16/07/2012
An electrifying way to lower our carbon footprint
There’s undoubtedly loads of research time going into making motoring more ecological and economical.
Many scientists and manufacturers are scrambling over each other in an attempt to lower everyone’s carbon footprint.
One recent break-through is the work of a Japanese research team at The Toyohashi University of Technology. They have devised a way for electric cars of the future to charge as they drive – rendering the need for car charging points obsolete.
They are going to electrify the roads.
Yes – the surface pedestrians cross over regularly and drivers step onto to access their vehicles – they believe that pumping electricity through it is a good idea.
The team managed to send electrical current through six inches of concrete, through tyres, to a light bulb which lit up to show the experiment had been successful.
Apparently that experiment could be scaled up so the current would go through 12 inches of concrete and be viable as an actual way of powering electric cars, but the current’s strength would also have to be increased.
Forgive me if I’m not that taken with the idea. Don’t we already have enough road accidents annually? Let’s not add electrocution to those stats.
Many scientists and manufacturers are scrambling over each other in an attempt to lower everyone’s carbon footprint.One recent break-through is the work of a Japanese research team at The Toyohashi University of Technology. They have devised a way for electric cars of the future to charge as they drive – rendering the need for car charging points obsolete.
They are going to electrify the roads.
Yes – the surface pedestrians cross over regularly and drivers step onto to access their vehicles – they believe that pumping electricity through it is a good idea.
The team managed to send electrical current through six inches of concrete, through tyres, to a light bulb which lit up to show the experiment had been successful.
Apparently that experiment could be scaled up so the current would go through 12 inches of concrete and be viable as an actual way of powering electric cars, but the current’s strength would also have to be increased.
Forgive me if I’m not that taken with the idea. Don’t we already have enough road accidents annually? Let’s not add electrocution to those stats.
Photo © Icronic.com via Flickr, under Creative Commons Licence
Labels: carbon footprint, ecological, economical, electric cars, motoring, power, research team, scientists
24/06/2011
Soon electric won’t seem so eccentric
One of the major reasons people are sceptical of the benefits of electric cars is a fear that this type of vehicle will leave them short.
It’s understandable – I mean, who would want to run out of juice just as they’re on a deserted road in the wilds of Rannoch Moor and a louring sky is closing in?
But slowly, ever since the first generation Prius appeared through to the latest Nissan Leaf, people are being converted to greener motoring.
Just last week it was reported that the founder of the charity Zero Carbon World had managed to drive the 894 mile length of Britain in an electric Tesla car, using only public car battery charging points to keep him going.
Good news is that the car managed to negotiate even the most challenging of terrains and conditions without so much as a hiccup, often reaching speeds of 70mph.
Maybe one day we will all be electric and the petrol pump will be a thing of the past.
It’s understandable – I mean, who would want to run out of juice just as they’re on a deserted road in the wilds of Rannoch Moor and a louring sky is closing in?But slowly, ever since the first generation Prius appeared through to the latest Nissan Leaf, people are being converted to greener motoring.
Just last week it was reported that the founder of the charity Zero Carbon World had managed to drive the 894 mile length of Britain in an electric Tesla car, using only public car battery charging points to keep him going.
Good news is that the car managed to negotiate even the most challenging of terrains and conditions without so much as a hiccup, often reaching speeds of 70mph.
Maybe one day we will all be electric and the petrol pump will be a thing of the past.
Image by NRMAdriverseat via Flickr, under Creative Commons Licence
Labels: electric cars, Nissan Leaf, Prius, vehicles
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