NICOLAAA!!!
Posted on 05/04/2018 2:27:16 PM PDT by BBell
Nikola Motor Company, the startup maker of hydrogen-electric-powered semi-trucks, has received quite an order. On Thursday, Anheuser-Busch announced it plans to purchase up to 800 of the company's semis. The order will effectively replace Anheuser-Busch's entire semi fleet with trucks powered by renewable energy. The purchase will largely be Nikola Two day cabs instead of the Nikola One sleeper cabs.
It's a firm deal, but not a final one. Anheuser-Busch said the order is contingent upon Nikola's construction of hydrogen fueling stations. The company plans to install more than 700 such stations across the U.S. by 2028, many of which will be situated along routes for the Budweiser brewer. The stations will be open to the public and also available to fuel other hydrogen-powered vehicles. On an even greener note, renewable and sustainable energies like wind and solar will power the stations.
Nikola and its semi trucks remain the most credible challenger to Tesla and its Semi model. The beer maker also announced it would purchase 40 Tesla Semis last year. However, Tesla has promised a 500-mile range for its rig; Nikola says its semi will go 500-1,200 miles.
Pre-production Nikola semis will be delivered to Anheuser-Busch by the end of this year and regular production is expected to begin in 2020. Nikola selected Buckeye, Arizona, as its semi-production home. Tesla has promised its Semi for 2019.
Nikola CEO, Trevor Milton, said the company will build to order and is not speculating on production volume. Thus far, the company has received $9 billion in pre-order reservations. It's unclear how much a single Nikola semi will cost, and neither Anheuser-Busch nor Nikola shared what the latest deal is worth. The semi maker said its goal is to eventually have Nikola semis cost as much as a typical diesel-powered rig, which hovers around $150,000.
According to Anheuser-Busch, replacing its fleet of trucks will reduce the company's carbon emissions from logistics by more than 18 percent and be the equivalent of taking more than 13,000 passenger vehicles off the road.
In this instance the Nikola semi trucks are electric, they have electric hub motors on all six sets of wheels.
Hydrogen is not “renewable energy”. It must be manufactured using other energy sources, i.e. non-renewable ones. All it does is put on a show of being “green” for those who don’t know any better.
“Renewable energy.” Hydrogen? Do those little hydrogen molecules just jump out of the air or out of the methane and hop into a 4,500 psi tank with zero energy input?
I was wondering how much coal-produced electricity it takes to produce the hydrogen.
Surprised it’s not powered by Budweiser’s crappy beer.
Electric like locomotives. I guess I should nave clarified battery electric.
WTF? How big are the hydrogen tanks on these trucks? The size of the moon? How can you possibly go any long distance on hydrogen?
Takes a lot of electricity to make hydrogen. You can do it yourself.
Get a short glass of water. Toss a 9 volt battery into it. See the bubbles ? On one side is Oxygen and the other is Hydrogen.
But not a lot of it.
Toyota started this project, but seemed to kill it. They were putting the electrolysis plates onboard and just adding water and an onboard electrical source.
I’m sure that by the laws of transduction it wasn’t great, but this would solve the whole “Wait 10 years for you to install billions of dollars of stations” thing.
It takes at least as much electricity to produce hydrogen as it yields by burning it. But nothing is 100% efficient, so I would guess it takes about twice as much.
NICOLAAA!!!
Using solar energy to produce hydrogen might be a good idea. The hydrogen stores the sun’s energy.
My main concern is the explosiveness of hydrogen.
Also I don’t know the economics. But it’s clean.
Except when it’s burned with air (its oxygen) there might be harmful by products produced by other components in the air.
“How big are the hydrogen tanks on these trucks? The size of the moon? “
Made in Utah.
https://nikolamotor.com/two#motor-specs-bottom
But the hydrogen thing will kill it. I’m sure AB has a clause about that.
Nikola has privately funded a small network covering only 2,000 miles with 16 stations.
https://nikolamotor.com/stations
And who wants to see a wreck with 1,000 pounds of H2 involved? Didn’t the Hindenburg have one of those?
Virtually all hydrogen is manufactured via steam-methane reforming. In other words, it’s made from natural gas.
2 H20 + CH4 —> 4 H2 + CO2
An onboard electrical source. That means either 1) a fuel cell, 2) a battery, 3) an engine/generator system, or 4) a Mr. Fusion reactor.
What would be the point of that?
1) have the fuel cell output power the motors directly. You still need non-Renewable energy somewhere to make fuel to power the fuel cell.
2) like #1, just have the battery power the motors. You still need external non-Renewable energy sources to charge the battery.
3) you need diesel or gasoline to run the engine. Have the generator power the motors directly.
4) Obviously this is the only practical solution.
I like the Clydesdales better.
From water? Electrolysis? The last numbers I read were eight (8) units in, one (1) unit out. Maybe the efficiency has increased.
Excess solar, fine. Excess or off-peak hydro? Sure.
Hydrocarbons are the most economical source from which to extract hydrogen.
That’s science fair stuff.
95% of all commercial hydrogen production is done by steam reforming of natural gas, or oil, or gasification of coal. Less than 5% is from electrolysis.
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