...ec5.4 Health & Safety The addition of electric drive and large battery packs introduces several new potential hazards to the transit bus workplace. These hazards include electric shock, chemical burn, and explosion due to hydrogen build-up. All three hazards can be managed through a variety of design, monitoring, operational and maintenance procedures. Standards have been developed through National Electric Code (NEC), Federal Transit Authority (FTA), National Highway Safety Transportation Administration (NHSTA), Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE), and others. Committees are working on several areas where holes exist in the standards.2 5.4.1 Electrical Shock There is a danger of electrical shock with any motor vehicle should a mechanic or passenger come into contact with a live circuit under normal or fault conditions. With hybrid-electric buses, contact can come from electricity during battery charging (AC current) or discharging (DC current). If contact is made, the extent of injury will depend on the size, duration, frequency, and wave shape of the current. Conventional diesel buses make use of 12/24vDC and 220/240vAC. Hybrid drive buses operate at levels of power up to 400vDC and 600 amps. However, the risk of electrical shock can be mitigated through proper engineering, labelling, and safe maintenance practices. SAE standards have been developed to minimize electrical hazards associated with the design and manufacture of electric and hybrid-electric vehicles....
Words: 4132 - Pages: 17
...OVERVIEW Retail gasoline businesses, such this gas station and convenience store, are single-purpose economic enterprises. Because of their specialty of design, they cannot be readily converted to other types of businesses without a significant loss in value. Gas station convenience stores are special-built properties designed to make money in only one way, and they are not easily adapted to other uses. These businesses derive a significant part of their gross sales, about 50 percent, from the sale of motor fuels (National Association of Convenience Stores, 2006). The Silver Bullet recorded at one time 77% of gross sales from the sale of gasoline. This business also sold propane and kerosene (2000 UST). This site has (1) 8,000, (2) 6,000, and (1) 2000 gallon warranted (40 yrs) USTs for fuel (installed by Southern Tank & Pump, NC). stations, and canopies, which are situated on-site but separate from the building. Design features create and significantly influence the property value. For example, the fuel service is so specially-designed that if it becomes no longer profitable to sell motor fuel at a particular site, the contributory value of the fuel service will be zero or even negative. Unlike a generic retail store or office building, the fuel service cannot be put to any other use. This specialty of design and economic narrowness of use for retail gasoline properties can result in an after value that is comparatively low. Case law indicates that an abutting...
Words: 7890 - Pages: 32
...much pollution an electric car produces per mile – accounting for all emissions, starting from the gas or oil well where the source fuel is extracted, all the way to the final consumption of electricity by the car’s motor. When we work through the numbers, we find that the electric car is significantly more efficient and pollutes less than all alternatives.In this paper, we will investigate the Tesla Roadster™, which uses commodity lithium-ion batteries instead of lead-acid batteries or nickel-metal-hydride batteries as most electric cars have used. Not only does this lithium-ion–based car have extremely high well-to-wheel energy efficiency and extremely low well-to-wheel emissions, it also has astonishing performance and superior convenience.Lithium ion batteries are a lot more difficult to use than previous technologies; this is the reason that they have not so far been used in electric cars. Tesla Motors is spending a lot of effort making a safe, light, and durable lithium ion battery system. Over time, Tesla will probably put tens of millions into pack and cell features and optimization. However– as this paper will show, the energy and power density of lithium ion batteries make this effort very worthwhile. Energy Efficiency To compute the well-to-wheel energy efficiency of any car, we start with the energy content of the source fuel (e.g. coal, crude oil or natural gas) as it comes from the ground. We then track the energy content of this fuel as it is converted to...
Words: 4315 - Pages: 18
...CASE Notes Case 5 – The Global Auto Industry 1: Analyze the competitive structure of the automobile industry in the United States. Is this attractive industry? (This question requires you to use Porter’s five forces to analyze the competitive structure of the US automobile market. Your analysis should include bullet points or detail under each of the following categories.) * Entry Conditions The barrier of entry for the automobile industry in the United States is extremely high for a brand new company. The industry is already ruled by highly competitive gigantic corporations from different countries that have been around for a long time and have been implementing market research, various car designs, quality control, efficient manufacturing and logistics strategies, etc. The production of a new car requires a high sales volume to return profits over the fixed costs of developing it. To achieve high sales volumes, customers have to trust or be interested in a new brand which is difficult to achieve where most of the demand is pleased by the current competitors. On top of that, a new company has to build expensive factories to be able to make enough cars to make a profit with the risk of not even selling them all, and losing more money by having to cut car prices to increase sales. Basically, economies of scale are extremely important in this industry, so a beginner needs huge capital to be able to start competing, then they have to battle...
Words: 2009 - Pages: 9
...fast pace. People, during this time, concentrated on their own leisure and happiness. Behind the narcissism and selfishness of many people’s attitudes, an oil crisis struck America which largely impacted the automobile industry and led to a rise in gas prices. The combination of stagnant growth and price inflation during this era raises many issues, while many attempts to end the crisis, such as Jimmy Carter’s Energy plan, substantially made it worse. These problems caused Americans to focus more on economic issues versus social issues. The “Me Decade,” a term coined by novelist Tom Wolfe, was a concept of the Seventies- “an era of narcissism, selfishness, personal rather than political awareness… The ‘70’s was the decade in which people put emphasis on the skin, on the surface, rather than on the roof of things… It was the decade in which image became preeminent because nothing deeper was going on (Schulman, 145).” It described the new American self-awareness and the collective retreat from history, community and human reciprocity. Compared to the 1960’s, Americans in the 1970’s were self-absorbed and passive; it was a stylistic change in American preoccupations (Schulman, 145). Cheap gas prices allowed Americans to drive in gas guzzling vehicles, which eventually changed the automobile industry due to the Oil Crisis. Studying the oil crisis of the 1970’s dramatically illustrates American dependence on fossil fuels. At the time, the United States was consuming a huge percentage...
Words: 2143 - Pages: 9
...Juan Francisco Marines Case Study Analysis: Zipcar (1) WHO ARE THE MAIN PLAYERS IN THE CASE? | Summary: Who: Robin Chase CEO and Co-founderWhen: October 14, 2000What: Option 1: Reach out to other investors Option 2: Create a new business model Option 3: Close the businessMain Players: * Robin Chase * Antje Danielson - * Corporate PresidentOthers * Glenn Urban – Dean and mentor to Chase * JohnSnow – Consulting Firm * Paul Covell – MIT engineer * Investors CircleAlliance Partners: * Dan Holland – Venture partner * Transit Stations * AP reporter – press coverage Competitors: * Europe car sharing companies - Swiss Mobility CarSharing, Drive Stadtauto * Rental Car Companies – Hertz, Enterprise, Avis * Public Transportation * North American car sharing companies - Common Auto, Flexcar | | | (2) IDENTIFY THE MAJOR PROBLEMS AND ISSUES IN THE CASE. | The major problem in this case is that Chase has an amazing idea, but was not adequately prepared for this type of business venture considering the time frame that she had put on herself to launch this company, and what she wanted to do for Zipcar. By setting a premature date everything seemed to have been done with a rush, even the acquisition of funds from investors for capital. Although the Glenn Urban was correct in saying the business idea was a really good idea, and having the data to support this type of business venture, however there is something...
Words: 1051 - Pages: 5
...United Kingdom The impact on employment in EU-25 of the opening of electricity and gas markets, and of key EU directives in the field of energy Case study country report - UNITED KINGDOM and Centrica C3126 / March 2007 ECOTEC Research & Consulting Pat Irving and Anne-Mari Nevala Priestley House 12-26 Albert Street Birmingham B4 7UD United Kingdom T +44 (0)121 616 3600 F +44 (0)121 616 3699 www.ecotec.com This report is available in English only. It was financed and prepared for the use of the European Commission, Directorate-General for Employment, Social Affairs and Equal Opportunities. Its content reflects the opinions of its authors only and does not necessarily represent the official position of the European Commission. Contents 1.0 2.0 2.1 2.1.1 2.1.2 2.1.3 2.1.4 2.2 2.2.1 2.2.2 2.2.3 2.2.4 2.2.5 2.2.6 2.2.7 2.2.8 PAGE INTRODUCTION ...................................................................................... 3 KEY ENERGY MARKET FACTS............................................................. 4 Status and impact of gas market liberalisation .......................................................4 Market structure ...........................................................................................................5 Gas supply and demand ..............................................................................................6 Gas prices .........................................................................................
Words: 11439 - Pages: 46
...Hybrid Cars IQP A Study on Hybrid Cars: Environmental Effects and Consumer Habits An Interactive Qualifying Project to be submitted to the faculty of Worcester Polytechnic Institute in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree of Bachelor of Science. Submitted By: Michael Beliveau James Rehberger Jonathan Rowell Alyssa Xarras Submitted to: Submitted: 28 April 2010 Project Advisor: Prof. Chickery Kasouf 1 Hybrid Cars IQP Table of Contents List of Figures ................................................................................................................................................ 4 Abstract ......................................................................................................................................................... 5 Executive Summary ....................................................................................................................................... 6 Chapter 1. Chapter 2. Introduction .......................................................................................................................... 9 Literature Review ................................................................................................................ 12 2.1 Environmental Effects ....................................................................................................................... 12 2.2 Emissions ............................................
Words: 33283 - Pages: 134
...but unfortunately for solar panels the sun moves. Nigeria as a country is suited for harvesting of solar energy, of which if effectively implemented can end energy crisis faced by this Country Our design includes a construction of solar power system (solar photovoltaic module, rechargeable battery, solar charge controller and load) with an integration of a solar panel tracking device. The design also incorporates a web based portal for control and monitoring of the system remotely. The system uses an Arduino Uno as a microcontroller to control power supply to the inverter and for measuring the battery percentage in a real life over a WIFI Network using Arduino Ethernet Shield. INTRODUCTION 1.0 Background of the study Energy is fundamental to human daily activities. An important form of energy is the Solar energy which source is the Sun, other forms of energy also include Electrical, Chemical and Mechanical energy to mention but a few. The importance of energy to the Environment, Economy, ICT cannot be overemphasized especially in developing countries like Nigeria. Energy is an important factor for economy competitiveness and employment, it allows us to light our homes and offices in the form of electrical energy, to stay interconnected and knowledgeable about the world. Steady supply of Electrical Energy in Nigeria will guarantee investments, employments for increasing numbers of unemployed graduates and reduce poverty level among other socio economic...
Words: 1553 - Pages: 7
...Economic Impact of SUVs The SUV (Sports Utility Vehicle) is one of the most popular types of vehicle to both own and drive. Last year, SUVs and minivans outsold conventional cars for the first time. During the 1990s, sport utility vehicles (SUVs) became the fastest growing segment of the auto industry. Generally larger and heavier than the typical automobile, SUVs require more fuel and produce greater amounts of toxins. Although buyers believe that SUVs are safer than automobiles, which they are in some cases, SUVs are more prone to roll-overs than are automobiles. With sales projected to grow to over 3 million units per year in 2001, SUVs show no sign of decreasing in popularity. However, the SUV is increasingly coming under attack for its fuel economy. The retail gas prices rose to just over $4 a gallon. Sales of large SUVs were affected more than any other vehicle, and their resale values dropped like a rock. In this paper I would like to talk about: why people want to buy SUVs? What impact does the lower fuel economy of SUVs have on the economy? What is the new fuel economy policy by the government? What impact does the safety record if SUVs have on the economy? Sport utility vehicle (SUV) is a vehicle similar to a station wagon or estate car. Early SUVs were used in military and commercial purposes, Jeep and Land Rover were used in the WW2. Chevrolet Carryall Suburban was the first SUV came out in 1935, but it’s only a RWD. SUVs became popular in the United States, Canada...
Words: 2458 - Pages: 10
...with a car. That car that society drives, however, doesn’t run all by itself. All cars need some form of energy to operate. The world’s primary use of energy for cars is oil. As we know, our global amount of fossil fuels, especially oil, gets a little more scarce everyday. Researchers have developed different kinds of alternative energy to help slow down the use of fossil fuels. Ethanol has turned into a top source of an alternative for oil. So why not use those alternative forms of energy like ethanol for every car? Through studies and research, scientists continue to evaluate the downside of fossil fuels, possible harm of alternative energy, the benefits of fossil fuels, and successes of alternative energy. Earth’s primary energy supplier has always been fossil fuels. Fossil fuels are made from animals and plants that lived many millions of years ago. Those plants and animals became buried underneath the surface of the Earth where they transformed into what we use today for oil. We have depended on those fuels to meet our most basic energy needs, to our most complex. Society runs into the problem that fossil fuels are a non-renewable resource. Once they have been depleted, the fossil fuels are gone forever. The problem comes up when miners, oil companies, and oil consumers destroy different ecosystems. The mining and oil production that occurs has caused a major dent our environment. When oil is refined to make gas and that gas is used in cars, it emits carbon...
Words: 1152 - Pages: 5
... creativity combined with technology can perform a simple task as driving a vehicle. The Auto driver is a technology project to develop a self-driving vehicle. Using GPS (Global positioning system) and other relatively new driving technologies, and combining them into one functional unit able to drive a car. A GPS system currently in use for driving involves indicating available parking spaces (Hsu 2010). Auto driver will take this idea further and use the GPS system to navigate cars through highways and city streets, without getting lost or losing control. By combining technology that is in place, it is possible to develop this car. By use of low cost sensors, the car will be able to recognize other cars in front and behind it while on the road. Similar technology developed by researchers at Rutgers University is helping in parking cars (Joentz 2010). Overview Edmonds et.al. (2005) Point out that the cutting edge in the digital arts is a highly fertile ground for the investigation of creativity and the role of new technologies. In this project, the idea is to research develop a car with an onboard computer system named Auto driver. A system that combines an automated engine to drive the car and an automated navigation system to guide the car. A typical journey in the car begins by the car recognizing...
Words: 1209 - Pages: 5
...CONSUMER BEHAVIOUR A Case study on GREEN vehicles in India: A FUTURE MARKET FACULTY:- Dr. Himani Sharma FROM:- Aamir Saleem Roll No – C-022 MBA M&S Under: Taufeeque Ahmad Company: JLL India Ltd. Phone number: 09560427952 ABSTRACT The Indian automobile industry has emerged stronger from the recent global downturn, and sales across all segments have seen record breaking numbers in the recent past. While the Indian industry has much to look forward to, by way of steady growth in both domestic and export markets, there are some clear challenges accompanying the opportunities in greener vehicles and alternative mobility. The shooting upward trend of price of fuel, pollution and purchasing power of the people the Indian automobile industry look to create a segment of consumer that has demand for the “GREEN VEHICLES” that are more fuel efficient, less CO2 emission and low operating cost or can run on alternate fuel. KEYWORDS: Green vehicles, Alternate fuel, Hybrid cars, Eco-friendly, CNG/LPG vehicles, E-mobility INTRODUCTION Demographically and economically, India’s automotive industry is well-positioned for growth, servicing both domestic demand and, increasingly, export opportunities. A predicted increase in India’s working-age population is likely to help stimulate the burgeoning market for private vehicles. Rising prosperity, easier access to finance and increasing affordability is expected to see four-wheelers gaining volumes, although...
Words: 3976 - Pages: 16
...Available online at www.sciencedirect.com Solar Energy 98 (2013) 167–179 www.elsevier.com/locate/solener Ensuring long term investment for large scale solar power stations: Hedging instruments for green power A. Radchik a,⇑, I. Skryabin b, J. Maisano c, A. Novikov d, T. Gazarian e Mathematics & Statistics, Faculty of Science, UTS and Director GTS Pty. Ltd., Suite 2, 16 Figtree Avenue, Randwick, NSW 2031, Australia b Centre for Sustainable Energy Systems, Australian National University, Canberra 2000, Australia c Energy Markets, TTA Pty. Ltd., Suite 12, L6, 321 Pitt St., Sydney, NSW 2000, Australia d School of Mathematics & Statistics, Faculty of Science, University of Technology Sydney (UTS), P.O. Box 123, Broadway, NSW 2007, Australia e School of Mathematics & Statistics, Faculty of Science, UTS, 1 Stella Vista Pl, Greenwich, NSW 2065, Australia Available online 29 March 2013 Communicated by: Associate Editor Frank Vignola a Abstract There is a general consensus that solar power is one of the cleanest energy technologies available. Nevertheless, investment in largescale Solar Power Generators (SPGs) is largely impeded by the intermittent nature of solar power. Since the electricity market has a critical responsibility to maintain the reliability of energy supply, the SPG can be registered only as the market semi-scheduled generator (AEMC, 2011). This option excludes the advantages of providing baseload supply, which in turn impedes efficient market contracting for SPGs...
Words: 9318 - Pages: 38
...FRANK T. ROTHAERMEL DAVID R. KING Tesla Motors, Inc. January 1, 2015. Elon Musk, chief executive officer (CEO) of Tesla is taking it easy on this New Year’s Day. While having his coffee, he scrolls through some recent issues of The Wall Street Journal on his iPad. A headline from one current story jumps out at him, “Gasoline prices have declined for 88 consecutive days, the longest streak of falling prices on record.”1 The slide in gas prices, which began in September 2014, also happened to coincide with the slide in Tesla Motors (TSLA) stock. With increasing oil, and therefore gas, prices, people had an incentive for purchasing electric cars. Now with gas prices drop- ping, the incentive to buy would start to become less of one, and the demand for the product would probably drop. This was one of the challenges facing Musk on this New Year’s Day. In addition to hav- ing to contend with lower selling costs due to rising production, Tesla was also confronting increasing competition and economic headwinds that were likely going to lower the demand for electric cars. Musk is a serial entrepreneur longing to leave a legacy, and he believes that Tesla just might be the company that will help him leave his mark. He has a large profile already and has been described as “Henry Ford and Robert Oppenheimer in one person,” as well as “Tony Stark, the eccentric inventor better known as Iron Man.”2, 3 (In fact, Musk made a cameo appearance in Iron Man 2.) But, with sev- eral pressing...
Words: 10974 - Pages: 44
