Green Options

The Veggie Van Organization unveiled the first algae fuel powered car this week in San Francisco. It’s actually a plug-in Prius that has been converted with the nickel-metal hydride battery. The green vehicle doesn’t run strictly on algae, but rather a 5% algae/95% gasoline blend. Since this vehicle uses a standard engine without any modifications, it demonstrates the opportunity to use alternative fuel sources like algae in a vehicle, and only 5% algae might be used today, but it gives some hope for the future.

Editor’s Note, 9/11/2009: based on remarks in the comments section (some unnecessarily mean), it is clear that I made a mistake concerning the actual rarity of “rare-earth” materials. Although they are abundant in the earth’s crust, it is the fact that it is exceedingly difficult to find them in high enough concentrations to make mining them profitable that makes them a concern for being resource-limiting. I’ve edited my post to make that clear.

As an electric car nut, one of the most common quibbles I hear often revolves around the perception that if we do make a wholesale shift to EVs, we are just trading one foreign, limited-resource addiction (oil) for another (lithium).

But, as it turns out, there is no shortage of lithium. Our own Karen Pease has written thoughtfully about this in the past, and today there is news that a single lithium mine in Nevada could produce enough of the stuff on its own to make 650 million Nissan LEAFs or 1 billion Chevy Volts (my thanks to the commenter at the end of the post over at greencarcongress.com for doing those calculations). And that’s just one mine in Nevada — mines all over the world also contain vast quantities of lithium.

And we all went happily down the road to our EV future. Nope. Lithium-shmithium. We may not have a shortage of lithium, but we are likely bound towards a future with a shortage of EV materials that you’ve never heard of — things with odd names like dysprosium, lanthanum, neodymium, and terbium.

Where is the mainstream media when you need them? Probably off chasing another Micheal Jackson’s baby’s daddy. But they could do a lot more use into investigating the court case of Paice LLC vs. Toyota. In the lawsuit filed by Paice against Toyota, Paice claims that several of Toyota’s popular hybrid models infringe on patents held by Paice. Having won a similar case back in 2005, Paice is now seeking an exclusion that would keep Toyota hybrid imports from entering the U.S.

In an effort to drum up attention and support for their algae-based biofuel, Sapphire Energy has announced they will conduct a coast-to-coast journey in their “Algaeus” plug-in hybrid. Part electric hybrid, part biofuel vehicle, Sapphire claimes the Algaeus will get 150 miles per gallon from its hybrid/biofuel drivetrain.

The Algaeus will visit 10 cities, starting in San Francisco on September 8th and ending in New York City on the 18th.

The big scare about oil is that it’s a dirty and diminishing resource. We are running low on supplies while polluting our environment. While we do consume oil at a ghastly rate, there are plenty of other materials that go into the cars, computers, and cell phones that we have all grown very accustomed to. Rare metals not easily accessible. China currently controls 95% of the rare-metal market, having flooded the market last decade with cheaper metals and wiping out most of the competition.

Whether sensing a precarious position or a powerful one, China is now considering a partial or total ban on certain rare earth elements. Some of these elements are directly related to the future of fuel. What will hybrids do without their Lanthanum?

No doubt many of you have read or heard about David Nichol’s woodgas F-150. I came across it during a media hailstorm a few months ago (which has since petered out). But while I was doing research on the One-Gallon Challenge, I saw that David’s truck was going to be participating. I gathered up my camera and notepad and my best friend (who I sort of tricked into coming) and took the drive to Greenfield Mass. last Wednesday night to get a look at this truck, and other fuel-sippers in person.

I learned a whole lot more than I bargained for.

The Toyota Prius is among the most popular cars under the Cash For Clunkers program right now. But many people who want one will have to wait, as production of the popular hybrid has slowed because of a battery shortage. The supplier of Prius batteries, Panasonic EV Energy, can not keep up with Toyota’s 500,000  annual Prius capacity. While Panasonic EV says it should have its production capacity ramped up to a million units annually by mid-2010, this begs the bigger question;

Will battery packs hold back hybrid production and development?

Toyota has revealed that its eagerly anticipated iQ-based all-electric car will receive its own individual body-style makeover, to create a stand-alone model set to become Toyota’s first all-electric car.

It appears that the electric iQ, due for launch in 2010, will not be pushed in the same market sectors as the original. Speaking about the strategy Hiroki Nakajima, chief engineer for the iQ said, “We wanted to position the iQ as premium, but not so the BEV (battery electric vehicle).” Perhaps they think that your average EV user is a little more low-rent than other drivers?

Rumors are gathering pace that Toyota is working on a two-door coupe version of its ultra-popular Prius hybrid, possibly scheduled to hit the market sometime in 2012.

The latest reports suggest that the Japanese outfit is currently developing a compact 2+2 Prius-based hybrid sports coupe featuring a beefed-up version of its 1.8-liter 2ZR-FXE four-cylinder engine, capable of achieving around 134 hp – 36 hp more than the sedan counterpart.

Although the higher power levels are likely to affect the Prius’s impressive fuel mileage, insiders are speculating that the company’s Hybrid Synergy Drive system will keep this to a minimum.

Solar-powered “flower stations” are appearing across major U.S. cities providing free Wi-Fi and electricity for charging laptops, cell phones and other devices.

US-based car-share giant Zipcar Inc. has launched its first ever Electric Vehicle Pod, featuring an all-electric Citroen C1 and a Plug-In Toyota Prius. The vehicles, among the most efficient and technologically advanced on the road today, can be hired by the hour for a fraction of the cost of owning one.

The company figures that EVs are ideally suited for early, large-scale use in Zipcar’s car sharing platform since the average Zipcar trip lasts just under four hours and less than 25 miles, well within the range of a typical EV.