efficient electric vehicles

Energy efficiency is a ubiquitous concept today and for good reason. Whether it's your home or your car, the more efficient it is, the more effective it will work.

Most likely, you already know about an electric car – maybe you own it. But do you know how the efficiency of an electric car compares to a car with an internal combustion engine? How Electric Vehicles Consume Energy

How is the efficiency of electric vehicles measured ?

For electric vehicles, energy efficiency means how far you can drive on a full charge. The easiest way to find out the efficiency of an electric car is to calculate miles per kWh (equivalent to miles per gallon). On average, most electric vehicles cover 3-4 miles per kWh

To calculate miles per kWh, you must perform the following steps:

EV range ÷ kWh Battery size = Miles per kWh.

_ Remember: The higher the value, the more efficient the vehicle will be.

For example, Volkswagen ID.3 280 miles range and 77kWh battery size. 280÷77 = 3.6 miles per kWh.

_ Volkswagen ID.Buzz, on the other hand, has a range of 205 miles and a battery size of 77 kWh. 205÷77 = 2.6 miles per kWh.

The above method is convenient, but it is worth using it, because vehicles with a long range are not always the most efficient. For example, SUV-style electric vehicles (that is, large vehicles) are consumed.With a heavier battery, it has a longer range, but more energy per 1 mile.

For example, the Polestar3 has a cruising range of 305 miles and a battery size of 107 kWh. 305÷107 = 2.8 miles per kWh.

There are some other factors that contribute to mileage efficiency, but we will get back to it a little later

How efficient are electric vehicles compared to gasoline and diesel vehicles ?

First, let's talk about gasoline and diesel cars …

Aside from devouring fossil fuels, it is estimated that gasoline and diesel vehicles consume only 12-30% of the energy of the fuel used for travel. The rest of the energy (70-88%) is lost due to inefficiency (for example, fuel consumption in parking or idle and waste heat) or accessories (for example, heating,).

By comparison, electric vehicles consume only about 23% of the energy needed to drive accessories and electric drive systems. This means that the efficiency of the electric car is about 77%

Where and how is the energy of electric vehicles used ?

All electric vehicles are different, and while the new models use more efficient technologies, it is estimated that electric vehicles are

_13% of energy is lost in electric drive system

_10% of energy is lost during charging - When an electric vehicle is charged, the electrical energy from the charging station causes a chemical reaction in the lithium-ion battery.

Energy _0-7 for electrical accessories, power steering and heating/cooling%

What affects the efficiency of electric vehicles.

Ambient

Did you know that the optimum temperature for a lithium-ion battery cell is between 15 and 45 degrees Celsius? In the UK, winter temperatures are on average between 0 and 7 degrees Celsius – that's between 8 and 15 degrees more than lithium batteries can optimally afford. Because of the internal kinetics of the battery cells, lower temperatures slow down chemical reactions.

What does this mean in real life. 10-15% less range. Payload/Weight

The same applies to gasoline and diesel cars: the heavier your car, the more energy you need to move it. Fortunately, this should not have much effect on the range of the battery unless the payload is unusually heavy

Battery age

As with most rechargeable batteries, performance degrades over time, but don't compare batteries for electric vehicles with batteries such as cell phones. EV batteries are rugged, and automakers are usually willing to offer a warranty of about 8 years or 100,000 miles. However, more and more electric vehicles have long-lasting 8-year warranty, and with the further development of solid-state batteries, it should not be long before the batteries of electric vehicles remain at the highest level for 30 years. This also affects the range of electric vehicles,

Strong acceleration (wind resistance and road quality)

According to the RAC, petrol and diesel cars are "the most efficient at 45-50 miles per hour." In comparison, electric cars do not have an optimal driving speed - they are built without an engine and operate on a single-speed drive, so full torque (power) is immediately available. Unlike gasoline and diesel cars, you need to rotate (burn fuel) to get more power.

However, as with gasoline and diesel cars, the driving force of electric vehicles increases the faster they drive, because they counteract the air resistance caused by wind resistance.

the smoother you drive, the further you will go