12 ms·

Is there a reasonable approach to have electric cars match the "instant recharge" of a gas station? The only thing I've ever come up with is a hot-swappable ba

Is there a reasonable approach to have electric cars match the "instant recharge" of a gas station? The only thing I've ever come up with is a hot-swappable battery, so they sit and charge at a station until needed, then you swap a new one into the car. For instance, I live about 80 miles from the nearest BIG city. It's an hour drive to get there, and an hour back. All electric cars I see list that as a goal for a future generation, and even then, just barely. I don't see a future for purely electric vehicles, it seems like hybrids cover many more use cases.

fuzzmeister 17y ago
The Tesla Model S will have a 300 mile range option, which comes close to the range of gas cars its size. However, that model will obviously be much more expensive than the basic 160 mile range one.
DaniFong 17y ago
Flow batteries, wherein one may pump spent electrolytes out of your tank and replace them with new ones, fresh and charged, ready to go. One might also use compressed air, which can be refilled with electric energy by powering a compressor, but may also be pumped quickly, for rapid recharge.
- cschneid 17y ago
  I need to go look up the internals of batteries, but the first option is interesting. The second option is basically the flywheel suggestion, except with compressed gas instead of a spinning wheel. At that point you require a second power system, and it's probably better to refill on gas/diesel and be done with it.
  - DaniFong 17y ago
    In our estimates compressed air can be comparable to gas in capital cost, and far less expensive in lifetime cost. The technical development required is substantial though.
MikeCapone 17y ago
One way to minimize the number of times where you need a fast recharge is to partially charge almost every time you stop somewhere for more than a few minutes. Most cars sit in driveways and parking lots the vast majority of the time (I don't know the average, but I would bet something like 20-22 hours out of 24). This wouldn't completely solve the problem, but make it much rarer.
natrius 17y ago
"The only thing I've ever come up with is a hot-swappable battery, so they sit and charge at a station until needed, then you swap a new one into the car." http://www.betterplace.com/ http://www.betterplace.com/
rdtsc 17y ago
> I don't see a future for purely electric vehicles, it seems like hybrids cover many more use cases. It's a chicken and egg problem. Imagine that some restaurants and parking garages also had charging stations. You park and have dinner, while your car is charging. Or you park, go get your haircut, or go shopping and your car is charging. There is a good business opportunity for "charge" stations as well. Gas stations would love to keep people around long enough for them to walk in and buy a candy bar. If they stay longer, perhaps they'll get thirsty and buy some soft drinks.

fuzzmeister 17y ago

The Tesla Model S will have a 300 mile range option, which comes close to the range of gas cars its size. However, that model will obviously be much more expensive than the basic 160 mile range one.

DaniFong 17y ago

Flow batteries, wherein one may pump spent electrolytes out of your tank and replace them with new ones, fresh and charged, ready to go. One might also use compressed air, which can be refilled with electric energy by powering a compressor, but may also be pumped quickly, for rapid recharge.

cschneid 17y ago
I need to go look up the internals of batteries, but the first option is interesting. The second option is basically the flywheel suggestion, except with compressed gas instead of a spinning wheel. At that point you require a second power system, and it's probably better to refill on gas/diesel and be done with it.
- DaniFong 17y ago
  In our estimates compressed air can be comparable to gas in capital cost, and far less expensive in lifetime cost. The technical development required is substantial though.

MikeCapone 17y ago

One way to minimize the number of times where you need a fast recharge is to partially charge almost every time you stop somewhere for more than a few minutes. Most cars sit in driveways and parking lots the vast majority of the time (I don't know the average, but I would bet something like 20-22 hours out of 24). This wouldn't completely solve the problem, but make it much rarer.

natrius 17y ago

"The only thing I've ever come up with is a hot-swappable battery, so they sit and charge at a station until needed, then you swap a new one into the car." http://www.betterplace.com/ http://www.betterplace.com/

rdtsc 17y ago

> I don't see a future for purely electric vehicles, it seems like hybrids cover many more use cases. It's a chicken and egg problem. Imagine that some restaurants and parking garages also had charging stations. You park and have dinner, while your car is charging. Or you park, go get your haircut, or go shopping and your car is charging. There is a good business opportunity for "charge" stations as well. Gas stations would love to keep people around long enough for them to walk in and buy a candy bar. If they stay longer, perhaps they'll get thirsty and buy some soft drinks.