Lithium-ion battery breakthroughs seem to pop up on a daily basis. Universities, engineering firms, battery makers and automotive companies constantly promote their research studies, which promise to advance li-ion technology to the next level.

Well, another day is here, so it's time to present one more potential breakthrough. Researchers at the State Key Laboratory of Silicon Materials and Department of Materials Science and Engineering at Zhejiang University in China synthesized a copper oxide- (CuO) graphene compound for use as an anode material in li-ion batteries. The research team believes that CuO nanoparticles, placed on graphene sheets, act as spacers and allows for faster electron transfer between the battery's active materials and its charge collector.

The team of researchers' conclude that the CuO-graphene anode material displays these key properties:

The CuO-graphene composite shows an improved initial coulombic efficiency (68.7%) and reversible capacity of 583.5 mAh g-1 with 75.5% retention of the reversible capacity after 50 cycles.

Transforming the numbers into understandable terms results in this: The experimental anode material may offer slightly higher energy density than other available technologies, but CuO-graphene's main advantage over the competition appears to be its ability to handle increased cycles and recharge at a faster rate. A detailed report on the properties of CuO-graphene, presented by the Zhejian University researcher team, can be read by clicking here (PDF).

[Source: Green Car Congress]

Ah, Rinspeed. The crafty Swiss design house that has brought us funky creations like the UC?, iChange and sQuba has just given us a preview of its latest creation, the BamBoo. Set to debut at the Geneva Motor Show next year, the BamBoo is a sort of "grown up golf cart" (Rinspeed's words, not ours), and as its name would suggest, many of the interior components have been constructed from bamboo fibers.

So, what's the purpose of the BamBoo? Beach assault vehicle? Tropical resort cruiser? Rinspeed offers this as an explanation:

"This open-top vehicle awakens the longing for sun, summer, for lightness and easiness, the desire to be at the beach. It is a reminiscence of the Seventies, of the south of France and St. Tropez. And one would expect to find Brigitte Bardot behind the wheel with playboy Gunther Sachs at her side heading towards Tahiti beach."

Sounds lovely, but the Swiss designers have left out practically all of the nitty-gritty details about the BamBoo, including powertrain, interior accommodations and plans for production (if any). Nevertheless, we'll get the full scoop at the Geneva show in March. In the meantime, check out Rinspeed's latter-day Fiat Jolly/Volkswagen Thing Acapulco in our gallery below, then follow the jump for the press release.



[Source: Rinspeed]

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Come next May, the public transit system in Sao Paulo, Brazil will be a bit greener thanks to the addition of 50 Scania buses designed to run on pure ethanol. The people haulers are part of the first wave of an initial fleet of 200 ethanol-fueled buses. Sao Paulo operates more than 15,000 public transport buses and has set its sights on converting each and every one of them to renewable fuel models by 2018. With biogas in limited supply, ethanol will likely the dominant biofuel used in the buses. For Scania Group, the only manufacturer of heavy-duty buses with ethanol-powered engines, this must be music to the company's ears.

Melker Jernberg, senior vice president and head of buses and coaches at Scania Brazil, details ethanol's role as a renewable fuel source, stating:

The use of ethanol as a vehicle fuel is the best example of what can be done here and now in sustainable development work. Ethanol accounts for 90 percent of the renewable fuel available in the world. By delivering ethanol buses to São Paulo, Scania is helping to strengthen Brazil's leading position in reducing climate impact.

[Source: Scania Group]

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Japanese electronics retailer Yamada-Denki Co., Ltd. and Mitsubishi Motors Corporation have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) that outlines plans to sell the electric i-MiEV at 17 Yamada Denki retail locations in Japan's most populated areas, including Tokyo, Kanagawa and Saitama prefectures. For Mitsubishi, the signing of the MoU provides the automaker with access to a non-conventional sales method that could expand consumer interest in battery-powered vehicles and, if all goes as planned, result in additional purchases of its popular electric hatch.

Yamada Denki will take an active approach to promoting and selling the i-MiEV. The retailer will staff its stores with highly trained salespersons that specialize in electric vehicles. Furthermore, Yamada-Denki will establish an exhibition hall for the i-MiEV at its Techland Yokohama Izumi store, host test drive events and sell solar energy systems, charging stations and other EV-related items to its customers. With total sales of the i-MiEV now eclipsing 3,000, Mitsubishi's city car is one of the hottest electrics in the world and this MoU is almost sure to spark more interest.

[Source: Mitsubishi]

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Earlier this week, we rolled out a time-lapse video of the assembly of the 2011 Chevrolet Volt. In that video, General Motors took us inside its Detroit-Hamtramck plant to watch its plug-in hybrid undergo the transformation from bodyshell to a ready-to-roll vehicle. In the all-too-brief clip, GM attempted to capture the complex steps of assembling the Chevy Volt but, as many of our commenters pointed out, failed to provide a detailed look at the intricate technologies that differentiate the Volt from more conventional vehicles.

In an attempt to be as fair as possible, it's only fitting that we also showcase the assembly of the 2011 Nissan Leaf. This video, shot inside Nissan's plant in Oppama, Japan, captures the production of the Leaf in painstaking detail. Hit the jump to watch the Nissan Leaf as it comes together right before your eyes.

[Source: Nissan via YouTube]

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Danish company H2 Logic will add to Norway's "hydrogen highway" with the installation of a refueling station in the suburbs outside of Oslo in summer 2011. Together with another planned hydrogen station in the city's downtown center, this area of Norway will become home to one of the world's densest hydrogen refueling networks.

Back in 2003, Norway witnessed its first hydrogen station installation in the nation's third largest city; Stavanger. Since then, three additional stations have opened for service and 20 hydrogen vehicles have hit the roads. Norway's efforts are part of a joint collaboration project called the Scandinavian Hydrogen Highway Partnership (SHHP), which consists of a three national bodies – HyNor (Norway), Hydrogen Link (Denmark) and Hydrogen Sweden.

A recent study by Pike Research predicts that 37 percent of the 2.8 million fuel-cell vehicles expected to take to the streets by 2020 will roam around in Western Europe. This makes the task of installing additional refueling stations in Norway and the surrounding areas vital to the hydrogen vehicle's success in the region.

[Source: H2 Logic]

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Even though the city of London cut back its support for plug-in vehicles, that doesn't mean everyone in the area wants to curtail incentives to go electric. Today, the Camden Council launched a number of UK and London firsts, including the first free electric charging point for commercial vehicles. Installed by Elektromotive, the three-phase charging station is based on the company's Elektrobay station, but has been designed for light commercial electric vehicles. If the station is not being used by someone else, any compatible electric vehicle can recharge there for free. Nice, huh?

Other firsts in Camden today include the opening of London's first compressed biomethane gas refuelling station and the first council vehicle fleet in England powered by renewable energy. The Camden Council also offers private residents a lot of benefits for driving electric vehicles, especially if the cars are powered by renewable energy. You can find the details here.



[Source: Elektromotive, Camden Council]

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By early 2012, Toyota Motor Corporation (TMC) aims to launch its Prius plug-in hybrid (PHEV), as confirmed by the automaker's "eco-car" outline:

TMC plans to begin sales of a "Prius"-based PHV, mainly in Japan, the United States and Europe. Sales are targeted at more than 50,000 units annually, and the price for Japan is expected to be in the ¥3 million range ($36,000 U.S. at the current exchange rate).

However, Toyota's outline makes no mention of China, a country known for its massive subsidies of plug-in vehicles. China is also home to FAW Group, Toyota's joint venture. So, is China excluded from Toyota's PHEV plans? Well, a report streaming in from the Japanese news outlet Nikkei claims that FAW Group will indeed become a prominent part of Toyota's plugged-in future. The report reads like this:

Toyota intends to position the joint venture as the Chinese supply base for plug-ins, which are touted as the next big thing in environmentally friendly vehicles. Ahead of starting Chinese production and sales, Toyota will test the vehicles in Tianjin. It will study their performance based on road conditions and use the data it collects on fuel efficiency, recharging speed and other factors for local manufacturing.

If all this works out, then Toyota's plug-in Prius sales could soar to a level that's substantially "more than 50,000 units annually."

Gallery: Quick Spin: 2010 Plug-in Prius

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Photos by Sebastian Blanco / Copyright ©2010 AOL

[Source: Nikkei – sub. req. via Green Car Congress]

Coda Automotive wheeled out its electric Sedan at the LA Auto Show in mid-November. While Sean Blankenship, the automaker's senior vice president of marketing, was busy telling us how the Sedan's "production adjustment" was a good thing, Phil Gow, Coda's battery guru, was knee deep in discussing the vehicle's high-tech lithium-ion power source.

Gow was quick to point out that battery size is significant, telling Plugin Cars that, "It was very important to us to have the largest practical battery so that people could have the maximum possible range." Gow emphasized that the Sedan's 34 kWh li-ion pack offers nearly 40 percent more capacity than other electric vehicles – including the Nissan Leaf – that are scheduled to hit the streets soon. As for the battery's thermal management abilities, Gow stated that the Sedan's active temperature system ensures that vehicle range is consistent regardless of weather conditions. Hop the jump to listen to guru Gow detail the Sedan's li-ion battery setup.

[Source: You Tube, Plugin Cars]

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Now that Winter has arrived at the doorstep of the Northern hemisphere, it's time to put the ice and snow that's already in full effect in the French Alps to good use. That's right, the sophomore Trophée Andros Electrique season starts up this weekend with the first event being held at Val Thorens. As you might imagine, last year's winner, Nicolas Prost, has stated his intention to retain his title. If he pulls it off, he'll likely receive the trophy at the Stade de France. The series has a high profile finish planned for the French national stadium.

While the Andros car is still in its 800 kg (1764 lb) Evo 2 form, with a 90 Kw (122 horsepower) Siemens motor and Saft lithium batteries, the field has been increased to twelve machines. Exagon Engineering, the builders of the snow-spewing buggies, still seem to have added weight to the adage that racing improves the breed. The company displayed the very sexy, very electric Furtive-eGT at this year's Paris Motor Show. We can only imagine there is some amount of cross-pollination between the two programs. Hit the jump for video of this year's traction-seeking contenders showing how they roll.

[Source: Trophée Andros]

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