Category Archives: Batteries

Anyone who whines about airplanes should have to take the Oregon Trail

Posted on June 20, 2017 by

Source: Book cover of “Oregon Or Bust: True Short Stories from the Descendants of Oregon Trail Pioneers, Prospectors, Trappers, and Settlers in the Great Northwest Hardcover” by Gentry Ward Cutsforth (2012), XLibris. [ In addition, I recommend the Louis CK … Continue reading →

Posted in Airplanes, Lithium-ion, Transportation | Tagged , , | 3 Comments

How are energy storage batteries coming along? U.S. House hearing 2015

Posted on April 5, 2017 by

[ My favorite quotes from this U.S. House of Representatives session: THOMAS MASSIE, KENTUCKY. I want to say this has been a very enlightening hearing, and it confirms my personal experience, which is batteries are not sexy. Buckets of acid … Continue reading →

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How is California’s AB2514 experiment with utility scale battery storage coming along?

Posted on December 3, 2016 by

[ This is an excellent article by Tod Kiefer about tests of sodium-sulfur batteries, which are the only kind of battery for which there is enough material on earth to make. Battery electric storage is meant to “replace nimble, fast-ramping … Continue reading →

Posted in Batteries, Battery - Utility Scale, Electricity | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

Notes from “The Powerhouse: Inside the Invention of a Battery to Save the World” by Steve LeVine

Posted on December 2, 2016 by

[ My notes from 2015 “The Powerhouse: Inside the Invention of a Battery to Save the World” by Steve LeVine follow this introduction. I read this book because I’ve done extensive research on batteries and was surprised by all the … Continue reading →

Posted in Automobiles, Batteries, Energy | Tagged , | 1 Comment

Heavy-duty hydrogen fuel cell trucks a waste of energy and money

Posted on September 3, 2016 by

[ Fuel cells are seen as an alternative to batteries, because batteries may always be too heavy to move trucks: Battery electric trucks (BEV) may never work out. Even if 5 to 10 times as much battery energy density (Wh/kg) … Continue reading →

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Utility scale energy storage batteries limited by materials and few locations for pumped hydro, compressed air

Posted on August 14, 2016 by

[ Natural gas is finite, but aside from (pumped) hydropower, natural gas is the main way wind and solar are balanced now. Therefore, a tremendous amount of energy storage will be needed in the future as natural gas declines. The … Continue reading →

Posted in Alternative Energy Resources, Batteries, Energy Storage | Tagged , , , | 2 Comments

Diesel is finite. Trucks are the bedrock of civilization. So where are the battery electric trucks?

Posted on July 1, 2016 by

[ Related articles Just 16,000 catenary trucks would use 1% of California’s electricity generation, all vehicles 2.5 times more power than available Off Road vehicles and equipment need diesel fueled engines for power, mobility, and efficiency Hybrid electric trucks are … Continue reading →

Posted in Batteries, Electric Trucks, Electric trucks impossible | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 8 Comments

Hybrid electric trucks are very different from HEV cars

Posted on June 7, 2016 by

[ This document explains why it is hard to transfer auto hybrid technology to trucks.  They are entirely different animals — medium-duty trucks weigh up to 10 times more, have up to 10 times the horsepower, and a far longer … Continue reading →

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Electric truck range is less in cold weather

Posted on June 4, 2016 by

[ What follows are excerpts from Calstart’s study of the effects cold weather had on lithium and Sodium Nickel Chloride e-truck batteries Alice Friedemann   www.energyskeptic.com  author of “When Trucks Stop Running: Energy and the Future of Transportation”, 2015, Springer and … Continue reading →

Posted in Batteries, Electric Trucks, Electric trucks impossible | Tagged , , | 3 Comments

Who Killed the Electric Car and more importantly, the Electric Truck?

Posted on March 22, 2016 by

[ Who cares about electric CARS?  Civilization ends when trucks stop running, and trucks can’t run on batteries because they’re too heavy (93% of the cargo weight, 25% of the cargo space), and an all-electric truck fleet would require thousands … Continue reading →

Posted in Automobiles, Batteries, Electric trucks impossible, Electrification, Optimism & Critical Thinking, Transportation, Transportation | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Who Killed the Electric Car and more importantly, the Electric Truck?