On Dec 3, 2007 1:42 AM, Byron Jeff wrote: > On Fri, Nov 30, 2007 at 02:26:49PM -0500, Herbert Graf wrote: > > On Fri, 2007-11-30 at 10:18 -0500, Jeff Findley wrote: > > > "Mike Hord" wrote in message > > > news:88eca9220711292119q3a8cd0f9j2782a4317798eff8@mail.gmail.com... > > > > I would say, however, that we're ideal candidates for a small > > > > electric car. > > Much snippage... > > > Personally, my ideal car would be the reverse: an electric car with say > > a 200 mile range, but in the boot is a gas generator so that if you do > > run out of battery the gas generator starts up and you can keep going. > > You're mileage while on the generator will surely not be stellar, but > > it's rare that you'll use it much (and if you do use it much a petrol > > car would be a better choice). > > The only problem is that the efficiency of such a system would be very > poor. You'll get losses at each conversion (gas -> electricity, > electricity -> motor) These kinds of systems are already in use. They're called a "series hybrid". Here's quite an old design based on the famous GM EV1: "In a series hybrid, the engine -- in this case, a Williams micro-gas turbine spinning at upwards to 140,000 rpm -- is never in direct contact with the drivetrain. Instead, it's coupled to a 40kW alternator producing electricity. This electricity is used either directly by the vehicle's electric motor(s) or to recharge an on-board battery pack. It is the electric motor that propels the wheels." http://www.evworld.com/archives/testdrives/carpicts/gmshev-dia.gif http://www.evworld.com/archives/testdrives/gmshev.html And here's a more recent example - "Azure Dynamics series hybrid electric shuttle bus uses an electric motor as the only means of driving the wheels. The motor obtains electricity from one of two sources, a battery pack or an on-board generator powered by the engine. The batteries in a hybrid electric vehicle are recharged by the engine/generator (genset) as well as regenerative energy which is captured during braking. Dependant on drive cycle, Azure's hybrid electric shuttle bus reduces fuel consumption by up to 40%, reduces maintenance costs by 25% and is anti-idle compliant." http://www.evworld.com/news.cfm?newsid=16791 Cheers, Zik -- http://www.piclist.com PIC/SX FAQ & list archive View/change your membership options at http://mailman.mit.edu/mailman/listinfo/piclist