The joys of electric car ownership!

[Fergie 307]

It already is. IPCC — Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change

I was talking about research to develop a viable fusion reactor, not within their remit as far as I am aware. Maybe it should be, or perhaps the UN.

 

[Fergie 307]

I didn't say it wasn't noteworthy, what I meant was it's not the "eureka" moment EV evangelists claim it to be. Efficiency and design are two different things. My take on what you wrote was you were claiming the engine and technology had changed in a way that could be considered significant. It hasn't.

Valves, ports, cylinders, pistons etc etc, all the same as they were close to 100 years ago.

The 767 planes of today use the same principles of engineering the Wright brothers used. The materials have changed, the propulsion has changed, the efficiency has changed - the basic design has not.

Halving the weight - well unless they can sort out the heat dissipation problem smaller chemical batteries will produce while stationary, it's all moot. Can't make the car out of aluminium for safety purposes - carbon fibre while stronger is ludicrously expensive, so you're stuck with steel and the obsession with SUV sized vehicles for no good bloody reason other than the stupid belief they are safer, until it hits another SUV, or the driver is more reckless because they think they are in a tank.

Chemistry is chemistry and the only way to get a more energetic reaction and release of energy is to use more volatile chemistry, and we've gone full circle back to exploding batteries.

Chemistry is not a new science and there's little if any "new" ways to make a chemical reaction, so unless they find a new element to mess around with - I think we're not going to be making any big leaps in chemical batteries anytime soon.

I think the EV system is a dead end for widespread domestic use let alone industrial haulage etc, both technologically and infrastructure wise - the world has a power shortage as it is and pretty sure I read there was talk of rationing power in some places even more than already happens with "brown outs".

If I was a venture capitalist I'd be putting money into hydrogen power research. Simpler, cheaper, plentiful, zero infrastructure changes thus saving the planet TRILLIONS, and energetic enough to power planes and large shipping.

Agree with most of your remarks, but would point out that many cars have been made of aluminium Audi and Mercedes to name just two have mass produced models with an aluminium monocoque or uni body construction. Carbon fibre would actually be more difficult to use because it would be very difficult to make it deform in a collision, as metal does in order to absorb some of the impact forces.

 

[worn thumbs]

Carbon collapses in stages,which can be a good thing if suitable design principles are followed.Several hypercars use it and BMW's and Mercedes with sporty tendencies often use it for roofs and bonnets.The problem is that the cycle times are excessive for large scale production.

 

[Lons]

You were comparing fossil fuels with biomass/waste wood. It's there in black and white in your post, for anyone to see.

I made no comparisons I only said " It has to make you laugh when one of the most vocal among us decrying the use of fossil fuels posts this". I never mentioned either biomass/waste wood or fossil fuels, you made that assumption.

His comment "You name it, I'll burn it" is also there for anyone with eyes to read. There's a lot of dry material in skips that isn't suitable for burning so either it was a joke, which is quite possible or it's true.
In any case skip diving is illegal without permission from the owners which of course I'm sure Jacob always obtains before removing anything.

 

[John Brown]

I made no comparisons I only said " It has to make you laugh when one of the most vocal among us decrying the use of fossil fuels posts this". I never mentioned either biomass/waste wood or fossil fuels, you made that assumption.

His comment "You name it, I'll burn it" is also there for anyone with eyes to read. There's a lot of dry material in skips that isn't suitable for burning so either it was a joke, which is quite possible or it's true.
In any case skip diving is illegal without permission from the owners which of course I'm sure Jacob always obtains before removing anything.

So why would it make you laugh if someone who decries fossil fuels, admits to burning something which isn't a fossil fuel, e.g. waste wood?
The illegallity of skip diving looks like an attempt to disguise a non sequitur with a red herring.

 

[Fergie 307]

Carbon collapses in stages,which can be a good thing if suitable design principles are followed.Several hypercars use it and BMW's and Mercedes with sporty tendencies often use it for roofs and bonnets.The problem is that the cycle times are excessive for large scale production.

Can't see it would ever be viable for anything other than very small scale production. Boots, bonnets etc used to often be made of aluminium on quite a few cars to save weight, that's progress for you. Now even the best ICE performance cars can't touch the potential of EV for acceleration, shame they don't have the sound effects. Perhaps your future sporty EV could come with a recording of a Lambo V12 going through it's paces at full chat, for those who miss it

 

[Fergie 307]

So why would it make you laugh if someone who decries fossil fuels, admits to burning something which isn't a fossil fuel, e.g. waste wood?
The illegallity of skip diving looks like an attempt to disguise a non sequitur with a red herring.

Good grief guys, seven pages and I don't know how many posts later and you are still banging on about this. Haven't you worked out yet that one of his favourite bits of mischief is to throw something like this in just to stir things up.
Jacob, you certainly scored with that comment, must be something of a record

 

[Jacob]

....
In any case skip diving is illegal without permission from the owners which of course I'm sure Jacob always obtains before removing anything.

I do it at night when it's dark, and usually in disguise.

 

[Lons]

Good grief guys, seven pages and I don't know how many posts later and you are still banging on about this. Haven't you worked out yet that one of his favourite bits of mischief is to throw something like this in just to stir things up.
Jacob, you certainly scored with that comment, must be something of a record

I've given up Fergie I think he's Jacob's brother.

I do it at night when it's dark, and usually in disguise.

 

[Jacob]

I was talking about research to develop a viable fusion reactor, not within their remit as far as I am aware. Maybe it should be, or perhaps the UN.

https://www.iaea.org/topics/fusion
We chose to go our own way with Brexit and no doubt will be left behind on this, as with so many other things

 

[Blackswanwood]

https://www.iaea.org/topics/fusion
We chose to go our own way with Brexit and no doubt will be left behind on this, as with so many other things

But at least we can eat straight bananas

 

[John Brown]

"I've given up Fergie I think he's Jacob's brother."
Well, I am an hairy man.

 

[selectortone]

Well, I am an hairy man.

I don't think Esau that coming.

 

[Chris Young]

!. I'm new into this discussion but surely many of our factories and these enormous distribution warehouses have a vast acreage of roof potential for voltaic panels?
2. Has gravity gone away? Surely we had watermills in nearly every village and town in hilly areas and in many places huge cotton spinning mills driven by water power. Why aren't we using the power of gravity to generate some of the electricity we need?

 

[Jacob]

!. I'm new into this discussion but surely many of our factories and these enormous distribution warehouses have a vast acreage of roof potential for voltaic panels?

I imagine the neat and serried ranks obtainable in a flat field would be much easier to install and maintain - they do many acres at a time. Maybe electricity has to be priced up as an incentive to the owners of these large roofs to do it themselves.

2. Has gravity gone away? Surely we had watermills in nearly every village and town in hilly areas and in many places huge cotton spinning mills driven by water power. Why aren't we using the power of gravity to generate some of the electricity we need?

Apparently the amount of power even from a big water powered mill is tiny compared to the demand. That's why they all went over to steam power - hence the characteristic huge mill chimneys.
Different with hydro electric - big lakes/reservoirs and big drops down to turbines, but only where the landscape makes it possible

 

[Ozi]

Agree with most of your remarks, but would point out that many cars have been made of aluminium Audi and Mercedes to name just two have mass produced models with an aluminium monocoque or uni body construction. Carbon fibre would actually be more difficult to use because it would be very difficult to make it deform in a collision, as metal does in order to absorb some of the impact forces.

Carbon fiber is brilliant in impact the issue is time, you can press a steel panel almost instantly

 

[worn thumbs]

From time to time I take a look at the Detroit News and it seems that the more observant over there have begun to take note of the negative effects of weight in their vehicles.

https://eu.detroitnews.com/story/bu...eloping-a-serious-weight-problem/70549879007/
https://eu.detroitnews.com/story/bu...hat-means-roads-owners-and-others/7823241001/
I don't suppose there is too much likelihood of displacing gargantuan pickups as the most popular choice over there but it needs to be brought to the general consciousness in some way.Maybe a televised drag race between a RAM pickup and a much smaller EV would convince them that virility isn't directly related to vehicle size.