Battery Electric Car: A Boom In Automobile Industry
A battery electric vehicle is that in which the stored chemical energy is used up for recharging the batteries. But in case of electric vehicles, the electric motors and motor controllers are utilized in place of internal combustion engines. The battery electric vehicles (BEVs) include the automobiles like light trucks, motorbikes, electric scooters, golf carts, forklifts, motorized bicycles, etc. These vehicles have been proved to be more efficient as compared to the other vehicles which propel via internal combustion or fuel cells.
Significance of Electric Vehicles
Battery Electric Vehicle is environmental-friendly, as it does not generate exhaust fumes and causes very less amount of pollution, if it is charges from any of the renewable sources of energy. It plays a major role in enhancing the national security and also assuages global warming by alleviating green house effect. With the ongoing advancements in battery technology, most of the battery related issues of the BEVs have been overcome including lifespan of the battery, its charging time, etc. The big corporate like Toyota, Honda, Ford, and General Motors were the renowned manufacturers of BEVs in 90s which complied California Air Resources Board's Zero Emission Vehicle Mandate.
Alluring Features of Battery Electric Vehicles There are many features of the battery electric vehicles which have increased their demand in the markets. Such as: 1) The battery electric vehicles work in more efficient manner as compared to all internal combustion vehicles. 2) They also cut down the consumption of oil for the propulsion of the vehicle thus reduces the dependency on the fuel oil. 3) They are the environmental-friendly vehicles which do not produce any exhaust fumes and hence, contribute in maintaining the ecological balance. 4) One of its most significant characteristics is that on being charged by any of the forms of renewable energy, it will always generate negligible amount of pollution. 5) There are some BEVs, which are capable of accelerating and exceeding the vehicles powered by the gasoline. 6) It has been determined that the electric vehicles cost around 2-4 cents per mile on being propelled but in case of gasoline-powered vehicles, the cost comes around 4-6 times more than that of electric vehicles. Disadvantages of Battery Electric Vehicles As discussed earlier, the major disadvantage linked with the electric cars is due to their batteries. The below-mentioned problems are the main problems associated with the lead-acid battery technology: 1) They are comparatively heavier, as they weigh around 1000 pounds or even more than that. 2) They are quite bulky because of the presence of large number of lead-acid batteries each measuring around 6" x 8" x 6". 3) They offer limited range of propulsion that is approximately around 50 miles because a typical lead-acid battery has a capacity of storing electricity of around 12 - 15 kilowatt-hours. 4) They generally take long hours, around 4 -10 hours, to get fully charged and this time of charging depends upon the technology of the battery and the charger. 5) They have a short life span of 3-4 years which includes approximately 200 full charge/discharge cycles. 6) The major obstacle is its price which is very high somewhere around $2000 or may be above than this. Therefore, these problems have always made the consumers to give a second thought to opt for battery electric vehicles.
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