In 1980, Rachid Yazami, a professor of chemistry at the French National Center of Scientific Research in Grenoble, France, pioneered the lithium-graphite anode technology used today in commercial lithium-ion batteries, which is why Yazami is often described as the person who “invented” the lithium-ion battery.

Nearly three decades later in 2007, while visiting as a professor of chemistry at the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, Yazami and Robert Grubbs, also a chemistry professor at the Caltech and the recipient of the 2005 Nobel Laureate for Chemistry, were rumored to have made a major breakthrough in carbon-fluoride technology that would revolutionize the field of energy storage. This breakthrough was considered so significant that it would potentially rival the development of “jet propulsion” as the most important discovery made at CalTech.

[Source & Read More: Forbes]

Hong Kong had its worst-ever year in terms of roadside pollution in 2010, according to government data. It also hosts the world’s highest traffic density, says the Clear the Air, a local antipollution organization. But despite rising concern over roadside pollution levels and a government campaign to get consumers and companies to adopt zero-emissions vehicles, electric cars aren’t yet creating much spark.

Mitsubishi, EuAuto and Tesla each offer an electric car to Hong Kong consumers to replace gasoline-powered ones, but so far, there have been few takers. As of Dec. 31, just 70 electric cars were registered in Hong Kong. Twenty-two of those are part of the government fleet and include electric golf cart-like vehicles. The other about 600,000 automobiles emit hazardous pollutants.

The government’s Environmental Protection Department says transport pollution accounts for 82% of Hong Kong’s carbon monoxide emissions. Furthermore, the University of Hong Kong released a Jan. 19 study linking low visibility due to air pollution to risk of mortality.

Given Hong Kong’s escalating pollution problem, why aren’t people buying zero-emissions cars?

[Source & Read More: The Wall Street Journal]

Electric vehicle makers and car sharing services both face the challenge of changing popular thinking about personal mobility.

Increasingly, they’re tackling this challenge as a team, with car sharing providers including Connect by Hertz and City CarShare slated to introduce some of the earliest Nissan LEAF, Coda Electric Sedan, Chevy Volt, Mitsubishi i-MiEV and Smart ED electric models into their fleets.

In Paris, an all-electric car sharing program called Autolib is slated to kick off next fall, with support from the city government. But can EV technology fully integrate into the car sharing models that have been built upon gas powered vehicles in the U.S.? Or do car sharing programs with EVs only serve as a means for extended test drives?

City CarShare, a nonprofit car sharing organization based in San Francisco, Calif., recently secured a $1.7 million grant from the regional Metropolitan Transportation Committee to embark on a pilot project that could help answer some of these questions. More than 30 “electric-based vehicles” will be made available to City CarShare members as part of this project over the next two years, and charging infrastructure installed for the vehicles will be available for public use.

City CarShare already has two plug-in hybrid vehicles in its fleet (one in San Francisco and one in Berkeley). “These cars have been shared by our members for a year without incident,” said Anita Daley, City CarShare’s membership development and outreach director, in an interview with PluginCars.com. “Thanks to these two vehicles, we know that from an operational perspective, our members will unplug and plug in our e-vehicles before and after their trips.”

[Source & Read More: Plugin Cars]

Shares of lithium-ion battery maker Ener1 Inc. soared Tuesday after the company announced it is teaming up with Wanxiang Electric Vehicle Group Ltd. to manufacture batteries for the Chinese market.

The New York-based company’s stock rose 96 cents, or 26 percent, to $4.64 in afternoon trading, earlier rising to a 52-week high of $5.90. The deal comes as a Chinese trade mission signs $600 million in deals with U.S. companies ahead of President Hu Jintao’s visit to Washington this week.

The companies will manufacture Li-on cells and battery packs for electric vehicles — about 40,000 annually by 2014, if the companies ramp up manufacturing according to schedule. Under the agreement, Wanxiang will hold a 60 percent stake in the venture.

Wanxiang, a division of the Chinese conglomerate Wanxiang Group Corp., will offer its 553,000 square-foot factory in its home city of Hangzhou, China for the use of manufacturing the batteries. It will also take advantage of existing relationships it has with customers such as State Grid, SAIC Motor, Dongfeng Motor, Guangzhou Auto and Yutong.

[Source & Read More: Bloomberg]