Wind and Hydrogen
Electric cars are coming. Period. They simply have too many too great advantages to not. All kidding about the long extention cord aside, the biggest problem has always been the supply of electricity, and that can now be handled. How this will all shake out is yet to be seen, but here are some ideas.
All of this is covered in more detail in one or more other essays. This is just putting it together with perhaps a bit different idea. Not really a plan, as that would require running the numbers. I can't run all of them, so only present this as an idea.
In many ways hydrogen is a great fuel. It is high in energy and it alone can currently be used in a practical fuel cell. There are all manner of fuel cells out there, and some, hopefully, will someday be developed to the point where they are usable for cars, but right now, only the hydrogen fuel cell is really usable. Even it is too expensive, but that is mainly because of the platinum catalysts used in them. Recycling the platinum or use of other catalysts, such as nano-particles from the Fe-Co-Ni group may reduce cost significantly. In the meantime, they do work and can be used for cars.
On the other hand, there are real problems using hydrogen. It is a very low density gas under all reasonable conditions and that makes it hard to handle. Probably impractical to produce large quantities at large plants, then ship it around to where it is to be used. Hard to carry enough in a car, but if you will tolerate a range of say 150 miles, about 2 hours on the interstate, it probably can be done. And of course the real trick is to produce it where needed as needed. This is what is done with a "reformer", which is an onboard chemical plant to break down a liquid fuel, such as gasoline, into hydrogen and carbon dioxide. The hydrogen can then be used to supply a hydrogen fuel cell for an electric car. Several companies are working on that approach. Many problems with a reformer, not the least of which is to clean up the hydrogen, removing sulfur and carbon monoxide and other things, which will "poison" current membranes.
Wind energy is attractive as the wind is free. It is also sporatic making it unsuitable for putting directly onto the grid. It is being done, mainly as a political manuver, but there are real problems trying to get much wind energy onto the grid.
Let's start by looking at three approaches to electric cars. First is the extended range commuter, generally known as a serial hybrid, such as the Chevrolet Volt. A 16 kwh lithium ion battery expected to retain at least 12 kwh for about 10 years, and using about 8 or 9 kwh per charge cycle. Capable of 40 miles, then a small ICE driving a generator to keep going indefinitely as long as you put gasoline in the tank. Second, all electric, such as the Tesla. A sports car with a 53 kwh Li-ion battery, capable of about 200 - 240 miles with sports car performance. Third the Phoenix, a sport truck, whatever that is, with a 35 kwh lithium titanate battery that can be recharged in 10 minutes, and good for about 100 miles. Might also mention the GM Equinox, an SUV running on hydrogen, with a small NiMH battery, used only to supplement the hydrogen fuel cell. About 160 - 200 miles range.
I think the extended range (Chevy Volt) will be a design concept that will really take hold and sooner than you might expect, be all over the place. A mere 40 miles sounds too small, but consider that about 80% of all driving in this country is less than that. Most people will be able to drive all week without using a drop, yet if they need to go farther, can without any concern. Excellant design, and there is more. Recharging over night allows time to work for you I might digress at this point and point out that energy is power multiplied by time. More time, less power for the same energy. Switching to units as that probably means more to most people, and using electricity, we can say power is volts times amps. One volt producing one amp of current is one watt of power. That is not much and you usually see it as a thousand of them, a kilowatt. Energy is then volts times amps times hours and is measured in watt-hours, or more usually in kilowatt hours (1000 of them) or megawatt hours (a million).
Now this is physics, you are stuck with these products. No development can change them. Better designs may reduce the energy needed, but for a given amount of energy, you need some combination of volts, amps, and hours whose product is the energy you need.
Recharging 8 kwh in 8 hours (overnight) obviously requires a kilowatt of power. At 110 volts, that is just over 9 amps, and is very doable. The standard wall outlet is 15 amps at 110 volts. There is another advantage as night is off peak. Demand is down, plenty of electricity is available, the grid managers will even appreciate some more draw as it balaces the daily power they supply. All things considered, I am convinced the extended range commuter will be a very successful concept.
Now look at the over the road pure electric, such as the Tesla. Actually, lets assume a 4 place sedan with the lithium titanate battery, which can be recharged in 10 minutes. Assume 35 kwh giving a range of 200 miles. Both of these are quite acceptable, I think. Problem is, you pull in to a filling station and recharge your 35 kwh in just 10 minutes, time is against you. That is 1/6 hour, so you need 6 times 35, about 200 kw. At 250 volts, reasonable for the battery voltage of an all electric, that is about 800 amps. That is a scary current, needing a large cable (think wrist sized, or at least large garden hose), and if the station has a half dozen bays, each being used simultaneously, that is 1.2 megawatts. Could dim the lights of a bunch of houses.
A typical house these days is wired for 200 amps. At 110, that is only about 20 kw. Just one of these cars being recharged need about 10 times as much. Several of them will put a heck of a demand spike on the grid, and after a few minutes, will be off. That can make it rather difficult to manage the grid. Now I know the current attitude is for the government to simply mandate like Boss Hogg saying, "tend to it, tend to it", but I think some thought better be given to making it possible and reasonable if you want it done.
Here is an idea to adress two problems by addressing them together and providing benefits that hopefully will make them worth while. If the numbers work out, go for it. If not, forget it. I am not in favor of pushing something impractical such as corn to ethanol.
Start out with serial hybrids such as the Chevrolet Volt. That is actually a good first step, but it only throws away the transmission and improves gas mileage up to about 50 mpg. Worth while, but only a step. Actually, two drive motors would eliminate the differential as well.
Next, replace the ICE - generator recharging plant with a direct methanol fuel cell. There is a problem with that as they are not yet there. The big problem is that the membrane currently used, nafion, is permeable to methanol. Meaning methanol seeps through. This is tolerable for a lap top, fatal for a car. MIT has announced a new membrane that is impermeable to methanol. Right now it is a labrotory curiosity, but may be developed or something similar or better, which will allow a practical methanol fuel cell for cars. A cheaper catalyst is also needed.
Once you have the direct methanol fuel cell, you will have quite a car. Few machined or moving parts to wear out and a fuel that should easily be cheaper to use than gasoline. Reduce imports. Significantly less carbon dioxide, but still some, so you will continue to have static from the activists. I personally am not concerned with the CO2, but they have political clout and it is better to not have to fight them if possible. In addition, no fluids: motor oil, transmission fluid, coolant.
There will be a problem getting methanol available everywhere, but it is already on the market and can be quickly added at filling stations as they see the market for cars. For one thing, most stations already have extra pumps for gasahol, but since all gas now has to have ethanol (government), they are not needed and can be used for methanol. Maybe the first manufacturer can close a deal with soime chain like Break Time to add it just before the cars hit the market. There should be enough advantages that it will catch on quickly.
Now notice that there is no reason why a direct methanol fuel cell cannot work directly with pure hydrogen. Need to blow out the liquid switching to hydrogen, bleed out the hydrogen switching back, but that is minor engineering. By simply adding a presure tank for hydrogen and a fuel line and a few odds and ends like a pump or two, you can have a car that will run on either methanol or hydrogen.Why add hydrogen? Potentially a cheaper fuel, quite renewable, and no emmisions at all other than water vapour.
Why would filling stations fool with it until there are many cars out there and why would anyone want them before hydrogen is readily available? Good questions and I think I have an answer. An arrangment with the grid managers to price electricty according to demand and supply and buy and sell from/to filling stations to level out supply. Something they already would appreciate. Variable pricing could easily be handled by computers with the price going up when the grid needs more, and down when they have more than they need. It would be worth a bit of bother to them to not have to start up or shut down base plants quite so soon.
This could encourage filling stations, at least along the interstate, to put in a wind generator, an elctolysis unit, and a storage tank for hydrogen. Add a hydrogen fuel cell and some electronics, and they would be ready to sell energy to the grid, electrolysing water to make hydrogen when the wind is blowing, then running it through the fuel cell to produce electricity to sell to the grid when the price is highest.
Notice that both the wind generator and the electrolysis unit need practically no attention. If this could be done at a profit, these could spread across the land, being helpful to the grid managers and adding a bit of profit for the stations, as well as using wind energy in large amounts without the headachs for the grid managers as the present direct connect does. Now as soon as cars able to use hydrogen show up, all that is needed is dispensing equipment to fill their tank as the hydrogen is already there. If a station sells more hydrogen than their wind generator is making, they could buy electricity from the grid when the price is low, electrolys water and store the hydrogen for a while until needed for a car.
Every hour or two, or three of travel, such a car could pull into a station. Perhaps put the battery on quick charge for cheapest energy. Fill the hydrogen tank at a bit more cost, and the methanol tank at yet more cost, but still less than gasoline. Then on down the road running on the battery until it gives out. Then use hydrogen until its tank is about empty. Switch to methanol and when it is getting about empty, pull in again. Probably need a rest room by then anyway.
There are problems. Can you store enough in a car to be worth fooling with it? The Equinox has 3 cylinders under the floor behind the rear axle. They are pressurized to 10,000 psi. That is too much. I don't want to be around them. This gives a range of about 160 - 200 miles. In our 3 way sedan, there would be no need for so much range as the others take care of some. Maybe you only need a single tank, tucked in somewhere, and at a lower, safer pressure. It would still have to be cylindrical or spherical, so would be hard to fit just anywhere, and would it make any sense to even fool with it for just a few miles? In addition, electrolysis and a hydrogen fuel cell would not be 100% efficient. You probably would be lucky to get 75% of your energy back. The ability to store it might make it worthwhile and if energy is free enough, maybe you can afford to waste some. You still have to pay for the equipment, you still have the benefit of distributed and stored power. I am just afraid it would become government mandated, paid for by a never ending subsidy. Kinda like the hydrogen fuel stations in California that allow the Equinox to operate. Provided by the government and will never pay for themselves. The whole thing is just a demonstation of.... I really don't know what; perhaps the futility of using hydrogen as an automotive fuel.
Maybe a bit more practical would be to concentrate on the serial hybrids and full electrics. If the filling station had a bank of batteries, kept charged over time, and used to recharge the car batteries, maybe the power peaks could be spread out enough to get by. This could still support a wind generator, charging the batteries when the wind is blowing, either direct to the car if able, or into the batteries when no or few cars, supplemented from the batteries when too many of them or not enought wind. You would not have much oportunity to charge a lot ahead overnight as the batteries are too expensive (I have seen $1000 per kwh), but an investment of a few tens of thousands could make the filling station work, from the grid or a local wind generator, and per station could allow the grid to more easily handle wind generators.
I don't know the cost of installing a wind generator, but it should be less along the interstate than out in a field in a wind farm as there would be no need to build roads. I have seen estimates of electricty from wind costing 5 to 10 cents. From the grid it is currently about 8 - 12, so it might work. Incidently, one advantage of electric cars is energy cost. Assuming 35 kwh for 200 miles and 8 cents per kwh, that is $2.80 for a recharge, and about 1.4 cents per mile. For ICE, assuming 30 mpg and $2.00 per gallon, that is 6.7 cents per mile, about 4 times as much as the electric.
All sorts of advantages here. Maybe it will work. If some or all this comes to pass somday, remember you saw it first here.