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

MORE How to Sell an Electric Car

At the end of 2010, there were three electric cars (EVs) on the North American market – the Tesla Roadster, Chevy Volt and Nissan LEAF. The next year or so will see the entry of up to five more and, again, their names tell us something about the marketing strategies used to sell a product facing increasing competition.

Take the Fisker Karma. The name goes beyond green to spiritual. Drive this car in this life and you’ll be rewarded in the next life. Except the Karma, like the Volt, has an internal combustion engine as a back up. True, it never directly powers the vehicle, but it does burn gas. It’s speedy, stylish, powerful and costs about $87,000. Maybe not so pious after all.

Daimler-Benz continues to target the intelligent car buyer with its Smart Electric Drive. As the name suggests, it’s the all-electric version of the Smart Fortwo. But smart? Well, certainly not the head of the class. Less expensive cars have more power, more speed and longer ranges.

For the musician, there’s the Coda Sedan. Coda is defined as “the concluding passage of a musical piece”, and the Coda Sedan is touted as the end of the internal combustion engine. In its price group, it’s above average in range, speed and power, and it seats four. But it’s not the end; more of an interlude.

Obviously, the Think City is targeted at the thinking city driver. Above average in everything except power and price. On the road since 1999, the Think City has already enjoyed great popularity in Europe. The only dumb part is that it won’t be commercially available in North America until 2012.

Not sure who is being targeted by the Wheego LiFe. The initial image is piggies returning from market, but they’re doing so in one of the more cost-efficient EVs. And, according to the manufacturer, there’s plenty of room for groceries.

How to Sell an Electric Car

The long-awaited semi-affordable electric cars are finally here! Almost three years after the introduction of the Tesla Roadster, both the Chevy Volt and the Nissan LEAF were delivered to dealers in the United States the week of December 20, 2010.

What makes these cars appealing is their lack of emissions and noise, smooth ride, low maintenance and economic operation, the same things that gave electric cars their enormous popularity in the early 1900s. What doesn’t appeal to consumers is their lack of range, lack of speed, and their higher cost, the same things that sank electric cars in the early 1900s.

So, how to attract buyers.

From the car names, it’s obvious that GM and Nissan have taken different roads. GM seems to be aiming at the power/performance crowd. Volt evokes images of lighting bolts and arcs of electricity – pure energy in the driving experience. And the Volt has more horsepower (150 vs. 110), a larger motor (111 kW vs. 80), and a higher top speed (161 kilometres per hour vs. 145).

Nissan, on the other hand, is looking to the green crowd. In fact LEAF stands for Leading, Environmentally friendly, Affordable, Family car, hence the capitalized name. It has a larger battery pack (24 kW-h vs. 16) and a larger range (161 kilometres vs. 64). So green that it doesn’t come with a 1.4 litre, four-cylinder, gasoline-powered, internal combustion engine, such as the one that does come with the Volt.

The Tesla is named in honour of Nikola Tesla, the Serbian-American physicist who invented alternating current. Maybe not as evocative a name as Volt or LEAF, but the Tesla roadster has a top speed of 201 kilometres per hour, a range of 393 kilometres and is styled after the Lotus Elise. Too bad it’s three times the price the other two.

Vancouver’s mandatory electric car chargers

Today, there are so many possibilities for alternative fuels; it’s hard to know which one will dominate in the future.  A good solution might be to prepare for any or all of them.

In Vancouver, it could become mandatory for new condo developments to have electric car charging stations in 10% of their parking stalls. With so much talk of biofuels, it may seem unusual to bet on this particular horse.  Mayor Gregor Robertson says the future is electric.

He points out that many cities – in Europe, Japan, and nearby San Francisco – already have such charging stations in place, for electric cars already on the road. Vancouver would be the first city in Canada to make them mandatory.

While detractors argue against the current usefulness of plug-ins, many claim that the only way electric cars will catch on is if the infrastructure is already in place.

So while one doesn’t see a lot of Mitsubishi iMieVs today, charging stations will make it easier and more convenient for motorists to make the switch.  Put another way, electric cars are the chicken and charging outlets are the egg.  Or is it the other way around?

Making outlets mandatory in new developments could end up being a costly gamble.  Or, a future-minded stroke of genius – especially if the demand for electric cars in Canada grows.

Only by making an effort today, will changes be possible for tomorrow.