This is the age of innovation, and with several new forms of innovation coming up in recent years, it is evident that the world is developing at a massive pace.
With each new development, we are making things slightly easier for ourselves.
One of the many such developments has been the new sources of energy that we have been able to find and produce.
Such examples are solar energy, using solar panels; water energy using dams and other equipment, and wind energy using wind turbines.
Out of all these, it is considered that wind energy is the one that is easiest to accommodate in almost all seasons and locations, and emits nominal greenhouse gases.
With such benefits, it becomes imperative to also accommodate wind energy and wind turbines with other modes of innovation.
And another innovation that has helped our environment to a great extent is the product of electric cars.
It is indeed not an understatement that electric cars have revolutionized the automobile sector.
Not only have they become a massive success, but consumers are also happily making the switch from fuel-based cars to electric cars and electric vehicles.
In this article, we would understand the interplay between both these innovations. Wind energy and electric cars.
There is a looming question among many of us today, whether electric cars can have wind turbines and whether it would be an added benefit to the existing model of electric cars.
Electric Cars
First, let us understand how electric cars work. The main component of an electric car is its battery. The battery that is installed in an electric car provides it the energy that it utilizes to run for a limited range.
Depending on the power of the battery, the range of the vehicle is decided. Mostly, the batteries of the average electric vehicle are made using lithium-ion and are rechargeable after each run.
The charging system of electric vehicles is also being popularly utilized across the globe as the vehicles are also being widely used. It is common to find an EV charging station at a distance in all major towns.
Also, the charging system of electric vehicles can easily be installed at home as well.
With a nominal upfront cost and passing the electricity to eh Earth, a charging station can be installed.
With almost all major automobile producers getting into the business of electric cars, it is becoming a popular choice among people for short-range commutes, for people living in the cities and living an average work life.
The first production of electric cars can be easily traced back to the 19th century when Gustave Trouve and Thomas Parker introduced the world to the first models of what soon took shape as an electric vehicle.
Wind Energy
Wind turbines work on the simple concept of wind energy. Wind energy is as we all know, one of the major sources of energy on Earth apart from the Sun and tidal energy.
With the help of wind force and speed, the turbines rotate and using a generator, create electricity.
Wind energy is utilized in several places and is a part of almost every country in the world today.
Especially when located in hilly areas or areas with high altitudes and windy weather conditions, the wind turbines seem to give a better response and production.
It is common to find several portable wind turbines as well, as people are utilizing objects like solar panels and wind turbines even in residential areas to produce electricity and save money.
However, with the innovation, several new ideas are coming up. Let us look at one such idea.
With batteries becoming stronger and even hybrid cars coming in, people are wondering whether wind energy can be infused with electric vehicles. Let us address this question now.
Why Don’t Electric Cars Have Wind Turbines?
Many people think that since even electric vehicles emit some form of greenhouse gases, there should be a way to make it better for the environment by adding wind turbines and turning down the emission by relying on kinetic energy to produce the power required for running the electric vehicle.
To make it sound practical, it could seem like a lucrative idea to add wind turbines and use the motion of the car and wind to produce energy as a replacement for fuel.
However, there are far bigger complications involved.
When you add a wind turbine to the electric car, it would make it much heavier and difficult to drive.
Additionally, the wind turbines cannot match the amount of energy that is produced using a battery in the electric vehicle.
Besides, making it a perpetual motion goes against the principles of thermodynamics, which is why inherently the idea of adding wind turbines to an electric car is seemingly impossible.
Charging an electric car that runs on wind energy would be a bigger hassle as when it is parked, the wind turbines do not rotate enough, because of being in a city and at a much lower height to let the wind impact its speed.
The resistance added due to adding a wind turbine would indeed lessen the range of an electric car which is already in questionable amount.
Thus, it would affect the design and production of the car, in turn affecting the sales as people would continue buying fuel-based cars.
Conclusion
Therefore, in this article, we learned about electric cars, their functioning, and how wind energy works as well.
Then, we addressed the popular question of whether wind energy with the help of wind turbines can be added to the existing framework of electric cars.
Electric cars and wind turbines cannot be added together as both of them work on different concepts.
Besides, wind turbines on electric cars are not a practical concept as in the streets, it would add to the list of problems and rather lower the range of an electric car.
Thus, it is better to plan out a different way of making electric cars more sustainable.
