producing the i3 and i8, expected for late 2013 – early 2014. BMW has said they will be able to produce 100,000 cars annually, both full electric or with range extenders. What is still unclear is the i1 and i5 which are planned for now in 2015 (i5) and 2016 (i1).

Toyota will offer both plug-in hybrids and all-electric cars. Toyota is expecting to sell 15,000 Prius Plug-in hybrids this year. Toyota is also selling the new battery-electric SUV, the RAV4 EV, with a 100-mile electric range.

Mitsubishi is targeting 30,000 sales in 2013, and keep a strong position in the EV sector with its i-Miev being sold through Mitsubishi but also Citroën and Peugeot brands, with an agreement on 100,000 EVs. However, PSA Group did think the EV market would move faster, and Mitsubishi has decided to temporarily halt production of the rebadged i-MiEVs. “This is a matter of PSA adjusting its orders to market demand,” a Mitsubishi Motors spokesman told Automotive News”. Mitsubishi plans that full electric vehicles will represent 20% of its total production by 2020.

Fisker, currently known with its luxury sedan Karma, is also expected to commercialise a second extended range electric car by 2013-2014, the Atlantic (Project Nina), expected to reach at least a production of 100,000 vehicles by 2015.

Mahindra REVA has recently launched their new electric car, the NXR, and has announced that they aim to produce 30 000 electric cars per year as of 2015.

Scientists develop lithium-ion battery that charges 120 times faster than normal

Scientists develop lithium-ion battery that charges 120 times faster than normal

• By Sebastian Anthony on August 17, 2012 at 7:11 am

A group of Korean scientists, working at the Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology (UNIST), have developed a fast-charge lithium-ion battery that can be recharged 30 to 120 times faster than conventional li-ion batteries. The team believes it can build a battery pack for electric vehicles that can be fully charged inless than a minute.

One of the main issues with rechargeable batteries is that they take longer to recharge as their physical volume grows. When you recharge a battery, it charges from the outside in — so the fatter the battery, the longer it takes. You can somewhat avoid this by breaking larger batteries into smaller individual cells, but that technique only gets you so far.

The Korean method takes the cathode material — standard lithium manganese oxide (LMO) in this case — and soaks it in a solution containing graphite. Then, by carbonizing the graphite-soaked LMO, the graphite turns into a dense network of conductive traces that run throughout the cathode. This new cathode is then packaged normally, with an electrolyte and graphite anode, to create the fast-charging li-ion battery. Other factors, such as the battery’s energy density and cycle life seem to remain unchanged.

These networks of carbonized graphite effectively act like blood vessels, allowing every part of the battery to recharge at the same time — thus speeding up recharge by 30 to 120 times.

Now, for all intents and purposes, this is a standard lithium-ion battery that could be used in smartphones and laptops — but the network of conductive traces does increase the overall size of the battery, so it’s probably better suited for use in electric vehicles (EVs). Obviously, an EV that can be recharged in under a minute is pretty crazy — though it still only brings them in-line with their gas-guzzling cousins. Being able to charge quickly is convenient, but it doesn’t get around the fact that li-ion battery packs are incredibly expensive — and the Korean carbonized LMO battery certainly won’t be cheap.

I could see fast-charge batteries as being a nice option for smartphone and laptop users, though: You could have a normal battery and a fast-charge battery, and switch in whichever one makes most sense for your daily routine. Fast-charge batteries could be convenient in wireless mice and keyboards, and other gizmos, too.

Finally, just thinking out loud: The battery in a Tesla Roadster stores 56 kWh of electric energy. To recharge that in under a minute would require an awful lot of power and some very thick cables, right?

Keeping electric-vehicle batteries cool

Keeping electric-vehicle batteries cool

By: Karel Smrcka

27th July 2012 

Batteries provide the ‘fuel’ that drives electric cars – in effect, the vehicles’ lifeblood.

If batteries are to have a long service life, overheating must be avoided. A battery’s ‘comfort zone’ lies between 20 ºC and 35 ºC. But even a Sunday drive in the midday heat of summer can push a battery’s temperature well beyond that range. The damage caused can be serious, as operating a battery at a temperature of 45 ºC instead of 35 ºC halves its service life.

Batteries are expensive – a new battery can cost as much as half the price of the entire vehicle. That is why it is important to keep them cool. Thus far, conventional cooling systems have not reached their full potential. They are either not cooled at all – which is the case with those that are simply exchanged for a fully charged battery at the ‘service station’ – or are air-cooled. But air can absorb only very little heat and is also a poor heat conductor. What’s more, air cooling requires big spaces between the battery cells to allow sufficient fresh air to circulate between them. Water-cooling systems are still in their infancy. Though their thermal capacity exceeds that of air-cooling systems and they are better at conducting heat away, their downside is the limited supply of water in the system, compared with the essentially limitless amount of air that can flow through a battery.

In future, another option will be available for keeping batteries cool – a coolant called CryoSol-plus – a dispersion that mixes water and paraffin, along with stabilising tensides and a sash of the antifreeze agent glykol. The advantage is that CryoSol-plus can absorb three times as much heat as water and functions better as a buffer in extreme situations like trips on the freeway at the height of summer. This means that the holding tank of the coolant can be much smaller than that of water – saving both weight and space under the hood.

In addition, CryoSol is good at conducting heat away, moving it quickly from the battery cells into the coolant. With additional costs of just €50 to €100, the new cooling system is only marginally more expensive than water cooling systems. The coolant was developed by German researchers at the Fraunhofer Institute for Environmental Safety and Energy Tech- nology, in Oberhausen.

As CryoSol-plus absorbs heat, the solid paraffin droplets within it melt, storing the heat in the process. When the solution cools, the droplets revert to their solid form. Scientists call such substances phase-change materials, or PCMs.

“The main problem we had to overcome during development was to make the dispersion stable,” explains Tobias Kannels, a scientist at the institute.

The individual solid droplets of paraffin had to be prevented from agglomerating or – as they are lighter than water – collecting on the surface of the dispersion. They need to be evenly distributed throughout the water. Tensides serve to stabilise the dispersion, depositing themselves on the paraffin droplets and forming a type of protective coating.

“To find out which tensides are best suited to the purpose, we examined the dispersion in three different stress situations. How long can it be stored without deteriorating? How well does it withstand mechanical stresses? And how stable is it when exposed to thermal stresses – for instance, when the paraffin particles freeze and then thaw again?” asks Kappets.

Other properties of the dispersion that the researchers are optimising include its heat capacity, its ability to transfer heat and its flow capability.

The scientists’ next task will be to carry out field tests, trying out the coolant in an experimental vehicle.

Edited by: Martin Zhuwakinyu