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Posted on | July 12, 2010 | 2 Comments

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Why did Obama suspend the development of hydrogen powered vehicles?

After 8 billion in research and development, A hydrogen car was set to hit the market in 2010 by GM. This vehicle performed above expectations and is green all the way but Obama just threw it out the window...WHY???

he's an IDIOT, plain and simple.
He wants electric cars, but since he's hell bent on closing the coal mines and don't want nuclear power, where is he going to get the juice?
Solar & Wind sure can't produce enough.

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Why are electricity-powered vehicles considered "green" if most electricity is made by burning coal?

Electricity is not a power source. The vast majority of it is produced by burning fossil fuels, or by nuclear fission. That being the case, why are electricity-powered vehicles considered "green?"

I will give you an option he said, "You die with a bullet or in your sleep." Not such a tough guy you think and take sleep option. That is your electric car. It seems just a little less deadly. I am waiting for the movie where they put the guy in the closed garage with the car running. The next day he is still alive because the car was electric and gives off no deadly fumes.

You can talk about production of electricity all you want. If you ask the poor sod in the garage if he thinks the electric car is "green" you will get a resounding, "YES!" He may even have had time, while lying there, expected to die, to consider that all of our current vehicles are run by gasoline. They not only pollute at the tailpipe, but at the refinery, with the delivery of crude to the refinery and the gasoline to the fueling station. They pollute when oil is produced at the well and they pollute when test wells are drilled in exploration. They even cause pollution when armies must be stationed overseas to protect this vital resource. It is vital because it holds a monopoly on our transportation. We have not explored alternative fuels with any conviction. When compared to this long pollution train the electric vehicle is clearly the clean air winner.

He might agree with you that electricity is not a power source. But that is it's advantage. There are many ways we can produce electricity. Some might think that in a country that today uses coal to provide 50% of its electricity, an electric car is 50% a coal car. But tomorrow, when that same country starts using renewables to provide electricity and coal is only used for 25% of the electricity the now old electric car becomes cleaner as well. Like a good wine, the electric vehicle gets better with age. Old gas cars, on the other hand may not die, they just pollute more than newer ones.

When our guy gets away he may wish for more freedom. With a new fondness for electric vehicles he can install a solar panel array and charge his electric vehicle from that. Independence is raised to 100% and pollution is reduced to zero. With the gasoline car there is never independence. You must always go back to the fueling station to get your "fix."

Lastly, he might consider the interesting differences between electricity from the grid and gasoline from a refiney. 70% of the refineries products are for transportation. Almost none of the electricity is for transportation. Someday maybe 30% of our cars will be electric. There will be incentives to charge them at night with cheaper rates. Coal fired power plants produce cheap power when they are big. When they are big, the more efficient design is to make them run continuously. They become what is called baseload plants. They are never turn off, turned down or backed off except for repairs. Trying to turn them on and off causes more damage and inefficiency.

So you can't have it both ways. Either the additional load of electric vehicles being charged at night will not come from coal fired plants but from more flexible designs and fuels OR the coal fired plants are there to support the already existing loads during the day. When they cannot be turned down at night the pollution is not attributable to any additional nighttime load like an electric vehicle.

To consider coal plants the bad boys for electric cars is like complaining that all people coming into a house cause dirty footprints when it was only one person who didn't take off their shoes. Ask the guy who survived the garage. He will tell you.

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