Leaf propane-powered micro-turbine range extending trailer

[MitchJi]

Hi,

http://www.mynissanleaf.com/viewtopic.php?f=10&t=6847&start=80#p155656

Here's my Propane-Powered combination 30kW Quick-Charger/Range Extender. The Japanese guy to the left is Hidetoshi Kadota, Nissan's Chief Vehicle Engineer for the Leaf, he was asking me a lot of questions, and his English is so-so, but of course my Japanese is horrible!

http://www.greencarreports.com/news/1070677_2012-nissan-leaf-gets-unofficial-jet-powered-range-extender-quick-charger

...propane-powered gas-turbine range extender and direct current portable rapid charger...

It’s the brainchild of Californian electrical engineer and plug-in car owner Phil Sadow, otherwise known as Ingineer on the MyNissanLeaf forums.

The man responsible for designing the highly-popular unofficial aftermarket modification to enable a stock Level 1, 110-Volt Leaf charging cable to also charge a Leaf twice as quickly from a suitable 240-Volt outlet, Sadow’s latest creation effectively turns his 2012 Nissan Leaf into a range-extended electric car.

Consisting of a propane-powered Capstone micro-turbine and some custom microelectronics courtesy of Sadow’s clever engineering skills, the proof-of-concept system can provide up to 30 kilowatts to supplement the power provided by the Leaf’s on-board battery pack while the car is driving.

When stationary, it can also be used to charge a Nissan Leaf to 80 percent full in around 30 minutes, using the Chademo direct current rapid charging port offered as standard on the 2012 Nissan Leaf SL.

Better still, Sadow says the system requires no permanent modifications to the Leaf’s on-board high-voltage electrical system in order to make use of the range-extending turbine.

In order to tow the trailer however, Sadow had to custom-build a trailer hitch for his car.

But while a gas micro-turbine which sounds like it has been removed from Lady Penelope’s six-wheeled FAB1 jet-car might not be to everyone’s tastes, Sadow’s latest creation has even attracted the attention of Nissan’s official engineers.

In fact, at a recent San Francisco Bay Leaf owners’ meet-up, Sadow got to demonstrate his system to Hidetoshi Kadota, Nissan’s Chief Vehicle Engineer for the Leaf.

Before you rush for your credit card however, Sadow’s creation probably won’t make it into production just yet. With a new Capstone 30 kilowatt micro-turbine costing nearly $30,000 brand new, the chances of seeing a commercialized version of the prototype unit are pretty slim. It's also not officially supported by Nissan, despite its engineers examining it.

[flathill]

That's awesome, but I think renting/buying a range extender trailer with a battery only will be much more economical. Just unhitch and swap trailers with a freshly charged one. This could be a nice little small business venture. None of that CENTRAL COMMAND BIG BROTHER Project Better Place crap where you lease batteries like a cell phone so they have you have you by the balls (THEY are loosing their oil empire and are getting desperate)

Either way, induction charging is going to solve all range anxiety issues forever. Qualcomm just bought HaloIPT which doesn't require precise alignment. Probably a good stock to invest in after the crash, since Qualcomm is just an IP company and will lawyer up to capitalize on 100 year old tech. They are also going to start an EV race series with charging on the go, just like the turbo strips in F-ZERO. Lot's of copper needed. Another good thing to invest in after the crash.

[bigmoose]

I spent the first 12 years of my career on gas turbines... their efficiency stinks! Period, end of story. Can be assisted with large ceramic recouperators. Search "Automotive Gas Turbine Program" or just download the final report http://ntrs.nasa.gov/archive/nasa/casi.ntrs.nasa.gov/19800024211_1980024211.pdf

Electric car, coupled with poor cycle efficiency on the range extender... just does not make sense to me. Either diesel or small, high compression turbocharged IC for the win. Gas turbines belong on aircraft, rotorcraft and pumping oil in the desert.

[Kin]

Yeah, it's interesting because its clearly providing a lot of power (That thing is not huge), but it's entirely unclear why you would *want* a range extender that's anything more than the average power output for highway speeds at its peak efficiency. Meaning, a generator that can produce about as much as you need to keep going at highway speeds (inclusive of the losses from slight slow down and speedup). Battery should be able to keep up with the rest of the acceleration and side stuff.

On the other hand, this thing can apparently recharge the battery in half an hour....which means it's capable of producing power at a greater rate than the minimal amount. So it's probably a little too big. (I acknowledge there should also be some consideration at some point to efficiency, and maybe a smaller generator is just not efficient at some point).


*bigmoose made a more fundamental point: Turbines are not efficient. [They do pack some decent power, though, it's entirely unnecessary]

[SamTexas]

I don't care about the technical aspect on this one. I know I don't want to spend my hard earned money on an ugly trailer regardless of its utility. If range is my concern I wouldn't buy an EV in the first place. What was that guy thinking?!!!

May be it's just me, but the look on Hidetoshi Kadota's face is not one of admiration.

[wineboyrider]

I don't care about the technical aspect on this one. I know I don't want to spend my hard earned money on an ugly trailer regardless of its utility. If range is my concern I wouldn't buy an EV in the first place. What was that guy thinking?!!!

May be it's just me, but the look on Hidetoshi Kadota's face is not one of admiration.

I think it's just an experimental thing and don't think the inventors really give a crap what people like you or me think. The product would definitely have to be prettied up to be marketable, but then again some people will buy crap if it's packaged right?