Electric Powered Cars

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Last Wednesday, President-elect Barack Obama announced former Iowa Governor Tom Vilsack as his choice to be the next Secretary of Agriculture. The appointment has fueled growing concern from ethanol critics, who worry that the Obama administration may expand subsidies to an industry that they feel has already received more than its fair share of generosity from Washington.

For years, ethanol has been touted by politicians and trade groups as the green fuel of the future, but many scientists and environmentalists see ethanol as a dead end. A recent study by Dutch Nobel prize winner Paul Crutzen found that the production of corn ethanol had a “net climate warming” effect compared to unblended gasoline. Using corn for fuel also drives up food prices, and according to the Food Policy Research Institute, recent ethanol mandates have caused corn prices to increase 29 percent, creating a significant strain on food supplies in developing countries.

Ethanol opponents have always held out hope that a President Obama would distance himself from allegiances to the ethanol lobby once the political pressures associated with winning an election subsided. But with the appointment of Vilsack, who was once named “Governor of the Year” by the Biotechnology Industry Organization, those hopes are beginning to fade.

Obama appoints Vilsack as Secretary of Agriculture.

$5 Billion Won’t Necessarily Buy You Lower Emissions

Federal ethanol subsidies currently total $5 billion a year, and many states supplement that federal money with their funds. One such state is Iowa, where as Governor, Vilsack approved $50,000 tax credits to companies aiding in the expansion of E85 Ethanol fueling infrastructure under his $500 million “Grow Iowa Values” initiative. The fund also provided tax incentives for ethanol producers such Poet, which runs the second largest plant in the country. Poet recently received $200 million in federal money to expand the Emmetsburg, Iowa-based operation, increasing its production capacity four-fold.

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Frugal and simple are the keywords for this recession-era gift-giving season. This signals the resurgence of low-tech classic toys made of wood, tin and string, which can delight just as much or more than expensive electronic and plastic toys. One of the retro classic toys—the wind-up rubber band car—points the way to low-cost energy storage strategies for hybrid cars.

No, we’re not talking about Floridian Brian Watt’s adult-sized rubber band car, shown at last year’s MakerFaire. “This is taking rubber band and cardboard technology to the extreme,” said Watt. He admitted that his design was “experimental” but wondered: “Who knows how far it could go if you use more rubber bands?”

Freshman mechanical engineering students at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, picked up on that question when they were assigned their first major design project: To construct model cars that propel solely on energy from six rubber bands and two mousetraps. The cars were put to the test by racing one another on an 11-foot long S-curved slalom course. The project focused on principles such as potential and kinetic energy, friction, and material properties.

The global recession finally caught up to Toyota Motor Corporation, which announced on Monday that it is anticipating a loss of US $1.7 billion for the fiscal year ending in March 2009. This would be the first time in 70 years that Toyota’s annual operating budget goes in the red.

The figure is especially shocking since Toyota projected a $14 billion profit earlier in the year, and re-adjusted that forecast downward to $6.7 billion as recently as November. It also comes on the heels of eight consecutive year-over-year profit records, ending with more than a $25 billion surplus for fiscal 2008.

Toyota and the other Japanese automakers have maintained an edge over American manufacturers due to a more progressive, long-term business philosophy. Rather than targeting quarterly earnings and profits, Toyota has based its success on planning years, and even decades ahead. Progressive thinking has allowed the automaker to become the world leader in hybrid cars.

But as vehicle sales plunge, even Toyota is not immune to the fallout of the financial crisis. “The environment surrounding us is extremely severe, and we are facing an unprecedented, emergency situation where we have no choice but see an operating loss this year,” said Toyota President Katsuaki Watanabe. Toyota expects to sell 12 percent fewer cars than it had originally predicted. That number is expected to directly translate to a slide in hybrid vehicle sales, which have also suffered due to declining gas prices. Nonetheless, Toyota maintains its goal of selling 1 million hybrids per year soon after the turn of a new decade.

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A group of US battery companies teamed up this week to boost American manufacturing of lithium ion batteries. The new alliance aims to compete with Asian companies that currently dominate the lithium ion battery market.

The production of affordable lithium ion batteries is viewed as the key to success for the next generation of hybrid and electric cars.

The newly formed National Alliance for Advanced Transportation Battery Cell Manufacture will create one or more manufacturing and prototype development centers in the United States, working with the Argonne National Laboratory as advisors. Members include 3M, ActaCell, All Cell Technologies, Altair Nanotechnologies, EaglePicher, EnerSys, Envia Systems, FMC, Johnson Controls-Saft, MicroSun, Mobius Power, SiLyte, Superior Graphite and Townsend Advanced Energy.

Workers check the production of lithium ion automotive batteries in the Johnson Controls - Saft Advanced Power Solutions’ factory in Nersac, southwestern France.

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The week of December 15 started out with grim news for hybrid production, and didn’t get much better.

Toyota Delays US-Prius

On Monday, Toyota announced that it indefinitely postponed its plans to build the Toyota Prius at a new factory under construction in Blue Springs, Miss. Just a few months ago, the Prius was on a roll as gasoline prices topped $4 a gallon. As sales soared, Toyota switched the $1.3 billion Miss. plant’s output to the iconic hybrid from its original product: Highlander sport-utility vehicles. Toyota insisted that the plant will remain dedicated to building Priuses, whenever the project is finally restarted.

Toyota Site in Blue Springs, Miss. (Photo via flickr.)

Audi Kills Q5 Hybrid

On the same day, Audi announced that its plans for a gas-electric version of the Q5 are indefinitely on hold. The company had previously flirted with the idea of a Q7 hybrid, but scrubbed those plans. Senior sources at the company said, “Audi won’t produce a petrol-electric hybrid until we can make nickel metal hydride batteries safer in crash situations, and hybrid technology more efficient overall.”

Th!nk Holds on for Life

On Tuesday, electric carmaker Th!nk appealed to the Norwegian government for loan guarantees to weather the current economic crisis. The company’s request was denied.
The government funding could have enabled Th!nk to stay on track for launching the Th!nk City, a zero-emission micro car, in European and US markets in the next year or two. Richard Canny, Th!nk’s chief executive officer, said, “We are in a very serious situation.” One day later, Mr. Canny said that events were “changing quickly” and that government funding remained a possibility.

Th!nk City

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