A rare opportunity: electric vehicles with no rare earth materials

We all want to be able to drive without belching greenhouse gas emissions into the atmosphere. And we want our cars to run cleanly too.

One of the largest drawbacks of many forms of modern emission-free power, though, is our need to mine rare earth elements to make components like batteries and magnets. These 17 metals aren’t “rare” in the sense that they’re uncommon (they’re actually very common in the Earth’s crust), but rather because they’re distributed unevenly around the world, and each site doesn’t necessarily contain much of the material. So in addition to the environmental impacts of mining these materials, there is a concern: China currently dominates the global marketplace for rare earth metals (producing a whopping 95 per cent) and has already demonstrated its willingness to cut rare earth exports.

So it’s no surprise that Japanese researchers, living in a country that already relies heavily on imported metals, have developed an EV (electric vehicle) motor that can operate without any rare earth metals. Developed at the Tokyo University of Science by Associate Professor Nobukazu Hoshi and his team, the EV uses a “Switched Reluctance Motor,” which uses the difference in magnetic resistance to create an electric charge. And with the economic and environmental drawbacks of rare earth metal use, it’s likely that more such vehicles will be produced in the coming years.

Making cars without the use of rare earth metals isn’t just an area of concern for vehicles, though. Last year, IBM also innovated a solar cell, 40 per cent more efficient than similar cells, that did not use rare earth materials.

Via PhysOrg.com

Video: Electric Car Driven by Rare Earth Metal-Free Motor

Survey Says

A recent survey by IBM’s Institute for Business Value asked 1,716 U.S. drivers what would motivate them to switch from using a gasoline, diesel or hybrid vehicle to an electric-only vehicle. They also asked 123 auto industry executives to rate the importance consumers place on each choice.

The results are summarized as follows:

	Drivers	Executives
Innovative pricing models or lower price overall	71%	81%
Extended reach or range of the vehicles	64%	63%
Convenience of usage or services	63%	60%
Availability of charging infrastructure	62%	65%
Significantly higher oil prices	51%	76%
Green image or sustainability concerns	48%	33%
Government incentives or regulations	41%	73%
Traffic congestion	26%	11%

Although it’s surprising that, for the most part, consumers and auto execs are on the same page, what’s more surprising is that fewer than half the drivers were motivated by greenness and sustainability.

Isn’t that the whole point of electric-only vehicles? No emissions? Cleaner air? Other than that, what is the attraction to vehicles that are more expensive than their conventional counterparts, have smaller ranges and need expensive home renovations to convert garages and carports into recharging stations?

For one thing, operating costs are lower because electric vehicles are mechanically simpler and electricity is cheaper and more efficient that gasoline, but op costs weren’t even mentioned in the survey results. Hopefully, all the respondents were motivated by environmental concerns, but only 48 per cent said so.

Sure EVs are Small, But is the Market Big Enough for all of Them?

By early 2012, there will be at least eight electric vehicle (EV) manufacturers competing for market share in North America. The question is, is there a market?

Low speed and short range aren’t the issue. The 125 kilometre per hour average top speed of an electric car is about 75 kilometres per hour over the normal urban speed limit. And, according to Electric Mobility Canada, 90 per cent of Canadians have a round-trip commute of less than 60 kilometres, which is well within the 130 kilometre average range of an electric car. Further, according to Natural Resources Canada, 60 per cent of the distance travelled by Canadian cars is made up of trips of less than 25 kilometres.

The issue is, when Canadians purchase cars, we still think distance, not practicality. We think about trips to the cottage, to the campground, to hiking trails, bike paths and ski hills, even to other cities. We look at electric cars as being “second cars.” For city use.

Is there a demand? So long as we purchase vehicles based on less than 40 per cent of our driving, there won’t be.

Mitsubishi electric car

Summer roads trips and spontaneous outings may get a whole lot cheaper. 

In April, Mitsubishi unveiled the i-MiEV, its new zero-emission electric car, which could be speeding onto Canadian streets in 2010. Well, Vancouver streets to start as Mitsubishi admits they have yet to cold-weather test the vehicle. The company estimates that the i-MiEV (Mitsubishi Innovative Electric Vehicle) emits just 30 per cent of the carbon dioxide of a similarly sized internal combustion car.

The i-MiEV contains a 330-volt, 16-kilowatt, 63-horsepower electric motor with 22 lithium-ion batteries. So how does it recharge? Easy! Just plug it in next to your hair dryer. It can be recharged overnight using an average 120-volt or 220-volt household plug, but will take anywhere from 7 to 14 hours depending on the voltage.

If you’re away from home, Mitsubishi plans to eventually have little kiosks known as quick-charge systems, which will be able to restore the battery power to up to 80 per cent in about 30 minutes. Can’t find a kiosk? The i-MiEV also has a “limp-home” mode that will give you a few more kilometres if you drain the system completely.

And if you’re thinking that you are going to have to compromise speed for sustainability, guess again. This little racer can reach speeds an estimated second and a half faster than its gas-fuelled counterpart. In actuality, the car’s top speed is a little over 130 km/h, so although it may not be the number 1 choice for the Autobon, it might become the number 1 choice for eco-conscious consumers.

What’s all the buzz about?

Here’s a shock – car sales are down. An easy prediction, given the current economic climate. The more difficult prediction is what happens next.

Not a few industry insiders are predicting the electric car will – finally – make an impact.

The scoop on the automobile market. In December, sales of new motor vehicles in Canada fell 14.8% to 109,831 units. This was the largest monthly decline and lowest sales level since January 1998, when an ice storm crippled parts of the country.

New trucks fared even worse. “Trucks” is a catch-all category, including minivans, SUVs, light and heavy trucks, vans, and buses. Sales fell 20.4% to 50,997 units. Again, this was also the largest decrease for this vehicle type since January 1998.

Enter, maybe, the long-predicted electric car. The electric car has been hamstrung by poor performance, and no regulatory support. Both formidable obstacles. Obstacles that seem to be changing.

First, performance. BMW is testing the Mini E, which reviewers are calling a “little rocket ship.”

Electric cars have been derided as slugs, but the Mini E – and vehicles like it – move at highway speeds. 500 test vehicles are slated for testing on the roads of New York and Los Angeles this year. 

Second, regulatory support. Automakers are preparing for the day when taxes and regulations will likely prevent gasoline- and diesel-powered vehicles from entering the core of major European cities. North American cities may follow suit.

BMW and other automakers genuinely seem committed to electric car development. Some predict the electric car will comprise 10 per cent of all new cars sold worldwide, currently around 70 million units a year.

That’s 7 million new electric cars per year. That would be a shock.

It only makes sense for something electric to create a buzz

This year’s North American International Auto Show (NAIAS) in Detroit was no different – all the buzz came from the electric cars.

Every year, commentators ask why America seems to have missed the boat on electric cars. Where are they? Why doesn’t everyone have one? Recent spikes in gas prices only added fuel to the fire – so to speak.

The truth is, electric cars haven’t been practical. They cost $2,000 to $3,000 more than hybrids. In turn, hybrids are more expensive than “regular” gas or diesel cars. The reason? Batteries with enough juice to run a car are bulky (often taking up the whole trunk) and pricey.

In other words, angry consumers pointing the finger at Detroit should have looked in the mirror. If there was a market for electric cars, Detroit would have done more to provide product for it. If the NAIAS is any indication, things have changed.

Cadillac, Tesla, Toyota, Chrysler, Ford and Mercedes-Benz all unveiled new and advanced electric models. These weren’t just sci-fi prototypes: Ford and Toyota committed to selling all-electric cars by 2011 and 2012, respectively.

Ford is anticipating annual sales of 5,000 – 10,000. They’re also planning a battery-powered commercial van for 2010 and a plug-in hybrid (the battery can be charged via conventional socket) by 2012.

If the NAIAS is any indication, the days of electric cars reaching maximum speeds only in playground zones are over. The days of giving up trunks for expensive and heavy batteries are over.

The days of huge gas tanks may be over too.

Fuel efficiency a novel ‘concept’ in automobile design

If necessity is the mother of invention, what role does cheapness play?  

Sound trite?  It’s really just basic economics.  Spurred by customers seeking relief from rising gas prices, automakers are using a combination of new and old concepts to improve fuel efficiency.  

Certainly, some new and intriguing innovations are on the horizon. Take France’s MCE-5 Development, which is working on building gasoline engines to work more like diesel engines, combining the best of both worlds: gas’ relative cleanliness with the efficiency of diesel.  

Mazda’s new Kiyora goes another direction: up. Well, not really, but reflects Mazda’s “gram strategy” of fuel efficiency via weight loss.  The combination of a new platform, small 1.3-liter engine and greatly reduced mass will produce a mere 90g/km of carbon dioxide.  

Several manufacturers are working towards removing fossil fuels altogether, planning to produce fully electric cars for market by 2010.  Electric cars has been the holy grail of auto technology for decades, but the obstacle remains: the lithium for batteries ain’t cheap.  

The one overarching trend in fuel economy isn’t a new concept at all, but a welcome reversal of an unhealthy trend: cars are finally getting smaller.  All things being equal, small cars are more efficient than your average suburban assault vehicle.  Dramatically so.  

While innovation is never bad, sometimes it’s the oldest, simplest ideas that work best.

Reality, development and the electric car

From hydrogen-powered cars to solar-powered golf carts, drivers are looking to vehicles with alternative power sources — the kind that don’t require a sinking feeling when filling up at the pumps.

Unfortunately, like many alternative energy technologies, most of these transportation alternatives are still in development, years away from being ready for the real world. Solar-powered cars exist, for example, but they’re still body-hugging prototypes designed more to showcase the challenge of solar power than its imminent adoption. And electric cars like GM’s predatory-looking Volt or its more benign predecessor, the EV1, remain concept cars (a condition that received feature-length condemnation in 2006’s Who Killed the Electric Car?).

But, as reported by the CBC, while major car manufacturer’s concepts idle in the research phase, Canadian businesses like REV Consultants are bringing the concept to Canada’s roads. By replacing engines with rechargeable batteries, REV Consultants has been able to make the electric car a reality.

But making the electric car a reality also brings another, more unpleasant reality to light — the conversion’s prohibitory cost of about $20,000 for a complete retrofit. The move may lower the car’s greenhouse gas emissions, but not its cost.

(Then again, who knows? The hefty price tag might even afford buyers some much-needed social status in the bargain.)

In singing the emission-reducing capability of an electric engine, it’s also important to note that any vehicle using electricity drawn from the provincial grid would still be contributing to Canada’s greenhouse gas emissions. Aside from companies like Bullfrog Power, or offset programs, power is still generated in large proportion by coal and other emission-heavy fuel sources.

An electric engine may defray emissions, but it doesn’t eliminate them. The technology necessary to complete our energy revolution is still in development.

Who resurrected the electric car?

Along with a few other indicted parties, General Motors was found guilty in the 2006 documentary, Who Killed the Electric Car? after their electric prototype, the EV1, ended up in crushed heaps. Arguing that consumer demand had simply been too low in an era of affordable gas prices, the company repealed its leased vehicles before destroying them, leaving irate devotees in the car’s wake.

Whether GM really did axe their concept car because of relatively affordable gasoline, recent cuts to consumer demand for gas-guzzling trucks and SUVs and attendant layoffs have certainly put the company in a different position.

Now, in a different climate of fuel poverty, the company has launched a new electric vehicle, the concept Chevrolet Volt. With a sleeker profile than its original, homelier counterpart, GM’s second take on the electric car makes bold promises like “a daily commute without a drop of gas.” The Volt even boasts a modular, secondary fuel source that could allow the car to extend its range beyond the electric motor’s current 40-mile range.

But if the promise of a sporty looking, electric-powered car seems too good to be true, there are at least a few EV1 devotees who are willing to second the cynicism. The original electric car may be dead, but it will take quite a blow to kill off the remaining doubt in its progenitor’s intentions.

Electric vehicles not so current

What is a hundred years old, has a thousand speeds and is a million times better for the environment? It’s the world’s earliest hybrid vehicle – the Owen Magnetic, which was in development as early as the 1890s.

That’s right, hybrids are not a new technology, having been built as early as 1832. The Owen Magnetic, for example, was also known as ‘The Car of a Thousand Speeds’ as it used a magnetic field to power an electric five-speed automatic transmission.

Sometimes in order to take two steps forward, we should take one step back. In early May we ran an editorial about the green practices that were commonplace 50 years ago. This environmental stuff isn’t new, which should be comforting to a society increasingly pressured to save the environment by adopting new lifestyles and habits.

Today, government and industry spend millions of dollars every year on researching and developing new technologies that mitigate damage to the environment. But the Owen Magnetic seems to prove that sometimes when it comes to innovation we need to look no further than the rearview mirror.