What's old is new- hybrid car
I hadn't thought about this, but the article below makes a good point. Namely that these hybrid cars we're seeing really are re-inventing the wheel. Still, whether direct drive or as a powersource to charge batteries- the cost of the car has to be low enough for me to buy it and/or the fuel savings enough to pay for the increased cost...
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,330456,00.html
GM Hybrid Car Uses Submarine Power System
Wednesday, February 13, 2008
By Lamont Wood
A new concept car from General Motors could get 53 mpg on a propulsion system pioneered in submarines about a hundred years ago.
Rechargeable batteries power an electric motor that turns the wheels. There's also an engine, which can be used to charge the batteries.
The setup worked for the U.S. Navy during the Wilson Administration, so it just might also shine on 21st Century American highways.
At least that's what GM apparently hopes, as it is reportedly intends to have the car in production by 2010 as an addition to the Chevy lineup.
"They have taken the way that the automobile industry thinks about hybrid cars, and turned it on its ear," said Michelle Krebs, editor at Edmunds AutoObserver.com. "If you don't drive far, you may never need gasoline. No other major car maker had done this."
Most hybrid cars, she noted, retain a connection between the engine and the wheels, and use the electric motor to supplement the gasoline engine.
The keel of the Volt (built on a four-door Chevy Cobalt chassis) contains 16 kilowatt-hours' worth of lithium-ion batteries, which power a 120-kilowatt motor, enough to accelerate the car from zero to 60 in 8.5 seconds, according to GM's specs.
Leaving a 50 percent reserve, eight kilowatt-hours should get you 40 miles of road travel, which is enough for many commutes.
Plugging into a 110-volt outlet will recharge it in about six hours, assuming you need a full recharge of 8 kilowatt-hours.
Nationally, the average price for electricity is 10.94 cents per kilowatt hour, so "refueling" would cost 87.5 cents.
If you need to go more than 40 miles, the Volt has a small (1.3-liter, 3-cylinder) engine that cuts in, powering a generator that recharges the battery while you are driving.
With a charged battery and a full tank with 12 gallons of gas, you are supposed to be able to go 640 miles. That's 53 miles per gallon.
Run silent, run deep
Diesel-electric submarines, such as were used in World Wars I and II, used similar arrangements, albeit it with diesel rather than gas engines.
[Diesel train engines run in a similar fashion - the diesel motor powers an electrical generator, which in turn drives the train, but batteries are rarely involved.]
The engines could be used to charge the batteries while on the surface, and battery-powered motors ran the submarine while submerged.
But thanks to its crew of several dozen specialists, the submarines had more power options. For instance, they could run off the engines alone or charge the batteries while standing still.
The submarines could not, however, be recharged through a wall receptacle, like the Volt.
The Volt was introduced last year as a concept car.
"An auto company usually brings out a concept car prior to the decision to build it," said GM spokesperson Carolyn Normandin. "While we have not announced production, we have put together contracts to partner with the firms that make the batteries. That shows we are interested in advancing it - there is a lot of passion behind it, since it is an exciting idea."
Krebs said GM still has technical problems it needs to solve before launching the Volt, such as heat dissipation from the batteries.
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,330456,00.html
GM Hybrid Car Uses Submarine Power System
Wednesday, February 13, 2008
By Lamont Wood
A new concept car from General Motors could get 53 mpg on a propulsion system pioneered in submarines about a hundred years ago.
Rechargeable batteries power an electric motor that turns the wheels. There's also an engine, which can be used to charge the batteries.
The setup worked for the U.S. Navy during the Wilson Administration, so it just might also shine on 21st Century American highways.
At least that's what GM apparently hopes, as it is reportedly intends to have the car in production by 2010 as an addition to the Chevy lineup.
"They have taken the way that the automobile industry thinks about hybrid cars, and turned it on its ear," said Michelle Krebs, editor at Edmunds AutoObserver.com. "If you don't drive far, you may never need gasoline. No other major car maker had done this."
Most hybrid cars, she noted, retain a connection between the engine and the wheels, and use the electric motor to supplement the gasoline engine.
The keel of the Volt (built on a four-door Chevy Cobalt chassis) contains 16 kilowatt-hours' worth of lithium-ion batteries, which power a 120-kilowatt motor, enough to accelerate the car from zero to 60 in 8.5 seconds, according to GM's specs.
Leaving a 50 percent reserve, eight kilowatt-hours should get you 40 miles of road travel, which is enough for many commutes.
Plugging into a 110-volt outlet will recharge it in about six hours, assuming you need a full recharge of 8 kilowatt-hours.
Nationally, the average price for electricity is 10.94 cents per kilowatt hour, so "refueling" would cost 87.5 cents.
If you need to go more than 40 miles, the Volt has a small (1.3-liter, 3-cylinder) engine that cuts in, powering a generator that recharges the battery while you are driving.
With a charged battery and a full tank with 12 gallons of gas, you are supposed to be able to go 640 miles. That's 53 miles per gallon.
Run silent, run deep
Diesel-electric submarines, such as were used in World Wars I and II, used similar arrangements, albeit it with diesel rather than gas engines.
[Diesel train engines run in a similar fashion - the diesel motor powers an electrical generator, which in turn drives the train, but batteries are rarely involved.]
The engines could be used to charge the batteries while on the surface, and battery-powered motors ran the submarine while submerged.
But thanks to its crew of several dozen specialists, the submarines had more power options. For instance, they could run off the engines alone or charge the batteries while standing still.
The submarines could not, however, be recharged through a wall receptacle, like the Volt.
The Volt was introduced last year as a concept car.
"An auto company usually brings out a concept car prior to the decision to build it," said GM spokesperson Carolyn Normandin. "While we have not announced production, we have put together contracts to partner with the firms that make the batteries. That shows we are interested in advancing it - there is a lot of passion behind it, since it is an exciting idea."
Krebs said GM still has technical problems it needs to solve before launching the Volt, such as heat dissipation from the batteries.
0
-
Yep, amazing how a lot of this "new" stuff is not really new. Remember in the late '90s to early '00s when all the automobile engines came out with a coil for each cylinder? Well that's just how a Model T Ford was fired, and they quit making them in 1927. 0 -
That would be a GM that I would drive. 0 -
Now if they really took a lesson from the subs and used a small Turbo Diesel Engine....
Can you say 75 to 100 MPG...
I have been saying that they needed to do this since the EV-1 came out years ago.0 -
Just like a "Lokomotive ". Traction-motor and a Charging-Engine. 0 -
What they don't talk about is the increase in your electric bill from charging your electric car every night. That electricity happens to be produced by burning fossil fuels, and your back to where you started only your wallets a little lighter. 0 -
Just wait until you have to replace the batteries. I have a Charger electric bicycle & the last batteries I bought cost almost $100.
I understand that the price of new ones will be much more now.0
Please sign in to leave a comment.
Comments
6 comments