Ionic Mineral Technologies, a US-based producer of nano-silicon battery anode technology, has announced the grand opening of its new production facility, technical center and headquarters in Provo, Utah. Ionic MT says the new facility will enable it to rapidly expand production of its Ionisil high-purity nano-silicon powder. Ionic says that, when incorporated as a 15%… Read more…

Texas-based investment firm Ara Partners has acquired magnetic materials manufacturer Vacuumschmelze (VAC) from asset management firm Apollo. No transaction terms were disclosed. Germany-based VAC is the largest Western manufacturer of sintered NdFeB EV-grade permanent magnets, and has manufacturing facilities in Slovakia, Finland, China and Malaysia. VAC signed a long-term deal with GM in January 2023… Read more…

NOVONIX, a battery materials and technology company, and SandboxAQ, an enterprise software-as-a-service (SaaS) company that combines artificial intelligence (AI) with quantum analysis (AQ), will collaborate to predict the lifespan of lithium-ion batteries. The companies will combine SandboxAQ’s AI-driven chemical simulation software and NOVONIX’s Ultra-High Precision Coulometry (UHPC) technology and battery cell prototyping and testing capabilities… Read more…

The California Energy Commission (CEC) has announced a competitive solicitation for up to $40,500,000 in grant funds for DC fast EV charging infrastructure projects. Interested parties can submit applications for grants before the deadline of January 26, 2024. (The CEC’s application page contains a lengthy list of documents explaining how to apply.) The California Department… Read more…

Leoni, a supplier of wiring systems, has optimized its EV charging cables to be easier to use and consume less resources. Leoni has introduced new AC charging cables using LEONI EcoSense Nxt and LEONI EcoSense technologies. The LEONI EcoSense Nxt+ product line has been power-optimized. The cables are designed to carry the highest available current… Read more…

While some legacy automakers whine that they can’t make a profit on EVs, and others cling to 20th-century tech such as hybrids and hydrogen, Hyundai is getting on with the business of selling EVs—and making a tidy profit, thank you. Hyundai Motor, which includes the Hyundai, Kia and Genesis brands, recently posted third-quarter financial results…. Read more…

Luxembourg-based nanotechnology manufacturer OCSiAl has received a construction permit for a nanotube manufacturing plant near Belgrade, Serbia. The 120-ton-per-year nanotube synthesis factory will open in 2024 and ramp up production through 2025. The facility will synthesize nanotubes and make nanotube suspensions for lithium-ion battery makers in Europe, the US and Asia, improving the performance of… Read more…

South Korea-based chemical company LG Chem and China’s Huayou Group have partnered to build a lithium-iron-phosphate (LFP) cathode materials plant. LG Chem is working to vertically integrate its cathode supply chain. The LG Chem-Huayou Group partnership will develop four plants: an LFP cathode material facility; a lithium conversion plant, also in Morocco; a high-pressure acid… Read more…

Enphase Energy, a supplier of microinverter-based solar and battery systems, has launched its new Enphase IQ EV Charger in the US and Canada. The IQ is designed to seamlessly integrate into Enphase’s solar and battery system to help homeowners maximize savings by charging their EVs directly from solar photovoltaic systems. The Enphase IQ is WiFi-enabled… Read more…

Sponsored by 3D Systems. For decades, photopolymer additive manufacturing (AM) has been leveraged to accelerate the development of innovative automotive components and systems. However, these parts were largely used for non-functional form and fit evaluations, or as patterns to create parts using a traditional molding or casting approach. This narrow use of the technology was… Read more…

EV OEM Phoenix Motorcars, in collaboration with Vehicle-to-Everything (V2X) pioneer Fermata Energy, has integrated Vehicle-to-Grid (V2G) capabilities into its medium-duty EVs. All Phoenix electric school buses, shuttle buses and trucks, from the first-generation vehicles delivered in 2014 to the company’s current-generation vehicles, can now be equipped with V2G capability, enabling fleets to send excess energy… Read more…

Epsilon Advanced Materials (EAM), an Indian battery materials company and a subsidiary of Epsilon Carbon, plans to build a $650-million graphite anode manufacturing facility in Brunswick County, North Carolina. The company plans to break ground in 2024 and begin manufacturing in 2026, reaching full capacity by 2031. EAM is already in discussions with local raw… Read more…

ABM, a provider of facility services, infrastructure solutions and parking management, has extensive experience deploying charging stations—it has installed over 30,000 chargers to date. Now the company has rolled out its own proprietary EV charging network. ABM’s EV Charging Network, which is powered by its cloud-based ABM EV OS software in collaboration with Noodoe, will… Read more…

Sponsored by Dupont. DuPont Supports You from Concept to Commercialization You have many choices when it comes to suppliers and material selection when considering electric vehicle battery pack assembly and thermal management. DuPont sets itself apart by offering a wide portfolio of solutions along with R&D, application development expertise, in-house capabilities and technical service that… Read more…

German automotive supplier Continental has introduced a new urban traffic tire concept for improved energy efficiency, which has the potential to increase EV driving ranges. Conti CityPlus boosts tire energy efficiency by 10% and passenger car range by 3%, corresponding to EV savings of 0.6 kWh per 100 km, the company said. Conti CityPlus uses… Read more…

Yellow school bus maker Blue Bird has delivered its 1,500th electric school bus. Modesto City Schools in California purchased the historic EV through Blue Bird’s authorized school bus dealer A-Z Bus Sales. Modesto’s milestone unit is one of 1,500 Blue Bird electric school buses now serving school districts across 41 US states. The company says… Read more…

Freudenberg Sealing Technologies has added a new battery testing laboratory to its R&D labs at its North American headquarters in Plymouth, Michigan. The company says the multi-million-dollar investment will facilitate in-house battery and battery component testing, including simulated thermal runaway, and will increase the company’s functional knowledge and product development capabilities in the field of… Read more…

Does bp’s purchase of $100 million worth of Tesla EV chargers signal that the British oil giant is preparing for a future beyond petroleum? Has it decided to join ‘em instead of trying to beat ‘em? Well, not just yet. The company has said it plans to invest “up to $1 billion in EV charging… Read more…

Since the advent of modern EVs, the mantra has been “cell/module/pack.” More recently, some battery makers have started removing modules from the equation with cell-to-pack architectures. Now Massachusetts-based battery developer 24M Technologies wants to eliminate the whole hierarchy. The company calls its Electrode-to-Pack system, which it introduced at the recent Japan Mobility Show, “a streamlined… Read more…

Sponsored by Intertek. Identifying the root cause of a problem Failure analysis is the process of collecting and analyzing data to identify the root cause of a failure. The findings from a failure analysis are often used to determine corrective actions such as preventing the failure of similar products, improving the design of future products… Read more…