When Airplanes Are Designed To Be Energy Agnostic, You Know Electricity Is Banging At The Door

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We will start with the aviation breakthroughs, and then I'll update the car and electric bicycle latest news.

I am amazed daily by the strides being made in aviation for electric power. Just read on.

Excerpt:

The amount of breakthroughs and progress electric aviation has made this past decade are awe inspiring. We’ve got news practically every day of electric airplanes (e-planes) and electric vertical takeoff & landing (eVTOL) aircraft under development, planned for market, or already arriving. When you look back to long-off dreams of electric VTOL aircraft back in the ’90s, today’s reality is astounding.

Lift Air’s Flight Design General Aviation GmbH is a German aircraft design and manufacturing company that has announced a new 4-seat airplane that could be certified in a year. But the important part of the new release is that it is energy agnostic, which means it is ready for a full electric propulsion system. The Flight Design line called CTLS is a new modular model capable of adapting to various energy systems.

In many ways, this is an important sign of the maturity of the electric aviation market. The electric vehicle (EV) parallel would be when new cars today are designed to be energy agnostic, using electricity or gasoline. In many ways, it also shows how quickly electric aviation has picked up, a testament to how far battery energy density has come in a short while. Most VTOL projects so far are hybrids/electric, but most, if not all are designed to switch over to electricity as soon as technology allows, as we mentioned with the Bell Nexus eVTOL air taxi.

The new Flight Design F4 is a 4-seat model certified under FAR 23 — CS23 to the rest of the world — and is a stretched, modified, beefed-up version of the CTLS airframe. The wingspan and fuselage length have been increased and bring the gross weight to 1100 kg (2420 lb) with a predicted 150- to 160-knot range.

Although Flight Design hasn’t mentioned any price yet, Matthias Betsch said the company was targeting under $300,000."

More with hot links here: https://cleantechnica.com/2019/04/20/when-airplanes-are-designed-to-be-energy-agnostic-you-know-electricity-is-banging-at-the-door/?utm_source=CleanTechnica+News&utm_campaign=a109f772f9-Daily+Email+CAMPAIGN&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_b9b83ee7eb-a109f772f9-331970081

Now on to the cars that run on electric and news in that market

from 2003 to 2008 when Tesla produced the Roadster, we have gone from folks, both here on this forum, and around the US, stating BEVS (Battery Electric Vehicles - not hybrids which are PHEVs Plug in Hybrid Electric Vehicles) will never come to production and Tesla was a pump and dump. A crock disguised as investing advice. Some of it can be seen in the thread here "Are you still in?" which goes from 2011 to present. But Tesla had already manufactured and sold the Roadster in 2008 and unlike the US big three automakers did not need bailing out directly or with Gov't guaranteed loans like Ford to the tune of $30billion.

However, from 2003 when I first posted here about Tesla, to 2008 when they came out with their first model, the Roadster, it was said and implied that Tesla was just trying to do what we have seen Elio Motors do, just sell people on buying in with no production, only prototypes. Unless Elio, like Tesla, goes into production, they are a total scam. But the smug responses to the very idea of a BEV ranging from it is a fake to no one will buy it from 2003 to 2008, ended in 2008 when they built and sold out their first model, were here and elsewhere amazingly uninformed and reliant on claptrap. 

The resistance to change, and obvious lack of research not originating from Koch brothers paid for white papers, and the new repeal of several laws of physics by non scientists and politicians with a fossil fuel agenda claiming fossil fuels burn clean? These pseudo scientists claim that there are no by products from fossil fuels with a complete burn. However Carbon Dioxide is always produced and is a primary "greenhouse gas." But that assumes a clean fuel which outside of a laboratory cannot be had, never mind the hundreds of additives in our fossil fuels. Just the fossil fuel additives can add 100 times the toxins as the natural gas, propane, gasoline, diesel, other fuel oils alone. Coal and wood burning are outside the scope of vehicle pollutions and toxic combustion by products.

There are charts there for each fossil fuel pollutant in the full article here from Penn State University: https://www.e-education.psu.edu/egee102/node/1951

We have seen BEVs go from toys and little more than golf carts to 300-500 mile range currently available but with the performance of million dollar super cars like Porsches, Lambos, Ferraris, and Bugatti's have.

Now, the emerging tech is including direct solar charging in both vehicles on the ground and aircraft.

Excerpt:

"SAAB always built quirky cars, starting with the 2-cylinder two stroke SAAB 92 in 1949. After the company filed for bankruptcy in 2012, its assets — including the factory in Trollhätten, Sweden — were acquired by National Electric Vehicle Sweden.

Fast forward to 2019. That factory will now be silent no more. NEVS and Sono Motors have agreed to a deal that will see Sono’s innovative solar powered electric car, the Sion, manufactured there. The Sion will be the first production car to feature solar panels embedded in the body of the car. The company says those panels are 21% efficient and can generate enough electricity to power the Sion for up to 21 miles on a sunny day. The 5-door hatchback Sion is small enough to fit easily into most urban environments.

The Sion is priced at €25,500 and the company says it already has almost 10,000 pre-orders for the car. Plans call for NEVS to produce a total of 260,000 cars at the factory between 2020 and 2028 according to CNET Roadshow. After a production ramp-up, the goal is to build 43,000 cars per year. The factory is said to be powered by 100% renewable energy.

The Sion has a 35 kWh lithium-ion battery pack and a 163 horsepower electric drive motor. Range using the current WLTP standard is 158 miles. Plugging in to a standard household outlet will recharge the battery in 30 minutes, the company says. There is no provision for DC charging. Standard household current in Europe is 220 volts instead of the 110 volts common in North America.

The Sion has a 10-inch center display and smartphone connectivity via WiFi or Bluetooth. The ventilation system is called breSono and incorporates a dollop of moss, which is said to act as a natural filter when an electrical charge is applied. Maybe not the same as the BioWeapons Defense mode of a Tesla but an interesting take on providing filtered air for the passenger compartment. There are no plans at the moment to bring the Sion to North America." 

More and a picture of the car in the original article here: https://cleantechnica.com/2019/04/20/nevs-will-build-sion-solar-powered-electric-car-at-former-saab-factory-in-sweden/?utm_source=CleanTechnica+News&utm_campaign=a109f772f9-Daily+Email+CAMPAIGN&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_b9b83ee7eb-a109f772f9-331970081

"What has room for 6 passengers, an all-electric range of up to 155 miles, and a body covered in solar panels that can add as many as 18 miles of driving a day from sunlight? That would be the Sono Motors Sion, an innovative solar-powered car from a team of German entrepreneurs that is scheduled to have its world debut on July 27.

The Sion project was able to move forward thanks to an Indiegogo crowdfunding campaign last year that raised over a half million dollars. More than 1,000 people have participated so far. The car will have two versions. The Urban comes with a 14.4 kilowatt-hour battery pack. It has a range of about 75 miles and will cost $13,200. The Extender version has a 30 kilowatt-hour battery and a range of 155 miles. Its target price is $17,600. Neither price includes the battery. Like the Renault Zoe, customers will either buy the battery separately or lease it. The leasing option gives owners the flexibility to upgrade the battery later as improvements in battery technology become available.

The hood, roof, and rear hatch of the Sion are covered with monocrystalline silicon cells that are 21% efficient. On a sunny day, they can generate enough electricity to add 18 miles of range. The solar cells are 8 millimeters thick and embedded in a polycarbonate layer that is shatterproof, weather resistant, and light in weight. The Sion can also be 80% charged using an AC outlet in about 30 minutes, according to company claims. No DC charging option is available. The car also comes with an outlet that can power electronic devices.

Inside, all the seats of the 5 door hatchback fold flat, offering multiple configurations for carrying passengers and cargo. There is a 10 inch center display and smartphone connectivity via WiFi or Bluetooth. The ventilation system is called breSono and incorporates a dollop of moss, which is said to act as a natural filter when an electrical charge is applied.

The company will offer an online maintenance and repair system it calls reSono. It allows owners to order parts online and comes with a video that shows them how to install the parts when they arrive.  Or they can take the car and the parts to any local auto repair shop facility to get them installed.

Test drives will be available starting in September, with production beginning next year. Sono is emulating the approach used by DHL with its electric delivery vans. It is sourcing most of the components to build its cars from existing OEM suppliers so it can concentrate on getting the design right and incorporating suggestions from its online community into the final product. The Sion is perhaps a bit small for American customers but it should appeal strongly to Europeans who live in crowded cities where parking is at a premium."

I would buy the battery and then buy another if that was an advantage later as new tech develops. The body/chassis/suspension will have wear and tear too after a half million miles. YMMV.

More here too: https://cleantechnica.com/2017/07/13/solar-powered-car-sono-motors-will-unveiled-july-27/

 

So many claim BEV and PHEV buyer incentives are only benefitting the rich, but ignore the trillions in subsidies the fossil fuels industry takes from the government. Here are the EV incentives offered by some states:

Tesla federal tax credits are ending at some point so check with the manufacturer to see if buying their car will get the max $7500 tax credit or partial tax credit. Here are the current Federal guidelines: https://www.irs.gov/businesses/plug-in-electric-vehicle-credit-irc-30-and-irc-30d

on to Tesla news:

Tesla Nevada Gigafactory — Something Strange Is Going On, But It’s Not What You Think

https://cleantechnica.com/2019/04/20/tesla-nevada-gigafactory-something-strange-is-going-on-but-its-not-what-you-think/?utm_source=CleanTechnica+News&utm_campaign=a109f772f9-Daily+Email+CAMPAIGN&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_b9b83ee7eb-a109f772f9-331970081

 

An Electric Bike That Reads Your Mind?

https://cleantechnica.com/2019/04/20/an-electric-bike-that-reads-your-mind/?utm_source=CleanTechnica+News&utm_campaign=a109f772f9-Daily+Email+CAMPAIGN&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_b9b83ee7eb-a109f772f9-331970081

There are a lot of investment opportunities in all aspects of renewable energy. I choose to focus on vehicles and storage like the Tesla Powerwall.

Safe investing!