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> 1. They'll be able to line the entire trailer with batteries But that's an enormous inversion of expense that falls on the trailer owners. The tractor-trail
by dingaling 10y ago
> 1. They'll be able to line the entire trailer with batteries
But that's an enormous inversion of expense that falls on the trailer owners. The tractor-trailer model works so well because it concentrates complexity and cost in the tractor.
At present trailers are mechanically fairly simple and require only routine servicing with a basic toolkit. They draw power from their tractor. An owner can maintain a fleet of trailers to match their peak demand and are immediately available. Just charter a tractor and away they go.
Battery-equipped trailers will be much more complex, heavy and maintenance-intensive. More expensive but with a smaller payload and prolonged periods of unavailability whilst charging. The cost of haulage charters will have to reduce by magnitudes to make that an attractive preposition.
- pfranz 10y agoSemis sound like a better market for hot-swapping and renting your battery compared to consumers. The rollout is a bit more straightforward since the travel routes are more obvious (weigh stations or truck stops).
- tim333 10y agoSome math on the weight issue - A big rig tractor unit is about 10 tons in weight. A tesla model S battery is about half a ton. The energy to move a truck is maybe 8x (given trucks get 5mpg, cars 40mpg approx), so that's a 4 ton battery for 200 mile range. Electric motors weigh much less than a large diesel engine so the weight would come out about the same. I think cost may be more of an issue.
- aerovistae 10y agoMaybe I'm wrong! I admit I'm no automotive electric engineer. But they clearly have some design in mind that'll work.