Electric Vehicles

Introduction
As the name suggests an electric vehicle is a vehicle that runs on electricity. But is
it really as simple as it looks like. The electric vehicles are being marketed as the
best possible way toreduce the carbon emission caused by the vehicles running
on fossil fuels. Indeed the pollution and atmospheric contamination caused by
these fossil fuel consuming vehicles isa matter of concern and needs to be
checked immediately but are the electric vehicles really a solution or is it just a
distraction which might lead the road to the worst scenarios.
Also what are the technological challenges in the way of electricvehicle becoming
a common thing and what are the recent innovations that the EV industry has to
offer its consumers.

Technological Challenges
When we talk about technological challenges that the electric vehicle
manufacturing industry has to solve the first thing that pops into our head is the
battery efficiency. How long will battery last after a single charge. Is the distance
covered by an electric vehicle in a single charge comparable to its non electric
counterfeit. As it might look feasible to use electric vehicles for short distances but
is it possible to use them for the purpose of Long journeys. The second most
important technological test that the EV industry finds difficult to resolve is the
unavailabilityof the wide network of charging stops. Unlike vehicles running on
fuel which get the service of a fuel stop in every few kilometers the charging stops
for electric vehicles are not reallyseen very much specially in the non urban areas
of the world which makes it more difficult for the EV companies to make their
technology reach the rural areas. The third important challenge that we observe
is battery durability. As it is known that unlike fossil fuel which provides the same
amount of energy on combustion the battery after a certain amount of usage is
not able to deliver the same amount of power as it does when it is new and thus
needs to be replaced after an apt amount of time putting an extra financial
burden on the users and making the vehicle difficult to maintain.
Recent Innovations
 Vehicle to grid: Vehicle to grid (V2G) charging, which allows energy
stored in the vehicle’s battery to be exported to the grid during the
periods of high demand.EV drivers are turned into ‘prosumers’- both
consumers and providers of electricity – and are rewarded for their
flexibility, which also benefits the grid.
 Wireless Charging: Wireless charging for vehicles works ina similar way
to wireless phone chargers, using inductive charging technology.
Electricity is transferred from one magnetic coil in the charger, which is
hidden beneath theroad surface, to a second magnetic coil or pad fitted
to the underside of the car.
 Ultra-fast Charging: While it takes just a few minutes to fill up a petrol
or diesel car with fuel, EV drivers usually have to wait much longer to
recharge their batteries to full. However, ultra-fast charging options
are starting to appear, proving to be a real benefit for longer journeys
as they reduce charging times to the time it takes to have a regular
driving break.
Commercialization
The commercialization of electric vehicles includes not only the promotion
of purchase and usage of electric vehicles but also the services related to
them. These services also include the technical services. The most
important role in the commercialization of electric vehicle is off course of
the viable charging network. A viable charging network will not only give the
consumers a freedom to use the vehicles as per their needsbut will also
make these vehicles a tough competition for the fuel consuming vehicles
that are preferred due to the already existing dense network of fuel station.
The next important pointcan be the standardization of charging norms as
the availability of wide variety of charging options available for electric
vehicles make the availability of charging options difficult. The next
important part can be the battery recycling industry as the battery
consumption and production both will increase with the increasing demand
 of electric vehicles. The battery recycling industry will help to cope with the
widely increasing demand of battery and also help to keep the prices low.

True Environmental Impact

But the most important question that arises about the Electric Vehicles is that are
they really going to serve as the boon to cope with our fossil fuel consumption for
vehicles. If we look directly it might appear that the electric vehicles as claimed by
the EV producers is the best solution to decrease our fossil fuel consumption
which in turn should reduce the environmental burden of carbon emission but it
is not exactly what happens. As we increase the production of the electric vehicles
the demand and production of batteries will also rise which in turn will increase
the lead mining resulting in the beginning of big profitable mining projects which
will cause a great ecological havoc. But the environmental chaos will not stop
here. As the usage of batteries will increase the pollution caused by mishandling
and improper disposal of non usable battery will be a rising concern. These
improper disposal situations might cause lead poisoning of important water
resources which in turn will have a worldwide impact. In conclusion we can say
that electric vehicles might be a better option than the vehicles running on fossil
fuels but there has to be a lot of work donebefore we can say that electric vehicles
are the best option