The thought of owning an electric car is exciting for many green technology adopters, although their price is still pretty high. The idea behind EVs is that they don’t emit carbon dioxide or any other gases from their tailpipes.
But because free meals don’t exist, some Swiss researchers say the opposite – some diesels may be cleaner than electric cars currently under development.
European cars often get a fuel economy of about 42 mpg, with some newer models even getting 60 mpg or more. The technology adopted for electric cars, on the other hand, uses mainly lithium ion batteries, made of metals extracted from mountains by using complex chemical processes that not only generate CO2, but also pollute the environment and help to deforestation.
The Swiss Federal Laboratories for Material Science and Technology (EMPA), released a study that pushes conclusions about the impact of lithium ion batteries used in battery-electric vehicles.
They said that an electric car using the currently-existing battery technologies would have an independence from the grid of approximately 125 miles and two sets of batteries would be needed to suffice a car’s lifetime of around 150,000 miles.
Although battery technology gets cheaper because of the still low demand, the industry that makes them will be prosperous once EVs will become mainstream. Of course, over-the-clock research is on its way around the world, and batteries won’t stay the same forever, so these allegations are only partially justified.
Moreover, used EV batteries could be recycled and put back into use, or implemented in vehicle-to-grid type applications, where they would be good enough to store the extra energy generated during the day by solar panels or by wind turbines during windy periods.
Also, the use of a centralized battery-swapping program could reduce the impact these batteries would have on the environment after their first cycle, through ensured corporate responsibility programs these companies would have.
Liked it? Share onFacebook and Google +1:
| |  No comments yet.Break the ice! |  E-mail Updates |  |
| Also share story on: | Become our facebook fan |
Read next:
Ford hybrid and electric cars vs GM Volt electric carNowadays, the Japanese constructors are well ahead others in having electric cars. Honda and Toyota have the dominating positions in our top and they are announcing more to come in the following year. US manufacturers are late, one probable reason was that in the US the fuel price is not as high as in other parts of the globe.
IAV to Release On-the-fly Charging System for Electric Cars in 3 YearsA German supplier of electronics and powertrain design to most of the major automakers for the last 25 years gives a solution to both the battery and the car manufacturers. The company is called IAV (Ingenieurgesellschaft Auto und Verkehr), and their solution is to charge the electric cars on-the-go through electromagnetic induction.
Electric Cars Coming from ChinaAs many producers announce their hybrid or electric cars, it’s a more obvious sign that the future is for electric cars.
There is a competition to be the first one to produce electric cars and have them on the road.
China is trying to get on the track for this and they will try to produce 500 000 electric cars in the next two years. It might not sound much, but compared to the 2100 produced last year, it’s a great evolution.
Renault&Nissan to Make Electric Cars and Infrastructure for PortugalSeveral weeks ago we presented an article about Denmark having too much energy available by exploiting their wind farms. At that time we knew that Denmark wants to make an electric vehicle recharge infrastructure for use in their future electric cars.
Swiss Joint Venture Secretly Developing 1MW BatterySince their invention in 1800 by Alessandro Volta, batteries have become a common power source for houses and industrial applications and hystory has proven that modern society cannot live without them.
Comments from our readers
3167 total comments so far. What's your opinion ?- No comments on this article yet.
