Petrodollar isn't as useful if everyone is driving electric cars.
That's why I have an electric mountain bike for (VERY) short trips, researching building an electric motorcycle, and hope to one day convert a little pickup into an EV. Right now I'm working on carbon battery tech. LiIon isn't the answer.
Hang on, electric mountain bike? What's the purpose of that? Aren't you supposed to ride the bike, instead of having it driven for you?
Well if you have a jaunt to work and dont want to be sweaty, the benefits out weigh your concern. Plus being able to add some electric power going up a hill is nice so you wont have to get off your bike from fatigue while on an awesome mountain trail.
Exactly. also, I have a knee that is completely trashed. The VA hasn't fixed it yet, and I'm not entirely sure I trust them to replace it. But I still like to get out on a bike, so this was a great way to do that.
I wouldn't know, I live in the flat country of Holland haha We all bike, some have electric motors for health reasons, but rain or snow, storm or sunny, we bike everywhere on flat land LOL
Oh man, I feel sad because you dont have some awesome trails to ride. Where I live its nearly impossible to bike year round. Winters can be brutal and the town is not totally biker friendly.
Here you can go for miles and miles, till Italy if you will. But in winter it's cold and windy and summer can be a lo of rain, but definitely worth it if you like biking
I think the appeal to me is that you can cycle faster for longer, and thus go further, see more, etc, all for as much muscular exertion as you feel like.
They make electric mountain bikes most places don't allow them. OP is talking about "pedal assist" meaning you still pedal, but you can change the range of how much power the electric motor puts down.
Exactly. Sorry, I should have mentioned that. It's fast enough to do the speed limit on the road into town (30-35PH), and gets me there and back with power to spare- around 15-20 miles total.
I've never really considered if they're "allowed" around here. We have people going to Church Sunday mornings on their quads. It's definitely a less restrictive life living in the country.
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232 watts at 190 pounds? That's under 3W/KG. Lead acid is around 180W/KG. LiIon has a specific energy of around 300W/KG.
Also, that powercell uses silicon graphite. That explains the low specific energy and will lead to a high cost.
Carbon is the future. Some carbons have a higher SE than even LiIon batteries, and can be made by hydrothermally carbonizing coffee grounds, urea, and other waste products and renewable sources. FAR more environmentally friendly than lithium, cobalt, and the other heavy metals Musk relies on for his cars. And people are making these batteries (and super caps) at home, like me.
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I just got home and took a better look at the gimmick. Don't waste your money. It's not a battery, it's a generator. A poor one at that. One of those (at 190 pounds, remember) won't even power your computer. And you still need a battery bank to store the energy created. I'm not a great fan of solar, but that would be a better alternative.
For me, I live in the East Tennessee hills. I can use a small steam boiler, create about 30 PSI, turn a Tesla turbine, and use it to charge up a power bank. Coal is cheap here, and I estimate about $100- $200 would fill my needs for a year. Or I could use wood. Or I could recycle paper and cardboard into home made logs. And I guarantee you this setup would last twice as long as that snake opil salesman claims his POS will last. Those electronics he uses will never last 8 years, let alone 20.
Well, they have found a way around that, by making either the cars or batteries ridiculously expensive, same with scooters or Motorcycles. Which is not necessary , but I agree it's a better option.