AVweb Talks to Dr. Seeley About EAS VI

Dean Sigler Electric Powerplants, GFC, Sustainable Aviation Leave a Comment

The sixth annual Electric Electric Aircraft Symposium, CAFE’s premier event, got a lot of press attention this year, including lead story status from AOPA and acknowledgement from Engadget and AVweb.  We’ll start with the one that’s most fun to listen to – a podcast from AVweb. Mary Grady of AVweb interviewed Dr. Brien Seeley, President of the CAFE Foundation, about the just completed Electric Aircraft Symposium at Santa Rosa, California, which drew participants from at least eight countries and 10 multi-national corporations.  With Federal Aviation Administration representation and a former Environmental Protection Agency head signed up to attend, the Symposium drew some high-level attention this year. Dr. Seeley was enthusiastic about the rapidly maturing technology and industry, with Tom Gunnarson from the FAA and Ronald Gremban of ForSites Corporation working toward standards and practices for electric aircraft.  When asked about the thought that FAA rules for small electric aircraft might be five to 10 years out, Dr. Seeley noted the …

Life Cycle Analysis and a Letter Grade

Dean Sigler Electric Powerplants Leave a Comment

Researchers at the Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials Testing and Research (EMPA) have published a study in the current edition of the journal, Environmental Science & Technology, “Contribution of Li-Ion Batteries to the Environmental Impact of Electric Vehicles.”  The paper is available in its entirety online. It’s abstract notes that, “Little is known about the environmental impacts of the production, use and disposal of the lithium ion (Li-ion) battery. This makes it difficult to compare the environmental impacts of BEVs with those of internal combustion engine cars (ICEVs). Consequently, a detailed lifecycle inventory of a Li-ion battery and a rough LCA (Life Cycle Analysis) of BEV (Battery Electric Vehicle) based mobility were compiled.”  This blog has an earlier introduction to the concept of Life Cycle Analysis which may prove helpful. In their analysis, the team of Dominic A. Notter, Marcel Gauch, Rolf Widmer, Patrick Wäger, Anna Stamp, Rainer Zah and Hans-Jörg Althaus concludes the environmental costs of lithium batteries is …