Power and energy

[gar]

190201-1322 EST

Driving around my neighborhood I don't see solar panels, electric or thermal, probably less than 10% generators, and very few hybrid or electric vehicles. Many Jeeps and Escapes, and other 4 wheel drive vehicles. Our City bus system, City owned, is mostly hybrid, trash trucks are not hybrid. The U or M bus system is mostly hybrid. Most City and U of M buses run nearly empty most of the time. The City has done a cost analysis and the hybrid buses are overall, meaning total expenses, more expensive than straight diesel buses. The U of M is working on a new concept, a whole system design, to try to solve the empty bus problem. As a frame of reference 5% of my property tax bill goes to support the City bus system. Obviously there is additional US money going into it.

In my daughter's neighborhood her next door neighbor has a large electric solar system, including battery backup. But I don't see any other solar there.

Would I like to play with solar? Possibly. I might like to limitedly play with a hybrid, but I would not want one for general use. A very inexpensive all electric to run around town might be useful. This would mean not much more than a battery, motor, and shelter. Basically a model T.

A while back DTE replaced my pole transformer because after about 40 years it started to leak. This was possibly 15 to 25 kVA supplying two natural gas supplied homes and two street lights. Not overloaded. The new transformer is 50 kVA, overkill. Why? I have no idea unless they expect electric vehicles and solar panels.

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[ggunn]

A while back DTE replaced my pole transformer because after about 40 years it started to leak. This was possibly 15 to 25 kVA supplying two natural gas supplied homes and two street lights. Not overloaded. The new transformer is 50 kVA, overkill. Why? I have no idea unless they expect electric vehicles and solar panels.

Maybe that's what they had lying around and they needed to do something with it, or maybe they found a screaming deal on a boatload of them.

 

[petersonra]

A while back DTE replaced my pole transformer because after about 40 years it started to leak. This was possibly 15 to 25 kVA supplying two natural gas supplied homes and two street lights. Not overloaded. The new transformer is 50 kVA, overkill. Why? I have no idea unless they expect electric vehicles and solar panels.

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maybe that is their standard smallest xfmr these days. It is often more cost effective to buy one part number in larger quantities, then to get something that is perfectly sized but end up with 3 or 4 extra part numbers to stock.

 

[gar]

190201-2115 EST

I might have expected some other responses than the transformer.

A small solar array is at 42.302507, -83.704476 . Possibly a 1000 panels. So possibly several 100 kW.
EPA engine testing is at 42.302939, -83.711654 .
Autonomous vehicle test track is at 42.300749, -83.698353 .

http://www.longitudestore.com/how-big-is-one-gps-degree.html

In this general region there is vehicle to vehicle communication, and road to vehicle communication.

At around 42.242499, -83.552732 is where the old Willow Run Bomber plant was located. And where the U of M Mobility Center is now located. My old landlord and the person I bought my present property from had the job from Edsel Ford to buy all of the property for the bomber plant and airport. Something in the range of 4 to 6 square miles.

https://www.acmwillowrun.org/learn-about-the-facility/ you have to hit the menu button to access the various parts of the website.

There is going to be a tremondous amount of work for electricians relative to these new road projects.

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[gar]

190202-1139 EST

I would expect to get some comments on home solar and wind power generation, and the degree to which there is use in your area.

My next comment is electrical, but may not seem that way.

For many years I have used the same barbershop. Originally it was in a very plain low cost small shopping area. My description was a hole in the wall. But a good barber. You don't need a fancy location to do good work. And you should not judge people by the clothes they wear, or the vehicle they drive, or their business location. The barbershop lost their lease because the building owner wanted the space for their own use. The barbershop has moved into a better location, but now the price is higher.

All sorts of people used this barbershop. Common labors, police officers, firemen, golfers, university professors, etc. In particular golfers.

The modular office was invented by one of my neighbors in an old garage on South State Street about a mile from Michigan Stadium. Fancy locations are just not really necessary.

About 10 to 15 years ago Bob Lutz became acquainted with the barbershop while it was still at the hole in the wall location, and he became a continuing customer. I have never met him at the barbershop or randomly anywhere. But I have seen his big black high powered Corvette in front of the barbershop. He has a Russian or similar fighter jet that he has given some people a ride in.

Who is Bob Lutz? See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bob_Lutz_(businessman) . He was a major driving force in the development of the Chevrolet Volt. Does he own one? Probably. But it appears he mostly drives a much higher powered vehicle. Are electric and hybrid vehicles making much market penetration in the auto market? Around our area I don't see many. Just our City and University buses. Highly advertized in big printing on their sides. The Detroit Hamtramck Plant, Volt Plant, is now being shutdown.

Will we go to all electric vehicles in the near future? Not likely in my opinion. With no cord attached to my Escape, -17 F a day ago, possibly 1 second to start, and within several miles adequately warm inside. I can go possibly 300 miles on a full tank of gas. With a 1 gallon gas can in the trunk and if I run out of gas I can probably get to a gas station and fill up in a matter of minutes. This is why gasoline won out over electric and steam by about 1910. The Detroit Electric that Clara Bryant Ford drove is in the Henry Ford museum. I don't know when it was last used, possibly in the 1920s. It was a simple car and did not require cranking. By at least the early 1930s my classmate's father was her driver.

https://blog.nature.org/conservancy...MIgoyezd2d4AIVAg1pCh12sQxCEAAYBCAAEgI7zvD_BwE

I think the connected car will take off quite rapidly, connection between cars and roads. Within a few years. Connection provides an immediate useful functional purpose. The self driving car is going to be much slower. Too much liability. The connection problems need to be solved first. Beyond connection the self driving car has the problem of detection of unintended events.

There is just a huge amount of interesting electrical work for you to get involved with fairly soon.

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[junkhound]

Many folks working on more electric airplanes, and 1 ton cargo drones.

Still need that magic battery that weighs only 15 kg but can power a 100 kW prop to land after a single engine quits. There are such beasts that have enough amp-hours, but impedance too high to supply the 100 kW peak power needed to find a safe emergency landing spot.

 

[topgone]

Many folks working on more electric airplanes, and 1 ton cargo drones.

Still need that magic battery that weighs only 15 kg but can power a 100 kW prop to land after a single engine quits. There are such beasts that have enough amp-hours, but impedance too high to supply the 100 kW peak power needed to find a safe emergency landing spot.

Agree. The big stumbling block are the batteries!