How the Battery-electric Might be Improved
Page 30
If you've noticed an error in this article please click here to report it so we can fix it.
Outlining Some of the Advantages and Limitations of the Type, . a Contributor Makes Constructive Criticisms and Suggests Means for the Advancement of the Degree of Popularity It Now Enjoys
UNQUESTIONABLY the batteryelectric vehicle has a number of Strong claims that cannot fail to appeal to certain classes of operator. So large are these classes that one asks why it i ; that the type is not more widely used than it is, and why the petrol vehicle, admittedly more expensive to run and to maintain, continues in popularity, even when engaged on work for which the battery-electric is expressly adapted?
At the risk of becoming the target of numerous shafts of criticism from readers of The Commercial Motor, which has many times voiced the kattractions of the battery-electric, reply that it has a long way to go before it becomes a serious proposition.
' Over 60 m.p.h. in 1899.
A statement was recently published that an electrically controlled machine was the first vehicle to achieve a speed of over 60 m.p.h., and this in 1899. Also, Lord Delamere, at Clifton, on September 28, said: " At present the industry (that of manufacturing eleetries) is a sturdy and rapidly growing child."
If both these facts be true, one can only suppose that at the time of its birth no one patted its back. and a state of suspended animation has obtained for several decades, At the meeting at which the latter statement was made it was also declared that these vehicles arc suitable for most types of transport. This is not accurate ; their range of usefulness is limited by their mileage capacity, and the necessity of returning to headquarters for battery restoration.
In favour of battery-electrics we A34 have low operating costs; cleanliness and no fumes in service; longevity (although the value of this, in modern practice, is debatable) ; the ability to operate on home-produced fuel (a strong argument, especially in times of national crisis) ; and noiselessness.
Factors to Consider.
Against them we may" cataloguetheir high first cost ; the need for the installation of charging plant (when this has to be done by multiple concerns for each of their branches the expense is likely to be considerable) ; low speed; short cruising range; long enforced idle periods for battery restoration ; and the requirements in respect of specialized maintenance, having regard to the possible inability of local garages to deal with repairs. In the case of concerns having vehicles spread about the country, this would involve one or more maintenance fitters travelling from branch to branch'.
Some of these objections could and should he overcome. Take, for instance, the battery. Surely time could be saved, and a higher degree of maintenance assured if topping-up could be effected by a grouped system of pipes attached to an accessible disfilled-Water reservoir ; an automatic valve in each cell would maintain the electrolyte at the correct level.
The risk of battery neglect, wnen the cost ranges from £50 to 2100. is a matter to be seriously considered, as is the time wasted when servicing batteries by removing and replacing a large number of filler caps.
Generates Nothing.
A petrol vehicle is capable of generating sufficient electricity to satisfy the numerous calls made upon its battery, yet, paradoxically enough, the electric vehicle generates nothing. At least partial restoration of the batteries should be possible, and it is exceedingly likely that a vehicle capable of doing this while running will, in the Lear future, be produced. Then we shall be a little nearer to the scientist's dream of perpetual motion and a little farther from a performance comparable with that of a horse. [Presumably our contributor refers to regeneration of current during tetardation.—En.] The gain from such partial restoration could be applied to saving battery weight, charging time or mains electricity, according to the needs of the 'operator.
When manufacturers realize that the inducement of lower running costs Is not the Alpha and Omega of trans port desideratum, the future of these vehicles might indeed be amazing, and not the least benefit accruing from their increased use would he the national one, resulting from the consumption of a home-produced fuel.