The idea of electric vehicles is not new. In fact, in the early 1900s, electric vehicles were flourishing, making up one-third of the cars in Boston, Chicago, and New York. But, limited by a short range and lengthy charging times, electric vehicles soon lost out to gasoline vehicles – as the infrastructure for gasoline pumps evolved and cheap crude oil overflowed.
Electric vehicles experienced a slight comeback in the 1970s. But since they were constructed on the same basis as gasoline vehicles, the problems with long charging times remained and once again, development floundered.
Electric vehicles are now making a reappearance as the way to go. Faced with rising fuel prices and global warming concerns, there is a strong desire to escape from the hold of the internal combustion engine.
'The advantages offered by electric vehicles have led to many partnerships among governments, auto manufacturers and power utilities investing in electric vehicle programmes,' notes David Tan, Deputy Chief Executive of the EMA (Energy Market Authority) in Singapore. A groundswell of support for electric vehicles is indeed mounting.
Some key agreements include Renault and Electricité de France (EDF) in Paris, Daimler and RWE (formerly Rheinisch-Westfälisches Elektrizitätswerk AG) in Berlin, and Mitsubishi Motors and Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO) in Tokyo. Singapore is embarking on its own electric vehicle test-bed, and Singapore's EMA is co-chairing an initiative with the country's Land Transport Authority to evaluate the feasibility of electric vehicles on the island. The test-bed will see policy-makers, industry players, and consumers demonstrating and testing concepts for mass electric vehicle adoption, Tan says.
In Washington DC, the District Department of Transportation announced in May 2009 its intention to install an accessible and reliable network of charging stations across the city. Nissan North America is slated to provide electric vehicles powered by advanced lithium-ion batteries with a stated range of 100 miles for the network.
Detroit Electric, a 1930s electric car company that was revived in 2008, is also in final discussion with infrastructure companies in Hong Kong to install a city-wide electric vehicle charging network, which the company claims will be the first in Asia. The company also plans to launch high-performance sports cars and sedans powered by its electric drive system.
With this palpable sense of activity, Tan says that electric vehicles will pick up after 2015 and become commercially viable and ready for mass market adoption from 2020. Consequently, he adds, cities need to start putting in place appropriate physical infrastructure, policies, and regulations.
IEC Technical Committee (TC) 69 is working behind the scenes to provide a common infrastructure and power system for electric vehicles to support their mass adoption. It is currently reviewing IEC 61851 Electric vehicle conductive charging system, and has also recently published IEC 62576, Electric double-layer capacitors for use in hybrid electric vehicles – Test methods for electrical characteristics.
Summarised from an article by Greg Teo in IEC e-tech, December 2009.
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