Recent Comments:
Should we be thinking about standardized everything for plug-in vehicles? {Autoblog Green}
Jun 16th 2008 10:06PM I think it's hardly too early to think about a standard plug-in for EVs. Look at the mess California had to deal with for the ZEV mandate vehicles, two sizes of inductive paddles, and the Avcon paddle. No, the existing 220 VAC plugs are not acceptable for a few reasons:
1. They are not a high duty cycle connector. A standard charge point could have 20-30 plug-ins a day - depending on location, and that will quickly wear the contacts to the point they are loose, arc easily and could fall out.
2. They are not outdoor connections. Generally, you would want them on a circuit breaker to kill the power before plugging it in to the vehicle, and then flip the breaker back on. Once again, breakers are not a high duty cycle item. They are generally meant be left on.
3. Contacts are exposed leading to potential electrical shock. Those big long blade contacts carry current while inserting them into the outlet. Once again, you would need to kill power to safely use the plugs.
4. There are too many variations. What do you want, a 30 amp plug? a 50 amp plug? a 70 amp plug? Common ground? Separate neutral? Locking or not? There are plugs for each of these iterations and assuming you have dealt with the above issues, you have to figure out what the car gets.
The Avcon connector addressed many of these issues, and is a pretty decent system, much more desireable than just a standard 220 plug. But the connector is expensive and a bit complicated, and produced by only 1 company. So the standard needs to be safe, easy, affordable and ultimately widely adopted by everybody.
Mercedes-Benz A-Class to go with conventional FWD layout {Autoblog Green}
Jun 13th 2008 9:00AM Sell these in the US, please Mercedes!
GM and Clean Energy to open hydrogen station near LAX {Autoblog Green}
Jun 11th 2008 4:45PM Pffffffft!
Hydrogen....
What a scam.
How about spending the billions you are wasing on fool cell and put it into manufacturing batteries?
Better efficiency, lower cost, proven technology. Hydrogen will NEVER be as efficient as batteries.
Farm Bill vetoed, but the biofuel-friendly law probably won't be stopped {Autoblog Green}
May 21st 2008 8:36PM Tell you what Mr. Bush, the fiasco in Iraq is too expensive in the current economic climate (or any for that matter). Go congress! Override that puppet of oil barons and do what's best for the country!
Dragon Power Station makes electricity from traffic {Autoblog Green}
Apr 30th 2008 3:52PM I think this works by using the weight of the truck to compress the hydraulic fluid. So if anything, the energy stolen would be whatever it takes to lift the load the inch or so that the generator uses. The braking issue would only work if the generator used a slipping plate or some other way to transfer forward motion to compression energy. Of course if this is a big steel plate in the road, that means it needs a spring return or something to raise it back to road level additionally wasting energy, since that energy to compress the spring can't be captured.
I like the speed bump idea, make it compressible and send that to an accumulator to spin a turbine. You could use the energy to run a flashing light to warn about the speed bump.
2007 Green Grand Prix photos to prepare us for next weekend's race {Autoblog Green}
Apr 28th 2008 3:48PM Seems to me that if you really want to be green, you don't even race. Using fuel to go around in circles can't really be environmentally friendly.
Boeing fuel cells up in the air {Autoblog Green}
Apr 4th 2008 5:26PM That would all be great, except France already flew an all electric plane for twice as long entirely on batteries:
http://www.treehugger.com/files/2008/01/first_conventio.php
So once again, Hydrogen proves to be less capable.
GM's Chevy Volt update: All systems go, Malibu-based li-ion mules coming soon {Autoblog Green}
Apr 4th 2008 1:33PM Looking at the video, the Volt looks like the aerodynamics have changed it from a unique looking car to an average looking car. Of course the dazzle paint makes it hard, but I noticed the front wheels moved quite a bit farther back. I'm not entirely convinced that was the Volt model.
Boeing fuel cells up in the air {Autoblog Green}
Apr 4th 2008 1:21PM I wonder how far the plane would have flown if all the hydrogen fuel cell components were replaced by batteries?
GM's Chevy Volt update: All systems go, Malibu-based li-ion mules coming soon {Autoblog Green}
Apr 3rd 2008 9:02PM Well, I'm 6'4", so I guess I'm not gonna fit.
I'm not sure why GM is hooked on the 'T' shaped battery pack. They did it in the EV1, and now the Volt. Is there some advantage over a regular rectangle?
