Transportation

1. Transportation Alicia Kettler, Dana Sweatlock, Elizabeth De Smet

2. History • 3 types of engines • Gas • Diesel • Daimler, Benz • Steam • Patented by Savery • Improved by Watt

3. Gas, Diesel, & Steam • Gas • http://auto.howstuffworks.com/engine1.htm • Diesel • http://www.howstuffworks.com/diesel1.htm • Steam • http://www.howstuffworks.com/steam1.htm

4. Efficiency • The efficiency of engines whether gasoline, diesel, or steam are important factors in pollution and resource consumption

5. Combustion • There are two forms of combustion in engines • Internal • Where fuel is burned inside the engine • External • Where fuel is burned outside the engine • Steam engines utilize external combustion • Diesel and gasoline engines use internal combustion

6. Steam Engines • Steam engines are only about 1-3% efficient • This is due to a loss of heat to the atmosphere • A condenser can be added with the potential of higher efficiency but the difference is small http://sitemanager.ncl.ac.uk/images/projects/swan_2774.jpg

7. Gasoline Engines • Only 15% of the energy from fuel goes to moving the car • That does not take into consideration that there is inefficiency in gas production • Overall the engine is about 25% efficient

8. http://www.fueleconomy.gov/feg/tech/energy.gif

9. Diesel Engines • About 30-35% efficient concerning the energy that goes to movement http://www.hydrogen-fc.com/wp-content/uploads/2007/01/efficiency_comparison.jpg

10. New Technologies • In recent years, there have been many new advancements in transportation technologies. Some of these advancements include: • Natural Gas Vehicles • Electric Vehicles • Hydrogen Fuel Cell Vehicles

11. Natural Gas Vehicles (NGV’s) • 110,000 NGV’s on the road today – 11 million worldwide • 1,100 fueling stations in the US – half open to public • At the pump, natural gas costs about half as much as a gallon of gasoline. • Natural Gas is sold in gasoline gallon equivalents (GGE). A GGE has the same energy content as a gallon of unleaded gasoline without ethanol (125,000 Btu) http://www.ngvc.org/about_ngv/index.html

12. Natural Gas Vehicles Cont… • Benefits • Less dependent on foreign oil • 98% of natural gas used is produced in North America • Reduced emissions • Carbon monoxide by 70-90% • Non-methane organic gas by 50-75% • Nitrogen oxides by 75-95% • Carbon dioxide by 20-30% • Natural gas has less carbon than any other fossil fuel http://www.ngvc.org/about_ngv/index.html

13. Natural Gas Vehicles Cont… • Benefits • Safety • Natural gas dissipates into the atmosphere in the event of an accident • No pools on the ground, like gasoline, that could create a fire hazard • Fuel storage cylinders for natural gas are stronger than those used for gasoline. • Natural gas has a higher ignition temperature than gasoline and a narrow range of flammability. • Natural gas is not toxic or corrosive – will not contaminate ground water http://www.ngvc.org/about_ngv/index.html

14. Natural Gas Vehicles Cont… • Target audience • Lack of infrastructure – Fleets • Fleets usually refuel in a central location and don’t need a widespread infrastructure • Many fleets are already beginning to use NGV’s • Taxi cabs • Transit buses • School buses • Delivery vehicles • Street sweepers http://www.ngvc.org/about_ngv/index.html

15. Electric Vehicles • Electric vehicles are propelled by an electric motor powered by rechargeable battery pack. • There are several advantages over internal combustion engines, as well as several significant disadvantages http://www.fueleconomy.gov/feg/evtch.shtml

16. Electric Vehicles cont… • Advantages • Energy efficient- 75% of chemical energy from battery goes to power the wheels • Internal combustion engines only convert about 20% • Environmentally friendly – no tailpipe pollution • BUT not emission free if a fossil fuel power plant generates the electricity to charge the vehicle • Performance benefits – quiet smooth operation http://www.fueleconomy.gov/feg/evtch.shtml

17. Electric Vehicles cont… • Disadvantages • Driving Range – EV’s can only go 100-200 miles before needing to be recharged • Gasoline vehicles on average can go about 300 miles • Recharge time – full charge- 4-8 hours, “quick charge” of 80% battery- 30 minutes. • Battery cost – expensive and need to be replaced more often than a battery in a gasoline car • Bulk & Weight – battery packs are heavy and large http://www.fueleconomy.gov/feg/evtch.shtml

18. Electric Vehicles Coming The Nissan Leaf The Mini Cooper Electric Ford Focus Electric

19. Hydrogen • Charged plates conduct hydrogen • The electrons released create a current • http://inventors.about.com/od/sstartinventions/ss/Physics_Illustr_2.htm • Water is released as a byproduct

20. Hydrogen Fuel Cell Efficiency • A fuel cell’s efficiency is dependant on the fuel that it is charged with • A cell powered by pure hydrogen can be 80% efficient http://i36.tinypic.com/n3nqz7.jpg

21. Conversion • The energy taken from the hydrogen would be converted to electrical energy and then to mechanical work • The electric motor and inverter perform this process • This step is about 80% efficient making the cell only about 64% efficient under ideal circumstances

22. Fuel • If the fuel does not come from pure hydrogen the vehicle requires the use of a transformer, which will turn hydrocarbon and alcohol fuels into hydrogen • The heat given off in this process lowers the efficiency of the system

23. Efficiency in Practice • Fuel cell vehicles are only about 40% efficient • The losses that come from the production (“power-plant-to-wheel”) lowers the efficiency to 22% for gaseous hydrogen and 17% for liquefied hydrogen http://www.blogcdn.com/green.autoblog.com/media/2006/11/slides-for-sam.jpg

24. Benefits of Fuel Cells • Fewer emissions/pollutants • Tailpipe emits only heat and water • Only pollutants and greenhouse gasses that are emitted come from the fossil fuels used to produce hydrogen • Reduce oil dependence • Hydrogen can be derived from domestic sources • Fuel cells can store enough hydrogen to travel about as far as a gasoline engine. http://www.fueleconomy.gov/feg/fcv_benefits.shtml

25. Challenges of Fuel Cells • Onboard Hydrogen Storage – systems are large, heavy, and expensive • Vehicle cost- too expensive to compete with hybrids and gasoline/diesel vehicles • Fuel Cell durability/reliability- not as durable as internal combustion engines • Lack of infrastructure • There is currently no infrastructure in place to deliver hydrogen to consumers. New facilities need to be made for producing, transporting, and dispensing hydrogen to consumers • Safety/Public Acceptance • public does not now how to handle hydrogen – new fuel storage • Fuel cell technology needs to be embraced by consumers before it is economically viable. http://www.fueleconomy.gov/feg/fcv_benefits.shtml

26. The Future of Hydrogen Fuel Cells • Many car manufacturers are currently working on hydrogen fuel cell vehicles • BMW – CleanEnergy Education Program • Chrystler – ecoVoyager concept vehicle • Ford – fuel cell vehicles • GM – Chevy Equinox fuel cell vehicle • Honda – FCX Clarity fuel cell vehicle • Nissan – X-Trail fuel cell vehicle

27. Honda FCX Fuel Cell Chevy Equinox Fuel Cell Nissan X-Trail Fuel Cell BMW CleanEnergy Fuel Cell