Evaluation of Electric Vehicles as an Alternative for Work Trip and ...

Acknowledgements
The author wishes to acknowledge the support of both the Federal
Highway Administration and The Rideshare Company, which provided the
electric vehicles for this project. The author also wishes to
acknowledge several individuals.
In the Bureau of Public Transportation the author recognizes the
involvement of Bureau Head Harry P. Harris, Manager Michael A. Sanders,
James H. Boice and Dennis A. Jolly. Their efforts and continuing
support of research in alternative-fuel technologies for transportation
deserve recognition.
Mr. Jon Colman, President of The Rideshare Co., and Mr. David
Fabricatore, the Rideshare manager responsible for the five electric
vehicles (EVs), were excellent partners in this research project. Dave
teamed with me each year to participate in the annual weeklong American
Tour del Sol (ATdS) road rally for EVs. Without Dave’s active
involvement and support, this study would simply not have been possible.
Mr. John Hudson of our Research Division (now retired) was the
third team member for the 1996 and 1998 ATdS. John handled logistics
and drove the support van, which allowed Dave and I to concentrate on
the rally.
Ms. Sheilah Pierce of the Northeast Sustainable Energy Association
volunteered to drive our support van for the 1997 ATdS when Mr. Hudson
was unexpectedly unable to make the trip.
Messrs. Gus Sfakianos and Joe Ambrosio of Neocon Technologies
provided technical support and services throughout the study that were
indispensable. My understanding of the problems we experienced with the
Advanced Lead Acid Battery (ALAB) is largely due to the analysis of our
battery-management-system data by Gus and Joe and their expertise in
batteries, chargers, battery management systems and electric vehicles.
Mr. Bjorn Mentzer of Mentzer Electronics provided one-on-one
training for the author and Mr. Fabricatore in 1996 just before the
start of the American Tour del Sol. Mr. Mentzer showed how to utilize
data from the Mentzer battery management system as feedback on how
efficiently the car is being driven, how much energy is left, and how to
draw out the most energy without damaging the battery pack. In our ATdS
category – “Production EV with Lead Acid Battery”, we set a record for
distance driven on a single charge later that week and every year
thereafter for four consecutive ATdS events.
Messrs. James Worden and Andrew Heafitz of Solectria Corp., the EV
manufacturer, taught efficient driving techniques on three occasions in
1995 (at the Rideshare Co.), 1996 (at ATdS), and 1997 (at ATdS). Their
instructions and handouts were invaluable to our good performances at
the ATdS. Also, the efficient-driving skills they taught were valuable
in daily driving because all four ALAB packs suffered capacity loses
(lost driving-range) during their respective evaluation periods, yet we
always, with one exception, made it to our destination.
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