FOUR WHEELS GOOD?

摘要

One way to reduce the energy cars consume is to recycle it. Hybrid vehicles use the combustion engine to charge up a battery that provides extra power to the engine when accelerating, thus reducing fuel consumption. 'Regenerative braking', in which the electric motor provides resistance to the drive train to help slow the vehicle, converts the kinetic energy into electricity, which is then stored for later use. The benefits of hybrids can really be seen during town driving - the fuel savings may be only a few per cent on longer trips. Fleets of hybrids could also provide a place to store electricty on a large scale, helping in the use of various renewable technologies (see page 805).