University of Southern Queensland Faculty of Engineering & Surveying

Total Eﬀect on the Environment of Electric/Hybrid Electric Vehicle Batteries

A dissertation submitted by

C.O’Donnell

in fulﬁlment of the requirements of

ENG4112 Research Project

towards the degree of

Bachelor of Engineering (electrical)

Submitted: October, 2007 Abstract

1.0 Introduction

The depletion of fossil fuels and greenhouse gas emissions are major issues facing the world today. Conventional vehicles, such as combustion driven buses and cars, are major contributors to these issues. Electric or hybrid electric vehicles (part combustion, part electrical) are being oﬀered as an alternative for the future but one of the biggest challenges is the storage of energy in these vehicles. This study is to determine the impact on the environment of the energy storage cells (batteries) used by these vehicles.

2.0 Background

Even though the ﬁrst electrical powered vehicle was built in the early 19th century, electric or hybrid electric vehicles have not made any real impact in the automotive industry until recently. Several legislative and regulatory actions (involving emissions) in the United States and worldwide have renewed electric/hybrid electric vehicle development eﬀorts. Electric conversions of gasoline powered vehicles as well as electric vehicles designed from the ground up are now available. Unfortunately, the development of batteries for energy storage has been less than desired. There has been some technological advances but have they come at a price to the environment?

3.0 Objectives

1. Research various types of energy storage cells currently available

2. Collect data for energy storage cells (components, types of material, weight etc) ii 3. Use an appropriate (Life Cycle Assessment) software package to determine total eﬀect on environment of each energy storage cell type

4. Compare energy storage cell types in terms of total eﬀect on the environment

4.0 Methodology

The Life Cycle Assessment software tool ”SimaPro” was used to determine and compare the impact on the environment of the batteries. Matlab was also used for evaluation.

5.0 Conclusions

This study has shown that the total effect on the environment of the batteries depend on their application (ie hybrid electric or electric) because these different applications have different requirements of energy etc which, in turn, requires different masses. Therefore, from an environmental and practical point of view, different battery types are better suited to each different application. University of Southern Queensland Faculty of Engineering and Surveying

ENG4111/2 Research Project

Limitations of Use

The Council of the University of Southern Queensland, its Faculty of Engineering and Surveying, and the staﬀ of the University of Southern Queensland, do not accept any responsibility for the truth, accuracy or completeness of material contained within or associated with this dissertation.

Persons using all or any part of this material do so at their own risk, and not at the risk of the Council of the University of Southern Queensland, its Faculty of Engineering and Surveying or the staﬀ of the University of Southern Queensland.

This dissertation reports an educational exercise and has no purpose or validity beyond this exercise. The sole purpose of the course pair entitled “Research Project” is to contribute to the overall education within the student’s chosen degree program. This document, the associated hardware, software, drawings, and other material set out in the associated appendices should not be used for any other purpose: if they are so used, it is entirely at the risk of the user.

Prof F Bullen Dean Faculty of Engineering and Surveying Certiﬁcation of Dissertation

I certify that the ideas, designs and experimental work, results, analyses and conclusions set out in this dissertation are entirely my own eﬀort, except where otherwise indicated and acknowledged. I further certify that the work is original and has not been previously submitted for assessment in any other course or institution, except where speciﬁcally stated.

C.O’Donnell

0050016847

Signature

Date Acknowledgments

I would like to thank my family, in particular my wife Josephine, for their help and patience. I would also like to thank my employer, East Coast Apprenticeships, for granting me leave to complete this project. Associate Professor David Parsons also needs to be thanked for help with the SimaPro LCA tool.

C.O’Donnell

University of Southern Queensland October 2007 Contents

Abstract i

Acknowledgments v

List of Figures ix

Chapter 1 Introduction 1

1.1 Chapter 1 Overview ...... 2

1.2 Project introduction ...... 2

1.3 Chapter 2 Overview ...... 2

1.4 Chapter 3 Overview ...... 3

1.5 Chapter 4 Overview ...... 4

1.6 Chapter 5 Overview ...... 4

1.7 Chapter 6 Overview ...... 4

Chapter 2 Background and Literature Review 5

2.1 Chapter 2 introduction ...... 6 CONTENTS vii

2.2 LaTex ...... 7

2.3 Subat (Sustainable Batteries) ...... 9

2.4 Greenhouse Gases ...... 11

2.5 Electric Vehicle Description ...... 17

2.6 Electric Vehicle History ...... 19

2.7 Hybrid Electric Vehicle Description ...... 22

2.8 Hybrid Electric Vehicle History ...... 24

2.9 Battery Types ...... 26

2.10 Life Cycle Analysis ...... 33

2.10.1 The Four Main Phases of Life Cycle Assessment ...... 35

2.11 SimaPro ...... 46

2.12 Chapter 2 conclusions ...... 51

Chapter 3 Methodology 52

3.1 Chapter 3 introduction ...... 53

3.2 Battery Data ...... 54

3.3 EV Battery Masses ...... 58

3.4 EV Battery Parameters ...... 62

3.5 HEV Battery Masses ...... 64

3.6 HEV Battery Parameters ...... 67

3.7 Chapter 3 conclusions ...... 68 CONTENTS viii

Chapter 4 Analysis 69

4.1 Chapter 4 introduction ...... 70

4.2 EV data entry plus output results ...... 71

4.3 HEV data entry plus output results ...... 74

4.4 Chapter 4 conclusions ...... 77

Chapter 5 Results 78

5.1 Chapter 5 introduction ...... 79

5.2 EV results ...... 80

5.3 HEV results ...... 82

5.4 Vehicle comparison ...... 84

5.5 Chapter 5 conclusions ...... 85

Chapter 6 Conclusion 86

6.1 Conclusion ...... 87

Bibliography 88

Appendix A Project Speciﬁcation 90

Appendix B EV Data Entry 93

Appendix C HEV Data Entry 98

Appendix D Matlab ﬁles 103 List of Figures

2.1 Atmospheric Concentrations ...... 12

2.2 Emissions ﬂow ...... 13

2.3 Gas emissions ...... 14

2.4 US consumption ...... 15

2.5 World emissions ...... 16

2.6 Hybrid vehicle overview ...... 23

3.1 Lead-acid battery material percentages ...... 54

3.2 Nickel cadmium battery material percentages ...... 55

3.3 Nickel metal hydride battery material percentages ...... 56

3.4 Sodium nickel chloride battery material percentages ...... 57

3.5 Calculation of masses formula ...... 59

3.6 EV data table ...... 60

3.7 EV masses table ...... 61

3.8 EV battery cycle life ...... 62 LIST OF FIGURES x

3.9 EV battery parameters ...... 63

3.10 HEV battery speciﬁcations ...... 65

3.11 HEV battery masses ...... 66

4.1 Lead-acid (EV) data entry ...... 71

4.2 SimaPro output for EV application ...... 72

4.3 EV Matlab output ...... 73

4.4 Lead-acid (HEV) data entry ...... 74

4.5 SimaPro output for HEV application ...... 75

4.6 HEV Matlab output ...... 76

5.1 EV environmental impact ...... 80

5.2 EV subat comparison ...... 81

5.3 HEV environmental impact ...... 82

5.4 HEV subat comparison ...... 83

5.5 Vehicle comparison ...... 84

B.1 EV lead-acid entry ...... 94

B.2 EV nickel cadmium entry ...... 95

B.3 EV nickel metal hydride entry ...... 96

B.4 EV sodium nickel chloride entry ...... 97

C.1 HEV lead-acid entry ...... 99 LIST OF FIGURES xi

C.2 HEV nickel cadmium entry ...... 100

C.3 HEV nickel metal hydride entry ...... 101

C.4 HEV sodium nickel chloride entry ...... 102

D.1 EV matlab ﬁle ...... 104

D.2 HEV matlab ﬁle ...... 105 Chapter 1

Introduction 1.1 Chapter 1 Overview 2

1.1 Chapter 1 Overview

This chapter will introduce the reader to the report, explain why this project was undertaken and give an overview of each chapter for ease of reference for the reader.

1.2 Project introduction

This project was undertaken because the depletion of fossil fuels and greenhouse gas emissions are major issues facing the world today. Conventional vehicles, such as combustion driven buses and cars, are major contributors to these issues. Electric or hybrid electric vehicles (part combustion, part electrical) are being oﬀered as an alternative for the future but one of the biggest challenges is the storage of energy in these vehicles. This study is to determine the impact on the environment of the energy storage cells (batteries) used by these vehicles.

The impact on the environment of the batteries was determined by a Life Cycle Anal- ysis tool (SimaPro), using a cradle-grave approach. The research, analysis techniques, results and conclusions are given in this report.

1.3 Chapter 2 Overview

Chapter 2 is the background and literature review. This chapter includes the following points:

1. As this entire report was written and compiled with the aid of LaTex, a brief explanation and history of LaTex is provided.

2. The SUBAT report was used as a reference for comparison and data information extensively for this project therefore an overview and brief explanation of the SUBAT report is also provided.

3. Why the eﬀects of greenhouse gases and fossil fuel depletion are major issues. 1.4 Chapter 3 Overview 3

4. Electric vehicle description

5. Electric vehicle history

6. Hybrid electric vehicle description

7. Hybrid electric vehicle history

8. Types of batteries currently being used or researched for electric/hybrid electric vehicles

9. A description of Life Cycle Analysis

10. A description of SimaPro (LCA analysis tool)

1.4 Chapter 3 Overview

Chapter 3 explains the methodology involved in determining parameters which are used to calculate the required data for entry into the SimaPro program. Accurate methodology and data is essential for a meaningful LCA result. This chapter includes the following points:

1. Battery material percentages

2. EV battery masses and how they were determined

3. Other EV battery parameters for the LCA and how they were determined

4. HEV battery masses and how they were determined

5. Other HEV battery parameters for the LCA and how they were determined 1.5 Chapter 4 Overview 4

1.5 Chapter 4 Overview

Chapter 4 explains the analysis process including all input requirements for SimaPro and the outputs from the program. This chapter includes the following points:

1. EV data entry and output results

2. HEV data entry and output results

1.6 Chapter 5 Overview

Chapter 5 discusses the results and compares the battery types to assess their relative impacts. An approximate vehicle impact is also given for interest. This chapter includes the following points:

1. EV battery analysis results discussion

2. HEV battery analysis results discussion

3. Conventional, EV and HEV comparison

1.7 Chapter 6 Overview

Chapter 6 discusses conclusions to be made from this project, analysis pitfalls and further work. Chapter 2

Background and Literature Review 2.1 Chapter 2 introduction 6

2.1 Chapter 2 introduction

As for any research project the research and literature review is a vital part. Information and data needs to be gathered and veriﬁed to produce an accurate and eﬀective report. This chapter includes the research and literature review used for the project. 2.2 LaTex 7

2.2 LaTex

This entire dissertation was written using LaTex so it is only appropriate that some information be supplied about this topic. This is by no means an introductory lesson but merely an overview of the LaTex program.

History

Donald E Knuth(www-cs-faculty.stanford. edu/ knuth) designed a typesetting program called TeX in the 1970s especially for complex mathematical text. LaTeX is a macro package that allows authors to use TeX easily, and uses TeX as its formatting engine. It is available for most operating systems; for example, you can use it on low-speciﬁcation PCs and Macs, as well as on powerful UNIX and VMS systems. There are many diﬀerent implementations of LaTeX. The word LaTeX is pronounced lay-tech or lah- tech (ch as in Scottish loch or just hard k), not latex (as in rubber). In plain text, the typography is LaTeX. The latest version is LaTeX2e.

LaTeX is a powerful typesetting system, used for producing scientiﬁc and mathematical documents of high typographic quality. Unlike WYSIWYG tools such as FrameMaker and Word, it uses plain text ﬁles that contain formatting commands. Its big, open source, stable and used by many technical publishing companies. Its also relatively unknown in the technical writing community. LaTeX is not a word processor! Instead, LaTeX encourages authors not to worry too much about the appearance of their documents but to concentrate on getting the right content. LaTeX is based on the idea that it is better to leave document design to document designers, and to let authors get on with writing documents.LaTeX contains features for:

1. Typesetting journal articles, technical reports, books, and slide presentations.

2. Control over large documents containing sectioning, cross-references, tables and ﬁgures.

3. Typesetting of complex mathematical formulas. Advanced typesetting of mathe- matics with AMS-LaTeX. 2.2 LaTex 8

4. Automatic generation of bibliographies and indexes.

5. Multi-lingual typesetting.

6. Inclusion of artwork, and process or spot colour.

7. Using PostScript or Metafont fonts.

The best source for news on TeX and LaTeX is the TeX Users Group.(Unwalla 2006)

Basic concepts

An author writes a LaTeX input file in a text editor and then compiles this using LaTeX. An input file contains text and commands for processing the text. There are some conceptual similarities to a markup language such as HTML. However, a fundamental difference is that LaTeX is designed as a page layout language, unlike HMTL which is functional markup. The whole point of LaTeX is to achieve perfect typographic output, which is not the purpose of HTML. LaTeX produces device-independent DVI files, from which you can generate PDF and PostScript files using the utilities that usually come with a LaTeX installation. Typically, you can also create a PDF file directly. There are GUI editors to help with creating input files, but many authors prefer to use highperformance text editors such as UltraEdit from IDM Computer Solutions Inc (www.ultraedit.com). LaTeX is very fussy. A trivial mistake may mean that no output is generated and many error messages are displayed. You will need to check the error logs, fix the problem and recompile. (Dante 2007) 2.3 Subat (Sustainable Batteries) 9

2.3 Subat (Sustainable Batteries)

The SUBAT (sustainable batteries) project was used as a major source of information and comparison for this project. The same parameters were used in this analysis as in the SUBAT project intentionally for comparative purposes. The SUBAT commission was required to provide a report on the possibility to maintain, or not, cadmium, in the exemption list of Directive 2000/53 on End-of-Life Vehicles. The SUBAT proposal’s aims were to make a comprehensive and complete assessment of commercially available and forthcoming battery technologies in the world, including Ni-Cd, on the basis of:

1. a technical assessment comparing their performances for full EV and HEV (specific energy, specific power, proven cycle life and calendar life, life cycle cost analysis, operation at extreme temperature, charge acceptance, maintenance issues, safety, en- ergetical efficiency of the battery systems, availability of recycling process at industrial stage, operation during applications). SUBAT also took into account the status of these batteries as to their availability as commercial products.

2. an environmental assessment in order to be able to give them an environmental score which can designate them as being a sustainable solution or not. A life-cycle-analysis approach will investigate availability of primary materials, environmental impact of extraction and manufacturing of the battery, emissions from the battery during use, release of components in case of accident, recycling of active materials, production of non-recyclable waste and environmental impact of recycling processes.

3.an economical assessment with both a micro-economical analysis of production, manufacturing cost of the batteries, forecast cost for the consumers and a macro-economical study to take into account the position of battery manufacturers on the global market, assessing European vs. non-European products and inﬂuence on the European trade balance.

Through this multidisciplinary approach, SUBAT will allow to deﬁne an overall view of all aspects of the automotive battery market, in order to provide the Commission with a valuable policy support tool that will assist in tracing the pathways for the sustainable transport of the future. 2.3 Subat (Sustainable Batteries) 10

SUBAT was performed by a multidisciplinary international partnership:

VUB Vrije Universiteit Brussel

Vakgroep Elektrotechniek

AVERE Association du vhicule lectrique routier europen

CEREVEH Centre d’tudes et de recherches sur les vhicules lectriques et hybrides

CITELEC Association of cities interested in electric vehicles

CEI Comitato Elettrotecnico Italiano

Commissione Italiana Veicoli Elettrici Stradali

ULB Universit Libre de Bruxelles

Centre d’tudes conomiques et sociales de l’environnement

DESA Universit di Pisa

Department of electrical systems and automation

This alliance of associations were able to obtain information from industry sources which was unable to be released due to the sensitivity of the technology. Therefore, the results obtained from the SUBAT project are taken to be accurate for this report. Even though information could not be provided from the SUBAT report, the methods and results for comparative purposes proved invaluable. 2.4 Greenhouse Gases 11

2.4 Greenhouse Gases

Greenhouse gases and fossil fuel depletion are major issues facing the world today. Many chemical compounds found in the Earths atmosphere act as greenhouse gases. These gases allow sunlight to enter the atmosphere freely. When sunlight strikes the Earths surface, some of it is reﬂected back towards space as infrared radiation (heat). Greenhouse gases absorb this infrared radiation and trap the heat in the atmosphere. Over time, the amount of energy sent from the sun to the Earths surface should be about the same as the amount of energy radiated back into space, leaving the temperature of the Earths surface roughly constant.

Many gases exhibit these greenhouse properties. Some of them occur in nature (water vapor, carbon dioxide, methane, and nitrous oxide), while others are exclusively human- made (like gases used for aerosols).

Levels of several important greenhouse gases have increased by about 25 percent since large-scale industrialization began around 150 years ago Figure 2.1. During the past 20 years, about three-quarters of human-made carbon dioxide emissions were from burning fossil fuels.

Concentrations of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere are naturally regulated by numer- ous processes collectively known as the carbon cycle Figure 2.2. The movement (ﬂux) of carbon between the atmosphere and the land and oceans is dominated by natural processes, such as plant photosynthesis. While these natural processes can absorb some of the net 6.1 billion metric tons of anthropogenic carbon dioxide emissions produced each year (measured in carbon equivalent terms), an estimated 3.2 billion metric tons is added to the atmosphere annually. The Earths positive imbalance between emissions and absorption results in the continuing growth in greenhouse gases in the atmosphere.

Given the natural variability of the Earths climate, it is diﬃcult to determine the extent of change that humans cause. In computer-based models, rising concentrations of greenhouse gases generally produce an increase in the average temperature of the Earth. Rising temperatures may, in turn, produce changes in weather, sea levels, and land use patterns, commonly referred to as climate change. 2.4 Greenhouse Gases 12

Figure 2.1: Atmospheric Concentrations

Assessments generally suggest that the Earths climate has warmed over the past century and that human activity affecting the atmosphere is likely an important driving factor. A National Research Council study dated May 2001 stated, Greenhouse gases are accumulating in Earths atmosphere as a result of human activities, causing surface air temperatures and sub-surface ocean temperatures to rise. Temperatures are, in fact, rising. The changes observed over the last several decades are likely mostly due to human activities, but we cannot rule out that some significant part of these changes is also a reflection of natural variability.

However, there is uncertainty in how the climate system varies naturally and reacts to emissions of greenhouse gases. Making progress in reducing uncertainties in projections of future climate will require better awareness and understanding of the buildup of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere and the behavior of the climate system.

In the U.S., for example, greenhouse gas emissions come mostly from energy use. These are driven largely by economic growth, fuel used for electricity generation, and weather patterns aﬀecting heating and cooling needs. Energy-related carbon dioxide emissions, resulting from petroleum and natural gas, represent 82 percent of total U.S. human- 2.4 Greenhouse Gases 13

Figure 2.2: Emissions ﬂow made greenhouse gas emissions Figure 2.3.(NEIC 2005) The connection between energy use and carbon dioxide emissions is explored in the box on the reverse side Figure 2.4.

Another greenhouse gas, methane, comes from landﬁlls, coal mines, oil and gas op- erations, and agriculture; it represents 9 percent of total emissions. Nitrous oxide (5 percent of total emissions), meanwhile, is emitted from burning fossil fuels and through the use of certain fertilizers and industrial processes. Human-made gases (2 percent of total emissions) are released as byproducts of industrial processes and through leakage.

World carbon dioxide emissions are expected to increase by 1.9 percent annually between 2001 and 2025 Figure 2.5. Much of the increase in these emissions is expected to occur in the developing world where emerging economies, such as China and India, fuel economic development with fossil energy. Developing countries emissions are expected to grow above the world average at 2.7 percent annually between 2001 and 2025; and surpass emissions of industrialized countries near 2018. 2.4 Greenhouse Gases 14

Figure 2.3: Gas emissions

Figure 2.4: US consumption 2.4 Greenhouse Gases 15

Figure 2.5: World emissions 2.5 Electric Vehicle Description 16

2.5 Electric Vehicle Description

Electric vehicles, although not currently being produced, may still provide part of the answer to the world’s greenhouse gas and fossil fuel deﬁciency problem. The electric car, EV, or simply electric vehicle is a battery electric vehicle (BEV) that utilizes chemical energy stored in rechargeable battery packs. Electric vehicles use electric motors and motor controllers instead of internal combustion engines (ICEs). Vehicles using both electric motors and ICEs are examples of hybrid vehicles, and are not considered pure BEVs because they operate in a charge-sustaining mode. Hybrid vehicles with batteries that can be charged externally to displace some or all of their ICE power and gasoline fuel are called plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEV), and are pure BEVs during their charge-depleting mode. BEVs are usually automobiles, light trucks, neighborhood electric vehicles, motorcycles, motorized bicycles, electric scooters, golf carts, milk ﬂoats, forklifts and similar vehicles.

BEVs were among the earliest automobiles, and are more energy-eﬃcient than internal combustion, fuel cell, and most other types of vehicles. BEVs produce no exhaust fumes, and minimal pollution if charged from most forms of renewable energy. Many are capable of acceleration exceeding that of conventional vehicles, are quiet, and do not produce noxious fumes. It has been suggested that, because BEVs reduce depen- dence on petroleum, they enhance national security, and mitigate global warming by alleviating the greenhouse eﬀect.

Historically, BEVs and PHEVs have had issues with high battery costs, limited travel distance between battery recharging, charging time, and battery lifespan, which have limited widespread adoption. Ongoing battery technology advancements have ad- dressed many of these problems; many models have recently been prototyped, and a handful of future production models have been announced. Toyota, Honda, Ford and General Motors all produced BEVs in the 90s in order to comply with the California Air Resources Board’s Zero Emission Vehicle Mandate, which was later defeated by the manufacturers and the federal government. The major US automobile manufacturers have been accused of deliberately sabotaging their electric vehicle production eﬀorts (Heath 2006). 2.5 Electric Vehicle Description 17

The price of an EV is set by market factors not cost. For equivalent production volumes battery EVs should be cheaper than internal combustion engine vehicles because they have many fewer parts. This also means they are cheaper to maintain. They are less expensive to operate by a factor of ten over gasoline. Using regenerative braking, a feature which is standard on electric cars, allows hybrids to get about double the fuel eﬃciency of regular cars.

In general terms a battery electric vehicle is a rechargeable electric vehicle. Other examples of rechargeable electric vehicles are ones that store electricity in ultracapacitors, or in a ﬂywheel. 2.6 Electric Vehicle History 18

2.6 Electric Vehicle History

BEVs were among some of the earliest automobiles electric vehicles predate gasoline and diesel. Between 1832 and 1839 (the exact year is uncertain), Scottish business- man Robert Anderson invented the first crude electric carriage. Professor Sibrandus Stratingh of Groningen, the Netherlands, designed the small-scale electric car, built by his assistant Christopher Becker in 1835. The improvement of the storage battery, by Frenchmen Gaston Plante in 1865 and Camille Faure in 1881, paved the way for electric vehicles to flourish. France and Great Britain were the first nations to support the widespread development of electric vehicles (Bellis 2006). In November 1881 French inventor Gustave Trouv demonstrated a working three-wheeled automobile at the International Exhibition of Electricity in Paris (Wakefield 1994).

Just prior to 1900, before the pre-eminence of powerful but polluting internal combustion engines, electric automobiles held many speed and distance records. Among the most notable of these records was the breaking of the 100 km/h (60 mph) speed barrier, by Camille Jenatzy on April 29, 1899 in his ’rocket-shaped’ vehicle Jamais Contente, which reached a top speed of 105.88 km/h (65.79 mph).

BEVs, produced in the USA by Anthony Electric, Baker, Detroit, Edison, Studebaker, and others during the early 20th Century for a time out-sold gasoline-powered vehicles. Due to technological limitations and the lack of transistor-based electric technology, the top speed of these early electric vehicles was limited to about 32 km/h (20 mph). These vehicles were successfully sold as town cars to upper-class customers and were often marketed as suitable vehicles for women drivers due to their clean, quiet and easy operation. Electrics did not require hand-cranking to start.

The introduction of the electric starter by Cadillac in 1913 simpliﬁed the task of start- ing the internal combustion engine, formerly diﬃcult and sometimes dangerous. This innovation contributed to the downfall of the electric vehicle, as did the mass-produced and relatively inexpensive Ford Model T, which had been produced for four years, since 1908 (McMahon 2006). Internal-combustion vehicles advanced technologically, ultimately becoming more practical than and out-performing their electric-powered competitors. 2.6 Electric Vehicle History 19

Another blow to BEVs in the USA was the loss of Edison’s direct current (DC) electric power transmission system in the War of Currents. This deprived BEV users of a convenient source of DC electricity to recharge their batteries. As the technology of rectiﬁers was still in its infancy, changing alternating current to DC required a costly rotary converter.

Battery electric vehicles became popular for some limited range applications. Forklifts were BEVs when they were introduced in 1923 by Yale (Bellis 2006) and some battery electric fork lifts are still produced. BEV golf carts have been available for many years, including early models by Lektra in 1954 . Their popularity led to their use as neighborhood electric vehicles and expanded versions became available which were partially ”street legal”.

By the late 1930s, the electric automobile industry had completely disappeared, with battery-electric traction being limited to niche applications, such as certain industrial vehicles.

The 1947 invention of the point-contact transistor marked the beginning of a new era for BEV technology. Within a decade, Henney Coachworks had joined forces with National Union Electric Company, the makers of Exide batteries, to produce the ﬁrst modern electric car based on transistor technology, the Henney Kilowatt, produced in 36-volt and 72-volt conﬁgurations. The 72-volt models had a top speed approaching 96 km/h (60 mph) and could travel nearly an hour on a single charge. Despite the improved practicality of the Henney Kilowatt over previous electric cars, it was too expensive, and production was terminated in 1961. Even though the Henney Kilowatt never reached mass production volume, their transistor-based electric technology paved the way for modern EVs.

After California indicated that it would kill its ZEV Mandate, Toyota oﬀered the last 328 RAV4-EV for sale to the general public during six months (ending on Nov. 22, 2002). All the rest were only leased, and with minor exceptions those models were withdrawn from the market and destroyed by manufacturers (other than Toyota). Toy- ota not only supports the 328 Toyota RAV4-EV in the hands of the general public, still all running at this date, but also supports hundreds in ﬂeet usage. From time to time, 2.6 Electric Vehicle History 20

Toyota RAV4-EV come up for sale on the used market, at prices that have ranged up to the mid 60 thousands of dollars. These are highly prized by solar homeowners who wish to charge their cars from their solar electric rooftop systems.

As of July, 2006, there are between 60,000 and 76,000 low-speed, battery powered vehicles in use in the US, up from about 56,000 in 2004 according to Electric Drive Transportation Association estimates. 2.7 Hybrid Electric Vehicle Description 21

2.7 Hybrid Electric Vehicle Description

Hybrid electric vehicles are being touted as part of the solution to the greenhouse gas and fossil fuel deﬁciency problem by the big auto manufacturers. A hybrid electric vehicle (HEV) is a vehicle which combines a conventional propulsion system with an on-board rechargeable energy storage system (RESS) to achieve better fuel economy than a conventional vehicle without being hampered by range from a charging unit like an electric vehicle. The diﬀerent propulsion power systems may have common subsystems or components.

Regular HEVs most commonly use an internal combustion engine (ICE) and electric batteries to power electric motors. Modern mass produced HEVs prolong the charge on their batteries by capturing kinetic energy via regenerative braking, and some HEVs can use the combustion engine to generate electricity by spinning an electrical generator (often a motor-generator) to either recharge the battery or directly feed power to an electric motor that drives the vehicle. This contrasts with battery electric vehicles which use batteries charged by an external source. Many HEVs reduce idle emissions by shutting down the ICE at idle and restarting it when needed. An HEV’s engine is smaller and may be run at various speeds, providing more eﬃciency.

HEVs are viewed by some automakers as a core segment of the next future automotive market (unknown 2007a). In an article for the July-August 2007 issue of THE FUTUR- IST magazine titled ”Energy Diversity as a Business Imperative” (unknown 2007b), including plug-in hybrid vehicles, GM vice president for environment and energy Eliz- abeth Lowery is quoted as saying, ”Today, we are embracing multiple energy sources because there is no single answer available for the mass market. In 2007, GM will debut four hybrid modelswith many more in the years to follow.”

An overview of the components of a hybrid vehicle is shown Figure 2.6. 2.7 Hybrid Electric Vehicle Description 22

Figure 2.6: Hybrid vehicle overview 2.8 Hybrid Electric Vehicle History 23

2.8 Hybrid Electric Vehicle History

In 1901, while employed at Lohner Coach Factory, Ferdinand Porsche designed the ”Mixte”, a series-hybrid vehicle based oﬀ his earlier ”System Lohner-Porsche” electric carriage. The Mixte broke several Austrian speed records, and also won the Exelberg Rally in 1901 with Porsche himself driving. The Mixte used a gasoline engine powering a generator, which in turn powered electric hub motors, with a small battery pack for reliability.

The 1915 Dual Power, made by the Woods Motor Vehicle electric car maker, had a four-cylinder ICE and an electric motor. Below 15 mph (25 km/h) the electric motor alone drove the vehicle, drawing power from a battery pack, and above this speed the ”main” engine cut in to take the car up to its 35 mph (55 km/h) top speed. About 600 were made up to 1918 (Georgano 2000).

A more recent working prototype of the HEV was built by Victor Wouk (one of the scientists involved with the Henney Kilowatt, the ﬁrst transistor-based electric car). Wouk’s work with HEVs in the 1960s and 1970s earned him the title as the ”Godfather of the Hybrid” (unknown 2006). Wouk installed a prototype hybrid drivetrain into a 1972 Buick Skylark provided by GM for the 1970 Federal Clean Car Incentive Program, but the program was stopped by the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in 1976 while Eric Stork, the head of the EPA at the time, was accused of a prejudicial coverup (unknown unknown).

The regenerative-braking system, the core design concept of most production HEVs, was developed by Electrical Engineer David Arthurs around 1978 using oﬀ-the shelf components and an Opel GT. However the voltage controller to link the batteries, motor (a jet-engine starter motor), and DC generator was Arthurs’. The vehicle exhibited 75 mp