Quote:
Originally Posted by nogoodname007
the designs are all good in applications, but the actual batteries to hold the charges have not been developed to meet the needs
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Wrong... Actually, we have 3 BIG technologies right now that would actually work.
A) Lithium Polymer - VERY good batteries for electric cars. They hold a charge longer with a very high energy density. However, they're expensive: about $1 for every watt hour they hold. An efficient electric car will use approx. 150-180 watt hours of electricity to travel 1 mile. So if you do the math, a battery pack good for 300 miles would cost (at 150wh/mi) $45,000. Steep price to pay for batteries.
B) Lithium Sulfur - Similar to the Lithium Polymer batteries, except they hold an additional 33-50% more energy per liter than the Li-Po batteries. Of course, the con for these are that they have a significantly worse life span as they have nearly 33-50% less cycles they can be charged before the energy density drops below 80% DOD. In the end, it almost evens out between the Li-Po and the Li-Su batteries, but the cost for the Li-Su is a bit higher as they're not in full production yet.
and finally...
C) Ultra Capacitors - Developed by MIT, a Ultra Capacitor is similar to a super capacitor in that it stores energy that can be spent and recharged at extremely fast rates without degrading the performance or capacity of the unit. However, up until recently the capacitors were only used in racing applications when not combine with batteries or other primary power source due to the fact that they didn't hold enough energy. However, the Ultra capacitor uses Nano-tube technology to hold energy at a density similar to a lithium-ion battery (which is just slightly less than a lithium polymer battery). It's unclear when that battery will hit the market, but either way, it is developed and EASY to manufacture.
All that being said, I know quite a bit about electric cars (as they're my passion) but we're a few years from full electric vehicles. Not because of cost or readily available components, but because the manufacturers do not want to build an power/drive train that will NOT break. A/C electric motors do not break easily and will out-last the life of the car... We're talking 700,000+ miles before needing any parts to be replaced.
If anyone's interested, I wrote an article that's slightly out-dated now, but still plenty of good info in it:
SoCal Muscle Car Club
I would LOVE to turn my 300zx into an electric car. I'd want to build up the tranny and use a Siemens motor (can't recall the model) with 320Lbs of tq and 200HP.
That thing would MOVE!!! Originally I planned to use Kokam 40AH batteries (to save weight) but the cost of 210 40AH batteries was close to 40K. So I decided... I'll wait! LOL