Electric Cars
and the Future
Growing
Importance
Range
It is a well-known fact that
gasoline production from fossil fuels
will not be able to maintain their
current rate of supply & demand for
much longer. Numerous economical
experts have found that the peak of this
curve may have already occurred several
years ago. Multiple predictions for this
“peak oil” can be seen on the right. The
U.S. Department of Defense was even
quoted back in 2008 and again in 2010
saying, “By 2012, surplus oil production
capacity could entirely disappear…”
Knowing that crude oil will not be able
to indefinitely sustain our automobiledriven society, one pressing question
remains: what can possibly replace
gasoline? The answer to this question
lies strongly in electricity. While electric
cars may not be able to completely
satisfy the needs of consumers today,
new developments in technology are
quickly making them the prime choice
to overtake the gas giant.
Cost
Emissions
But What
About…
Final Remarks
Work Cited
Informative Website on
Global Oil Consumption
http://www.oildecline.com/
Electric Cars
and the Future
Growing
Importance
Range
Cost
Emissions
But What
About…
Final Remarks
Work Cited
Electric vehicles have been around since the mid 1800s, but only in recent years have they started
appearing in news headlines and journal articles. This is a result of the huge leaps and bounds that electric car
technology has made in the last few years. In a recent interview with TED.com, Elon Musk talks about what is
needed to “accelerate the advent of electric transport” (Musk). You can see a piece of this interview below. If
you do not know who Elon Musk is, he is the creator of PayPal, and CEO of Tesla Motors, a premium electric
car company, and SpaceX, the leader in commercial space exploration. His outlandish ideas and goals have a
way of becoming a reality. Musk was even recently quoted saying, “It’s the first time in four and a half billion
years that we are at a level of technology where we have the ability to reach Mars.” This “level of technology”
is exponentially increasing to new heights. Just think about how cell phones and laptops looked only 15 years
ago! Though electric cars may have a few obstacles to clear, there is no doubt that they will soon become the
standard.
You can see the full interview here: http://www.ted.com/talks/elon_musk_the_mind_behind_tesla_spacex_solarcity.html
For more information…
Tesla Motors: http://www.teslamotors.com/
SpaceX: http://www.spacex.com/
Electric Cars
and the Future
Growing
Importance
Range
Cost
Emissions
But What
About…
Final Remarks
Work Cited
In a recent survey done by the Municipality of Zaanstad in the Netherlands, 16 people with little exposure
to electric cars, were given a high-end electric car and asked to use it as their primary automobile for several
months. At the conclusion of their test driving, they were asked a series of questions about their experience. In
response to the question “What do you not like about driving the electric car,” 42% of users did not like the
limited working range, and another 30% worried the car was not fully charged. To the question “What would
you like to change,” 54% of people wanted a larger working range, and another 24% wanted to see faster car
charging. It is clear that the issue of range is a big factor in wanting to choose an electric car. While the electric car
may not be able to currently provide the range consumers want, new technologies are making this observation
out-of-date. At the present, the driving range of most electric cars lies within 30-60 miles per charge. However,
there are options that set a standard
of their own, if you are willing to
spend the money. The Tesla Roadster
and the Tesla Model S can get up to
250-300 miles on a single charge, and
boasts about Supercharging stations
that can charge half the battery in
only a half hour (right).
You can see some specifics here:
http://www.teslamotors.com/superc
harger.
Electric Cars
and the Future
Growing
Importance
Range
Cost
Emissions
But What
About…
Final Remarks
Work Cited
Without a doubt, the cost of an automobile is a very large factor in purchasing a new automobile. In a
CNET poll asking “What do you look for when buying a car,” over half of the 84 responses mentioned price
as one of the main factors they consider when buying a car. Unfortunately, this acts to the detriment of electric
cars, as their prices are, on average, a good bit higher than the commonly -available gasoline automobile. Per
year, electric cars cost, about 46% more than a regular diesel or gasoline vehicle ( Vilet et al. 2306). Also, if we
more directly compare two models found in Chevrolet’s vehicle line-up, the Chevy Cruze (gas) starts at
$18,000, and the Chevy Volt (electric) starts at $40,000. Even deducting the $7,500 government tax credit for
“green” vehicles, this is still a difference of $14,500. Generalizing gas prices at $4 per gallon, the
Cruze would need to be filled up 225 times to bridge that $14,500 gap.
According to GM, this corresponds to about 88,000 miles, or almost 8 years
of driving. Since the average time most Americans keep their car is around
nine years, it is clear that a lower electric vehicle price is needed. As far as
price is concerned, there is little in the way of tangible improvements at the
present, but there are many plans on future mass production and price
reduction. Watch Elon Musk discussing plans for an affordable,
high-performance electric car
(right). Along with this, the present
standard for making electric car
batteries lies in Lithium Ion which
alone adds $5,000 to $15,000 to
the price. From the graph, one
To see facts about particular electric cars
can see the expected decline in
(pricing, ratings, horsepower, etc.), go to:
price of these batteries.
http://www.kbb.com/electric/
Electric Cars
and the Future
Growing
Importance
Range
Cost
Emissions
But What
About…
Final Remarks
Work Cited
The last several years have seen an enormous growth in
attention towards “green” technologies. As stated on the CNET
poll regarding what people look for when buying a car, Urr
Quasdim, who holds a Ph.D. in Physics, had said “If we don’t
abandon NOW the current gas guzzlers and switch to
environmentally friendly… cars – it will be too late…” While this
is true, and electric cars produce no emissions, we must consider
how electricity is actually produced. It can be seen that far over
half of our electricity is produced through non-renewable means
(right). For a true comparison, we must examine the total
emissions in generating the electricity for an electric car to go a
particular distance, and then compare this to the emissions of a
standard gas automobile going the same distance. From the
Journal of Power Sources, a 2011 study found that, on average, long-range
electric vehicles produced, in total, about 70g of CO2 per km, while regular
diesel or gasoline vehicles produced over 150g of CO2 per km. Elon Musk
elaborates on this during his interview (see left). So, if it is truly cleaner to
use electric cars despite how electricity is produced, why have we, as
consumers, not already widely adopted them? The answer to this lies simply
in supply and demand. If electric cars were to quickly become the standard,
there is no currently feasible way to meet the massive spike in electricity
demand that would ensue. In short, consumers must wait as technologies in
renewable energy production grow to become more efficient. Read about
why Elon Musk believes Solar Cells will be incorporated on electric cars in
the future.
Electric Cars
and the Future
Growing
Importance
Range
Cost
Emissions
But What
About…
Final Remarks
Work Cited
With all of the attention electric cars have been receiving recently, there is no shortage of critics or
skeptics that stand against electric cars. While there is not much debate surrounding the fact that we will
eventually need to find an alternative automotive fuel source, what that fuel source is provides for a difference
in opinion. At the present, numerous alternative fuel types are available other than electricity, such as
hydrogen, ethanol, and biodiesels. Going more in depth, it can be seen that many of these alternatives could
never reach the capacity to replace gasoline on a world or even a national scale. Let’s take a look at some of
the shortcomings of these fuels.
Hydrogen
While research
into this fuel source looks promising,
it is still very much in the early stages
of development. In concept, a car
using hydrogen fuel cells is very
similar in design to an electric car.
One main difference is that the
electricity is produced by hydrogenpowered fuel cells rather than a direct
transfer of electricity. Perhaps in
several decades, this alternative fuel
may be able to begin replacing
gasoline, but not for quite a while.
Ethanol
Being produced almost
entirely from corn and
sugarcane, the major
restrictions with this
fuel source is its massive use of land, and its
inability to be mass-produced. To extend this
point, the more crops planted for fuel, the less
available for consumption, which would
increase overall food prices. In the long run,
little money would be saved at all. Along with
this, ethanol has been tested to give, on average,
about a 25% lower fuel economy than gasoline.
Biodiesels
A positive feature about
biodiesels is the fact that
it yields about 3.2 times
more energy than it takes
to produce it. Its major downfalls occur in
the total price, time, and the danger
involved in producing it on a large scale.
While biodiesels prove to be an affordable
and efficient fuel when examined at the
private level, the mass production of this
alternative would result in high costs, and an
exponentially longer refinement process.
Learn more about alternative fuels here: http://www.afdc.energy.gov/fuels/
Electric Cars
and the Future
Growing
Importance
Range
Cost
The issue of finding a new source of
automotive fuel is one that must be addressed by
all consumers in the not-so-distant future. Elon
Musk opens his interview by discussing this issue
(see right). The solution to this problem will be
anything but simple. Through research and
experimental studies, it is evident that electricity is
on track to replace the consumer’s need for
gasoline. Even today, many companies
are already stepping in with their own
versions of electric cars. You can
research some of these car companies
by following the links below. While
electric cars may not be able to
completely meet the needs of
consumers and entirely replace
gas-powered vehicles today, expansive and rapid
developments in technology will put electric cars
on a one-way track to becoming the next giant of
the automotive industry.
Venturi Automobiles: http://en.venturi.fr/
BYD Auto: http://www.byd.com/na/
Tesla Motors: http://www.teslamotors.com/
SABA Motors: http://www.sabamotors.com/
Emissions
But What
About…
Final Thoughts
Work Cited
Venturi Automobiles
BYD Auto
SABA Motors
Tesla Motors
Electric Cars
and the Future
Growing
Importance
Range
Cost
Emissions
But What
About…
Final Remarks
Work Cited
Bennett, Marc. “What do you look for when buying a car?” Survey. Cnet. Cnet, 20 Sept. 2005. Web. 10 Apr. 2013.
Bird, Colin. "Are Cars Becoming Less Affordable for the Average American Family?"KickingTires. Cars.com, 11 Aug. 2010. Web.
21 Apr. 2013.
Campbell, Colin. "Oil and Gas Production 1950-2050." Association for the Study of Peak Oil and Gas USA. Association for the Study of
Peak Oil and Gasoline, 2011. Web. 21 Apr. 2013.
Cohen, Dave. "Peak Watch." Peak Watch. Peak Watch, Apr. 2007. Web. 21 Apr. 2013.
Musk, Elon. "Elon Musk: The Mind behind Tesla, SpaceX, SolarCity ..." Interview by Chris Anderson. TED. TED, Mar. 2013.
Web. 10 Apr. 2013.
Newman, Rick. "More Evidence That It's Time to Dump Ethanol." US News. U.S.News & World Report, 31 July 2012. Web. 22
Apr. 2013.
Okulski, Travis. "8 Reasons Why The Electric Car Will Not Be A Success Anytime Soon." Business Insider. Business Insider, 9 Dec. 2011.
Web. 10 Apr. 2013.
Romero, Ric. "All-electric Cars Tested for Performance, Distance." KABC-TV Los Angeles. KABC-TV Los Angeles, 23 Jan. 2013. Web.
Shoebridge, Gavin. "Electric Car Conversion Blog." Electric Car Conversion Blog By Gavin Shoebridge RSS. Gavin Shoebridge, 2 Nov. 2011.
Web. 21 Apr. 2013.
U.S. Department of Energy. "Alternative Fuels and Advanced Vehicles." Alternative Fuels Data Center. U.S. Department of Energy, 2012.
Web. 22 Apr. 2013.
U.S. Department of Energy. "Greenhouse Gas Emissions for Electric and Plug-In Hybrid Electric Vehicles." Energy Efficiency &
Renewable Energy. U.S. Department of Energy, 2012. Web. 21 Apr. 2013.
Van Vliet, Oscar, Anne Sjoerd Brouwer, Takeshi Kuramochi, Machteld Van Den Broek, and André Faaij. "Energy Use, Cost and
CO2 Emissions of Electric Cars." Journal of Power Sources 196.4 (2011): 2298-310. Print.