Gas-less gas station....

[kadee79]

Wonder how soon this will come to the US?

One London gas station has totally reimagined what a refueling area can look like.

Since the beginning of 2022, a Shell station in Fulham, England, has removed all of its gas pumps to instead offer rapid electric vehicle (EV) chargers for those who need to recharge, as reported by Bloomberg.

The awnings over each charger are equipped with solar panels and can fully charge a Tesla Model 3 in about a half-hour, costing around $39.

And this “gas” station is far more luxurious than what most people are used to.

Because charging EVs takes longer than pumping gas, the station offers more food and activities for customers while they wait. People charging their cars can get groceries, buy coffee, get their cars washed, or even take a breather in lounge chairs.

It makes total sense that Shell would want to install tons more gasless gas stations, too, as people are more likely to spend money on other goods if they have to stay a bit longer. But worry not, you won’t have to linger too much longer, as the EV chargers here are ultra-fast, several times quicker than the ones installed in people’s homes.

www.msn.com/en-us/money/other/this-shell-station-removed-all-of-its-gas-pumps-now-it-s-being-called-the-gas-station-of-the-future/ar-AA15rDWn?cvid=478be10eee4a4c81a2df09164049fbb0

[billisonboard]

June 3,2023.

[Tennesseer]

I wonder when vehicle engine developers will create an electric car which when in motion recharges itself.  One might have to plug it in on occassion to recharge it but once in motion it recharges itself.

[djAdvocate]

Dec 19, 2022 16:31:43 GMT -5 Tennesseer said:

I wonder when vehicle engine developers will create an electric car which when in motion recharges itself.  One might have to plug it in on occassion to recharge it but once in motion it recharges itself.

you can't recharge a car by using it's motion- not to the degree it is charged, anyway.  it disobeys Newton's Second Law.

however, you can recover some of the dynamic energy of the car through regenerative braking.  i believe most EV's have that.

there is a cheap car that has solar panels all over it instead of body panels.  it might potentially recharge without a station:


sonomotors.com/en/sion/

this company is in production but out of money.  they are seeking another round of funding to fill 60000 orders.

[thyme4change]

I most certainly understand why this gas station is re-thinking its business, but we already have areas that have food and shopping and things to do. And in most of the USA those places have parking lots. We don’t need a separate charging station, put the chargers at Grocery stores, restaurants, theaters, malls, office buildings, doctor’s offices and of course - people’s homes, including apartments and other multi-unit living situations.

I think they also need to develop a queuing system for chargers that have busy times. Hotels would be the ideal starting point. Instead of having a charger for every room, have a charger that has 4 cables for 4 cars to plug in at the same time, and then the charger can charge one car and when it is done, charge the next car and then the third car, etc. This would shift the energy burden to the middle of the night when usage is traditionally light, and no one has to go out at 2 am to move a plug from one car to the next. This could also be applied to a home that has multiple cars (assuming the owners can’t pull it together and alternate nights).

Once we get to a 400 mile range or whatever, most people will charge once a week. They should be able to do that at work, or during their normal errands. No need to go to a charging station and “hang out”.

[djAdvocate]

Dec 20, 2022 18:31:58 GMT -5 thyme4change said:

I most certainly understand why this gas station is re-thinking its business, but we already have areas that have food and shopping and things to do. And in most of the USA those places have parking lots. We don’t need a separate charging station, put the chargers at Grocery stores, restaurants, theaters, malls, office buildings, doctor’s offices and of course - people’s homes, including apartments and other multi-unit living situations.

I think they also need to develop a queuing system for chargers that have busy times. Hotels would be the ideal starting point. Instead of having a charger for every room, have a charger that has 4 cables for 4 cars to plug in at the same time, and then the charger can charge one car and when it is done, charge the next car and then the third car, etc. This would shift the energy burden to the middle of the night when usage is traditionally light, and no one has to go out at 2 am to move a plug from one car to the next. This could also be applied to a home that has multiple cars (assuming the owners can’t pull it together and alternate nights).

Once we get to a 400 mile range or whatever, most people will charge once a week. They should be able to do that at work, or during their normal errands. No need to go to a charging station and “hang out”.

if they want a "green" certification, they could offer free charging to patrons.

[scgal]

Dec 20, 2022 7:10:12 GMT -5 djAdvocate said:

Dec 19, 2022 16:31:43 GMT -5 Tennesseer said:

I wonder when vehicle engine developers will create an electric car which when in motion recharges itself.  One might have to plug it in on occassion to recharge it but once in motion it recharges itself.

you can't recharge a car by using it's motion- not to the degree it is charged, anyway.  it disobeys Newton's Second Law.

however, you can recover some of the dynamic energy of the car through regenerative braking.  i believe most EV's have that.

there is a cheap car that has solar panels all over it instead of body panels.  it might potentially recharge without a station:


sonomotors.com/en/sion/

this company is in production but out of money.  they are seeking another round of funding to fill 60000 orders.

The regenerative braking been around since hybrids became a popular thing around 2004. I work in this field, there are some new advances coming in this area but funding is lacking. Most of the funding is going into better batteries. There are several areas where the car can recharge it self or shall we say to keep it the battery more sustainable to go on longer commutes. The problem with this is keeping the battery cool from burning out too soon. Again there are some good break through coming but at a cost. You would be surprised on how much of the EV vehicle price is from the R+D let alone the cost of the battery (mining for materials). They are not as green or cost effective as most would think but they are going to be the future. 

[thyme4change]

I saw something that said in other countries they are retrofitting batteries that can no longer be used in cars to house power generated by solar. If this comes to the US, someone could have solar or wind at their house and store power for later (you know - so you can watch tv even when it is not windy 🙄). I know there are many hurdles to make this more usable - but it is good to hear there may be a second life for the old batteries so disposal won’t be such an issue.

[djAdvocate]

Dec 30, 2022 13:40:28 GMT -5 thyme4change said:

I saw something that said in other countries they are retrofitting batteries that can no longer be used in cars to house power generated by solar. If this comes to the US, someone could have solar or wind at their house and store power for later (you know - so you can watch tv even when it is not windy 🙄). I know there are many hurdles to make this more usable - but it is good to hear there may be a second life for the old batteries so disposal won’t be such an issue.

there is a battery recycling outfit up in Canada that has something like 99.9% recovery:


recyclico.com/