Question

chemistry in hybrid cars

Answer 1

With the creation of the automobile, we have been able to go from vehicles that rely on steam power (Cugnot Steam Trolley, 1769), to ones that run on gasoline (like the ones commonly used today), and are now moving towards hybrid vehicles. The question is though, what exactly is a hybrid vehicle? Is it one that runs on electricity? Is it one that runs on batteries? Or is it a combination of both? With a greater need for new energy sources, economically efficient vehicles, and rising gas prices, many hope that hybrid car technology is the ultimate solution.

Despite prior attempts to introduce hybrid cars to the market, sales of vehicles with this technology took off in 2004, thanks to the Toyota Prius II, one of Toyota’s best selling vehicles. With the Prius II, consumers had the advantage of using both gas and electricity in their vehicles. The gas engine produced 76 horsepower while the electric motor produced 67 horsepower, nearly equivalent, and a combined milage achievement of 65MPH.

Today, most hybrid cars utilize the same technology, using an electric motor/gas engine. By doing so, the energy from gasoline could be used to power a battery, capacitor  or directly power the engine, while the electric motor is used to drive the wheel. Alternatively, in “parallel” and “power split” hybrid vehicles, an engine and an electric motor share the work of driving the wheel. “Plug-in” vehicles store energy in lithium-ion battery packs by plugging the vehicle into an outlet, allowing for an increase in overall energy storage capacity. Generally, electric vehicles relies on energy from batteries to power the wheel, while in gasoline vehicles, gas is used to power the wheel. Although the process used by electric vehicles is much more efficient than that of gasoline vehicles, hybrid cars are more efficient because the minimize waste. For example, most hybrid cars use a technology that sends left-over energy back to the battery pack and show real-time gas milage, allowing for drivers to drive at an optimal speed to reduce their costs.