200hp Electric Sikorsky

[onetrack]

I have to concur that this media release is a fairly substantial beat-up, and that it has been done to show people that more than lip service is being given to electric drive technology. It could be, that it has been done to place the company in a position to acquire more "green" funding.

There are vast amounts of Govt money available to any company or even an individual who can produce some evidence of a product that shows some advance in the reduction of reliance on hydrocarbon fuels, and a contribution to a greener planet.

However, direct electric drive has a long way to go. The basic problem is that no-one - not even the Li-Ion battery worshippers - can claim that they have an improved battery design, that can come anywhere near the performance of any hydrocarbon-fueled, IC engine.

The basic battery problems stem from inadequate storage and "power-on-demand" capabilities, right through to an inability to recharge quickly.
Caterpillar spun off battery development improvements into a company called Firefly (no relation to Project Firefly).
This new Caterpillar-instigated design involved carbon foam cells that promised vastly improved performance and low cost, as the basic aim of the design being that no metals were required, and carbon is exceptionally low cost, and one of the most common elements.
Unfortunately, the design went nowhere, and Firefly have filed for bankruptcy.

The Swedes have the Effpower battery. A promising lead-acid development that utilises bi-polar plates. Not the bi-polar battery that Microsoft have recently raved about (the one you can insert without reference to correct polarity). No, the Effpower battery design is based around the premise that standard lead-acid batteries only access one side of the plates for power generation. Improving the design so that power is accessed from both sides of the plates makes for a more efficient battery, with lighter weight for power output, and at lower cost than a standard lead-acid battery.

Volvo have poured a heap of money into Effpower, and will shortly be using the Effpower battery in their hybrid vehicles, such as trucks, buses, and some construction equipment.
Hybrid power is the halfway step to all-electric power, and this concept is being embraced by many manufacturers of vehicles and construction equipment.

Their aim is to utilise a smaller engine, (usually a diesel) to drive a reversible generator/motor, that recharges batteries, as well as powering the vehicle/machine, on demand. Regenerative braking turns the electric motor into a battery-charging generator.
Batteries driving the electric motor provide power for lower speeds, and when full power is required, the IC engine adds its power to the electric motor for maximum performance. Volvo will have buses and trucks in production next year, utilising this concept.

There are already excavators in production that utilise hybrid power. They have batteries that power the excavator swing motor, and the swing motor uses regenerative braking for battery charging when it has passed the mid-point of it's swing, and the swing needs to be brought to a stop. The diesel engine also recharges the batteries.
The biggest and most promising development, that really IS a major breakthrough, is the Australian CSIRO-developed Ultrapower battery. This battery utilises standard lead-acid technology, but combines super capacitors in its construction to provide a massive power boost on demand, and to assist with rapid recharge.

The CSIRO claim that lead-acid battery design is a proven principle, and has no major inherent problems, as Ni-MH, and Li-Ion batteries do. In addition, a crucial factor is that lead-acid batteries are 100% recyclable, unlike all other batteries.

This Ultrapower battery is well past the design stage. It has been tested in a hybrid electric vehicle (HEV), and that car has covered over 160,000 kms in testing, with outstanding results. Licences to build the Ultrapower have been given to Furukawa of Japan, and Furukawa has extended the licence to the Advanced Lead-Acid Battery Consortium of America, a group of 54 organisations intent on advancing VRLA battery development.

None of this does anything to seriously advance the possibility of an all-electric chopper. An all-electric chopper will always be hampered by weight considerations of the batteries. A hybrid chopper is a distinct possibility, as hybrid design is currently the most promising technology.

The Ultrapower battery is aimed at HEV's, not 100% electric vehicles; although it is possible that the Ultrapower will be able to meet the demands of an all-electric design. As far as an all-electric, completely-viable chopper? Not in the foreseeable near future, IMO. A hybrid power chopper? Yes, very likely in the foreseeable future.