The message
from The Natural Philosopher contains these words:

And just how do you think electricity to charge the batteries is
produced? With a loss approaching 30% at every stage: thermal value of
fuel for power station to power delivered at charger (taking in power
loss in transmission lines), charging the accumulator, discharging the
accumulator all taken into account, the net result is a great deal more
pollution to propel your so-called clean electric vehicle.

Well first of all, because it isn't 30% at every stage.

Thermal efficiency of a modern power station is up to 65% - more if you
can use the waste heat to e.g. heat water for the neighborhood.

Elecricity generators and motors can achieve over 90%, and transformers
etc are typically around the 95% plus mark.

At optimum levels, and only the very best and most expensive - and how
many manufacturers use that sort of quality of component?

I am not sure on distribution losses. Theortecically those can be as low
as you like, by use of fatter or supercinducting cables.

Superconducting cables can be as low as zero (for 99,99% pure niobium at
liquid nitrogen temperatures), but the environmental cost of keeping
them in the superconductor range would far outweigh the gain.

My extensive experience of charge/dishcarge of secondary cells suggests
that 90% convesrion or better ins not uncommon.

The big things in favour of all electric cars tho are

(i) the initial electricity generation can be done by many different
things - from windmills to nuclear power stations, as well as burning
non fossil fuels (biomass)

But burning hydrogen, or even a hydrocarbon in an internal combustion
engine will still be less polluting.

(ii) its a lot easier to scrub atmospheric pollutants from a power
station flue than from a car exhaust. That doesn';t affect the hydrigen
versus electric car argment tho.

Then what happens to the scrubbed-out pollutants, I wonder? And
incedentally, scrubbing pollutants from that volume of exhaust gas
requires a gigantic investment in plant and running power, and it's my
belief that that investment will never 'repay' the amount of
energy/pollution required for its construction.

(iii) we already have an electrical distribution system that has huge
off peak energy availability. And that is precsiely when we would be
charging our cars up. Essentally tow electrckettles overnight is all it
takes power wise, to get a full days motoring (unless you intend to
drive to scoitland, in which case the electric car uis stll not able to
cut teh mustard, although it is feasible to fully rechage current cells
in about one hour at e.g. a specially equipped 'service station'

I've said it before in another forum: if you bothered to use a
spellchecker, your posts would be readable. It takes too long to reply
yo one of your posts point-by-point.

/rest of it snipped. Life is too short/

And thread killed.

--
Rusty
Open the creaking gate to make a horrid.squeak, then lower the foobar.
http://www.users.zetnet.co.uk/hi-fi/