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EDITION: 8.21 | 19 Jun 2008 |
In This Edition:
AABC Report
Tampa is a lovely location for a conference, especially since it's also the home of the newly formed CLE.VE.R, (Clean Vehicle Research) Institute created by Victor Juarez G., his associates at Electro Autos Eficaces de Mexico (EAE) and Roger Slotkin of Odyne Corporation. In fact, it was to the Institute that Juarez drove me after picking me up at Tampa International Airport. I was in town to attend the last three days of the 9th Advanced Automotive Battery Conference.
Admittedly, the Institute is not much to look at just now: a simple frame house sitting in the middle of a large yard, encompassed by a chainlink fence in a seedier part of town; but it's a start. And it also happens to be surrounded by numerous custom auto service companies specializing in everything from Ford Crown Vics to Nissan Z-model sports cars. And it is these small shops that Juarez envisions as being the nexus of his plan to convert thousands of IC engine cars to electric drive.
After getting my first look at the home of CLEVER -- and meeting a former Russian Army colonel (but that's another story for another day) -- Juarez dropped me off at my hotel and from there, I headed to the Tampa Convention Center, site of the AABC, organized by Menachem Anderman.
It was my plan to spend most of my time in the exhibit hall where I could speak, one-on-one, with company representatives, everyone from Dr. Patrick Brant, ExxonMobil's chief polymer scientist to Eva Hakkansson, whose father is a legend in the Swedish electric vehicle community. To be honest, not being a battery chemist, I find these interactions far more valuable than listening to a presentation in the conference technical sesssions.
One of the highlights of the trip was the visit to ElectroEnergy's newly acquired lithium ion battery plant outside of Gainesville, Florida. After a two-hour bus ride, we got a guided tour of the facility that originally had been built by Energizer Battery, only to be shut down before making a single 18650 lithium ion cell when prices dropped and voltages increased, making Energizer's technology, essentially obsolete.
However, three recent lithium ion battery plant fires overseas have created a shortage of 18650 cells, an irresistable business opportunity that ElectroEnergy plans to exploit. In conversation with the company president, Michael Reed, I learned that while he doesn't yet have any orders, he expects to start garnering them and is planning to manufacture an initial stockpile of 50,000 cells, half the plant's daily production capacity.
I also had a long and interesting dinner conversation with Modec's Trevor Powers about his company, one of two electric truck manufacturers in the UK. Also on hand was Bill Dube and the Killacycle, soon to be equipped with a brand new A123 cell now packaged in a laminated poach, potentially a response to its work on the GM Volt. Dube thinks that between the new, higher-powered cell, a new motor equivalent to a 1000 hp and redesigned bike that his team will be able to create not just the world's fastest electric motorcycle, which Killacycle already is, but the fastest motorcycle in the world, period.
The key impression I came away with is that the demand for electric vehicle technology is outpacing the industry's ability to deliver product. Surprisingly this observation came from, of all people, ExxonMobil, who explained that inquiries for their latest battery separator material are escalating, noting that there are eight battery start-ups they are aware of in the San Francisco Bay area alone.
While I heard several comments about the overall tone of the conference being somewhat negative in terms of the prospects for battery technology to meet the demanding needs for electric-drive vehicles, the companies I spoke with were much more upbeat, as exemplified by the enthusiasm of people like Sankar das Gupta, Michael Reed and Dan Squillers, the CEO of PowerGenix. They believe -- and certainly they have a vested interest in making the case for their respective technologies -- that batteries are up to the task, be they lithium, zinc, nickel, or in Senor Juarez's case below, even lowly lead.
I am reminded of the expression "the perfect is the enemy of the good." If we wait for the perfect battery solution, we will never move beyond where we are at the moment.
Another Oil Company Joins Electric Parade
As I made my rounds of the three exhibit halls, I was surprised to discover yet another oil company now displaying its wares. That company is ConocoPhillips and their product is the graphite used to coat the electrodes of lithium batteries.
After touring ElectroEnergy's 88,000 square feet battery plant, I now appreciate the importance of this product, which in this company's case takes an enormous machine that must be some 200 meters in length in order to apply and cure the coating. In fact, it requires at least two of these machines, one to coat the cathode material and the second the anode. The Gainesville plant has six of them. While they are at least a decade out-of-date, they can still turn out 100,000 cells a day.
Return of the ElectroCOATL
I can only imagine what the attractive, young blonde in the Sebring next to me was thinking when Victor Juarez G. jumped out of the car I was driving and popped open the hood. He fiddles briefly with something, slams it shut and climbs back into the car just before the light turns green.
I am behind the wheel of the rejuvenated ElectroCOATL (COATL is Aztec for 'snake') and headed for the University of South Florida for a meeting with two of the world's leading lights on solar power: Dr. Elias Stefanakos and Dr. Yogi Goswami. With the flick of a surprisingly tiny toggle switch mounted on the side of the car's Zilla controller, Senor Juarez transformed a mild-mannered, four-door sedan into a tire-squealing demon. Instead of having a mere 500 amps of electric power at my beckon call -- which is adequate for daily use, though the car seemed a bit sluggish on launch -- I now had twice that much, and a tap of the accelerator fed that 1000 amps to a brand new 11-inch Advanced DC electric motor (replacing the 9-inch Warp).
I briefly -- and inadvertently -- spun the front tires as I started through the intersection. Since this was the third motor EAE has installed in the car -- the previous two had basically melted down with all that energy flowing through them -- I knew Victor didn't want me messing around, so I eased up on the accelerator and we headed down the road at something more closely approximating what a "normal" car would do, but it was tantalizing to think what this machine will be capable of once the brushes are properly seated.
The next project for the car is to upgrade its disc brakes. The car is so heavy -- it's equipped with 26 95 amp hour EnerSys batteries that weigh close to a ton -- that you don't want be following anyone too closely, or you'll find that expensive 2K Zilla controller parked inside someone's trunk.
But lest you think equipping a 2002 Nissan Sentra with a ton of lead isn't a particularly smart or enlightening thing to do, I should point out that riding in the back seat was Dr. Sankar das Gupta, the founder and chairman of Electrovaya, makers of the SuperPolymer lithium ion battery. Assuming EAE and Electrovaya can agree on terms, expect to see at some point in the not too distant future the ElectroCOATL go on a serious weight loss program that will deliver essentially the same range of between 60-70 miles but at a fraction of the weight and volume.
Senor Juaez also briefed me on some of EAE's other projects, the most exciting of which is a pair of purchase orders from the cab owner's association in Mexico City for a total of 120 electric taxi cab conversions, which will begin this summer in former BMW assembly plant some 35 miles outside of Mexico City. The association also has a standing order for another 480 cabs, make a total of 600. EAE has some other projects in development that they will be announcing in the future.
As Dr. das Gupta commented over lunch near the USF campus, he admires the way Victor has "gone for the jugular" when it comes to electric car development. He isn't waiting for fancy batteries or messing about with designing some new car. Ever the pragmatist, he is prepared to use what's available to put cars on the road.
As Victor commented to me while driving the ElectroCOATL, there's still too much talk and not enough money flowing. Clearly, he and his associates at EAE and the newly-formed CLEVER (CLean Electric Vehicle Energy Research) Institute (www.clever-int.org) are determined to do something about that, even if it means for now putting a ton of lead and three electric motors into an ordinary Nissan Sentra.
Toyota: Win Some, Lose Some... Maybe
The last couple weeks have been interesting for Toyota. It recently won an US Appeal Court decision against Solomon Technologies, who were claiming that Toyota had infringed on its hybrid transmission patent. Solomon had sought in 2006 to block the import of Toyota hybrids into the United States. Here's the relevant part of the decision as reported by Bloomberg News:
The patent is for a combination motor and transmission device with two power inputs. The Federal Circuit said the Toyota motors "do not have an 'integral combination' of a motor element and transmission unit" as required by the patent.However, another lawsuit, this one taken all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court, didn't turn out as well for Toyota. In what could be a set back for the Japanese giant, the Justices refused to hear an appeal that would award $4.3 million to Paice Corporation, as well as possibly require Toyota to pay a $25 royalty for every hybrid it brings into the United States.
Bloomberg News again reports...
The disputed technology involves a microprocessor that accepts torque information from both the internal combustion engine and electric motor.
In an email response to my inquiry about the case, Toyota's Vice President for Corporate Communications, Irv Miller, noted that the Court, in effect, made no ruling, but instead sent it back down to the lower court for further review, which means the litigation is still on going and thus Toyota can not issue any further comments. This also means that Toyota could still win the case on appeal. In the meantime, the demand for its hybrids in America continues... if you'll pardon the pun... apace.
EV Ringtones: A Horror Story
I continue to receive interesting replies to my inquiry about electric vehicle "ring tones" as a way to address concerns about the silence of electric drives and their preceived risk to the blind. Suggestions have ranged from bird chips to simulated engine sounds to proximity warning devices worn by the disabled rather than on the car; all plausible ideas.
Then I had a horrible thought. What happens if instead of melodious and pleasant -- not to mention inoffensive -- tones being played by the cars, some enterprising but mercenary soul decides to pay electric car owners to play commercial messages instead of ring tones.
Imagine someday walking down the street and all around you hear the cacaphony of dozens of advertising jingles emanating from passing electric cars and plug-in hybrids. A computer on board the car keeps track of the number of times the jingle plays and the advertising agency pays the car owner a small sum each month, perhaps enough to offset the price of the electricity to run the car. An owner might find it hard to resist such an inducement.
Let us hope that future EV owners have the good sense to resist such overatures or our EV World will be a noisier, not to mention poorer place.
The Perfect Conference?
I've been attending electric vehicle and related conferences for a decade now and have been continually amazed at how -- if you'll forgive me -- boring they can be, especially the technical programs. I understand these are not intended to be fun or entertaining. Also, my not being an engineer means that the significance of this data plot and that graph is largely lost on me. Then there is the ever-present challenge of language where important developments are taking place in Europe and Asia, as well as the Americas, and some hapless engineer has to explain his work in a language not his own.
Still, it seems to me that there's a great deal of room for improvement. I spent my time on the flight home from Tampa scribbling down ideas on Delta Airline napkins. They are admittedly pretty wild and unorthodox, but maybe there are a couple gems among the stones.
What I am interested in are your thoughts about the conferences you've attended, what you've found helpful -- dare I say inspiring -- and what you've found unproductive. What makes a profitable -- in both intellectual and financial terms -- conference in your mind? Is it the plenary speeches, the technical breakout or the poster board sessions, the exhibits, the dinners at night, the golf outings or just the opportunity to get out of the office and go somewhere interesting?
I really would like to hear your thoughts. What was the most memorable conference you've attended, EV-related or not? If you could design the ideal conference, what would it be like? How would you organize it? Please take a moment to share your ideas with me at EDITOR@EVWORLD.COM.
Until next time, stay plugged into EVWorld...
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