Comments on: New Chevy Volt A123 Systems Battery Interview

By: STV

STV — Mon, 29 Oct 2007 12:34:58 +0000

When needed, what runs the air conditioning and heating/defroster? Has to be the internal combustion engine; I am guessing short commutes won’t always be petrol free.

By: H. Hulseman

H. Hulseman — Tue, 14 Aug 2007 04:20:49 +0000

The car should be able to take an external charge at the same rate as the range extender provides. The suggestion of the solar charger is a good point.

By: Drake

Drake — Tue, 14 Aug 2007 01:36:30 +0000

Most people sleep atleast 6 hours a day, so this should work fine for the vast majority of people. If we plug in our cell phones each night, why not our cars too? It’s the same concept.

By: Lyle

Lyle — Mon, 13 Aug 2007 23:38:03 +0000

I agree fully. One could set up any type of off-the-grid power source one wants, and charge the battery directly from it. Whether it be solar-generated ot wind-generated electricity stored in cells, be they li-ion or ultracapacitor bank. It is likely the input port though will have some type of governance.

Maybe a few electro-geeks could figure it out, but for the avg person who doesn’t want to understand the technology under the hood, they’ll have to stick with 6 hour 110V. Not a big problem as I see it.

By: Matt986

Matt986 — Mon, 13 Aug 2007 23:22:59 +0000

I think a 220V circuit in the garage would be the best way to get a quicker charge. I’m sure the batteries should be able to take it like Kent mentions – the generator can charge the battery pack in less than 30 minutes, so they have to be able to take a charge pretty quickly.

And Brian’s idea is a good one. Altair Nano is working on a home based battery system, which, I think in conjunction with solar panels could be passively charged during the day, then could charge an EV pretty quickly. There would be some losses, but if you’re getting your energy from solar panels, it’s not costing you more for the amount you use.

By: Brian

Brian — Mon, 13 Aug 2007 22:57:19 +0000

I agree that the grid couldn’t charge your batteries that fast (assuming that the batteries would be able to accept energy thta quickly).

But if you really wanted a fast charge, maybe you could have a separate battery pack or capacitor bank sitting in your garage that slowly charges while you are at work, and then quickly recharges your onboard battery when you get home. It would be expensive, but hey, maybe some people would buy it.

By: kent beuchert

kent beuchert — Mon, 13 Aug 2007 17:20:38 +0000

I’ve read that the range extender running can recharge the VOLT battery pack in less than 1/2 hour. If the batteries can be recharged that fast, then it seems obvious that they can accept higher volts/amps
from a home charger than 110Volts, 15 amps.

By: kent beuchert

kent beuchert — Mon, 13 Aug 2007 17:17:52 +0000

IN perfect agreement on the 10 minute charge
at home – impossible. But still would like faster than 120 V 15 amps. How about 20 amp
circuit and recharge in 4 rather than 6 hours? Or how about a 220V 40 amp feed? I
can install one of those in my garage in 30 minutes myself.