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Non-Tech : Alternative energy -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Doren who wrote (4359)	2/26/2008 2:32:04 AM
From: Doren	Respond to of 16955

On an abstract level this discussion is about energy storage. Many of the proponents of Hydrogen do not understand that it is not a source of energy but a storage medium. It takes a heck of a lot of energy to produce Hydrogen. When it's burned some of the energy it took to make it, and is stored in it, is released. Gasoline is a storage medium. The energy from gasoline really came from the sun. The net units of energy required to push the car forward are contained in the gasoline only. The fans that John suggested would not really harvest any energy from the dead air. They would be harvesting energy from the gasoline that is required to push the car forward. So no net increase. In fact a net decrease because of heat loss.

To: Doren who wrote (4359)	2/26/2008 11:41:14 AM
From: gg cox	Respond to of 16955

The question wasn't about dynamic braking, as we know it, or dynamic braking with wind turbines. The question was about adding small turbines to the grill of a car and capturing the energy it produces to be used in powering the car. The answer relates back to the laws of thermodynamics, perpetual motion machines and common sense. The short answer i think is you power up something (turbines in grill) you lose in distance travelled having to use more energy(gasoline) or (kinetic) to push the car harder to power the turbines. Ya come up short of where you would have been without them or if they weren't working.I think the kinetic coasting example explains it better , taking the engine out of it. Even using the energy stored in the battery on conversion to the wheels you still come up short due to loses in both conversions...turbine to battery , battery to electric wheel motor.