Because this is literally college.
We got ur FAQ's and FYI's and NYK's
• What even is an EV?
Funny you should ask.
An EV, or Electric Vehicle, is a type of automobile that is *fully powered* by Electricity. There are several types of EV's in the world.
*Not all EV's are fully powered by electricity. Only the ones that actually matter.
I'll let my friends from the M.I.T. Electric Vehicle Team explain:
EV configurations include; battery electric vehicles (BEVs) which are powered by 100% electric energy, various hybrid-electric vehicles (HEVs), and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs).
Battery Electric Vehicles
A battery electric vehicle (BEV) is a vehicle that is powered entirely on electric energy, typically a large electric motor and a large battery pack. Based on the type of transmission; the use of a clutch, gearbox, differential, and fixed gearing; and the number of battery packs and motors there are many variations on the BEV design.
Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicles
A plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV) is an HEV that can be plugged-in or recharged from wall electricity. PHEVs are distinguished by much larger battery packs when compared to other HEVs. The size of the battery defines the vehicle’s All Electric Range (AER), which is generally in the range of 30 to 50 miles. PHEVs can be of any hybrid configuration. Several PHEVs are available on the market today, and a number of companies have begun to sell conversion kits and services to convert a standard HEV into a PHEV by adding additional battery capacity and modifying the vehicle controller and energy management system.
Other types of hybrid electric vehicles exist, but they are no longer the solution for the problems in front of us. We will not list them here, as they are simply antiquated technologies.
To cite the above information for your college essay, and to find out more about our sister organization, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Vehicle Team, visit their website: http://web.mit.edu/evt/index.html
This is an Engine.
An ICE (Internal Combustion Engine) uses a form of fuel, usually either gasoline or diesel, to make these things called pistons go back and forth in these little tubes. Imagine a potato cannon, and magnify that by the number of cylinders you've got.
The force of this explosion is translated into a thing that spins in a circle, called the axle, and that spins the wheels.
This is a Motor.
An EV (Electric Vehicle) uses this thing. It's called a motor, and it works by taking either alternating or direct electric current to charge an electromagnet. That magnet has a simple reverse polarity to the thing in the middle.
That reverse polarity causes the thing in the middle to spin in a circle, and that is translated directly to the axle.
THE ELECTRIC VEHICLE MOTOR WAS INVENTED BEFORE THE GASOLINE COMBUSTION ENGINE.
Take a look at what our friends over at Bergen Community College are doing!
There are currently at least 70 (more if you live in China) brand new Electric Vehicles that you can purchase right now, and they're not all Teslas.
BMW, Jaguar, Land Rover, Peugot, Audi, Mercedes, Honda, Toyota, Ford, Volvo, Geeley, Chevrolet, Rivian, Apterra, among others, have all jumped head-first into the Electric Vehicle revolution. Some have even promised to stop making ICE cars all together, which is a day that will not come soon enough.
An entire Spin-Off of the Formula One racing series, called Formula E, which is made up entirely of electric-only vehicles, has been going steady for several years.
NASCAR - that red-bellied stock car racing circuit of rural Americana - recently made an announcement that they will be taking their ENTIRE fleet to fully Electric.
Traditionally, there are three charging "Levels"
IMAGE SOURCE: www.chargehub.com
YOUR CHEMISTRY LESSON FOR THE DAY
Batteries come in all shapes, sizes, and compositions - or what we commonly call their "chemistries." These are some of the types of batteries that you can expect to see in an EV:
Li-ion (Lithium Ion)
Lithium Ion batteries are the most commonly used batteries on the EV market today. They are the technology that has allowed us to reach the advancements that we have as an industry.
Li-Ion batteries were a long process in the making, but are largely credited to the team alongside a man named John B. Goodenough, at UT Austin. He has actually just received the nobel prize in science for that invention over 40 years ago.
They come in two forms: the one you see pictured is the standard "Jelly Roll." The other is a flat sheet coated in electrolytes, with more sheets compressed next to it in a small form factor.
WHY DID THE LEAD ACID’S JOKE FLY OVER THE LI-ION’S HEAD? BECAUSE HE WAS DENSE.
LEAD ACID
The traditional vehicle battery, the one you're used to powering your car stereo, the windshield wipers, and so on. The entire 12v system has been powered by that lead acid battery chemistry. As you are probably aware, those batteries last a very long time, and are very stable, but the problem is that they weigh so damn much. Especially back in the days of Silver-Zinc. Up until even the late 90's and sometimes even up until 2010, most EV conversion projects used lead acid batteries to move. This limited their range largely to under 50 miles for most vehicles, if you were lucky.
LiFePo 4
Lithium Ion Phosphate has for many years been used in aircrafts, and especially on long-haul flights, to power many of the airliner commercial appliances like the refrigerators and fasten-your-seat-belt signs. It has been used instead of lead-acid because of its more energy dense form (the equivalent power output from a smaller physical volume), meaning it weighs less. You get a helluva lot more bang for your buck from LifePo4, and for about a decade or two, these batteries enjoyed their time in the spotlight within the niche community of EV converters. Many still swear by them, in their common form factor called "CALB," but Li-Ion is even more dense than these.
SOLID STATE
This is the future after Li-Ion. That same guy we talked about a few moments ago, John B Goodenough - the very day that he and his team invented Li-Ion, they started working on the next one. Thanks greatly to one of his students, Maria Helena Braga - who is now a Professor in her own right in Portugal - the two were able to create the solid state battery.
So let's break this down...
Goodenough invented: RAM, Lithium Ion, and Solid State Batteries. Is that Good enough?
The Prius fallacy: there's actually no such thing as a self-charging hybrid.
TEXT EXCERPT FROM THIS VIDEO:
"Basically, a self charging hybrid is a hybrid that doesn’t need to plugged in. No! You don’t need to plug in a self charging hybrid - it charges itself as you drive along! Brilliant piece of technology… To be fair to Toyota, I first drove one of their brilliant Toyota Prius self-charging hybrids… oh, 16 years ago? Amazing cars, really played a crucial role in opening up the idea of people driving an electric vehicle. That’s what happened to me… Brilliant. It was never referred to as a “self charging hybrid.”
Yes, let me explain - just in case you don’t know. It DOES charge itself when it drives along, but it CAN’T DRIVE ALONG WITHOUT FOSSIL FUEL IN THE TANK!
A Toyota Prius is a fossil fuel powered car. That’s what it needs."
FUD = FEAR, UNCERTAINTY, AND DOUBT.
TEXT EXCERPT FROM THIS VIDEO:
"It is something that has constantly been apart of Tesla's life... We can't just have a RATIONAL conversation about Tesla that doesn't involve wild speculation.
...These "shorts" have a playbook that they use every time that they want to discredit Tesla... It's Big Oil, it's the Mother-FUDders, it's the people who have a vested interest in making sure that Tesla does not succeed. Who could that POSSIBLY be? Who would be an enemy of Elon?
Here's why Big Oil cares: When all of our cars are electric, they will be penniless."