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The History of Electric Vehicles: How Far We've Come

By
Emma Sargeant
18 Nov
2022
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6 minutes.
read
~
6 minutes.
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TL;DR

Explore the history and future of electric vehicles, their technological advancements, and the path to mainstream adoption by 2030 for a greener future.


One of the most critical questions facing the electric vehicle industry today is how long until it becomes mainstream? Most experts believe that by 2030, there will be about 70 million electric vehicles on the roads around the world. There’s still plenty of progress to be made between now and then to help this market take off as well as it deserves to in order to combat climate change and reduce pollution levels in our cities. To learn more about how far we’ve come, let’s look at the history of electric vehicles.

Early electric vehicles

Though electric vehicles have been around since the late 1800s, they weren't popular until the turn of the 20th century. The first electric cars were often limited to a range of only 30 miles and had to be recharged after 12 hours or so. The turn of the century marked a revolution in electric vehicles, with charging stations appearing all over Europe and America. Fast forward to today,  we're seeing an even more revolutionary leap in technology, battery fabrication and charging improving dramatically.

Why were electric vehicles invented?

Electric vehicles were beginning to be built at a time when there was a heavy reliance on horses for transport. As populations began to increase, increasing supply and demand, cities were accumulating an overwhelming amount of horse manure in their small streets and it was difficult to remove, causing sewage problems and the cities began to smell very offensive. This was a big driver (pun wasn't initially intended but let’s roll with it) to create a solution to transport people and products in the cities across the US and Europe.

The First Electric Vehicle

With a universal problem of transporting people and products in cities, there were a few people working on the invention of the electric car. In 1828, an electric motor was invented by Anyos Jedlik, a priest and physicist in Hungary. Between 1832 and 1839, Robert Anderson of Scotland developed an electric car which ran at a speed of up to 26 kilometres per hour. Later, in 1835, Sibrandus Stratingh and Christopher Becker created a small-scale electric car powered by a non-rechargeable primary battery. A primary battery, sometimes referred to as primary cells, is a battery that is used once and it cannot be recharged or reused because the electrochemical reaction in the cell is not reversible like it is for a secondary cell. Primary cells use chemical reactions to generate power and once the chemicals are used, the battery can no longer produce electricity.

One of the reasons that electric cars became popular in the early 1900s was because gasoline-powered cars were not an option for people living in cities due to safety hazards. There was also the case of keeping up appearances and considering the fashion of the time, women wore long dresses, gloves and hats, gasoline powered cars not only risked catching on fire, but also stained fabric. Henry Ford's wife, Clara, was a loyal EV driver for this reason. Electric vehicles were also much easier to start up, compared to gasoline powered cars, which made going on quick drives much faster, this was ideal for going to lunch dates or for doctors visiting their patients on house calls.

Rechargeable batteries were not invented until 1859 when French physicist Gaston Planté developed the lead-acid battery. This design was improved but Camille Alphonse Faure in 1881 influenced the industrial scale of manufacturing EV batteries. The first recorded electric vehicle to transport people was tested in Paris in 1881 by Gustave Touvé. Touvé worked with Siemens to refine and improve the rechargeable battery but sadly his vehicle was difficult to patent. The relative widespread use of the developed electric technology wasn’t launched until around 1884 in England when Thomas Park electrified the London Underground and built his first electric car. France and England were the first nations to encourage further development and use of electric vehicles. Battery-powered vehicles were mostly seen in the public as trams, trains and cabs as the lack of infrastructure hindered the accessibility of electric cars for personal use.

old electric vans from the 1930s

The modern electric vehicle

In the early 21st century, secondary cell batteries were available and provided the possibility to recharge electric vehicle batteries. NiMH and Li-ion batteries are the most used secondary cells as they have lower internal resistance and do not lose their capacity of alkaline, zinc-carbon and zinc-chloride at a fast rate like some other options. Electric vehicles were a novelty at this time due to their higher cost.

Electric vehicles are now quickly gaining popularity and it's easy to see why. The majority of the current cars on the road use fossil fuels as a source of power but electric vehicles make use of an electric motor that draws energy from the battery. Electric vehicle charging is being taken more seriously because this technology is environmentally friendly and doesn't require any refuelling. Countries are investing in the infrastructure of public electric vehicle charging and leasing companies like Cinch are providing more financially feasible ways of having an electric vehicle.

The future of electric vehicles

With the future of electric vehicles, Tesla is leading the way with their newest and most advanced models. The company is currently developing the Model 3 which will be able to run 200 miles on a single charge. This could make it more enticing for people to buy an electric vehicle with the potential to reduce their carbon footprint substantially. Battery technology and fabrication is continuously being improved to hold a longer charge and the possibility of the battery being recycled to reduce the need for mining is also in development to truly provide a more sustainable vehicle.

Besides Tesla, other companies are also investing in electric vehicle development such as BMW's new electric car called the i3 which can go 100 miles on one charge. Electric vehicle charging stations are also popping up in major cities throughout the UK, Europe and North America, making it easier for drivers to get access to charge points for their cars while they're on the road.

osprey charging station

What next?

As the electric car continues to grow in popularity, there will be increasing demand for more charge point operators. Luckily the UK has prioritised its infrastructure to populate charge points across the country. Initially in the 21st century, EVs were mostly purchased by individuals for personal use. Many people who don't have chargers installed in their homes are installing them right now so they can charge their vehicles at home. For people who live in flats and apartments, there are now EV charge points in street-lamps from Char.gy and other public options like grocery store car parks and forecourts.

Sustainability is an important factor for electric vehicle charging. Charge point operators are testing out two different types of chargers that are both low-cost and sustainable. Grid systems are using alternative energies like solar and wind to provide sustainable power sources for electric vehicle charging. Companies like Paua are providing services to making public charging more accessible by providing an app and an EV fuel card to charge at a variety of charge point operators with the largest number of networks to reduce the complication of having multiple apps and cards to start a charging session. By digitally recording charge sessions with one app, it is easier to keep track of charging, receipts and budgeting, to help encourage businesses to convert their fleets to electric vehicles to dramatically reduce their carbon footprint.

It is exciting to watch the electric vehicle industry rapidly develop to make EVs more accessible to the public and for businesses. From the first electric vehicle to the development of the battery, to the gradual affordability of EVs and the increase of public transport switching to electric, it is a promising landscape to watch, in hope of a greener future.

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