The document describes the discharge characteristics of the batteries that power the Zenn electric car. It provides:
1) The batteries discharge exponentially for the first two hours, dropping to 80% of their original charge.
2) They then discharge nonlinearly over the next 8 hours, dropping to 70% of the original charge.
3) The last 2 hours see a steep drop in charge until the batteries are fully discharged at 0 volts after 12 hours.
The document describes the discharge characteristics of the batteries that power the Zenn electric car. It provides:
1) The batteries discharge exponentially for the first two hours, dropping to 80% of their original charge.
2) They then discharge nonlinearly over the next 8 hours, dropping to 70% of the original charge.
3) The last 2 hours see a steep drop in charge until the batteries are fully discharged at 0 volts after 12 hours.
The ZENN (Zero Emissions, No Noise) car is an environmentally friendly commuter car invented in Canada. The current model is powered by six 12-volt rechargeable batteries, and has a top speed of 40 km/h. The batteries have the following discharge characteristics: Fully charged: 72 V Totally discharged (0 V) with constant usage: 12 h The battery discharge is not constant. ZENN Car Batteries The graph shows the discharge pattern of V the batteries. 80 V 72 • During the first two hours, the batteries 70 discharge exponentially to approximately 80% of original charge. The function for 60 Voltage Stored 共V兲
共2, 53.6兲 this period has the form V a(10kt), where
共10, 50.4兲 50 V is the remaining voltage, t is the time in hours, and a and k are constants. 40 • The batteries then discharge nonlinearly over 30 the next 8 h to 70% of original charge. The 20 function for this period has the form V b √c t , where b and c are constants. 10 • During the last 2 h the charge drops on a 0 12 24 36 t steep curve to 0 V. The function for this Time 共h兲 part is V n(t p)2 q, where n, p and q are constants. a) Justify in writing that the graph meets all the conditions described. b) What happened between 12 h and 24 h? c) Find the equations for the three parts of the curve, for the time interval [0, 12]. Specify any restrictions on domain and range, using appropriate mathematical notation. d) If a new rechargeable battery has a discharge time of 20 h, describe how this would effect the graph and change your answers to part c). e) Use the Internet to research how the cost to run this battery-powered car compares to the costs to run a compact gasoline-powered car. Write a brief report to a courier company that is planning to purchase a fleet of small cars for city deliveries.