Electric cars are making a major impact in the automotive industry. They are a step out of the box for an industry traditionally used to manufacturing petrol-engine cars. electrician near me The rising prices of gasoline fuel plus the release of pollutants and greenhouse gasses to the atmosphere are a high price to pay for the sake of transporting people and goods everywhere. If only cars can run using clean and green electricity! Electric vehicles are the apparent solution.
What are Electric Cars?
Instead of gasoline, an electric transport uses electricity stored in plug-in battery packs for acceleration, speed and maneuverability. Another vehicle that similarly utilizes electricity for propulsion is still in experimental stages -- the solar car. It pushes the envelope even further in car technology, using renewable green electricity from the sun for power.
Yet another form of electric vehicle already running on the roads and streets of major cities is the hybrid car, which uses both gasoline and battery-stored electricity for propulsion.
An interesting fact about electric vehicles is that historically, they were already a far more popular mode of transport during the late 19th century until early 20th century -- more than gasoline-powered cars! Until man tamed the combustion process, electricity propulsion offers more comfortable travel options than gasoline.
When the internal combustion engine (ICE) technology improved the driving range and refueling speed of the gasoline car, it left the electric vehicle behind. When the petroleum sourcing and delivery mechanism became more and more established, and gasoline cars became faster and less costly to mass produce, the electricity-powered car eventually faded out of consumer markets and landscapes.
A Second -- and Greener -- Look at Electric Cars
The recent years saw electric vehicles coming into people's awareness once again. The environmental impact of petrol cars, plus the scarcity and soaring prices of oil, urges people to turn to electricity-powered modes of transport. The latter is turning out to be a more eco-friendly and cheaper option than oil-fuelled cars.
The electric vehicle has a less complex engine system than a gasoline car, relying only on its battery pack to propel it onwards. However, the high cost of the battery packs is making the cost of acquiring an electricity-powered car very prohibitive at present. Research is underway to solve this, and together with governmental subsidies, consumers are becoming more and more receptive to purchasing electrics cars.
Electricity costs to charge an electric car battery is cheaper than gasoline prices, and their maintenance is simpler than gasoline cars. However, electric cars are only suitable for short-distance travel because of the limited supply of battery power. The infrastructures for battery re-supply or charging stations must be set up to improve the range of electric cars.
In terms of energy efficiency, electric cars are more efficient than gasoline cars. They do not consume energy while at rest, unlike the latter.
Green Electricity at the Bottom of it All
Electric cars produce no pollution, but they still use electricity stored in batteries for power. Conventional electricity comes from power grids that continue to emit greenhouse gasses to the atmosphere during electricity creation.
It all goes back to a clean and green electricity infrastructure. Electric cars must source from green electricity grids instead of traditional infrastructure. When traditional power generators adopt the use of renewable alternative sources of energy, such as solar, wind, geothermal or water energy, more green electricity will flow to the grid. This green electricity will then cater to the requirements of all electricity-consuming devices, including electric vehicles.
Another good news is that governments are also putting more investments in electric car development, encouraging research on green electricity for car power. Electric cars seem to be the only viable transport of choice for now, and they are the ones most likely to take us to greener roads in the future.