Recent Comments:
Conspiracy? Stan Meyer and the Mysterious, Elusive Electrolyzer {Autoblog Green}
May 11th 2008 2:09AM Eric: A Van DeGraaf generator produces a very high static voltage, but very low amperage. Connected to electrodes in water, the voltage would rise until it reached the ionization level of water, at which point electrolysis would take place - but due to the very low amperage, the rate of electrolysis would also be low.
Striking an arc in water is unlikely, as a Van DeGraaf generator doesn't charge up fast enough - again, amperage is too low. Striking an arc across a separating membrane would likely burn a hole in it, defeating the purpose of having the membrane. There are methods to strike electric arcs in water - it is used in EDM machining - but that results in a lot of heat and little electrolysis. That's a step backwards, if you want Hydrogen.
"Resonant frequency" is irrelevant, as Van DeGraaf generators are DC only, and are not a good source for pulsed DC either. Besides, providing current at any of the resonant frequencies of water would not improve efficiency, and might in some cases reduce efficiency!
Affordable homebrew kit to produce your own ethanol at home {Autoblog Green}
May 10th 2008 4:04AM 10 gallons of sugar to make 1 gallon of fuel? Considering the high cost of sugar, that makes no economic sense, especially when you add the $10K cost to the equations.
Another problem is what to do with all the surplus brewers yeast it produces. Unless you can use it as livestock feed, disposal is a major problem.
Judging the Tesla Roadster and Chevy Volt by different standards {Autoblog Green}
May 10th 2008 3:51AM Quote from Jimmy: "The Tesla will likely loose much of it's appeal when one burns up."
Oh, you mean like the loss of appeal that will happen when a gasser burns up? Automotive gas fires have already happened to thousands of cars, I've seen two cases in person. So, when will this "loosing appeal" kick in?
The laptop fire incidences aren't really relevant. The laptop makers learned the hard way that it isn't a good idea to put LiIon batteries next to a hot CPU in a cramped case with inadequate cooling! Newer designs took precautions, so even with millions of laptops, LiIon fires are now rare. Tesla Motors knew of the problem, and took both active and passive precautions to prevent thermal runaway, and to prevent the fire from spreading even if a cell did ignite.
Another day, another award for the Prius, Green Engine of the Year {Autoblog Green}
May 10th 2008 3:23AM Nugent: That is a cutaway model. It shows how it is put together, but the real thing doesn't show the internal parts!
Whopper: The Toyota Hybrid Synergy Drive is able to take advantage of several efficiency improvements, including running the engine near the peak efficiency speed (like you mentioned) with an electronic CVT, regenerative braking, Auto engine shutoff, and Atkinson/Miller cycle engine. These improvements more than compensate for the energy conversion losses, especially since about 60% of the IC engine power is transmitted mechanically to the wheels and avoids conversion losses.
Electricity from MARS {Autoblog Green}
May 10th 2008 3:06AM It is tethered by a cable, which can also carry the power generated back to the ground.
More important questions are: How long can they make the tether? How high can this thing go? How do we keep aircraft from colliding with the ballon or tether?
Who else thinks the Poulsen hybrid is the sleeper team to win the X Prize? {Autoblog Green}
May 7th 2008 9:59PM A clever way to add hybrid capability to non-hybrid vehicles. Cost is a major barrier to retrofitting older cars, this design is simple and relatively inexpensive. The biggest downside is the weight of the lead acid battery pack, but lead acid was chosen for the low cost. A car designed as a plug-in hybrid would outperform this retrofit in fuel economy, and possibly in overall costs as well, but this was designed for people who can't afford to replace their existing vehicle with something new.
The battery pack, 72 volt 120 amphour = 8,640 watthours or 8.6 Kwh. With relatively low power motors, this could provide a modest boost to performance and a modest improvement in fuel economy, in spite of the weight. Using a NiMH battery of the same capacity would cut the weight by over half, and LiIon by 4x or more, but would increase the cost.
Phoenix Motorcars to use Electrovaya batteries? {Autoblog Green}
May 7th 2008 12:12AM The Altairnano batteries had excellent cycle characteristics, meaning very long life and little degradation in performance. Unfortunately, the energy density wasn't great for LiIon, and the price was extremely high. Altair seemed to be limited in production capabilities, their main interest is in high profit medical nanomaterials, not the sideline battery business.
Phoenix may be going to Electrovaya as a cost cutting move, and possibly as a more reliable supplier.
Detroit Auto Show: It's here. GM's plug-in hybrid is the Chevy Volt Concept {Autoblog Green}
May 6th 2008 11:56PM #240- Yes, the battery can be recycled. The battery types GM is considering have very high charge cycle counts and GM is using sophisticated battery management to maximize battery life, so they should easily last over 150,000 miles. No mention yet on the battery cost, but it is a substantial portion of the car. No, it won't perform as well in very cold weather, but no car performs as well when very cold - have you ever tried starting a cold diesel when it's 10 below? Still, it should do well enough.
#241- Using a smaller battery wouldn't bring it to market sooner, the same problems still need to be solved and the small size could cause extra problems. A smaller battery means less power available, and would also mean more frequent cycling which reduces battery life.
Didn't take long: Chrysler's $2.99 gas guarantee draws critics {Autoblog Green}
May 6th 2008 11:25PM It's just like putting up a flashing neon sign saying "Our cars get really lousy gas milage, so we have to bribe you to buy them!"
Hybrid sales at GM looking slightly less barren in April {Autoblog Green}
May 4th 2008 3:31AM Sam, I really doubt that GM would be selling their 2 mode hybrids for less than the cost of building them. Now, GM would loose money if they can't sell enough to cover development costs before the hybrids are discontinued, but it is far too early to assume that will be the case.
Admit it - even the most brilliant bloggers sometimes make missteakes.
