Quote:
Originally Posted by Alex Mackinnon
Hybrid uses don't really help a boat. The stop/start energy recovery is most of what happens to help a hybrid get good mileage. The cruising speed of a boat is also likely matched up to the engine's peak efficiency.
Most large motors are also setup as a diesel/electric combo, where the diesel is just a generator and the electric motors do the work, so by default boats and trains are already similar to a hybrid car.
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So given that using electricity is much cheaper than diesel, and already owned by another branch of the government, couldn't the battery portion be sized either:
1. for the cruising speed with the diesel engine kicking in only leaving the dock
2. as an assist to the diesel engine generating electricity (diesel-electric engine) only when leaving the dock
Note: "All-electric ferry cuts emission by 95% and costs by 80%, brings in 53 additional orders"
https://electrek.co/2018/02/03/all-e...emission-cost/
This 2015 blog post outlines a possible eight routes:
https://www.bcsea.org/could-bcs-futu...es-be-electric
There's speculation that diesel costs might be headed up medium term with IMO 2020 rules too. LNG conversions also require bigger capital upgrades. LNG prices could also be higher 2020/2023 with LNG export terminal in BC making dirt cheap stranded AECO nat gas quintuple in price. Apparently the MV Tachek and Salish class are already hybrid.
I imagine the upfront capital cost is higher both for the ferry and for the onshore electrical changes offsetting much of the 80% lower operating costs just as it is with diesel transit buses.
The other negative is less ability to shuffle ferries around as easily to different routes per a CBC article.