Archive for the ‘Solar Powered Vehicles’ Category
Uprush for space race: Oz solar cars blaze at speed of sunshine
The world solar challenge car race began on Sunday morning: as 37 teams drove out of Darwin at the start of a 3000 kilometre road trip across Australia. The biannual race sees solar-powered electric cars and vehicles traversing Australia’s interior. As solar technologies and aerodynamics of the cars have advanced, race sponsors have adjusted how much solar the cars could have on them, their size and even how fast the cars can go – they now have to follow posted speed limits and incur time penalties when caught over the limit. This year student-led teams from twenty countries, including the Philippines, Chile, Turkey, Iran and Malaysia were taking part. The journey takes about five days and requires a large degree of self sufficiency.
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Duration : 0:1:11
Solar-powered car fair
Santiago hosted the first ever solar-powered car fair ahead of the Atacama Solar Challenge.
Participant Gonzalo Pacheco saying: “Solar energy is an alternative. Obviously, the cost of the car is pretty high, but the niche is growing and there are investigations and everything so that in the future it can be used in a more efficient way.”
Minister of Energy and mining, Laurence Golborne saying: “Those who today participate in this fair, who today step up to this challenge, who– like the provost said– are learning today in the race to get a better vehicle, they are the people who will be the leaders that the country needs in development of renewable energy sources for the future.”
Duration : 0:2:21
Solar Electric Reva Car Launch, Bangalore
In Bangalore, the Climate Solutions Road Tour team stopped to pick up all the vehicles and join Chetan Maini, the visionary young CEO of Reva Electric Cars, in a grand flag-off of the Climate Solutions Road Tour. Listen in to hear more about the solar electric car technology and see us drive off!
Duration : 0:3:25
I need help in finding an electric/gas/solar powered vehicles to build?
let me explain. I want a bike basically, but an electric one that is kind of like a car, with the surroundings in case its cold out, etc. I don’t want a car because i don’t have thousands and thousands of dollars to spend on a car. i want basically a 2 wheeled car, that has petals. lol. can anyone help me with where i can find plans for this kind of vehicle/bike? Or at least what its called?
Jack Dodge have free plans for that concept…
Helios Solar Powered Aircraft
Compilation of test flights.
Pathfinder Solar Plane preceeded Centurion. Pathfinder turned into Pathfinder+ by removing the original center panel and replacing it with a panel that was about 48 feet in length. Centurion turned into Helios Prototype, which turned into Helios and Helios with a fuel cell. The difference between Centurion and Helios prototype was removing the center panel and adding 2 new center panels. Helios flew with 5 pods and had a full solar array. The fuel cell version was made by removing the center pod and replacing it with the fuel cell pod. That is the one at the end of the video.
Duration : 0:4:5
SOLAR Powered TOYOTA Prius News Feature
Solar electrical vehicles can convert your prius to solar. You will get much more MPG under normal driving. PLUS if you only do a few miles a day and don’t go over 42 mph you will NEVER have to buy gas again.
For more information go to http://www.solarelectricalvehicles.com
Duration : 0:1:55
Do you think solar panel roadways linked across the country could reverse the effects of global climate change
My Idea for solving Hydrocarbon Problems
My idea consists of creating an electrical system placed upon our nations highways in the form of an interconnected highly durable plastic solar panel system. Imagine if all of our roads were covered with such a system! Once manufactured, in the form of large and long plastic rolls, the system would make up the top layer of the roadway.
Plastics are being developed now which can store charges (batteries), conduct electricity, produce light (flexible television screens), and I would not doubt- also provide magnetic properties. By adding silicon in different property levels of ionic charge distributions, according to the movement of electrons flowing from lower energy voids to higher, solar activation of propulsions would be easily achieved, stored, and be made available to all in need of energy supplies.
Charge current could be supplied to moving vehicles as they travel and vehicles would never need to leave the road to charge. This could be achieved by proximity of tires to the road through conductive wires located within the tires or even by methods not easily explained other than in laymen’s terms. There are methods of charging by magnetic proximity which would be enhanced due to movement. Advances in understanding the magnetic properties associated to moving aluminum allow the use of aluminum in products not to mention the use of plastics for lightweight materials of vehicles. Carbon fiber materials are perspective as well.
All surfaces of vehicles, buildings, and walkways are possible locations for the development of solar power generating surfaces.
The importance of developing systems which cover roadways are unlimited. The system should be developed with the perspective of controlling vehicles; propelling vehicles by magnetic pulse, future levitation of vehicles by mirror action magnetic repulsion now seen in superconductive materials, traffic control, and accident prevention. Tracking of all users as well as communication and information and data transfer should be implemented into the construction process. Management of surface durability and ice prevention are also benefits.
The future of vehicle self-drive systems would be highly manageable due to the construction of these roadways as well as national security. As the use of liquid fuel engines would become obsolete in the near future, everyone on the roadways could be easily accounted for at all times.
The idea certainly makes me think…I love questions that make me ponder "now why didn’t I think of that? It makes sense!" I’d like to answer a few questions and concerns which other answerers have brought to light.
Semi-trucks can’t stop hauling because America lives through the goods the truckers haul. And up here in MN, the river barges bring up alot of goods, but they can only run when the river isn’t frozen…we’d be in big trouble without the truckers running in the winter months.
The current road workers would simply switch materials, instead of laying asphalt and concrete, they’d lay solar panels and electrical wiring. And as for the oil industry employees, they can help maintain the new roadways. With a project like this, there’ll be plenty to do and there’ll be people who need that work.
If we can go from home-spun and wooden farm implements to tv and cell phones in 200 years, there’s no reason why we shouldn’t be able to go from asphalt and oil to solar panels and magnetic cars in another 200. The colonists would never have dreamed of the things we have now, the inventions we’ve come up with. So it’s understandable that we now can’t fathom using solar panels for roadways.
How will erasing our dependancy on oil and building electro-magnetic interstate highways revert us into a 3rd world country? We’d still be thriving and expanding, we’d be moving forward. Some 3rd world countries still have public plumbing in the streets and walk further everyday for dry wood to heat their homes and hearths.
What WOULD the durability of these panels be? Would we have to reduce speed limits (which increases travel time, thus making a moot issue of conservancy and prevention) so there’d potentially be fewer accidents?
As for Star Trek, you should have watched the show titled something like "How William Shatner Changed the World". The guy who invented cell phones got the idea from Kirk’s communicator that he was constantly flipping out of his pocket.
I’d be willing to take part in such a venture as this, but I need more research done and stats provided because I can’t answer anything about another person’s concerns about CO2 or heat or friction. Plus, I have a question of my own. In the regions that get snow, plus those that flood, how will we prevent the electricity from shorting out? If I’m reading the original proposition correctly, electricity keeps traffic moving. Traffic standing still is generally something seen in big cities (or construction on the I-90 bridge here, LOL) So would little burbs of 50K people have traffic jams like LA notoriously does if the electricity shorts out?
Where is all the electricity going to come from to power all those new electric vehicles?
The press and the manufacturers conveniently fail to tell the public where the new power for all the new electric vehicles is being generated. Solar energy? Wind? Hydro? Nuclear? Fossil- oil/natural gas/ coal? What about the emissions / risks of new electric plant development? Who is listening and pray tell, who is better still asking?
Did you know you are driving an electric car right now? It’s true. Lots of electricity is used to refine gasoline.
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If demand for gasoline falls, let’s use that same electricity to charge our electric vehicles.
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Did you know that lots of energy goes to waste overnight? It’s true. Most large powerplants take too long to shut down and start up, so they run all night, even after demand for electricity stops.
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Guess when most electric vehicles charge? In the evening and overnight, when demand for electricity is lowest.
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Did you know that a small solar panel, big enough to charge an electric car, is really pretty affordable? Given the chance to reduce their car’s fuel cost (and pollutants) all the way down to ZERO, do you think a few people might be willing to spend a thousand dollars or two to put solar panels on their garages?
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Amazing how some problems just evaporate when you think about them.