This book has been written to provide a comprehensive picture of the history, current status and the likely future development of electric cars, as it is seen at the beginning of the second millennium. I have chosen to write about electric cars rather than electric trucks and buses as it seems to me that the success of electric cars in the market place will be the clearest signal of the technology reaching maturity. The category of cars includes such vehicles as taxis and light delivery vehicles but not trucks and buses. The book is intended both for those working on all aspects of electric vehicle development and use, as well as for those members of the general public who have an interest in the technology and the future of personal transportation. It should also be of interest to those concerned by the pollution currently caused by the internal combustion engine and who see the electric car as one of the ways by which this pollution can be reduced.

This chapter describes the way these different categories of motor operate and their advantages and disadvantages when used in electric vehicles. The switched reluctance motor, the brushless DC motor and the disc motor are also described and their possible application in future electric vehicles considered.

This chapter has covered all the battery types at present being seriously considered for use in electric and hybrid vehicles. The dramatic improvements in performance demonstrated through the coordinated work of ALABC on valve-regulated lead-acid (VRLA) batteries has made the lead-acid battery once again a contender in the battle to become the battery of choice for the electric vehicle. Its role as a low-cost, well-understood, immediately available power source capable of being fast charged when required, must make it a strong candidate for the low-cost electric and hybrid cars likely to attract the public in the short term. Also in the short term nickel-metal hydride seems likely to take over the role of nickel-cadmium as the higher-power, higher-cost option, with its advantages in longer life and safer disposal. The high-temperature batteries offer significant performance improvement if the vehicle manufacturer is prepared to design systems capable of maintaining battery temperature under the wide range of conditions under which a car can be operated. Of the high-temperature batteries available sodium-nickel chloride seems to have advantages in having a slightly lower operating temperature, better freezing characteristics and failure to a short circuit condition, so making chains of cells and batteries practical. In the longer term the metal-air batteries offer considerable improve ments in performance, but the special requirements of replacing the metal electrodes and/or circulating the electrolyte need to be shown to be fully practical in the vehicle situation. The most exciting developments are likely to be in lithium-solid polymer and lithium-ion batteries with their high-energy density, potential for low cost and flexibility of installation, but volume production still seems to be some years away.

The charging and recharging of electric vehicle batteries is a critical part of the energy cycle in an electric vehicle. Although less attention is usually paid to charging than to the vehicle batteries and the electric motors that they drive, the availability of efficient, and where appropriate fast, recharging of batteries is a vital factor in deciding whether a particular electric vehicle is of practical use for regular transportation.

In this chapter the author have brought together all the information available on the current (2001) production, prototype and experimental battery electric cars developed by the major manufacturers together with more detailed descriptions of four of the production vehicles which the author consider to be of major significance. This information is given. The technical details given have been provided directly by the manufacturers except in a few cases where information has been obtained from published papers and press reports. Specialist niche manufacturers of electric vehicles such as Bombardier and Solectria are not included, as it is my view that it is essential for the major automotive manufacturers to commit to electric vehicles for them to succeed. It is therefore the developments introduced by the major manufacturers that we should concentrate on if we are to understand where electric car development is heading.

In this chapter we will consider how the hydrogen essential for the operation of a PEM fuel-cell can be provided in the car, how it can be stored, and what the implications for the fuel infrastructure will be. All the information currently available on the prototype and experimental fuel-cell cars being developed by the major automotive manufacturers is also given in Table 11.1.

In this book I have tried to describe the current state of electric vehicle technology at the beginning of the year 2001. It seems clear to me that before the first 20 years of this century are over, increasing pressure on the environment will result in increasingly severe regulation of emissions from vehicles in urban areas. This, together with the rocketing cost of hydrocarbon fuels, will ensure that personal transport needs will have to be met by a mixture of highly economical, relatively low-performance gasoline or diesel-fuelled cars and by a range of electric cars of various types.