Green car info for people who are new to green cars - introducing Greenlings
For the past few months, we've been running a weekly series on AutoblogGreen called Greenlings. Now that the archive has been built up a bit, it's time to formally introduce the series to you, explain what it's about and invite you to help us out.
The idea behind Greenlings is to step aside from the daily news rush and investigate an alternative-fueled car/envirnomental issue that maybe isn't totally obvious for someone who isn't as into the green scene as we are. For example, we recently asked "Can I run a car on natural gas?" and "What is a mild hybrid?" We've had lots of positive comments on the posts in this series, and now we're ready to step all this up a notch. You can help us in two ways.
First, we'd like to ask you if you have any topics you'd like us to cover. If there's a Greenlings question you'd like us to investigate - maybe it's something that your non-AutoblogGreen reading friends have asked you, maybe it's something you've been wondering yourself - please let us know (include the word Greenlings in the subject, please). We'll also be monitoring the comments on this post to see if any good ideas get submitted here.
Second, we can use help to get the word out. If there's someone in your life who you think is ready to learn a bit more about biofuels or hybrid tech or NEVs, we'd like you to invite them in. Tell your friends they'll always be able to see the list of Greenlings articles, with a new post every Thursday, at this URL. If they've got questions, we can get them answers.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
ShaunneyCakes 3:15PM (5/20/2009)
Forgive me if there was already a post on this:
The difference between a Fuel Cell and a Non-Fuel Cell hydrogen car and why pretty much all automakers prefer the Cell.
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Sebastian 5:13PM (5/20/2009)
We haven't covered that, but we'll add it to the list. Thanks
paulwesterberg 4:21PM (5/20/2009)
Greenlings is pants.
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Chris M 5:07PM (5/20/2009)
The Greenlings series started out great, although at first I was thinking it was comments on another website...
Here are some good potential subjects for future articles:
How hybrids save fuel.
Dispelling common Hybrid myths.
Types of Batteries and ultra-capacitors - electrical energy storage for cars.
Why is Hydrogen taking so long? The promise and problems of H2 fuel.
Methanol, Ethanol, Butanol, Biodiesel and Veggie oil - Biofuel types.
PRT, PodCars, and Dual Mode - the automated way to travel.
Cutting edge and the fringe - really exotic ideas for fueling our cars.
TANSTAAFL - why perpetual motion ideas never really work.
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Brady 12:12AM (5/28/2009)
What about diesel/electric hybrid?
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Matt 11:31PM (5/20/2009)
I would love some posts about why the new administration disagrees with hydrogen. It seems like the people that make cars think H2 is the way to go, but the people in charge dumped it. What gives?
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jake 3:58AM (5/21/2009)
The number one reason for dropping hydrogen is after spending $1.2 billion on hydrogen in the last 4 years, there was little to show for hydrogen. For one, the average durability of a fuel cell system is just 57k miles, which is unacceptable in today's market. And they have missed targets on hydrogen production and fueling stations, making a hydrogen highway still look very far away. It's unrealistic to expect hydrogen to be ready in 10 years, maybe not even 20 years.
Here's a good article that explains a lot of the problems about hydrogen:
http://earth2tech.com/2009/02/04/hitting-potholes-on-the-hydrogen-highway/
I know the political reason for hydrogen's popularity among automakers is precisely because California's ZEV program gives more credits for a fuel cell car (5 credits, 7 credits for 300+mile range) than a BEV (3 credits). And even a regulator like California can't suddenly push them to build these cars in huge numbers, because they can legitimately say it's unrealistic since the fueling network isn't built yet. Then there's the fact all of the major automakers put probably billions into their hydrogen projects precisely because of the ZEV mandate shifting the focus to hydrogen; to drop them now is a massive waste of their money.
On the flip side, maybe the fuel cells & hydrogen tanks are cheaper or have a potential to be cheaper than commonly estimated by the media; according to the same earth2tech article, with mass manufacturing, a fuel cell system will cost only $6k. And it appears they are making fairly decent progress in the last couple of years on the vehicles themselves. Hydrogen does make them feel more confident about consumer acceptance, since it does allow for quick fueling & a greater range when they go to higher pressure. The plug-in alternative hasn't really been tried in a big way and they are unsure of consumer acceptance, which is why most plug-in attempts by major automakers are just fleets and small programs to judge consumer reaction.
Matt 9:55AM (5/21/2009)
Jake, thanks for your comments, you seem to know your stuff. I guess I thought that they were making huge strides in the fuel cell tech that brought the cost down. It seems like they have come so far only to get the axe in favor of something else. Why do we have an all or nothing approach to these things, and why can't we divide funding to pay for several approaches and diversify. Can we decisively say whether fuel cells or batteries are more efficient or more cost effective? Further than that, can we even make batteries that charge fast enough that the average person will want to switch from gasoline completely? I know some of these are impossible to answer, and are better left to the scientists and engineers to figure out, but I hate to see a tech get billions in funding and then just be taken off the board like it's completely unfathomable.
Unni 1:57AM (5/21/2009)
Greenlings is great, I love it and read it multiple times and its very educative and informative.
More to list :
Electric charger standards
ultra-capacitors and advantage
HCCI - was reading on fastlane today
Direct injection, Active cylinder shut off
Why we need HCCI and why diesel cycle is not possible with Petrol
CRDI , TDI
Extended range EVs and EVs comparisons
Different engines configurations(example : lean burn engine,inline5,wangel,V )
Other new ICE technologies for fuel efficiency increase ( one article each on one technology)
comparison of Two mode hybrid technology to Hybrd synergy drive
Electric motors in hybrids and EVs ( with advantage ,disadvantages - like DC , AC induction etc)
Emission standards on different countries.
Different battery technologies and comparison
New exterial materials ( example aptera has a diffrent shell material )
New transmissions (6 speed , CVT etc )
Aerodynamics and part in new design
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randomdude 6:32AM (5/21/2009)
"and why diesel cycle is not possible with Petrol"
*and why petrol could be the perfect fuel for HCCI operation in diesel engines.
GenWaylaid 12:01AM (5/22/2009)
How about one article each on how reducing weight and reducing aerodynamic drag help efficiency?
I second the idea of investigating the differences between similar technologies and standards, such as the aforementioned:
* ultracapacitors vs. batteries
* hybrid synergy drive vs. two-mode
* common rail diesel vs. TDI (vs. old-school diesel)
* biodiesel vs. SVO
* ethanol vs. other biofuel petrol replacements
* European emissions standards vs. EPA standards (with an aside on other countries?)
I'd also like to suggest:
* the difference between power density and energy density with examples like batteries, ultracaps, and fuel cells.
* how newer types of automatic transmissions (automated manual, CVT) compare to manuals and older automatic designs for fuel efficiency
* how "air cars" work, and what their efficiency is like well-to-wheel
The Greenlings series reminds me of the "How Things Work" books I had as a kid. With enough variety of articles, it could become a really useful resource.
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Apocalyptic Mango 12:38AM (5/23/2009)
I've always wondered about the actual environmental impact of recycling lead acid / nickel metal hydride / lithium ion batteries. I know that newer batteries are less environmentally damaging, and by no means am I one of those people who says hybrids are dirtier in the long run than non-hybrids, but I have yet to find a reliable source on this.
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ISLAND DON 12:04PM (5/28/2009)
To me as a big diesel guy, I see the the CNG as a great, cheap, clean burning alternative to to gas, diesel, or hybrid, yet Honda CNG sales totally blow. Why havent they done better? Why haven't they been promoted by the gov't or the manufacturer? I've never seen an ad, nor ever heard any politician promote them. Yet I see all the busses in LA and San Diego running on CNG. That tells me there's an infrastructure in place. What's the scoop?
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JCitizen 2:01AM (9/02/2009)
Why are we not seriously looking at methanol fuel cells? I know methanol only gets 25% cleaner that gasoline, but look; with the exceptional efficiency of fuel cells your still going to get way less fuel burned. This would result in a lot lower CO2 signature, until Hydrogen can become practical.
Oorja makes affordable fuel cell/battery systems that companies are switching to NOW! Not pie in the sky futuristic ideas!! Many manufactures in my area are switching to this for material handling and getting a 45 to 55% ROI(return on investment). This AFTER making a significant investment in infrastructure changes.
Methanol can be made of durn near anything, including natural gas, and forming methods are getting way cheap! One method only requires injecting natural gas and water at high pressure to form the methanol. You can make it out of garbage, waste plant product, algae(which could capture CO2 from coal), manure/sewage, waste wood chips/sawdust; you name it!
We can definitely slow the introduction of CO2 into the atmosphere, and with the powerful Oorja unit, a smaller battery set would be required bringing the cost down a great deal. Last I checked a battery set for a Prius HEPV was $15,000 and a 600W Oorja unit was $6000 , but the prices were going down. They could be way cheaper now. A supply depot not far from here is selling Yamaha replacement units for industrial fork lifts, right now!
Even if such a unit couldn't power a car at 70mph directly without stacking it; it could darn sure charge the batteries 24/7 so your range would be significantly extended. I've seen forklifts working in 24hour shifts in factories last for fifteen hours before the unit has to be refueled. And the battery was still at full charge after that! I imagine it could have operated for four hours more on pure battery power.
Material handling vehicles are no puds on power, even if they only go 30mph. A great deal of energy is expended running hydraulic actuators and moving extremely heavy loads!
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