- Joined
- Aug 11, 2002
- Messages
- 928
GM AND ARMY TEAM ON GREEN MILITARY MACHINE
Army uniforms may not be the only things "green" in the Army arsenal in the not-too-distant future. General Motors is teaming up with the Pentagon to produce a prototype truck designed to use environmentally friendly technology on the front line.
The concept vehicle that will be announced later today starts off with a ruggedized Chevrolet Silverado Heady-Duty pickup equipped with the automaker's top off-road package. Under the hood, it uses a Duramax diesel and an Allison hybrid system. There's also a fuel cell stack to provide auxiliary power.
While an eco-minded military might seem an oxymoron at first, the Army has several reasons why it wants to explore the concept. For one thing, the Pentagon figures it costs from $250 to $400 per gallon to transport fuel to the front line of battle. "So fuel economy improvements are very important to the Army," explains GM technology director Larry Burns. The hybrid system recaptures energy normally wasted during braking, cruising or coasting, and then uses it to provide an extra "kick" during acceleration, improving mileage. That electricity will also be used to electrolyze water - to break it into its basic elements, hydrogen and oxygen. The hydrogen is stored in a "solid" form as part of a metal hydride. Later, when the vehicle is parked, possibly for surveillance or front-line control purposes, the hydrogen will be used to power the fuel cell. And since the fuel cell stack produces water as waste, the process can be endlessly repeated. Also, a fuel cell operates more quietly than a generator, and at a much lower temperature, less likely to be seen by infrared detectors, so the vehicle should prove more stealthy.
According to Burns, the military envisions purchasing 30,000 such vehicles by decade's end, and GM hopes to win the contract.
source: The Car Connection
Army uniforms may not be the only things "green" in the Army arsenal in the not-too-distant future. General Motors is teaming up with the Pentagon to produce a prototype truck designed to use environmentally friendly technology on the front line.
The concept vehicle that will be announced later today starts off with a ruggedized Chevrolet Silverado Heady-Duty pickup equipped with the automaker's top off-road package. Under the hood, it uses a Duramax diesel and an Allison hybrid system. There's also a fuel cell stack to provide auxiliary power.
While an eco-minded military might seem an oxymoron at first, the Army has several reasons why it wants to explore the concept. For one thing, the Pentagon figures it costs from $250 to $400 per gallon to transport fuel to the front line of battle. "So fuel economy improvements are very important to the Army," explains GM technology director Larry Burns. The hybrid system recaptures energy normally wasted during braking, cruising or coasting, and then uses it to provide an extra "kick" during acceleration, improving mileage. That electricity will also be used to electrolyze water - to break it into its basic elements, hydrogen and oxygen. The hydrogen is stored in a "solid" form as part of a metal hydride. Later, when the vehicle is parked, possibly for surveillance or front-line control purposes, the hydrogen will be used to power the fuel cell. And since the fuel cell stack produces water as waste, the process can be endlessly repeated. Also, a fuel cell operates more quietly than a generator, and at a much lower temperature, less likely to be seen by infrared detectors, so the vehicle should prove more stealthy.
According to Burns, the military envisions purchasing 30,000 such vehicles by decade's end, and GM hopes to win the contract.
source: The Car Connection