Nick, I have to disagree with you here.
I wasn't able to download the PDF you linked to, but you're definitely looking in the wrong place for your electric motor. Perhaps the one you found was designed for elevator installations? The one I found
here delivers a lot more power than your Lycoming and weighs 180lb
including its cooling system so don't forget to take off the squirrel cage!
I know my batteries are going to be heavier than a fuel tank. But I'm also taking out both gearboxes, the mechanical drive shaft, the oil cooler, the clutch, the alternator, the starter motor and any other IC-related things I can think of...
I don't have the slightest intention to use fuel cells. They have a very poor energy density and the usage problems you describe. Nor would I use hydrogen - current storage methods involve a high-pressure tank storing liquid hydrogen, and the energy density of the tank + hydrogen is way below the current best offered by batteries. Chemical batteries are the closest thing to gasoline, as described at the EVWorld link in my previous post.
You're right about electricity being a 'secondary' power source; something has to burn or turn somewhere to generate the electricity. You overestimate the transmission losses, which leads you to conclude that a primary power source is more efficient than a chain which includes stored electricity. This would be true
if small internal combustion engines were at all efficient. Do the math: 65% efficiency in a power station vs 10-15% efficiency in a small IC engine. There's a lot of leeway for transmission losses in my electricity chain!
Keep up the counter-arguments though...
Benet