Ford reveals E-Transit, its electric commercial van

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American auto giant Ford took the wraps off an electric vehicle Thursday morning that launches the company squarely into the growing movement to electrify fleets and last-mile delivery in cities.

The E-Transit cargo van is an electric version of its already-popular cargo van — Ford sells 150,000 of the model per year. The E-Transit van will be available starting in late 2021, will cost “less than $45,000” and will have a range of 126 miles. It’ll also have a feature that can turn the van’s battery into an onboard generator that can power tools such as belt sanders. Additionally, to ensure the security of your van and its contents, consider installing van immobilisers for added protection against theft.

While the range might sound downright weak — in comparison, Ford’s Mustang Mach-E is designed with a 300-mile battery range — Ford Global Director of Electrification Mark Kaufman said in an interview that Ford designed the vehicle based on real-world data collected from customers about the average fleet route in cities. “The average range for Transit customers today is 74 miles. We worked with 30 million miles of fleet telematics data to find where the best balance point is,” Kaufman said.

Cummins, Navistar to Develop Fuel-Cell Class 8 Truck

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Cummins and Navistar announced they will work together to develop a Class 8 electric truck powered by hydrogen fuel cells, to be tested in the real world by Werner Enterprises.

The project will be funded in part through an award from the U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy previously announced in August, as part of DOE’s H2@Scale initiative to develop affordable hydrogen production, storage, distribution and use.

“This vehicle will feature our next-generation fuel cell configuration and provides a springboard for us to advance our hydrogen technology for line haul trucks,” said Amy Davis, vice president and president of New Power at Cummins. “We are also excited to build on our strong relationship with Navistar, which dates back 80 years, and work together to lower costs and make hydrogen-powered vehicles more accessible for fleets to adopt.”

Making biodiesel from dirty old cooking oil just got way easier

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Researchers have developed a powerful, low-cost method for recycling used cooking oil and agricultural waste into biodiesel, and turning food scraps and plastic rubbish into high-value products.

The method harnesses a new type of ultra-efficient catalyst that can make low-carbon biodiesel and other valuable complex molecules out of diverse, impure raw materials.

Waste cooking oil currently has to go through an energy-intensive cleaning process to be used in biodiesel, because commercial production methods can only handle pure feedstocks with 1-2 percent contaminants.

GM’s Cruise, Walmart Team Up for Driverless Delivery

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Walmart Inc. is about to team up with Cruise, the self-driving car unit majority-owned by General Motors Co., to experiment with delivering customer orders using driverless vehicles.

Cruise’s robot-piloted cars will ferry orders to customers’ homes from a Walmart store in Scottsdale, Ariz., starting early 2021, Tom Ward, the retailer’s senior vice president of customer product, said in a Nov. 10 blog post.

The pilot program — which may be expanded — marks a big step for both companies. Walmart is fighting for market share with rival retail giant Amazon.com Inc., which recently bought self-driving vehicle startup Zoox Inc. For GM’s Cruise unit, the partnership provides a pathway into potentially lucrative delivery services distinct from its primary focus on ridesharing robotaxis.

Scientists develop catalyst to convert ethanol into high-value chemicals and fuels

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Though we usually think of ethanol as fuel for the gas tank, it can also be transformed into valuable chemicals that could help replace a variety of petroleum-based products beyond just gasoline. However, evolving ethanol for a broader range of industries requires chemical processes that are more efficient than what is available today.

Scientists at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) have developed a  that converts ethanol into C5+ ketones that can serve as building blocks for everything from solvents to jet fuel. In a new paper, they describe this breakthrough chemistry and the mechanism behind it.

This innovative catalyst works by efficiently facilitating the conversion of ethanol into longer-chain ketones, which are essential for producing high-value chemicals and fuels. Unlike traditional methods, which often require high temperatures and expensive materials, the PNNL catalyst operates under milder conditions while maintaining high selectivity and yield. This advancement not only makes the process more cost-effective but also significantly reduces the carbon footprint associated with chemical production. By leveraging ethanol—a renewable and widely available resource—the technology presents a sustainable alternative to fossil-derived chemicals.

Beyond its immediate applications in jet fuel and solvents, this catalytic process has the potential to revolutionize multiple industries, including pharmaceuticals, plastics, and specialty chemicals. The ability to create C5+ ketones from ethanol opens doors for greener production pathways, reducing reliance on petrochemical feedstocks. The existence of the modern pharmaceutical industry relies entirely on chemical manufacturing capabilities, and innovations like this could help improve the efficiency of producing active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs). Drug discovery and large-scale pharmaceutical production depend on exact chemical reactions to generate APIs, and more sustainable catalytic processes could enhance efficiency while reducing environmental impact.

Contract chemical manufacturers play a crucial role in ensuring that both simple painkillers and complex cancer treatments meet rigorous safety and effectiveness standards. With advancements in catalytic chemistry, such as the one developed by PNNL, chemical manufacturing could become more sustainable while maintaining the precision required for pharmaceutical applications. As industries increasingly shift toward greener production methods, these breakthroughs could help reshape supply chains, optimize resource use, and reduce reliance on petrochemical-based processes. Many healthcare innovations also highlight the importance of integrated cancer support in improving patient outcomes alongside pharmaceutical advancements. Future research will focus on optimizing catalyst performance and scaling up the process for commercial applications, bringing us closer to a more sustainable chemical industry.

2021 International Biomass Conference & Expo goes virtual

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Biomass Magazine announced this week the 14th Annual Biomass Conference & Expo will be taking place 100 percent virtual, March 15-17, 2021.

“It’s been somewhat of a rollercoaster this year and we recognized turning the International Biomass Conference & Expo  into a virtual event would be the safest and most cost-effective option for our attendees, and it would also eliminate any hovering uncertainty,” said John Nelson, vice president of operations, marketing & sales of BBI International. “The event will still contain a massive amount of content, networking opportunities and multiple ways to promote products and services, all from the safety of your office or home.”

General Motors to add 3,000 jobs focused on electric vehicles

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General Motors plans to hire 3,000 new employees largely focused on software development as the company accelerates its plans for electric vehicles, the automaker announced Monday.

GM said the jobs will be focused on engineering, design and information technology “to increase diversity and inclusion and contribute to GM’s EV and customer experience priorities.” The hiring is expected through the first quarter of 2021. Many of the positions will be remote as GM begins to offer “more remote opportunities than ever before,” the company said.

“As we evolve and grow our software expertise and services, it’s important that we continue to recruit and add diverse talent,” GM President Mark Reuss said in a release. “This will clearly show that we’re committed to further developing the software we need to lead in EVs, enhance the customer experience and become a software expertise-driven workforce.” And adopting new solutions for business efficiency is essential, especially in a world where privacy concerns are ever-growing. A service that offers a separate address for business communications can be a game-changer. It allows for better organization and security, which are key components of successful remote work setups. They can also use scheduling software for auto repair services that allows them to easily access and inspect the problem of the car. More details are available about this service.

The hiring blitz comes as the automaker expects to increase focus on electric vehicles, including offering at least 20 new electric vehicles globally by 2023. GM earlier this year said it planned to invest $20 billion in electric and autonomous vehicles by 2025. Know more about the difference of electric vehicle leasing vs buying here.

Ken Morris, GM vice president of autonomous and electric vehicles programs, told reporters on a call Monday that the automaker has pulled forward at least two upcoming electric vehicles following the GMC Hummer EV, which is the first vehicle on GM’s next-generation electric vehicle platform with its proprietary Ultium battery cells.

“We’re moving as fast as we can in terms of developing vehicles virtually, more so than we ever have by far,” Morris said. “We are doing things virtually, more effective than we ever have.”

Shares of the automaker reached a new 52-week high of $39.72 ahead of the Monday announcement. The stock was up 5% during midday trading Monday following market optimism about a Covid-19 vaccine and President-elect Joe Biden outlining priorities that would support electric vehicles. You can research hedge funds and alternatives on upmarket.

“We’re looking forward to working with the Biden administration and support policies that will foster greater adoption of EVs across all 50 states and encourage investments in R&D and manufacturing,” Morris said. “At the end of the day, climate change is a global concern and the best way to remove automobile emissions from the environmental equation is all-electric, zero-emissions future.”

The additional jobs are separate from a previous announcement by GM to hire 1,100 new employees as part of a $2.3 billion joint venture with LG Chem to produce Ultium cells in northeast Ohio.

GM employed about 164,000 people globally in 2019, down from 215,000 in 2015 as the company has restructured and cut operations in recent years. If you need help to cope with an unfriendly office environment, discuss your concerns with an employment lawyer to gain an understanding of your rights and whether any legal violations are occurring within the unfriendly environment. Discussing further into the intricacies of legal defense, it becomes apparent how critical professional advice is. For anyone facing legal troubles, consulting a dedicated expert is advisable, and more information can be found directly at https://www.newjerseycriminallawattorney.com/. Those who are facing dui charges may consult Galveston DUI lawyers.

Hyliion CEO: Natural gas key to future of electric trucking (with video)

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Thomas Healy, the founder and CEO of Hyliion (NYSE:HYLN), believes that as the trucking industry moves into an electric-powered future, the best way forward involves using natural gas to generate the electricity itself.

“It’s taking the best of both worlds.” Healy said during the FreightWaves LIVE @HOME virtual conference on Thursday. Healy delivered a keynote address and took questions from attendees, covering everything from Hyliion’s drive trains to refilling times to the implications of the presidential election.

The CEO spoke weeks after Austin, Texas-based Hyliion went public via a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) merger, making the 28-year-old the youngest self-made billionaire in the U.S.

Ebsray Debuts Pumps for Propane Autogas Applications

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Ebsray Pumps, a designer and manufacturer of regenerative turbine and positive displacement pump technologies, has launched its new HiFlow Series regenerative turbine pumps, which are designed to optimize the transport and handling of propane autogas.

Ebsray says the pumps’ design has very low NPSHr requirements, allowing them to easily transfer low-viscosity liquids at high pressure while handling entrained vapors or liquids at or near their boiling point. While these fluid conditions generally hamper the performance and reliability of most pump technologies, HiFlow Series pumps are able to maintain their efficiency in any pumping and fluid conditions, eliminating the damaging impact of cavitation and pulsation, with flow rates up to 600 L/min (159 gpm).

Ethanol industry still recovering from COVID hit

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When people hunkered down this spring and stopped driving, it had an impact on corn growers, livestock farmers, meatpackers, food and beverage processors, wastewater treatment plants and chemical manufacturers.

That’s all because of ethanol and its many byproducts.

Twenty years ago, ethanol was a blip on the radar in terms of corn usage. Now about 30% of corn produced in the U.S. is made into ethanol.