Huge, I say huge game changer for everyone !

http://www.digitaltrends.com/cool-tech/glass-battery-technology/

Bingo ! If this pans out, it will turn a huge corner for mankind and planet earth. Some quotes showing it's potential.....

" The new battery uses a sodium- or lithium-coated glass electrolyte that has triple the storage capacity of a lithium ion battery. It also charges in minutes instead of hours

What ? A Tesla would have a 1200 mile range AND could recharge quickly while I'm having dinner at the Olive Garden ?

That's friggin HUGE !!!

" New battery technology may make it possible for electric cars to rival their gas-guzzling cousins in cost and convenience."

" ...lead a team of researchers who have developed a low-cost all-solid-state battery that is safer and more efficient than existing lithium-ion technology. "

Look it, if people can drive a car that doesn't burn gas, has no emissions, is really quiet, it's super quick/fast/ FUN! to drive, has p-l-e-n-t-y of range and costs the same to purchase as a gasser, then electric cars are a go. People will buy them and they will love them !! That's a very good thing amigos. Suck it Global warming !

" This same battery technology could also be used to store energy in both solar and wind-power systems.

Equally huge. Cheap, efficient, mass storage for utilities, businesses and home owners will roll in cost effective renewable generation for the masses.

Do you realize how much electricity we would need to produce to move all the cars over to electric and the distribution system we would need to put in place. We would need a nuclear power plant at every Stewart's. I am all for this if it actually pans out, but it's only part of the problem that needs to be solved, albeit a very important part.

PeeTex wrote

 Do you realize how much electricity we would need to produce to move all the cars over to electric and the distribution system we would need to put in place. We would need a nuclear power plant at every Stewart's.

IDK, a few thoughts...

Some large European and Asian cities are moving fast to limit/ban diesel and even gassers to some extent from their cities. Too much pollution. We're talking just a couple years, not decades for this to start. Europe uses a lot of diesel vehicles as diesel is taxed far less than gasoline. So, it's many diesels get " banned " from large cities and what will they switch too ? Gasoline ? @ 4x the cost of diesel ? and it still pollutes and the Gov may soon limit these, too?

The impetus to go electric will be strong. Electric vehicles will be very popular. The economy of mass production is about to hit electric cars/solar/storage.

China has/is and shall continue to install record amounts of solar every year. I read about a town in Germany that, using solar, wind, etc produces more electricity than it uses and they actually get cash back. More impetus.

It just really seems that, FINALLY!, we may able to turn that elusive corner from fossil fuel/global warming/air pollution to a new street of cleaner air from renewable energy.

We would need approximately 10x the amount of electric generation capacity we currently have to replace the gasoline consumed today in the US alone. Assuming electric cars are viable, we would need the infrastructure to support them.

10x ? Seems awful high,,,, where did you get that data ? Guesstimate ?

Snowballs wrote

10x ? Seems awful high,,,, where did you get that data ? Guesstimate ?

No - DOE & EIA for US gasoline consumption and total US electrical generation capacity, standard conversion for thermal content in gasoline & electricity, relative thermal efficiency's for EVs and gas powered cars from NRDC, Thermal efficiency for electric power distribution from NERC and a calculator built by Casio and you get the answer. Oh, this does not include Diesel used in rail and trucks...

And since wind and solar is not available 24/7 you would need to build a lot more power plants.  Luckily the US is awash in cheap and relatively clean natural gas but to think electric cars are not fossil fueled is kidding yourself.

DOE did the calculations.  This isn't the latest data, but it was the first report I found: https://www.eia.gov/totalenergy/data/monthly/pdf/flow/primary_energy.pdf
Transportation use is about 75% of electric use, at least for 2012.  
The amount of fossil fuel content of electric power depends on when and where you use it.  In Vermont, it's  almost entirely fossil fuel free. In northern and western NY, it's mostly fossil free in off-peak hours. In Midwest and other areas, there's still a lot of coal, but the electric system is always more efficient in the low load hours, when you would normally expect to charge the car. Electric cars are probably lower carbon almost everywhere.
Battery technology is the game changer.  There's enough unused electric capacity now to support most of the vehicle fleet, and the batteries in the vehicles could provide voltage support and energy storage to the electric system, which would increase the capacity of the electric system to use solar power and other intermittent sources.  With enough energy storage and a well designed transmission and storage system, you could run the whole country on solar power.
It won't happen soon because when solar/battery power picks up 10 or 20 percent of the load, fuel prices crash.  Nobody is buying and electric car when gas is cheap.  Gasoline is going to be the dominant transportation fuel for a long time, but electric could take a noticeable share of the market.

mm  

 

I thought so. Thanks MM.

PeeCO2 is all about the fossil fuels.  He's always dissing solar.   Thanks for the unbasis info MM