Do Androids dream of Electric cars ?

[peanut]

ORIGINAL: sawood12

How is an electric motor more efficient than an internal combustion engine?

errrrrrrr no recipricating parts ......less friction.... less wastage in heat.......lighter power to weight ratio . cheaper to run..............considerably less componants to assemble ..................?

re the charging costs when electric cars become more mainstream I can see more homes using solar panels to provide energy for homes and transport.Especially given the way the carbon footprint /eco /energy conservation trend is going at the moment

 

[RC18B 911 turbo]

My little RC18B Radio Control Car with lithium Polymer Batteries can give amazing performance figures for something that weighs 400grams and is the size of a bag of flour does 0-60 in 1.5 seconds possibly quicker and so far tops out at 95Mph before I lose control.

The brushless motor is more efficient because it actually has no friction whatsoever and produces very little noise which is also a waste in energy (does make a very interesting high pitch screaming sound at 114,000 RPM)

 

[MarkK]

My "tuned" Sinclair C5 beat a latest technology Segway personal transporter around bedford autodrome (see EVO magazine 100th edition celebration issue) the importer of the Segway was not a happy bunny at the time[]

 

[xenon]

ORIGINAL: RC18B 911 turbo

My little RC18B Radio Control Car with lithium Polymer Batteries can give amazing performance figures for something that weighs 400grams and is the size of a bag of flour does 0-60 in 1.5 seconds possibly quicker and so far tops out at 95Mph before I lose control.

The brushless motor is more efficient because it actually has no friction whatsoever and produces very little noise which is also a waste in energy (does make a very interesting high pitch screaming sound at 114,000 RPM)

But as has been said, that's a world away from a full-size car and the technology doesn't scale up, not least because the power to move the car and the effects of air resistance are both square laws - i.e. you need twice as much more power to move half as much again. The power required on a full-sized vehicle is significant.

Electric cars will be a viable alternative once the quantum leap in battery technology has been found. Li-Po batteries have a high-current density but would be dangerous in the size required for a full-sized vehicle.

 

[RC18B 911 turbo]

I believe one company has managed to do a similar set up in an ariel atom and it accelerates quicker than a carrera GT.

 

[peanut]

ORIGINAL: RC18B 911 turbo

I believe one company has managed to do a similar set up in an ariel atom and it accelerates quicker than a carrera GT.

that would be the car in the youtube link in my first post .[]

 

[RC18B 911 turbo]

Hmmmm didn't realise that sorry, would of been more aware of that had this stupid machine not gone and had a hissy fit and decided that it won't load any videos from you tube this morning.

 

[sawood12]

ORIGINAL: peanut

ORIGINAL: sawood12

How is an electric motor more efficient than an internal combustion engine?

errrrrrrr no recipricating parts ......less friction.... less wastage in heat.......lighter power to weight ratio . cheaper to run..............considerably less componants to assemble ..................?

re the charging costs when electric cars become more mainstream I can see more homes using solar panels to provide energy for homes and transport.Especially given the way the carbon footprint /eco /energy conservation trend is going at the moment

Yes but in terms of the amount of electrical energy converted into kinetic energy comapred with the engergy locked up in petrol converted to kinetic energy they are no more efficient if at all. Anyway have you seen the size of a 1 hp electric motor compared with the size of a 1hp two stroke engine? The two stroker is much much smaller and lighter. Electric motors may be compact but they are basically 90% magnet i.e. basically solid iron, and much more dense than piston engines that are basically hollow. And when you take into account the fact an electric motor is of no use without a battery or other power source - well that just increases weight even more. That is why their use has so far been limited to ships and trains.

Also the larger the electric motor the more powerful the electromagnetic field that surrounds it which can have strange effects on electronics and even people. And as to the notion that electric motors don't generate heat - well my electric drill gets pretty darn hot after a good half hour of use, and in anycase internal combustion engines are designed to generate heat - it is fundamental to how they work - through expansion of gasses in the combusion chamber increasing the pressure in the cylinder thus driving the piston, so it is no bad thing.

I've not seen this Tesla car you mention but that other one was based on an Aerial Atom which is basically as light as one of my Grandmothers Victoria Sponges. I don't think you'd get the same level of performance from an electric car weighing in at 1.5 tons+ with climate control, heated seats and electric everything.

 

[poprock]

The fact is that car manufacturers the world over are trying out electrically powered cars, right now. Some of them are further down the route than others. Tesla are the first to market with a reasonably priced (premium, yes, but reasonable) sports coupé. They are the poster boys for the nascent industry. They'll take all the flak, but they've made all the big advances. They seem to have produced a really good driver's car which is hampered only by a dodgy gearbox (which they're working to fix), battery technology (which they can't do much about) and production capacity (which is controlled by their deal with Lotus).

 

[peanut]

ORIGINAL: RC18B 911 turbo

Hmmmm didn't realise that sorry, would of been more aware of that had this stupid machine not gone and had a hissy fit and decided that it won't load any videos from you tube this morning.

problems with ya pooter ? lots of help on here if you need it.[]