UW-Madison Electric Snowmobile Stair Climb

An electric snowmobile, the BuckEV, built by students at the University of Wisconsin - Madison for the SAE CSC (Society of Automotive Engineering Clean Snowmobile Challenge) demonstrates its power by climbing the stairs in front of the Engineering Centers Building (ECB) in Madison, WI. The CSC Electric Snowmobile category is sponsored by the NSF and intended to promote the development of zero-emissions utility snowmobiles to aid in climate research projects in Greenland.

Category:

Science & Technology

Tags:

• electric snowmobile
• electric
• snowmobile
• vehicle
• wisconsin
• uw
• uw-madison
• csc
• sae
• clean challenge

[vectraB97]

search:Water freezes instantly in mid air turning into snow

not the video I was talking about. but you see..

[vectraB97]

they will not be more fuel efficient for long... mercedes have made a petrol engine with diesel technology. diesotto.. more hp and torque, better fuel economy than diesel cars. my friends all have diesel cars.. all have turble starting there cars when it drop under -15celsius.. need to heat engine up with webasto or electricity. I dont, even in -25c.. 1hour drive from where I live it can drop down to -50celsius.. belive me diesel can freez there.. lot of cars did last time they had -50c.

[ethanbrodsky]

Diesels do need to be shifted more, but they are more efficient over a wider range of loads and speeds, and shifting can be handled by an auto-shift gearbox (e.g. DSG) if you're lazy. Diesel fuel is indeed more expensive, though not if you consider it on a usable-energy content basis (at least in the US). Part of the reason gasoline is so cheap now is due to soft demand - diesel is still in high demand and subsidizing petrol production. I don't really notice the diesel smell anymore with ULSD.

[ethanbrodsky]

There is also some talk that NOx regulations may be relaxed, to allow for greater reductions in CO2. There's a tradeoff between improving fuel economy and cutting NOx - the increased focus on greenhouse gasses, higher levels of NOx may be tolerated. Modern diesels idle very smoothly and quietly (using pilot injection to smooth the combustion profile), start well in the cold, the fuel doesn't gel (with proper additives), can have adequate cabin heat on warmup (from the EGR cooler).

[ethanbrodsky]

Diesel inherently will make more NOx than petrol, but that's because it's more efficient (i.e. lean mixture, higher combustion temperature and pressure => higher NOx) process. The same is true for direct injection (DI) gasoline engines - NOx is a problem when they are running in lean burn modes. The US Tier 2 NOx limit for passenger vehicles is currently be the same for petrol and diesel - the same will be true in Europe with Euro V.

[vectraB97]

search:Overview: 2011 Chevrolet Volt

looks like a car I would like to own in 2011.

[vectraB97]

I read about scr. they say 30-70% less nox. but that is still way over what a petrol car make.. I would not buy a diesel car. they sound bad, stink, hard to start in cold wether. and diesel are know to freez in -40celsius. less engine heat, and they dont rev that high, need to change gear more than a petrol car. diesel cars and fuel are more expensive in norway.. no need for webasto on petrol car.. and diesel exhaus make me sick..

[ethanbrodsky]

The main problem with hydrogen is that there its energy density is so low that there is no way to store adequate amounts of it on a vehicle to get a decent range. The only viable technique right now is high pressure cylinders (we'll see what happens with the metal hydrides), and the energy required to compress the hydrogen for storage means its greenhouse gas impact is larger than diesel. It's hard to beat liquid fuels for compact, light, and easily usable, energy storage.

[ethanbrodsky]

Diesel fuel is an oil, and as such is substantially cheaper to make from oil-bearing plants. Alcohols come from fermentation of sugar, which is a more energy-intensive process. Diesel engines are also much less particular about what they burn - fuel for spark-ignited engines must conform to more stringent criteria. I personally think biodiesel from algae is the best long-term hope for a sustainable transportation fuel. Ethanol from corn most likely is not.

[vectraB97]

they have to do more research. find all the best ways to make ethanol.. I did not say etanol alone will save the world.. why not use all the best technology on cars.. electric/ethanol/hydrogen hybrid. I bet hydrogen/electric hybrid will beat ethanol on cars. but not on snowmobiles.. hp/weight will always be a big problem on snowmobiles.. opel, volvo+++ have new electic cars for 2011. opel volt.. I bet they are nice. not like the stupid norwegian made smart think..