This bookcase started out as a boring normal wood bookcase that was more then likely headed into a landfill, So I brought it home, painted it navy blue and white with my bf Matt, and today, covered the shelves with cool blue fabric from the store!!! It looks AMAZING! I love it!
Don’t throw away furniture just because it doesn’t fit your current style, change the style of the item and keep it!
In 1977, Tom Ogle demonstrated a 351 ci. Ford getting over 100 miles per gallon. He used a multiple vapor system that had a 3 gallon tank.
He received patent number 4,177,779 Dec. 11, 1979, which described “A fuel economy system for an internal combustion engine which, when installed in a motor vehicle, obviates the need for a conventional carburetor, fuel pump and gasoline tank. The system operates by using the engine vacuum to draw fuel vapors from a vapor tank through a vapor conduit to a vapor equalizer which is positioned directly over the intake manifold of the engine.”
In 1981, Ogle died at the young age of 26. The technology has never been developed.
A fuel economy system for an internal combustion engine which, when installed in a motor vehicle, obviates the need for a conventional carburetor, fuel pump and gasoline tank. The system operates by using the engine vacuum to draw fuel vapors from a vapor tank through a vapor conduit to a vapor equalizer which is positioned directly over the intake manifold of the engine. The vapor tank is constructed of heavy duty steel or the like to withstand the large vacuum pressure and includes an air inlet valve coupled for control to the accelerator pedal. The vapor equalizer ensures distribution of the correct mixture of air and vapor to the cylinders of the engine for combustion, and also includes its own air inlet valve coupled for control to the accelerator pedal. The system utilizes vapor-retarding filters in the vapor conduit, vapor tank and vapor equalizer to deliver the correct vapor/air mixture for proper operation. The vapor tank and fuel contained therein are heated by running the engine coolant through a conduit within the tank. Due to the extremely lean fuel mixtures used by the present invention, gas mileage in excess of one hundred miles per gallon may be achieved.
(http://www.wired.com/autopia/2010/06/henry-ford-thomas-edison-ev/)
That Henry Ford and Thomas Edison were good friends late in their lives is well-known. They camped together, presented each other with lavish gifts, even owned homes adjacent to each other.
Many Ford enthusiasts also know Ford, when he first drove his Quadricycle on the streets of Detroit in 1896, worked for Edison at Detroit Edison Illuminating Company. And historians know Edison, when introduced to Ford some months later and shown Ford’s plans for a gasoline automobile, encouraged the budding industrialist to pursue those plans.
What is far less known is Edison and Ford worked together on an affordable electric vehicle.
This is the story of what happened and why the car never came to be.
At about the time Ford Motor Co. was founded in 1903, Edison had made inroads with battery technology and started offering nickel-iron batteries for several uses, including automobiles. Later that year, he announced plans to convert four large touring cars to electric power (using his own batteries, of course), a plan that reeks of a publicity stunt to sell batteries but was enough to get him listed in the Standard Catalog. And though he prodded Ford into producing gasoline cars, he was soon denouncing them:
Electricity is the thing. There are no whirring and grinding gears with their numerous levers to confuse. There is not that almost terrifying uncertain throb and whirr of the powerful combustion engine. There is no water-circulating system to get out of order — no dangerous and evil-smelling gasoline and no noise.
Ford, however, still high on Edison’s encouragement, not only left Detroit Edison and rigorously pursued the gasoline-powered car, he ordered the development of a flywheel magneto system for the Model T specifically to avoid using batteries. (One story I’ve read, possibly apocryphal, is that the battery in Ford’s pre-production Model T overturned during a camping trip, ending his jaunt and prompting him to ban batteries from his new low-priced car.)
Ford began to change his mind, however, and by early 1914, word spread that he was working on a low-priced electric car. Reports appeared in the Wall Street Journal, in trade magazines and in newspapers as far away as New Zealand regarding Ford’s foray into EVs. Ford confirmed the rumors inThe New York Times on January 11, 1914:
Within a year, I hope, we shall begin the manufacture of an electric automobile. I don’t like to talk about things which are a year ahead, but I am willing to tell you something of my plans.
The fact is that Mr. Edison and I have been working for some years on an electric automobile which would be cheap and practicable. Cars have been built for experimental purposes, and we are satisfied now that the way is clear to success. The problem so far has been to build a storage battery of light weight which would operate for long distances without recharging. Mr. Edison has been experimenting with such a battery for some time.
Ford may have fibbed when he said “multiple” experimental cars, but at least one was built in 1913. That’s it outside Ford’s Highland Park plant in the main photo.
The EV was tiller-steered with an unusually swoopy frame and batteries under the seat. The man operating it, Fred Allison, was an electrical engineer from Detroit charged with designing the motor. Ford Richardson Bryan notes in his book, Friends, Families, & Forays: Scenes From the Life and Times of Henry Ford, the car’s electrical system and overall design were the work of Alexander Churchward, who was at the time vice president of Gray & Davis. General mechanic’s duties were assigned to Samuel Wilson, a former Cadillac employee. Churchward had, one year earlier, written a paper on the standardization of the electric car (he argued, among other things, for a 25 mph maximum speed). Wilson had experience with Cadillac’s self-starter program.
Work continued into 1914, as we can see in the photo above of Allison perched atop a second experimental EV. This one used a Model T frame, suspension and front axle, a Model T steering wheel and a worm-drive rear axle. The latter indicates the motor, mounted behind the driver in the first prototype, was up front in the second, near an additional bank of batteries. Bryan notes in his bookHenry’s Lieutenants that Eugene Farkas was responsible not only for the worm-drive rear axle that was later modified for use in the EV, he was responsible for the car’s chassis.
Rumors, stoked by Ford’s secretary, Ernest Liebold, swirled in the automotive press for the remainder of 1914. Edsel Ford was said to have been put in charge of the Edison-Ford. Henry Ford was said to have bought an electricity-generating plant in Niagara Falls and a site off Woodward Avenue in Detroit specifically for the production of the Edison-Ford.
As the year wore on, the rumor mill had the EV coming in 1915, then 1916. Details varied: It would cost somewhere between $500 and $750 (between $10,000 and $15,712 today) and would go somewhere between 50 and 100 miles on a charge. Even today, reports vary as to whether the car would have abrougham or cabriolet body. Edison, in an interview with Automobile Topics in May, 1914, divulged no details and made his best “It’s coming, just be patient” speech of the kind General Motors has perfected in recent years with the Chevrolet Volt:
He called attention to the fact that a new automobile, especially one embodying such radical features as a $500 or $750 electric pleasure car naturally must have, cannot be designed and constructed in a few weeks.
“Mr. Henry Ford is making plans for the tools, special machinery, factory buildings and equipment for the production of this new electric. There is so much special work to be done that no date can be fixed now as to when the new electric can be put on the market. But Mr. Ford is working steadily on the details, and he knows his business so it will not be long.
“I believe that ultimately the electric motor will be universally used for trucking in all large cities, and that the electric automobile will be the family carriage of the future. All trucking must come to electricity. I am convinced that it will not be long before all the trucking in New York City will be electric.”
Edison, by the way, was himself no stranger to electric cars. Bryan noted in Friends, Families and Forays that Edison built a battery-powered front-wheel-drive electric in 1895, and the industrialist owned some of the very expensive electric cars then in production.
We’ve so far seen no evidence that the press of the day ever got its hands on photos or other solid evidence of the experimental EVs. Eventually, the media seemed to forget about the Edison-Ford altogether. Some conspiracy theorists believe the oil cartels got to Ford and Edison and prompted them to abandon it. These theorists offer as evidence the “mysterious” fire that nearly destroyed Edison’s workshops in West Orange, New Jersey, in December, 1914. Besides the fact all work on the EV took place in Dearborn, Michigan, (and Edison had the entire place rebuilt by the next spring), The New York Times noted on December 10, 1914, that the fire skirted the two buildings in which any work on the electric car would have taken place:
It was seen that the only important buildings that could be saved were the experimental laboratory and the storage-battery building, and all attention was given to them.
Mr. Edison was in the experimental laboratory when the fire began. He helped in the salvage work, and when that was finished he went to the storage battery building and directed the protection of that structure.
Rather, as Bryan wrote, the downfall of the Edison-Ford electric car came about because Ford demanded the use of Edison’s nickel-iron batteries in the car and would have no other battery powering the car. Edison’s batteries, however, were found to have very high internal resistance and were thus incapable of powering an electric car under many circumstances. Heavier lead-acid batteries, which would have made the car too ponderous, were substituted behind Ford’s back. When he found out, he went ballistic. The program quickly fell by the wayside as other projects demanded Ford’s time. According to The Ford Century, Ford invested $1.5 million (almost $31.5 million today) in the electric-car project and nearly bought 100,000 batteries from Edison before the project fell apart.
Churchward, who had already racked up dozens of patents and would be issued dozens more, returned to Gray & Davis and for a time also served as vice president of A.B.C. Starter Company, which later employed Allison as chief engineer. Of the patents granted to Allison that we’ve found, one (1,225,558, dated May 8, 1917) was assigned to the A.B.C. Starter Company, while two others (1,478,196, dated December 18, 1923, and 1,508,377, dated September 16, 1924) were assigned to Ford Motor Company, so Allison very well may have leveraged his experience with the electric car to a career at Ford. Both men were instrumental in Ford’s adoption of the electric starter and electric lighting systems in 1919.
And now we come full circle. Ford says it will invest $135 million in electric-car development and 10 to 25 percent of its fleet will be electrified in some way by 2020.
Here’s hoping, Henry.
Save energy to save money.
Save water to save money.
Less gas = more money (and better health!).
Eat smart.
Skip the bottled water.
Think before you buy.
Borrow instead of buying.
Buy smart.
Keep electronics out of the trash.
Make your own cleaning supplies.
Lead–acid batteries, invented in 1859 by French physicist Gaston Planté, are the oldest type of rechargeable battery. Despite having a very low energy-to-weight ratio and a low energy-to-volume ratio, their ability to supply high surge currents means that the cells maintain a relatively large power-to-weight ratio. These features, along with their low cost, make them attractive for use in motor vehicles to provide the high current required by automobile starter motors.
Lead–acid batteries (under 5 kg) account for 1.5% of all portable secondary battery sales in Japan by number of units sold (25% by price). Sealed lead–acid batteries accounted for 10% by weight of all portable battery sales in the EU in 2000.
In the charged state, each cell contains electrodes of elemental lead (Pb) and lead(IV) oxide (PbO2) in an electrolyte of approximately 33.5% v/v (4.2 Molar) sulfuric acid (H2SO4).
In the discharged state both electrodes turn into lead(II) sulfate (PbSO4) and the electrolyte loses its dissolved sulfuric acid and becomes primarily water. Due to the freezing-point depression of water, as the battery discharges and the concentration of sulfuric acid decreases, the electrolyte is more likely to freeze during winter weather. Because the electrolyte takes part in the charge-discharge reaction, this battery has one major advantage over other chemistries. It is relatively simple to determine the state of charge by merely measuring the specific gravity (S.G.) of the electrolyte, the S.G. falling as the battery discharges.
Most of the world’s lead–acid batteries are automobile starting, lighting and ignition (SLI) batteries, with an estimated 320 million units shipped in 1999.In 1992 about 3 million tons of lead were used in the manufacture of batteries.
Wet cell stand-by (stationary) batteries designed for deep discharge are commonly used in large backup power supplies for telephone and computer centers, grid energy storage, and off-grid household electric power systems.Lead–acid batteries are used in emergency lighting in case of power failure.
Traction (propulsion) batteries are used for in golf carts and other battery electric vehicles. Large lead–acid batteries are also used to power the electric motors in diesel-electric (conventional) submarines and are used on nuclear submarines as well. Valve-regulated lead acid batteries cannot spill their electrolyte. They are used in back-up power supplies for alarm and smaller computer systems (particularly in uninterruptible power supplies) and for electric scooters, electric wheelchairs, electrified bicycles, marine applications, battery electric vehicles or micro hybrid vehicles, and motorcycles.
Lead–acid batteries were used to supply the filament (heater) voltage, with 2 V common in early vacuum tube (valve) radio receivers.
Lead acid batteries designed for starting automotive engines are not designed for deep discharge. They have a large number of thin plates designed for maximum surface area, and therefore maximum current output, but which can easily be damaged by deep discharge. Repeated deep discharges will result in capacity loss and ultimately in premature failure, as the electrodes disintegrate due to mechanical stresses that arise from cycling. Starting batteries kept on continuous float charge will have corrosion in the electrodes and result in premature failure. Starting batteries should be kept open circuit but charged regularly (at least once every two weeks) to prevent sulfation.
Starting batteries are lighter weight than deep cycle batteries of the same battery dimensions, because the cell plates do not extend all the way to the bottom of the battery case. This allows loose disintegrated lead to fall off the plates and collect under the cells, to prolong the service life of the battery. If this loose debris rises high enough it can touch the plates and lead to failure of a cell, resulting in loss of battery voltage and capacity.
Starting batteries are lighter weight than deep cycle batteries of the same battery dimensions, because the cell plates do not extend all the way to the bottom of the battery case. This allows loose disintegrated lead to fall off the plates and collect under the cells, to prolong the service life of the battery. If this loose debris rises high enough it can touch the plates and lead to failure of a cell, resulting in loss of battery voltage and capacity.
Some batteries are designed as a compromise between starter (high-current) and deep cycle batteries. They are able to be discharged to a greater degree than automotive batteries, but less so than deep cycle batteries. They may be referred to as “Marine/Motorhome” batteries, or “leisure batteries”.
An electric vehicle or EV, by definition will use an electric motor for propulsion rather than being powered by a gasoline-powered motor. Besides the electric car: bikes, motorcycles, boats, airplanes, and trains have all been powered by electricity.
Who invented the very first EV is uncertain and several inventors have been given credit. In 1828, Hungarian, Ányos Jedlik invented a small-scale model car powered by an electric motor that he designed. Between 1832 and 1839 (the exact year is uncertain), Robert Anderson of Scotland invented a crude electric-powered carriage. In 1835, another small-scale electric car was designed by Professor Stratingh of Groningen, Holland, and built by his assistant Christopher Becker. In 1835, Thomas Davenport, a blacksmith from Brandon, Vermont, built a small-scale electric car. Davenport was also the inventor of the first of the first American-built DC electric motor.
More practical and more successful electric road vehicles were invented by both Thomas Davenport and Scotsmen Robert Davidson around 1842. Both inventors were the first to use the newly invented but non-rechargeable electric cellsor batteries. Frenchmen Gaston Plante invented a better storage battery in 1865 and his fellow countrymen Camille Faure further improved the storage battery in 1881. Better capacity storage batteries were needed for electric vehicles to become practical.
In the late 1800s, France and Great Britain were the first nations to support the widespread development of electric vehicles. In 1899, a Belgianbuilt electric racing car called “La Jamais Contente” set a world record for land speed – 68 mph – designed by Camille Jénatzy.
It was not until 1895 that Americans began to devote attention to electric vehicles after an electric tricycle was built by A. L. Ryker and William Morrison built a six-passenger wagon both in 1891. Many innovations followed and interest in motor vehicles increased greatly in the late 1890s and early 1900s. In fact, William Morrison’s design with a capacity for passenger is often considered the first real and practical EV.
In 1897, the first commercial EV application was established as a fleet of New York City taxis built by the Electric Carriage and Wagon Company of Philadelphia.
By the turn of the century, America was prosperous and cars, now available in steam, electric, or gasoline versions, were becoming more popular. The years 1899 and 1900 were the high point of electric cars in America, as they outsold all other types of cars. One example was the 1902 Phaeton built by the Woods Motor Vehicle Company of Chicago, which had a range of 18 miles, a top speed of 14 mph and cost $2,000. Later in 1916, Woods invented a hybrid car that had both an internal combustion engine and an electric motor.
Electric vehicles had many advantages over their competitors in the early 1900s. They did not have the vibration, smell, and noise associated with gasoline cars. Changing gears on gasoline cars was the most difficult part of driving, while electric vehicles did not require gear changes. While steam-powered cars also had no gear shifting, they suffered from long start-up times of up to 45 minutes on cold mornings. The steam cars had less range before needing water than an electric’s range on a single charge. The only good roads of the period were in town, causing most travel to be local commuting, a perfect situation for electric vehicles, since their range was limited. The electric vehicle was the preferred choice of many because it did not require the manual effort to start, as with the hand crank on gasoline vehicles, and there was no wrestling with a gear shifter.
While basic electric cars cost under $1,000, most early electric vehicles were ornate, massive carriages designed for the upper class. They had fancy interiors, with expensive materials, and averaged $3,000 by 1910. Electric vehicles enjoyed success into the 1920s with production peaking in 1912.
For the following reasons the electric car declined in popularity. It was several decades before there was a renewed interest.
Electric vehicles had all but disappeared by 1935. The years following until the 1960s were dead years for electric vehicle development and for their use as personal transportation.
The 60s and 70s saw a need for alternative-fueled vehicles to reduce the problems of exhaust emissions from internal combustion enginesand to reduce the dependency on imported foreign crude oil. Many attempts to produce practical electric vehicles occurred during the years from 1960 and beyond.
In the early 60s, the Boyertown Auto Body Works jointly formed the Battronic Truck Company with Smith Delivery Vehicles, Ltd., of England and the Exide Division of the Electric Battery Company. The first Battronic electric truck was delivered to the Potomac Edison Company in 1964. This truck was capable of speeds of 25 mph, a range of 62 miles and a payload of 2,500 pounds.
Battronic worked with General Electric from 1973 to 1983 to produce 175 utility vans for use in the utility industry and to demonstrate the capabilities of battery-powered vehicles. Battronic also developed and produced about 20 passenger buses in the mid 1970s.
Two companies were leaders in electric car production during this time. Sebring-Vanguard produced over 2,000 “CitiCars.” These cars had a top speed of 44 mph, a normal cruise speed of 38 mph and a range of 50 to 60 miles.
The other company was Elcar Corporation, which produced the “Elcar”. The Elcar had a top speed of 45 mph, a range of 60 miles and cost between $4,000 and $4,500.
In 1975, the United States Postal Service purchased 350 electric delivery jeeps from the American Motor Company to be used in a test program. These jeeps had a top speed of 50 mph and a range of 40 miles at a speed of 40 mph. Heating and defrosting were accomplished with a gas heater and the recharge time was 10 hours.
Several legislative and regulatory actions in the United States and worldwide renewed the electric vehicle development efforts. Primary among these was the U.S. 1990 Clean Air Act Amendment, the U.S. 1992 Energy Policy Act, and regulations issued by the California Air Resources Board (CARB). In addition to more stringent air emissions requirements and regulations requiring reductions in gasoline use, several states have issued Zero Emission Vehicle requirements.
The “Big Three” automobile manufacturers, and the U.S. Department of Energy, as well as a number of vehicle conversion companies became actively involved in electric vehicle development through the Partnership for a New Generation of Vehicles (PNGV). Electric conversions of familiar gasoline powered vehicles, as well as electric vehicles designed from the ground up, became available that reached highway speeds with ranges of 50 to 150 miles between recharging.
Some examples of 90s vehicles were the Chevrolet S-10 pickup truck converted by U.S. Electricar. It was powered by dual alternating current motors and lead acid batteries. It had a range of about 60 miles and could be recharged in less than 7 hours.
The Geo Metro, converted by Solectria Corp., an electric-powered 4-passenger sedan powered by an alternating current motor and lead-acid batteries. It had a range of 50 miles, and it cpuld be recharged in less than 8 hours. During the 1994 American Tour de Sol from New York City to Philadelphia, a 1994 Solectria Geo Metro cruised over 200 miles on a single charge using Ovonic nickel metal hydride batteries.
Ford offered an electric version of its Ford Ranger pickup. It had a range of about 65 miles with its lead acid batteries, had a top speed of 75 mph, it accelerated from 0 to 50 mph in 12 seconds, and it had a payload of 700 pounds.
General Motors designed and developed an electric car from the ground up instead of modifying an existing vehicle. This vehicle, called the EV1, was a 2-passenger sports car powered by a liquid-cooled alternating current motor and lead-acid batteries. The EV1 had a top speed of 80 mph, had a range of 80 miles, and could accelerate from 0 to 50 mph in less than 7 seconds.
In addition to the EV1, General Motors offered an electric vehicle Chevrolet S-10 pickup. This vehicle had a range of 45 miles, it accelerated from 5 to 50 mph in 10 seconds, and it had a payload of 950 pounds.
Other electric vehicles that were available during 1998 included the Toyota RAV4 sport utility, the Honda EV Plus sedan, and the Chrysler EPIC minivan. These three vehicles were all equipped with advanced nickel metal hydride battery packs. Nissan placed limited numbers of their Altra EV station wagons in California fleets during 1998. The Altra was equipped with a lithium-ion battery pack. In addition, both Ford and General Motors during 1998, made the Ranger, the EV1, and the S-10 pickup available with nickel metal hydride battery packs.
By 1998, electric vehicles satisfied the driving requirements of many fleet operators and two car families, however, a cost of $30,000 to $40,000 (1998) made them expensive. However, this cost was considerably lower when tax credits and incentives were included.
Large-volume production and improvements in the production process later reduced prices competitive to gasoline-powered vehicles. (http://inventors.about.com/od/cstartinventions/a/History-Of-Electric-Vehicles.htm)
Thanks to my wonderful bf matthew, I finally have a nokero n200 solar bulb for my birthday coming up! I LOVE it! 6 hours of light on the low setting, and 2-2.5 on high. Even on low, these lights are VERY bright in the dark and would be perfect for camping or power outages / emergencies!
The Nokero N200 also makes an ideal camping light, or a portable RV light, emergency light, or marine light.
It brings 6 hours of light per night on “low” and 2.5 hours of light per night on “high”,* but it can be charged for multiple days in a row to extend its lighting time.
The battery will last for 1.5 years, and can be replaced to keep the bulb lasting for years.
hey everyone!! If your going to be buying books from a bookstore, check out this website first. Better world books sells used books for very low prices with free shipping!! They keep books out of the landfills and each purchase sends money to global literacy 🙂 Link below 😀
gogreen4thefuture 