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Food trucks are switching out dirty gas generators with this zero-emissions option

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Food trucks in the US are huge business, and huge polluters with noisy generators spewing noxious fumes into the air, making that artisan taco a little less palatable. But this Seattle startup, Joule Case, is building a unique business by supplying modular battery systems to food trucks eager to ditch the gas generators for a clean, quiet electric alternative. 

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A Louisiana graphite processing plant that supplies Tesla to get a $107M DOE loan

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The US Department of Energy’s (DOE) Loan Programs Office has announced a conditional commitment to lend up to $107 million to Syrah Technologies for its Syrah Vidalia Facility in Vidalia, Louisiana. The facility produces a finished natural graphite-based active anode material (AAM), a critical material used in lithium-ion batteries. 

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Here’s what the future of battery recycling is going to look like for EV owners

GM Microvast

Big-battery manufacturing is ramping up to power EVs, but what will we do with the batteries when they’re dead? There’s a lot of money going into battery recycling companies, but equally important is how those companies actually procure the batteries in order to recycle them. Electrek spoke with Leo Raudys, the CEO of Call2Recycle, about how the Atlanta-based company closes the loop between producers, consumers, and recyclers and makes it easier to get dead e-mobility batteries into recyclers’ hands. 

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StoreDot says that by 2024, its battery cells will achieve 100 miles of range after just five minutes of charging

StoreDot

StoreDot, an Israel-based electric vehicle battery startup, says it will deliver battery cells that will be able to achieve a charge of 100 miles of range in just five minutes. The company says that those battery cells will be ready for mass production in 2024 and that it will be able to manufacture cells that can achieve 100 miles of range in just three minutes by 2028.

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StoreDot, which makes ultra-fast, Tesla-like 4680 battery cells, develops tech to extend batteries’ first and second life

StoreDot

StoreDot, an Israel-based electric vehicle extreme fast charging (XFC) battery startup, today announced that it has advanced technology that extends the life span of batteries, making them highly effective not only during the vehicle life span, but also for second-life applications. 

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Here’s what the US needs to do to meet snowballing battery demand

GM Microvast

Current US battery production falls woefully short in the face of rapidly growing demand for electric vehicle and storage batteries.

The US has only a small number of domestic, large battery manufacturing factories, including Tesla’s Gigafactory that operates in partnership with Japan’s Panasonic. And just last week, KORE Power announced it will build the first lithium-ion battery factory wholly owned by a US company, in Arizona.

Both innovation and domestic battery production needs to scale quickly and efficiently, and the battery skills gap, among other things, need to be tackled in order to do that. Electrek spoke with Dr. Greg Less, technical director at the University of Michigan Battery Lab, about what the US needs to do to meet that demand.

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CATL introduces first-gen sodium-ion battery and AB lithium-sodium pack

sodium-ion battery

During its “Tech Zone” online launch event, global battery maker CATL introduced its first-generation sodium-ion battery, as well as an AB solution that integrates both sodium-ion and lithium-ion cells into one pack. While this first generation of sodium-ion cells is not here to overtake traditional lithium-ion batteries, they do present a number of benefits for charging, maintaining energy, and helping to promote cleaner energy.

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EGEB: Glitches prevent astronauts from deploying solar array at ISS

In today’s Electrek Green Energy Brief (EGEB):

  • Technical delays kept ISS astronauts from fully installing a new pair of solar arrays.
  • Enevate says its next-gen battery tech provides lower carbon footprint during EV manufacturing.
  • UnderstandSolar is a free service that links you to top-rated solar installers in your region for personalized solar estimates. Tesla now offers price matching, so it’s important to shop for the best quotes. Click here to learn more and get your quotes. — *ad.
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4 steps the US is taking right now to boost battery manufacturing

Li-ion battery recycling

The Biden administration is keen to boost battery manufacturing on home soil as soon as possible. But in case you didn’t notice, the Democrats and Republicans are at loggerheads in Congress on Biden’s huge infrastructure plan. So here are four steps the Department of Energy is going to take right now to boost EV and clean energy storage battery production in the US.

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EGEB: 100 homes in Vermont to get free Gen 2 Span Smart Panel in pilot program

In today’s Electrek Green Energy Brief (EGEB):

  • Vermont’s Green Mountain Power is the first US utility to offer the Span Smart Panel in a pilot program.
  • Chicago-based Energize Ventures leads its first investment in the battery sector.
  • UnderstandSolar is a free service that links you to top-rated solar installers in your region for personalized solar estimates. Tesla now offers price matching, so it’s important to shop for the best quotes. Click here to learn more and get your quotes. — *ad.
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EGEB: Long Island Rail Road tests US’s first battery-powered trains

In today’s Electrek Green Energy Brief (EGEB):

  • The Long Island Rail Road will analyze its trains to see whether they can run on batteries alone.
  • Why US homeowners install – or don’t install – solar panels.
  • UnderstandSolar is a free service that links you to top-rated solar installers in your region for personalized solar estimates. Tesla now offers price matching, so it’s important to shop for the best quotes. Click here to learn more and get your quotes. — *ad.
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This breakthrough may revolutionize lithium-sulfur batteries

lithium-sulfur batteries

Lithium-sulfur (Li-S) batteries, given their light weight and theoretical high capacities, are a promising alternative to conventional lithium-ion (Li-ion) batteries for large-scale energy storage systems and electric vehicles. But Li-S batteries currently suffer from poor longevity.

Now, scientists from the Gwangju Institute of Science and Technology (GIST) in Korea have discovered a new catalyst material’s ability to significantly improve lithium-sulfur battery life, giving them great commercial potential.

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