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1. FUTURE CHALLENGES FOR ELECTRIC VEHICLES
From failure to the future
What will your children drive 20 years or more from now? According to one analyst, many of
them are likely to take the wheel of an electric car. The primary argument for electric vehicles is
overall efficiency, said Philip Gott, director of automotive consulting for industry analyst Global
Insight, at the firm’s annual Detroit conference. Why? Because electric cars simply consume
less “wells to wheels” energy than alternatives do.
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2. Introduction of battery management and intermediate storage
Another improvement is to decouple the electric motor from the battery through electronic
control, employing ultra-capacitors to buffer large but short power demands and regenerative
braking energy. The development of new cell types combined with intelligent cell management
improved both weak points mentioned above. The cell management involves not only monitoring
the health of the cells but also a redundant cell configuration (one more cell than needed). With
sophisticated switched wiring it is possible to condition one cell while the rest are on duty.
Faster battery recharging
By soaking the matter found in conventional lithium ion batteries in a special solution, lithium
ion batteries were supposedly said to be recharged 100 times faster. This test was however done
with a specially-designed battery with little capacity. Batteries with higher capacity can be
recharged 40 times faster. The research was conducted by Byoungwoo Kang (1).
Why isn’t plug-ins in production?
Automakers cite the high cost of lithium-ion batteries. Ford and Toyota have announced active
interest in plug-ins, but for now they are sticking by their hybrids. DaimlerChrysler is currently
testing a plug-in hybrid version of its Sprinter delivery van. Progress, maybe, but no one's
making production commitments. GM has taken the biggest leap, awarding contracts to battery
makers to produce lithium-ion packs for its Saturn Vue Green Line. The more radically designed
Chevy Volt - which has a gas engine that recharges the batteries, and never powers the wheels -
will have to wait. It needs a 400-pound battery, which GM estimates won't be feasible until 2013
at the earliest.
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3. Conclusion
There are two significant problems. Battery prices need to be shaved at least in half and range
needs to be improved by at least 100%. Then the problem of battery depreciation rolls in –
batteries are unlikely to last much more than eight years, which will destroy the trade in value of
the first electric vehicles. It’s a “wait a minute” time for prognosticators.
All that is not to say that pure EV has a place in close up, urban, and short distance use. But
very few people can justify the investment in another vehicle for only short range. Hybrids could
work, but the emphasis has to go to the series hybrid with less battery and far more combustion
efficiency to the wheels.
Want to learn more about current and future developments in
Electric Vehicles?
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http://bit.ly/ev-articles
References
(1): Source
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Worldwide_International_Battery,_Hybrid_and_Fuel_Cell_Electric_V
ehicle_Symposium_%26_Exhibition. 106. ^ "100 times faster recharging of battery".
Web.mit.edu. 2009-03-11. Retrieved 2010-12-26.
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IQPC GmbH | Friedrichstr. 94 | D-10117 Berlin, Germany
t: +49 (0) 30 2091 3330 | f: +49 (0) 30 2091 3263 | e: eq@iqpc.de | w: www.iqpc.de
Visit IQPC for a portfolio of topic-related events, congresses, seminars and conferences: www.iqpc.de