Electric truck - tow vehicle of future ?
Interesting article about an electric Class 7 truck . Begs the question, are electric powered heavy duty pickups...ready for HD towing service... far behind ? Range right now is somewhat limite...
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Interesting article link about electrification of specific heavy duty role, city route garbage trucks. Limited miles per day, regeneration of electric power using a turbine and charge regen through brakes.
Predictable, low mileage route could work well for this application. But perhaps not long distance apps.
City route garbage trucks may use electric motors
However I'm thinking range increase for long distance will certainly be an engineering problem. Generally engineering issues are figured out, down the road...no pun intended. ;)
I don't know much about a turbine regenerating power in a battery. I wonder if it's similar to Class 8 idea I read in Pop. Mechanics magazine a number of years ago. From what I recall, a Class 8 truck had a gas/propane (can't recall which) industrial GM 4.3 V8 (3/4s of Chevy small block 350 V8)that ran constantly, charging batteries for electric motors in the truck. The batteries provided power for the electric motors...the GM 4.3 charged the batteries.
Sort of like a diesel electric in a locomotive if I recall correctly.
This idea would be a hybrid of sorts and I wonder if the electric only powered vehicle is not the solution. Maybe a hybrid ICE/ electric makes more sense for many applications. Modern technology could probably spec out a much smaller ICE engine, than the 4.3 V6, nowadays.
Anyway just some idle speculation on my part. :D
Predictable, low mileage route could work well for this application. But perhaps not long distance apps.
City route garbage trucks may use electric motors
However I'm thinking range increase for long distance will certainly be an engineering problem. Generally engineering issues are figured out, down the road...no pun intended. ;)
I don't know much about a turbine regenerating power in a battery. I wonder if it's similar to Class 8 idea I read in Pop. Mechanics magazine a number of years ago. From what I recall, a Class 8 truck had a gas/propane (can't recall which) industrial GM 4.3 V8 (3/4s of Chevy small block 350 V8)that ran constantly, charging batteries for electric motors in the truck. The batteries provided power for the electric motors...the GM 4.3 charged the batteries.
Sort of like a diesel electric in a locomotive if I recall correctly.
This idea would be a hybrid of sorts and I wonder if the electric only powered vehicle is not the solution. Maybe a hybrid ICE/ electric makes more sense for many applications. Modern technology could probably spec out a much smaller ICE engine, than the 4.3 V6, nowadays.
Anyway just some idle speculation on my part. :D
