Batteries and energy storage

Toyota Motor will launch home battery chargers for electric and plug-in hybrid cars next year as it starts selling new models of environmentally friendly cars, the Nikkei business daily reported today.

The chargers, which will also be compatible with non-Toyota cars, will come in two types, the Nikkei reported, citing company sources. One would extend from the exterior wall of a home and the other would be for setting up in a garage.

The company expects to sell 20,000 to 30,000 units in the first year, with each costing about several tens of thousands of yen to 200,… Read more

The initial results of pilot programs on plug-in electric vehicles may spook companies and create a vicious cycle of inefficiency when it comes to charging.

That's according to one of the topics covered in the "Changing the game: Plug-in electric vehicle pilots" report (PDF) released yesterday by technology consulting giant Accenture.

The Accenture report examined the recent data garnered from over 25 pilot programs scattered around the world that have been monitoring EVs and driver habits.

Overall the pilot programs found public charging stations have not yet been getting enough use to pay for themselves and their … Read more

The Honda Civic GX is the greenest car of 2011, according to the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy.

The nonprofit organization released its 14th annual environmental ratings list yesterday with the Honda Civic GX, which runs on compressed natural gas, once again winning first place. The ACEEE ranked the all-electric Nissan Leaf second, with the Smart Fortwo in third, and the Toyota Prius in fourth. The Chevy Volt was ranked last at No. 12.

However, topping the ACEEE's list doesn't necessarily mean the Honda Civic GX is the most consumer-friendly green car available. The car, which has … Read more

Lithium ion battery company A123 Systems today said that it will supply a 20-megawatt battery for grid storage in northern Chile, one of the larger projects to use batteries to fortify the grid.

AES Gener, a division of U.S.-based power generation company AES, will install 10 shipping container-size storage systems in northern Chile to work in conjunction with a new 500-megawatt power plant called Angamos.

The batteries will be used for "spinning reserves" to ensure grid reliability by filling gaps in power in that area, which needs a reliable supply of electricity for mining operations. The … Read more

Nissan Motor, Japan's second-biggest automaker, said today that Leaf production will reach full capacity by March at its factory south of Tokyo.

The company has gradually ramped up output of the Leaf, its first mass-marketed zero-emission car, since it started building them in late October, completing about 3,000 units to date.

By March, the pace of production will rise to full capacity of about 4,000 Leafs a month at the Oppama factory, putting Nissan on track to hit a target of producing a total 10,000 units by the end of March, a Nissan official said.

"… Read more

The mercury reads 12 degrees outside, but it feels like minus 2 with the windchill. That's Fahrenheit--the numbers are depressingly lower in Celsius here in Canada. Still, when I hang Nokero's new N200 bulb on a tree, its solar cell recharges without a hitch.

Denver-based Nokero debuted last year with the N100 solar light bulb. It recently released an improved version, the N200, and I had a chance to try it out.

First off, the Nokero bulbs are designed to replace homemade kerosene lamps, not standard bulbs. They're aimed at hundreds of millions of people in developing … Read more

A new type of solar thermal system for homes that can provide heat, hot water, and electricity is being tested in Boulder, Colo., over the next few months.

Cool Energy says its SlowFlow system could provide the average U.S. home with 80 percent of its heat, 100 of its hot water, and 60 percent of its electricity needs.

It's being developed with help from the National Science Foundation, the Department of Energy, and electricity and natural gas giant Xcel Energy.

The system consists of solar collectors, a Stirling engine, a hot water heater, a space heater, an insulated … Read more

A Marine experiment aimed at determining whether it's beneficial, or even feasible, to use solar energy in the theater of war has landed on the side of solar.

That's according to an article filed Wednesday by Gunnery Sgt. William Price, 1st Marine Division, about Marines located in the Sangin District of Helmand Province, Afghanistan at what's known as an "experimental forward operating base."

The Marine 3rd Battalion, 5th Marine Regiment at Forward Operating Base Jackson, and its Afghan national army counterparts, have been using portable solar blankets to continuously charge radio batteries while on long … Read more

The Kauai Island Utility Cooperative (KIUC) announced Thursday it will install a 1.5-megawatt utility-scale storage battery for its Koloa substation.

The battery storage unit made by Xtreme Power will be used to store and release energy to accommodate the intermittent nature of a nearby solar plant planned for installation on the island of Kauai.

The 3-megawatt Kauai solar plant, which will be built and run by Poipu Solar, will be capable of generating enough electricity to power over 850 Hawaiian homes when running at full capacity.

The solar installation coincides with Hawaii's goal to be generating 70 percent … Read more