Illustration - graphic from my book Driving without oil, showing the percentage of additional electric power required in different places, so that vehicles travel 70% of miles in electric mode.
When addressing the topic of pluggable hybrid electric vehicles, the uninitiated are always ahead of the fear of running out of electricity. But we must not forget that this transition mainly electric mobility will occur gradually over 20 to 25 years, and provide an opportunity Single stimulate local economies.
Regarding additional quantities of electricity required, the calculations are explained in my book Roll without oil (and corroborated by another study), n e assuming that 70% of vehicle mileage be traveled using electricity. The results are shown on the graph above. The higher values correspond to the technologies to be commercialized within the next few years, while lower values are references to mature technologies, less energy that will be widely available after 2020.
It is noted that Quebec is a very special place, since the additional electricity required is about 7% by 2030 say. One could easily get this amount by relying on increased energy efficiency. Another interesting option would be to install geothermal heat pumps for heating half the homes and buildings. This would save the 7% of the electricity we need. If the percentage of extra electricity is so low in Quebec, that Quebecers have 3 times more electricity per capita than the French and the Californians, and two times more than average Americans . In addition, electricity in Quebec is very cheap and clean (95% hydro).
Finally, for those who fear that Hydro-Quebec still does not recharge the batteries (with intelligent terminals) a few days of winter when it is minus -35 ° C, do not forget that 'there is no problem with a plug-in hybrid car, since it can operate just as well with his engine.
Illustration - The wind can provide a significant portion of the additional electricity required. (Photo: Wikimedia Commons , author: Kapipelmo, April 2008)
Taking the United States now is about 22% of additional electricity it would take to power vehicles . But like 70% of their electricity comes from natural gas plants and coal, these plants are highly under-utilized at night, and could be partly to recharge the vehicle, without building new plants.
also install solar panels on the roofs of buildings in the southern United States, to recharge the vehicles pluggable, costs less than buying fuel for a conventional vehicle. It is conceivable also add 15% to 20% of wind within 20 years. Moreover, with new storage technologies of heat in molten salt, we can now build solar thermal power plants that operate 24 hours a day, and it is not sunny arid lacking in the United States. The company engineers have Ausra calculated that it would cover a square 150 km on each side in the desert to supply all the electricity consumed in the United States. Finally, the company Shave just opened a new geothermal power plant of a kind, working 24 hours a day, using water at a lower temperature than traditional geothermal plants. They estimate that over 10% of Americans' electricity could be generated by geothermal energy. Add to this the energy efficiency for buildings, smaller vehicles, and more transit , and you realize that the only problem is political, not the additional electricity required . Fortunately, with Obama this situation seems to be a thing of the past.
In closing, we should not forget that countries will implement renewable energy to increase their network capacity will stimulate the local economy. Because they will support this work with money saved due to reduced import of oil, thus saving them tens of billions of dollars annually .
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