1. Personal transportation in the third millennium -- The myth of infinite freedom -- The reality check, 37 kilometers per day -- Long distance travel -- The energy demand of transportation -- The limits of roads and infrastructure -- The obvious lessons -- 2. A brief review of energy -- Geopolitics and oil -- Canada to the rescue? -- Mexico perhaps? -- The Persian Gulf region -- China -- The world -- Peal oil a.k.a. production limits -- Defining peak oil -- Understanding the geophysics of peak oil -- Tinkering with the data -- Summary -- 3. Energy and the environment -- The chemistry of smog and green house gases -- The issues of climate change -- The I.P.C.C. report -- Decarbonizing our energy supply -- A carbon-constraining system -- The paradigm of reality convergence -- 4. Transportation systems in a carbon constrained world -- There is no substitute for oil -- When oil-based transportation comes to an end -- Moving ourselves -- Why now walk or bicycle? -- Inner-city travel -- Improved public transit -- Ultra-low fuel consumption vehicles -- Neighborhood vehicles -- Inter-city personal travel and beyond -- Flying and marine transport -- Logistics and the movement of goods -- A sustainable freight system -- Local transport -- Intercity transport -- Marine transportation -- Summary --
5. The personal transportation appliance -- Summarizing the case for the zero-carbon car -- Personal transportation technologies and psychology -- Long life -- Energy efficiency (fuel economy) -- Vehicle mass -- Virtual upgrading -- The myth of zero-emission vehicles -- Summary -- 6. A closer look at advanced automotive technologies -- Hybrid automobiles -- Today's hybrid power systems -- The nuts and bolts of hybrid technology -- "Weak" vs. "strong" hybrids -- Hybrid performance -- Large hybrid vehicles -- Hybrid car summary -- A battery electric vehicle (BEV) primer -- The home-built BEV -- A few details of Fred Green's car -- Comparing BEVs to internal-combustion -powered vehicles -- BEV range -- Recharging time -- Operating cost -- A collage of battery electric vehicles -- The ZENN neighborhood vehicle -- General Motors EV-1, advanced before its time -- Myer Motors NmG, Disney on wheels? -- Dancing with the Tango commuter car -- Tesla Roadster, a rocket on wheels -- BEV summary -- The plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV) -- Overview of PHEV technology and history -- PHEV summary -- The propaganda of hydrogen-powered vehicles -- Obstacles on the road -- A few facts about hydrogen technology -- Hydrogen as a fuel -- Hydrogen storage -- Hydrogen distribution -- Fuel cell vehicles -- Summary--
7. Introducing the zero-carbon car -- 7.1. Getting the project started -- The case for converting vs. "scratch build" -- Series vs. parallel hybridization -- Overview of the design -- The donor vehicle -- Out with the old -- 7.2. Battery technologies : an overview -- The story of electrons -- Conductors and insulators -- Batteries, cells and voltage -- Alternating current -- Power, energy and efficiency -- How batteries work -- Depth of discharge -- Operating temperature -- Battery sizing -- Hydrogen gas production -- Safe installation of batteries -- Battery installation in the zero-carbon car -- The fine art of battery cable manufacturing -- Battery charging -- Battery technology selection -- Summary -- 7.3. D.C. motor and controller -- Electric motor overview -- Controller overview -- DC electronic controllers -- AC electronic controllers -- Regenerative braking -- 7.4. The liquid fuel power plant -- The Fisher Panda generating unit -- Fitting the generating unit into the zero-carbon car -- Photographic collage of the installation -- 7.5. Engine management -- The programmable logic controller -- PLC structure -- PLC input and output configuration -- Program flow -- PLC tutorial -- User touch screen -- Summary -- 7.6. Integrating the functions -- Touch screen overview -- PLC and metering overview -- PLC inputs and outputs -- Battery low voltage detection -- Battery charged detection -- Battery charging status and AC mains schematic -- Battery box vent fan(s) -- Battery charger cooling fan(s) -- Battery heating blankets -- Vehicle charger status -- Automatic battery chargers -- AC mains ground -- PHEV operation -- User display and operation -- Clock icon -- Fan icon -- Garage door icon -- Home icon -- Generator icon -- Heater icon -- Battery charger icon -- iPod MP3 player icon -- Icy car icon -- Defroster vent icon -- Empty gas tank icon -- Wrench icon -- 7.7. The test drive -- Chassis dynamometer testing -- Reviewing the results -- Summary -- 7.8. Adding some bling to the zero-carbon car --
8. Zero-carbon electricity
The North American electrical power system
Zero-carbon coal and fossil fuels
Moving the charging plug around town
The value of zero-carbon electricity
9. Zero-carbon liquid fuels
An introduction to biofuels
Ethanol from food, a non-starter
Cellulosic ethanol, the better choice
Biodiesel as a source of green fuel
Biodiesel in the transportation sector
Biodegradability and nontoxicity
Oxidation and bacterial stability
Engine technology overview
Common rail direct injection
Engine and vehicle efficiency
The biodiesel production process
Small-scale biodiesel production system
The biodiesel reaction tank
Biodiesel drying and final filtration
Fuel dispensing and storage
Blending biodiesel with petrodiesel
B. Engine management software listing
C. Zero-carbon car specifications
D. LED battery voltage monitor schematics
E. Battery voltage monitor PCB layout.
