Quick Charge Battery Charger

The Quick Charge battery charger recently arrived. With lithium ion batteries it is critical that great care is taken during the recharge cycle. If done incorrectly, the battery life can be significantly compromised. Hence, a multiple stage approach to the charge profile is recommended. We'll see how the Quick Charger fits the bill. It may be necessary to get a more sophisticated charger but this is a decent jumping off point.

Arizona Startup Plans to Electrify National Transportation Grid

Arizona based company, GoE3 says it plans to build a network of Level 2 and Level 3 charging stations along U.S. interstates, with the first stations to open as part of an unnamed rally and reality show being filmed this summer. The company says the stations will be installed at 50 to 75 mile intervals along I-10, I-20, I-40 and I-70, with 50 planned by next month and another 450 slated to be opened within the next three years.

ReVOLT is also an AZ startup that converts gasoline cars to all electric drive. Arizona has an abundant supply of solar power which can be leveraged to sustain the electric drive infrastructure once more people convert to electric and a photovoltaic sustained infrastructure begins to look more appealing to drivers looking to unplug from the grid. In the mean time, having companies like GoE3 supply charging options along major transportation routes will help to get this party kick-started.

New Graphene Supercapacitors Outstrip Power Density of Lithium Ion Batteries

The biggest problem right now with battery technology (besides the limited power density) is its lengthy charging time and its instability when charged incorrectly. Supercapacitors, on the other hand, charge very rapidly (in under a minute). The hang-up with supercapacitors or ultracapacitors is that their power density (around 20 watt-hours per kilogram) is only 1/7th of the energy per kilogram of lithium-ion batteries.


A team of UCLA researchers have recently developed a new supercapacitor electrode with a graphene monolayer that have a power density of over 600 watt-hours per kilogram or 4 times that of lithium-ion batteries. Granted, this has only been validated in a laboratory environment, but the evidence remains that the technology is out there that allows supercapacitors to rival the performance of our current, best battery technology that is commercially available. This bodes very well for the future of the electric transportation infrastructure.

EVTV Motor Verks

Jack Rickard & Brian Noto have begun publishing weekly videos for custom electric car builders and conversions. Each week they review components and techniques that can be used to convert any car to clean, quiet, powerful electric drive. EVTV has become THE weekly TV show for conversion shops, university build teams, design engineers, and custom electric car builders worldwide with viewers in 160 countries.


Hit up the link and check out the Motor Verks video archives for additional instructions in converting your own car to electric drive.

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