🚀 go-pugleaf

In article <2ib43b$lr5@cville-srv.wam.umd.edu>, rsrodger@wam.umd.edu (R S Rodgers) writes:
|> In article <2i8sob$qb@cronkite.seas.gwu.edu>,
|> Wael El-Sharif <waele@seas.gwu.edu> wrote:
|> >I have to disagree, new cars are less of a problem than old cars. Electric
|> >vehicles are much cleaner; granted the technology is not yet perfect but it
|> >is getting there.
|> 
|> 
|> 	What makes you think EVs are cleaner?  They may be locally
|> 	cleaner (e.g., no local emissions, only battery-related pollution) 
|> 	but the charge in those batteries was produced at a power plant. 
|> 	It is unrealistic to seriously claim that most people will be recharging
|> 	their cars at night when "demands are less."  
|> 
|> 	We're going to have to build new power plants if EVs get anywhere. 
|> 	It's a fact of life.  Another fact: they're not going to be nice,
|> 	clean nuclear plants because the environmentalists have done a nice
|> 	job getting legislation enacted and spreading fear.  They're going
|> 	to be oil plants.  Coal plants.  Hydroelectric plants.  None of which
|> 	are as benign to the environment as the nuclear option.
|> 

  The emissions and efficiency of a power plant is far far greater than
a combustion engine. Equipment is in place that filter and cleans emissions
prior to leaving the smoke stack. That type of equipment would just not be
possible on a car.

  
|> 
|> >  When EVs are commercialized the price will drop and 
|> >with the on-going improvements in battery technology, performance will
|> >improve leaving no excuses.
|> 
|> 
|> 	It depends on how you define "battery technology"--it's pretty unlikely
|> 	that current battery technologies will _ever_ evolve into something
|> 	that will make EVs of equal safety and performance to gasoline cars
|> 	possible.  Alternatives (e.g., flywheels) might do the trick, but 
|> 	then again, they might not.  
|> 
|>
   Thats pretty strong. Who says we need the performance of a gasoline car?
For a large percentage of the population, their mileage to work allows
cars to be driven to and from work, charged slowly over night. The only
reason these cars are expensive now is because U.S. automakers are not putting
the resources into developing them. In many instances, I've read where
large companies have less than 5 people in their entire EV research group.
The Japanese have hundreds looking into this.

   If the U.S. auto makers would get off their duffs, they could reap the
economic benefits that would propel the auto industry to new highs. Instead,
the focus their money and effort into hiring lawyers and lobbyists to fight
Californias zero emissions laws, etc. 
|> 
|> 
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-- 
Ken Bass
Software Engineer, Hughes Network Systems
kbass@hns.com