FreeLists / opendtv / [opendtv] Re: GM exec: Time to reinvent the automobile

["Albert Manfredi" <bert22306@xxxxxxxxxxx>]

Bob Miller wrote:

> Air power is another solution. It could rely solely on the
> electric grid where we can more efficiently control
> emissions and work toward centralized power sources
> that are renewable.
>
> http://www.theaircar.com/
>
> Ironically air conditioning is no problem but heating is.
I'm not sure that I buy the hype.

I have no big problem believing that air can be compressed at high enough 
pressure to run a small car, and that the energy required to compress that 
air is similar to the energy required to make H2 and run a similar sized H2 
engine for the same car and distance. And I can believe that air flasks may 
be lighter than batteries, although probably more voluminous, for equal 
energy content.
I have a much bigger problem believing that it takes less time to fill tanks 
with the required compressed air, for x miles of range, than for the amount 
of H2 fuel required for that same range.
I would have guessed that storing as much PSI of H2 in an x-gallon tank as 
PSI of air in an x-gallon tank results in a lot more energy in that high 
pressure H2 tank. Because the H2 is burned, which releases all that energy 
given off when H2 becomes H2O. And the O2 required for the process is not in 
the tank! Whereas the compressed air only contains the energy inherent in 
the delta P with atmospheric pressure. So it seems it should take longer to 
store the required amount of air than the required H2, for the same energy 
content.
One advantage air has is that the molecules are bigger than H2, being mostly 
N2, O2, and CO2. There ain't much smaller molecules than H2. Should be a 
little easier to build the high pressure system. As to where you do the 
pressurizing, that's not so different from the H2 case.
Something doesn't jive. I think we aren't being told the whole story (hardly 
surprising). In fact, those air engine ranges were not so impressive. I'd 
ask for a direct comparison with H2 engines or fuel cells.
Bert

_________________________________________________________________
Play games, earn tickets, get cool prizes. Play now?it's FREE! 
http://club.live.com/home.aspx?icid=CLUB_hotmailtextlink1


----------------------------------------------------------------------
You can UNSUBSCRIBE from the OpenDTV list in two ways:

- Using the UNSUBSCRIBE command in your user configuration settings at FreeLists.org 

- By sending a message to: opendtv-request@xxxxxxxxxxxxx with the word 
unsubscribe in the subject line.