How do we promote QC stations?

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I think you can go at it from multiple angles. For example, contact the local planning/zoning department, and requesting that they make it a code requirement for businesses over a certain size to supply QC (like, over 20,000 sq. ft.), or even require their own gov't buildings to supply QC. There are some EVSE businesses who will install QC for free, as long as they get a hefty % of the profits. I've tried to promote such businesses by supplying the names to our Economic Development dept. folks, who included it in their newsletter that goes out to the local chamber of commerce and small businesses. I can't recall the name of the company off the top of my head. In the newsletter they pointed out the benefits to the business of the captured audience, along with the benefits of charging a fee to plug-in. I've also contacted local transportation agencies, parking districts who run local garages, and local universities. All of those would benefit from installing QC, or even level 2 charging, and some of them already have charging stations installed, but for their own vehicles. Once the thought is implanted, they start to think outside the box, and will hopefully look at the big picture, seeing the benefits of installing either QC or even level 2.
 
Sorry to resurrect an old thread but these guys are working on a Mobile QC platform for service and recovery services...It can provide Level 2 and Level 3 charging on-the-go and a full Level 3 charge in less than 20 minutes. Great video of the system in action below.

www.realacpower.com/plugincarolina.html
 
garygid said:
I thought that the Nissan QC station was under $20k and did not require 3-phase power. What happened to it?
I think it just lives in Japan. Nissan needs to send some over here!
 
Hopefully the need for QC stations will be shortlived. I don't claim it will be, but do hope it will be.

The hope is that over the next decade or less, battery technology will improve in terms of energy density by an order of magnitude or more. That means that, if the boffins are correct, a battery pack the basic size and weight of the Leafs will, in about a decade, be able to propel the Leaf a nominal 1000 miles.

The argument is that if you can get 1000 miles from a charge - and that you can completely refill that battery pack overnight - that the need for QC stations significantly diminishes. Very few will have a need to drive 1000 miles in a day. Even in challenging terrain and bad weather, the diminished range will still likely exceed the daily ability to cover miles.

However - between now and then - it is the availability of QC stations that will allow users of electric vehicles to use those vehicles for tasks beyond just driving around town. Even a modest QC network could allow travel to semi-remote destinations.

What, after all, is the purpose of a car? To take us only to the grocery store and back? Or - to take us lands away? The car has always been an escape vehicle - able to transport us from our current environment to new worlds - even if only for a short time. A network of QC stations will allow the current generation, and the next generation or two, of EV's to explore areas beyond those in which we carry on a daily lives. So for the next decade or so, I see a modest network of QC stations branching out from high density EV areas to beautiful remote destinations, a key factor in enabling the uptake of EV's by the general public.
 
LakeLeaf said:
The argument is that if you can get 1000 miles from a charge - and that you can completely refill that battery pack overnight - that the need for QC stations significantly diminishes.
OK, let's cut that distance in half, and assume you are driving across the country at 500 miles/day, staying in hotels or motels overnight. Your magic 10x capacity battery is still going to need about 30 kWh/100 miles of freeway driving, so you'll be using about 150 kWh/day, and you will need to recharge that in about 10 hours. That's a 15 kW charge rate.

A 15 kW charge rate is proportionally about as close to 40 kW QC as it is to L2 high (6.6 kW), so I guess you are proposing new "QC/2" charging stations.

Ray
 
That means that, if the boffins are correct, a battery pack the basic size and weight of the Leafs will, in about a decade, be able to propel the Leaf a nominal 1000 miles

In ten years it's possible there will be world peace but I don't see it. I also don't see a 1000 mile car battery, either.
 
planet4ever said:
LakeLeaf said:
The argument is that if you can get 1000 miles from a charge - and that you can completely refill that battery pack overnight - that the need for QC stations significantly diminishes.
OK, let's cut that distance in half, and assume you are driving across the country at 500 miles/day
OK. Until the future, where are the 300+ QC charge sites due by summer 2011. My LEAF is due in April, and I'm not looking to be tethered to my garage with a 3.3kW charger until new battery technology arrives
 
Train said:
That means that, if the boffins are correct, a battery pack the basic size and weight of the Leafs will, in about a decade, be able to propel the Leaf a nominal 1000 miles

In ten years it's possible there will be world peace but I don't see it. I also don't see a 1000 mile car battery, either.

Don't make that mistake that because I post about the technology that I lack a healthy skepticism on the topic! But do understand that the scientists have identified Lithium Air batteries as the holy grail of battery technology for vehicles and both the government and industry are investing rather large sums trying to understand the chemistry well enough to develop a working battery. (Googling Lithium Air will bring up many many references to it).

This is somewhat different then world peace - which no one seems to have identified a plausible method for bringing about.

So while I'm somewhat skeptical about seeing working Lithium Air batteries in a reasonable amount of time, I'm slightly more skeptical that we'll see world peace in the same time frame.
 
If you have 10x capacity batteries, we will need (approximately) 10x more from some of our chargers, just to keep the same slightly-inconvenient long charge times.

But, an 8-hour charge with a 6.6 kW L2 charger might give you 120 to 200 usable miles.
 
More likely would be 100kwh battery packs, giving you a nominal hwy range of 400 miles.. I just dont see people paying for more (or wanting anything heavier) than that in a car.. a handful of fed or state owned 50kw chargers sprinkled across the hwy network would be sufficient for the yearly vacation trip to go see grandma. A 50kw charger recharges at a rate of 200 miles per hour of charge time... pretty substantial.

A different application will be large packs for long distance 18 wheelers, and they will come.. and 500 mile packs are about all you need for those also. Commercial aviation may also need large packs.
 
Herm said:
A different application will be large packs for long distance 18 wheelers, and they will come.. and 500 mile packs are about all you need for those also. Commercial aviation may also need large packs.

When I first read this I thought you were referring to an 18 wheeler refueling the car while on the road driving...now that would be pretty cool.

b5350fef94c9d510ce8acc3752bb_grande.jpg
 
ya, we dont need a 1000 mile range battery pack unless you are a cross country trucker. then heavy duty charging stations would probably be easy at major truck stations.

400 miles would be more than enough for probably 99+% of our needs. but even that is not an easy overnight charge at double the current L-2 rates.

battery swapping does address this niche demand, but in my life, i have only needed this much driving 4 times in the past 7 years. my Disney trip which was almost 3000 miles in two weeks. a 4 day trip to Montana. two days of all day driving and two days in Montana.

but even my longer trips to Salem, 400 miles there is no problem. i would have nearly half the pack left. we always spent at least a night there usually two, so recharging at night with standard L-2 would give us enough in two days to be recharged although we would not need nearly that much to get back
 
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