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By G. David Felt Be for or against EV autos one cannot help but acknowledge that they are here to stay. California has long been one to push the industry in one direction or another. With change often came some interesting observations such as Tesla who has been funded and helped by government grants and yet for being in a state that pushed auto companies to build EV autos they lack a solid growing infrastructure for the Electric Highway in comparison to other states. Electric Highway Map Washington & Oregon Electric Highway Map California While Tesla has done wonders for pushing their own charging stations, what about support for non-Tesla EVs? This is where a quick study of the Electric Highway Map shows that Oregon and Washington State has surpassed California for making much of the state and the major highway usable for electric road trips. The map shows an easy to understand network of charge points for going on an EV road trip. I-5 is essentially the backbone of the EV highway on the west coast with the map showing the various supported state and federal highways with charging locations and type. California, while focused on San Francisco, Los Angeles, and San Diego loves to show off that they have an electric system, much of it is still in a planned stage leaving really only Tesla with a solution of getting around long distance. The focus of the West Coast Green Highway project which is funded by Federal, state, city and business dollars is to give “Range Confidence” to those that choose to purchase an EV auto. This project is an extension of the Federal’s current and long-running EV Project which was funded in August 2009 and covers 9 states with chargers installed in Major cities and Metropolitan areas. The Chevrolet Volt and Nissan LEAF are partners in this long running project. Owners of these autos could apply and those that qualify could get a free residential charger at no cost. As of March 11 2013, the EV Project had met it currently funded goal for residential charging units and is no longer accepting applications. EV Drivers can still sign up and join in the monitoring project of the public charging units to help better understand the use, need, and type of chargers. Click to Enlarge Map via WestCoastGreenHighway.com The layout of charging stations show that most are 20 to 30 miles apart with some being 50 to 60 miles apart which would require one to carefully and efficiently plan their driving. The one item that this map does not show is topography. The Pacific Northwest is a mountainous area that is also home to strong winds of which both can and do affect range of these autos. Fortunately many will find that the West Coast Green Highway site covers all of North America with alternative Fueling station locators. The Electric Highway is a part of a broader effort by the Department of Transportation for Washington, Oregon, and California to expand the use of Natural Gas, Biodiesel, Ethanol, and Hydrogen options along the 1,350 miles of I-5 from the US border with Canada to the US border with Mexico. In a drive for those that wish to help reduce greenhouse gas, clean up the air we breathe and give mother earth a break, the West Coast Green Highway project is a solid step in the right direction supporting many alternative transportation fueling options. View full article
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By G. David Felt Be for or against EV autos one cannot help but acknowledge that they are here to stay. California has long been one to push the industry in one direction or another. With change often came some interesting observations such as Tesla who has been funded and helped by government grants and yet for being in a state that pushed auto companies to build EV autos they lack a solid growing infrastructure for the Electric Highway in comparison to other states. Electric Highway Map Washington & Oregon Electric Highway Map California While Tesla has done wonders for pushing their own charging stations, what about support for non-Tesla EVs? This is where a quick study of the Electric Highway Map shows that Oregon and Washington State has surpassed California for making much of the state and the major highway usable for electric road trips. The map shows an easy to understand network of charge points for going on an EV road trip. I-5 is essentially the backbone of the EV highway on the west coast with the map showing the various supported state and federal highways with charging locations and type. California, while focused on San Francisco, Los Angeles, and San Diego loves to show off that they have an electric system, much of it is still in a planned stage leaving really only Tesla with a solution of getting around long distance. The focus of the West Coast Green Highway project which is funded by Federal, state, city and business dollars is to give “Range Confidence” to those that choose to purchase an EV auto. This project is an extension of the Federal’s current and long-running EV Project which was funded in August 2009 and covers 9 states with chargers installed in Major cities and Metropolitan areas. The Chevrolet Volt and Nissan LEAF are partners in this long running project. Owners of these autos could apply and those that qualify could get a free residential charger at no cost. As of March 11 2013, the EV Project had met it currently funded goal for residential charging units and is no longer accepting applications. EV Drivers can still sign up and join in the monitoring project of the public charging units to help better understand the use, need, and type of chargers. Click to Enlarge Map via WestCoastGreenHighway.com The layout of charging stations show that most are 20 to 30 miles apart with some being 50 to 60 miles apart which would require one to carefully and efficiently plan their driving. The one item that this map does not show is topography. The Pacific Northwest is a mountainous area that is also home to strong winds of which both can and do affect range of these autos. Fortunately many will find that the West Coast Green Highway site covers all of North America with alternative Fueling station locators. The Electric Highway is a part of a broader effort by the Department of Transportation for Washington, Oregon, and California to expand the use of Natural Gas, Biodiesel, Ethanol, and Hydrogen options along the 1,350 miles of I-5 from the US border with Canada to the US border with Mexico. In a drive for those that wish to help reduce greenhouse gas, clean up the air we breathe and give mother earth a break, the West Coast Green Highway project is a solid step in the right direction supporting many alternative transportation fueling options. -
We have all heard the pluses and minuses of using of using corn to create automotive fuel, but what if using corn as a basis for fuel was the right idea and the issue was that we went about it the wrong way? At Virginia Tech, a team of researchers have discovered a new way to to make hydrogen fuel from the parts of the corn plant not used for food; the stalks, cobs, and husks. By using these waste parts the researchers have removed one of the large objections to corn fuel; using food as a fuel source. Hydrogen fuel from plant sources is not new. However the Virginia Tech team has found a different method that breaks down two most common plant sugars, xylose and glycose, simultaneously. By working on both sugars simultaneously, the process releases hydrogen 10 times faster than than existing photo based hydrogen production systems. Most current hydrogen production facilities use natural gas, a fossil fuel, as a source. The process uses a mixture of waste bio-mass combined with a solution of enzymes that convert plant sugar into hydrogen and carbon dioxide. The enzymes were created using genetically engineered bacteria. How much will it cost? That the researchers cannot answer yet. However, with the increased reaction speed and increased production volume, they predict that a production facility be no larger than a gas station, thus reducing capital costs. This also means that production could be widely distributed, reducing the need to transport the fuel. According to the U.S. Dept. of Energy, there are only 13 publicly available hydrogen fueling stations in the entire U.S. By addressing the issues of production rate, distribution, and fuel source, these new methods could be the solution to a primary problem facing hydrogen cars. The selection of hydrogen powered cars is fairly limited, with just Honda, Hyundai, Toyota, and Mercedes-Benz producing vehicles in very limited numbers. Related: Toyota's Hydrogen Fuel Cell Vehicle has a Name and Price Source: Phys.org View full article -
Hydrogen breakthrough may be new path for hydrogen powered cars
Drew Dowdell posted an article in Alternative Fuels
We have all heard the pluses and minuses of using of using corn to create automotive fuel, but what if using corn as a basis for fuel was the right idea and the issue was that we went about it the wrong way? At Virginia Tech, a team of researchers have discovered a new way to to make hydrogen fuel from the parts of the corn plant not used for food; the stalks, cobs, and husks. By using these waste parts the researchers have removed one of the large objections to corn fuel; using food as a fuel source. Hydrogen fuel from plant sources is not new. However the Virginia Tech team has found a different method that breaks down two most common plant sugars, xylose and glycose, simultaneously. By working on both sugars simultaneously, the process releases hydrogen 10 times faster than than existing photo based hydrogen production systems. Most current hydrogen production facilities use natural gas, a fossil fuel, as a source. The process uses a mixture of waste bio-mass combined with a solution of enzymes that convert plant sugar into hydrogen and carbon dioxide. The enzymes were created using genetically engineered bacteria. How much will it cost? That the researchers cannot answer yet. However, with the increased reaction speed and increased production volume, they predict that a production facility be no larger than a gas station, thus reducing capital costs. This also means that production could be widely distributed, reducing the need to transport the fuel. According to the U.S. Dept. of Energy, there are only 13 publicly available hydrogen fueling stations in the entire U.S. By addressing the issues of production rate, distribution, and fuel source, these new methods could be the solution to a primary problem facing hydrogen cars. The selection of hydrogen powered cars is fairly limited, with just Honda, Hyundai, Toyota, and Mercedes-Benz producing vehicles in very limited numbers. Related: Toyota's Hydrogen Fuel Cell Vehicle has a Name and Price Source: Phys.org -
Increasing numbers of US customers are turning to alternative fuel vehicles, according to the latest research from Mintel, which shows that sales are up 73%, with nearly 440,000 hybrid, plug-in hybrid, and electrics sold thus far this year. The rapid sales growth in hybrid and electric vehicles makes the segment the fastest growing in the US for 2012, supplanting the still fast growing, compact car vehicle segment. http://www.itsinternational.com/sections/general/news/us-drivers-turning-to-alternative-fuel-vehicles-says-research/?goback=.gde_2195876_member_197951202 Read the full but short article and sound off, do you agree with what is stated or not and why? -
Toyota declared in September that it’s watering down its battery electric vehicle (BEV) plans by cutting back the production of the small Toyota eQ (known as the Scion iQ stateside). You will find some interesting information as Toyota moves forward with Fuel Cell's rather than pure electric auto's. Sales of Plug in Vehicles, North America (2011 & 2012) Type - 2011 ------ 2012 (YTD)--(Since 1/1/2011) Cumulative HEV----268,807---322,516--------591,323 PHEV--8,272----- 25,944----------34,216 BEV----9,966----- 6,802-----------16,768 Source: Pike Research Most BEVs skirt the edge of a 100-mile range, stretching up to the $100,000 Model S, from Tesla, which can go nearly 300 miles on a single charge. EV advocates and battery manufacturers have long insisted that a battery breakthrough on the horizon will triple battery ranges while drastically reducing battery costs. Regardless of how far the BEV can go on a full battery, however, it still takes hours to recharge instead of the minutes it takes to refill a conventional gas vehicle. Toyota’s hydrogen vehicles can already achieve ranges and refill times comparable to conventional gas vehicles. For more info go to: http://fuelcellswork...ember_181315269
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Toyota declared in September that it’s watering down its battery electric vehicle (BEV) plans by cutting back the production of the small Toyota eQ (known as the Scion iQ stateside). You will find some interesting information as Toyota moves forward with Fuel Cell's rather than pure electric auto's. Sales of Plug in Vehicles, North America (2011 & 2012) Type - 2011 ------ 2012 (YTD)--(Since 1/1/2011) Cumulative HEV----268,807---322,516--------591,323 PHEV--8,272----- 25,944----------34,216 BEV----9,966----- 6,802-----------16,768 Source: Pike Research Most BEVs skirt the edge of a 100-mile range, stretching up to the $100,000 Model S, from Tesla, which can go nearly 300 miles on a single charge. EV advocates and battery manufacturers have long insisted that a battery breakthrough on the horizon will triple battery ranges while drastically reducing battery costs. Regardless of how far the BEV can go on a full battery, however, it still takes hours to recharge instead of the minutes it takes to refill a conventional gas vehicle. Toyota’s hydrogen vehicles can already achieve ranges and refill times comparable to conventional gas vehicles. For more info go to: http://fuelcellswork...ember_181315269 View full article
