xcel
01-24-2007, 04:27 PM
Hopefully, the Electrical propulsion efforts will be successful and the dreams of automotive pioneers 100 years ago will be realized in the near future. (http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070124/AUTO02/701240306/1148/AUTO01)
http://www.cleanmpg.com/photos/data/501/Lohner-Porsche_Electric_Car.jpgJohn McCormick - Detroit News - Jan. 24, 2007
Turn of the century Lohner-Porsche 40 mile PHEV. The more things change, the more they stay the same.
Automotive historians must be intrigued and amused at the current furor over electric vehicles, partly inspired by the Chevrolet Volt concept unveiled at the Detroit show.
A century ago, the electric car was all the rage and seen by many in the then embryonic auto industry as the most logical and best powertrain choice for the future. At the same time 'hybrid' vehicles of all conceivable configurations were being developed or proposed. One of the most famous examples was built around 1900 by none other than a young Ferdinand Porsche. His Lohner-Porsche electric car had its battery charged by a gasoline engine. On just the battery, Porsche's car reportedly could travel 40 miles, an impressive figure even by today's standards. The machine also used wheel hub electric motors, a technology employed today in state of the art hydrogen fuel cell concept vehicles such as General Motors' Chevrolet Sequel and the Honda FCX.
Another relatively successful proponent of the electric car, Colonel Albert Pope, railed against the internal combustion engine vehicle, saying "you can't get people to sit over an explosion." Pope had produced 500 electric cars by 1897 and forged ahead despite mounting evidence that gasoline fueled vehicles were a more promising avenue of development. In 1903, Pope's company advert read "electrics will appeal to any one interested in an absolutely noiseless, odorless, clean and stylish rig that is always ready and that, mile for mile, can be operated at less cost than any other type of motor car." Sounds familiar, doesn't it?
Unfortunately for Pope, Henry Ford came along and turned the internal combustion engine car into a practical, affordable reality for the masses. Virtually overnight the pure electric car, hybrids and other oddities of the time were wiped out.
Looking back, the technological challenge to creating a successful vehicle really boiled down to two words; energy density. And today, as we consider the future of the automobile, the same challenge applies; how to carry the most energy on board a vehicle in the smallest and lightest possible containment vessel that can also be efficiently discharged and replenished.
One other thing; it really helps if that 'fuel' container can be shaped and formed to package easily and safely in a vehicle's structure.
Given all these criteria, it's not surprising that gasoline as a fuel has dominated the auto industry for so long. Gasoline is energy dense, not too heavy, can be contained in formable lightweight plastic tanks and is readily available. Moreover consumers have grown comfortable with the fact that they drive around with gallons of highly inflammable liquid sloshing around beneath them.
Other fuels being proposed today all suffer in comparison with gasoline. Methanol, ethanol and LPG are all inferior to gasoline in terms of energy density by weight or volume. Hydrogen is much more energy dense by weight than gasoline but much less so by volume, a problem that hydrogen fuel cell vehicle proponents are struggling to overcome.
Meanwhile attention has also turned to the good old battery, just as it did 100 years ago. At first glance it seems the passage of time has produced very little progress in the world of batteries as an energy storage medium, at least when it applies to the automotive world. But of course there have been significant advances, not least being the development of the lithium ion battery; the type being proposed for the Volt and that which seems to have the greatest promise for the future of the electric car.
Again, the concept of a car with an internal combustion engine-powered generator and a large battery that could be recharged overnight is nothing new. And we are still faced with the problem of energy density; gasoline is far superior in this respect to any automotive use battery yet developed.
What has changed, of course, over the last century is society's focus on the environment. The 'clean' promotional tagline used by Colonel Pope has grown into a much broader concern over environmental pollution stemming from the use of petroleum fuels. This anxiety has given several automakers fresh impetus to develop a more efficient and energy dense battery.
Hopefully, these efforts will be successful and the dreams of automotive pioneers 100 years ago will be realized in the near future.
http://www.cleanmpg.com/photos/data/501/Lohner-Porsche_Electric_Car.jpgJohn McCormick - Detroit News - Jan. 24, 2007
Turn of the century Lohner-Porsche 40 mile PHEV. The more things change, the more they stay the same.
Automotive historians must be intrigued and amused at the current furor over electric vehicles, partly inspired by the Chevrolet Volt concept unveiled at the Detroit show.
A century ago, the electric car was all the rage and seen by many in the then embryonic auto industry as the most logical and best powertrain choice for the future. At the same time 'hybrid' vehicles of all conceivable configurations were being developed or proposed. One of the most famous examples was built around 1900 by none other than a young Ferdinand Porsche. His Lohner-Porsche electric car had its battery charged by a gasoline engine. On just the battery, Porsche's car reportedly could travel 40 miles, an impressive figure even by today's standards. The machine also used wheel hub electric motors, a technology employed today in state of the art hydrogen fuel cell concept vehicles such as General Motors' Chevrolet Sequel and the Honda FCX.
Another relatively successful proponent of the electric car, Colonel Albert Pope, railed against the internal combustion engine vehicle, saying "you can't get people to sit over an explosion." Pope had produced 500 electric cars by 1897 and forged ahead despite mounting evidence that gasoline fueled vehicles were a more promising avenue of development. In 1903, Pope's company advert read "electrics will appeal to any one interested in an absolutely noiseless, odorless, clean and stylish rig that is always ready and that, mile for mile, can be operated at less cost than any other type of motor car." Sounds familiar, doesn't it?
Unfortunately for Pope, Henry Ford came along and turned the internal combustion engine car into a practical, affordable reality for the masses. Virtually overnight the pure electric car, hybrids and other oddities of the time were wiped out.
Looking back, the technological challenge to creating a successful vehicle really boiled down to two words; energy density. And today, as we consider the future of the automobile, the same challenge applies; how to carry the most energy on board a vehicle in the smallest and lightest possible containment vessel that can also be efficiently discharged and replenished.
One other thing; it really helps if that 'fuel' container can be shaped and formed to package easily and safely in a vehicle's structure.
Given all these criteria, it's not surprising that gasoline as a fuel has dominated the auto industry for so long. Gasoline is energy dense, not too heavy, can be contained in formable lightweight plastic tanks and is readily available. Moreover consumers have grown comfortable with the fact that they drive around with gallons of highly inflammable liquid sloshing around beneath them.
Other fuels being proposed today all suffer in comparison with gasoline. Methanol, ethanol and LPG are all inferior to gasoline in terms of energy density by weight or volume. Hydrogen is much more energy dense by weight than gasoline but much less so by volume, a problem that hydrogen fuel cell vehicle proponents are struggling to overcome.
Meanwhile attention has also turned to the good old battery, just as it did 100 years ago. At first glance it seems the passage of time has produced very little progress in the world of batteries as an energy storage medium, at least when it applies to the automotive world. But of course there have been significant advances, not least being the development of the lithium ion battery; the type being proposed for the Volt and that which seems to have the greatest promise for the future of the electric car.
Again, the concept of a car with an internal combustion engine-powered generator and a large battery that could be recharged overnight is nothing new. And we are still faced with the problem of energy density; gasoline is far superior in this respect to any automotive use battery yet developed.
What has changed, of course, over the last century is society's focus on the environment. The 'clean' promotional tagline used by Colonel Pope has grown into a much broader concern over environmental pollution stemming from the use of petroleum fuels. This anxiety has given several automakers fresh impetus to develop a more efficient and energy dense battery.
Hopefully, these efforts will be successful and the dreams of automotive pioneers 100 years ago will be realized in the near future.