Capstone Microturbine Hybrid Vehicles
Here's a new vehicle powered by Capstone Turbine.
Here's one in New York.
Turbine Powered Bus to Clean Up New York by George Delozier
Anyone who has ever been to New York City knows how heavy the traffic can get at pretty much any time of the day. To combat this, the city began developing different forms of mass transit that they hoped would eventually replace personal vehicles inside the crowded city. Among these, was the diesel burning kneeling bus, which has undergone very few changes until just recently when a new turbine powered unit was developed. The new unit will use a diesel turbine engine to crank a high output generator connected to the battery stack. The batteries will then provide power to electric motors driving the wheels. The will be no mechanical connection between the diesel engine and the drivetrain itself. As with most new hybrids, the bus will be equipped with a regenerative braking system to recapture energy when stopping. This will prove especially useful for the stop and go traffic New York is notorious for. The busses will be able to seat between 35 and 37, depending on how the seats are configured and up to 30 people will be able to stand when fully loaded. The engine itself was designed with as few parts as possible. It has no starting mechanism, no water pump or radiating system and very few auxiliary components. The new bus is currently being tested in a few different parts of the city, which will eventually be extended. If the design proves to be reliable, you can expect to see more of them at a bus stop near you.
New York Times George Delozier
Motorized Innovations
InventorSpot.com
Here's some videos for you to check out: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N9nhlmGEA7M
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ztN5_TrUiAo
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HigkzcRWWUU
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W78b3z9Ge80
Part 1 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dab8O_tbfOw&feature=channel
Part 2 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E-C-ihNItVQ
Here's some image below, click to view larger:
Anyone who has ever been to New York City knows how heavy the traffic can get at pretty much any time of the day. To combat this, the city began developing different forms of mass transit that they hoped would eventually replace personal vehicles inside the crowded city. Among these, was the diesel burning kneeling bus, which has undergone very few changes until just recently when a new turbine powered unit was developed. The new unit will use a diesel turbine engine to crank a high output generator connected to the battery stack. The batteries will then provide power to electric motors driving the wheels. The will be no mechanical connection between the diesel engine and the drivetrain itself. As with most new hybrids, the bus will be equipped with a regenerative braking system to recapture energy when stopping. This will prove especially useful for the stop and go traffic New York is notorious for. The busses will be able to seat between 35 and 37, depending on how the seats are configured and up to 30 people will be able to stand when fully loaded. The engine itself was designed with as few parts as possible. It has no starting mechanism, no water pump or radiating system and very few auxiliary components. The new bus is currently being tested in a few different parts of the city, which will eventually be extended. If the design proves to be reliable, you can expect to see more of them at a bus stop near you.
New York Times George Delozier
Motorized Innovations
InventorSpot.com
Here's some videos for you to check out: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N9nhlmGEA7M
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ztN5_TrUiAo
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HigkzcRWWUU
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W78b3z9Ge80
Part 1 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dab8O_tbfOw&feature=channel
Part 2 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E-C-ihNItVQ
Here's some image below, click to view larger:
Here's one found in Orlando Florida
Micro-turbine hybrid bus meets Mickey Mouse by Domenick Yoney
While spending the wee hours trying to dig up more information on a deal reported in The Earth News between micro-turbine maker Capstone and Italian bus builder Eco Power Technology, I came across an unexpected bit of news. According to a post by nbodyhome on Disney fan forum Micechat, a Designline bus has been doing some testing down at the home of the famous rodent in Orlando. Designline is the New Zealand manufacturer behind the solar powered Tindo bus and uses a Capstone micro-turbine in its hybrid designs. The Disney fans post includes pictures of the vehicle (above) and I can see Spanish moss in the trees so I know they weren't taken in New York City when this bus was tested there. Somewhere, and I can't find my source now, I read Disney runs a fleet of over 250 buses in the Orlando area, so a move to hybrids would help the people living there breathe a little easier. I am surprised I couldn't find either a press release by Disney or Designline about the tests since "green" image projection is all the rage these days.
Here's more image below:
While spending the wee hours trying to dig up more information on a deal reported in The Earth News between micro-turbine maker Capstone and Italian bus builder Eco Power Technology, I came across an unexpected bit of news. According to a post by nbodyhome on Disney fan forum Micechat, a Designline bus has been doing some testing down at the home of the famous rodent in Orlando. Designline is the New Zealand manufacturer behind the solar powered Tindo bus and uses a Capstone micro-turbine in its hybrid designs. The Disney fans post includes pictures of the vehicle (above) and I can see Spanish moss in the trees so I know they weren't taken in New York City when this bus was tested there. Somewhere, and I can't find my source now, I read Disney runs a fleet of over 250 buses in the Orlando area, so a move to hybrids would help the people living there breathe a little easier. I am surprised I couldn't find either a press release by Disney or Designline about the tests since "green" image projection is all the rage these days.
Here's more image below:
Here's the Capstone Turbine itself.
Micro Turbines Headed for Hybrid Trucks
Capstone Turbine Corporation a leading clean technology manufacturer of microturbine energy systems announced last week that it has initiated a demonstration project with a major U.S. manufacturer of Class 5 through Class 8 heavy-duty trucks. The demonstrator will utilize a Capstone 65kW microturbine as a clean, efficient range extender in a hybrid electric drive system. This truck will be the first to use the complete Capstone Drive Solution, which includes the Capstone microturbine along with liquid cooled power electronics, permanent magnet traction drive motor and vehicle power control system. Capstone released configurations of the C30 (30 kW) microturbine as a range extender meeting California Air Resources Board (CARB) requirements for New On-Road Heavy-Duty Engines for Urban Bus – Hybrid service with no emissions aftertreatment. The question afoot is replacing a 40-45% thermal efficient continuous speed diesel engine with an unrecuperated gas turbine engine at 20-30% efficiency a good idea. Small micro-turbines seem to be as efficient and run as cleanly (if not more so) than the internal combustion engines currently used for hybrid electric gensets. Mass production in the millions would drive down the costs. It’s a demonstration worth a review. In total efficiency turbos win. For thermal efficiency a diesel would win, but add in the mechanical efficiency and the turbo wins. Internal combustion with pistons, rods, cranks, and the valve gear generate lots of friction and resistance. And turbines weigh much less allowing for more battery or capacitor capacity. The design characteristics of Capstone’s turbine permits ultra-low emissions, high-fuel economy, multi-fuel capability, no coolants or lubricating oil, and little to no maintenance in hybrid electric vehicle applications. Another angle is the fuel, turbines can use a much wider range of products than a diesel, permitting much more versatility in choice and cost control. Capstone’s microturbine technology offers many benefits, including an extremely low emission levels that meet the most stringent CARB and EPA 2010 requirements without any exhaust after-treatment. That’s a major point alone. As part of a recent joint development agreement with CalMotors, the Capstone hybrid electric vehicle product offering will now include inverter drives, traction motors and a vehicle power control module that will seamlessly integrate with Capstone 30kW and 65kW microturbines. The inverters and traction motors are mobile hardened versions of the well-proven Parker Hannifin industrial motor drive products. The Capstone microturbines are able to operate on traditional liquid fuels such as diesel and biodiesel but can also utilize alternative fuels such as natural gas without sacrificing efficiency. Jim Crouse, Executive Capstone VP of Sales and Marketing said in the press release, “This demonstration project is the first of several vehicle applications we are working on that will use the new Capstone Drive Solution. The other projects include Class 4 commercial trucks and Class 8 tractors and utilize both new OEM applications like this one and retrofits to existing vehicles. We are also pursuing marine applications for both auxiliary power and propulsion. Our new Capstone Drive Solution offering will open a lot of opportunities for electric drive systems where our ultra-low emissions and high efficiency have an advantage over more traditional prime movers.” Darren Jamison, Capstone President and CEO offers, “A successful demonstration of the Capstone Drive Solution in this heavy duty truck application can have significant market impact. It is for this reason that the OEM truck manufacturer we are partnering with has decided not to be named at this point. However we expect that the demonstration phase will be successful and that key customers will begin to appreciate the many positive benefits of the Capstone Drive Solution. Our OEM partner is prepared to make this development more public once they confirm the performance and customer reaction.” Still, one wonders who the OEM manufacturer leader is. Capstone already has a Model C30 liquid fueled microturbine successfully integrated into a Ford S-Max people carrier done by Langford Performance Engineering in the United Kingdom. Langford reports that the “Whisper Eco-Logic” car gets up to 80 mpg in early stage demonstration testing. Light weight, multifuel, low emissions, very high efficiency, no coolants, little or no lubrication oil, and a dramatically lower maintenance cost – micro turbines have a bright future when the unit cost comes down.
Here's the video about this technilogy: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IJ_XJLTcetE&p=CECF9485FD9BFE21&playnext=1&index=17
Here's some images below, clock to view larger:
Capstone Turbine Corporation a leading clean technology manufacturer of microturbine energy systems announced last week that it has initiated a demonstration project with a major U.S. manufacturer of Class 5 through Class 8 heavy-duty trucks. The demonstrator will utilize a Capstone 65kW microturbine as a clean, efficient range extender in a hybrid electric drive system. This truck will be the first to use the complete Capstone Drive Solution, which includes the Capstone microturbine along with liquid cooled power electronics, permanent magnet traction drive motor and vehicle power control system. Capstone released configurations of the C30 (30 kW) microturbine as a range extender meeting California Air Resources Board (CARB) requirements for New On-Road Heavy-Duty Engines for Urban Bus – Hybrid service with no emissions aftertreatment. The question afoot is replacing a 40-45% thermal efficient continuous speed diesel engine with an unrecuperated gas turbine engine at 20-30% efficiency a good idea. Small micro-turbines seem to be as efficient and run as cleanly (if not more so) than the internal combustion engines currently used for hybrid electric gensets. Mass production in the millions would drive down the costs. It’s a demonstration worth a review. In total efficiency turbos win. For thermal efficiency a diesel would win, but add in the mechanical efficiency and the turbo wins. Internal combustion with pistons, rods, cranks, and the valve gear generate lots of friction and resistance. And turbines weigh much less allowing for more battery or capacitor capacity. The design characteristics of Capstone’s turbine permits ultra-low emissions, high-fuel economy, multi-fuel capability, no coolants or lubricating oil, and little to no maintenance in hybrid electric vehicle applications. Another angle is the fuel, turbines can use a much wider range of products than a diesel, permitting much more versatility in choice and cost control. Capstone’s microturbine technology offers many benefits, including an extremely low emission levels that meet the most stringent CARB and EPA 2010 requirements without any exhaust after-treatment. That’s a major point alone. As part of a recent joint development agreement with CalMotors, the Capstone hybrid electric vehicle product offering will now include inverter drives, traction motors and a vehicle power control module that will seamlessly integrate with Capstone 30kW and 65kW microturbines. The inverters and traction motors are mobile hardened versions of the well-proven Parker Hannifin industrial motor drive products. The Capstone microturbines are able to operate on traditional liquid fuels such as diesel and biodiesel but can also utilize alternative fuels such as natural gas without sacrificing efficiency. Jim Crouse, Executive Capstone VP of Sales and Marketing said in the press release, “This demonstration project is the first of several vehicle applications we are working on that will use the new Capstone Drive Solution. The other projects include Class 4 commercial trucks and Class 8 tractors and utilize both new OEM applications like this one and retrofits to existing vehicles. We are also pursuing marine applications for both auxiliary power and propulsion. Our new Capstone Drive Solution offering will open a lot of opportunities for electric drive systems where our ultra-low emissions and high efficiency have an advantage over more traditional prime movers.” Darren Jamison, Capstone President and CEO offers, “A successful demonstration of the Capstone Drive Solution in this heavy duty truck application can have significant market impact. It is for this reason that the OEM truck manufacturer we are partnering with has decided not to be named at this point. However we expect that the demonstration phase will be successful and that key customers will begin to appreciate the many positive benefits of the Capstone Drive Solution. Our OEM partner is prepared to make this development more public once they confirm the performance and customer reaction.” Still, one wonders who the OEM manufacturer leader is. Capstone already has a Model C30 liquid fueled microturbine successfully integrated into a Ford S-Max people carrier done by Langford Performance Engineering in the United Kingdom. Langford reports that the “Whisper Eco-Logic” car gets up to 80 mpg in early stage demonstration testing. Light weight, multifuel, low emissions, very high efficiency, no coolants, little or no lubrication oil, and a dramatically lower maintenance cost – micro turbines have a bright future when the unit cost comes down.
Here's the video about this technilogy: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IJ_XJLTcetE&p=CECF9485FD9BFE21&playnext=1&index=17
Here's some images below, clock to view larger:
