Solar Power: Future of Transportation

Clean Alternative Source of Energy

Jenlyn Rose T. Calalis

College of Engineering
City of Malolos, Bulacan
jenlynrosecalalis@yahoo.com

I. PROBLEM IDENTIFICATION

Solar Technologies could be traced back to 1860s when III. DISCUSSION

expectation about the scarcity of non-renewable resources
started. Renewed efforts for research were made during the A. What is Solar Vehicle?
late 1900s because of the energy crisis caused by the Iranian
Revolution. Coal, Petroleum and natural gas may be A solar vehicle is an electric vehicle powered completely
considered as Natural Resources but it takes thousand of years or significantly by direct solar energy. Usually, photovoltaic
to form naturally and cannot be replaced as fast as they were (PV) cells contained in solar panels convert the sun's energy
consumed. Today, it was predicted that this Gas supplies directly into electric energy. The term "solar vehicle" usually
should last for 200 years and Coal for 300 years. implies that solar energy is used to power all or part of a
vehicle's movement. Solar power may be also used to provide
On the other hand, the carbon emission from the power for communications or controls or other auxiliary
combustion of fossil fuels increased by 40%. This cause a functions.
significant increase on Earths temperature as well as sea
levels. The atmospheric concentration of Greenhouse also
increased. It is the balanced between the emission of human
related activities (source) and the removal of gas from the B. Common Design
atmosphere by conversion to different chemical compound.
The design of a solar vehicle is severely limited by the
Moreover, Transport has a particularly important place in amount of energy input into the car. Solar cars depend on a
national energy and development planning. It is a major solar array that uses photovoltaic cells.
consumer of oil, accounting for 50-60 per cent of total
petroleum use in most developing countries. It is often a major When sunlight (photons) strike PV cells, they excite
source of local air pollution and regional acidification of the electrons and allow them to flow, creating an electric current.
environment in industrial and developing countries. Vehicle PV cells are made of semiconductor materials such as silicon
markets will grow much more rapidly in developing countries, and alloys of indium, gallium and nitrogen. Crystalline silicon
adding greatly to urban air pollution, which in many cities is the most common material used and has an efficiency rate
already exceeds international norms. Unless strong action is of 15-20%.
taken, air pollution could become a major factor limiting
industrial development in many Third World cities. The solar array consists of hundreds of photovoltaic solar
cells. In order to construct an array, PV cells are placed
together to form modules which are placed together to form an
array.
II. OBJECTIVES The solar array can be mounted in six ways:

The aim of this research is to find new ways to produce Horizontal. This most common arrangement gives most
energy to aid the need for new resources to use for overall power during most of the day in low latitudes or higher
transportation. Energy is needed for survival; and its latitude summers and offers little interaction with the wind.
development crucially depends on its long term availability in Horizontal arrays can be integrated or be in the form of a free
increasing quantities from sources that are safe, clean and canopy.
environmentally sound. It also needs to be economically
beneficial for the government which reduces energy Vertical. This arrangement is sometimes found in free
dependence. standing or integrated sails to harness wind energy. Useful
solar power is limited to mornings, evenings, or winters and
when the vehicle is pointing in the right direction.
 Adjustable. Free solar arrays can often be tilted around the
axis of travel in order to increase power when the sun is low
and well to the side. An alternative is to tilt the whole vehicle C. Some Solar Vehicles
when parked. Two-axis adjustment is only found on marine
vehicles, where the aerodynamic resistance is of less Danish-born adventurer Hans Tholstrup was the first to
importance than with road vehicles. circumnavigate the Australian continent in a 16-foot (4.9 m)
open boat. At a later stage in his life he became involved in
Integrated. Some vehicles cover every available surface various competitions with fuel saving cars and trucks. Already
with solar cells. Some of the cells will be at an optimal angle in the 1980s, he became aware of the necessity to explore
whereas others will be shaded. sustainable energy as a replacement for the limited available
fossil fuel. Sponsored by BP, he designed the world's first
Trailer. Solar trailers are especially useful for retrofitting solar car, called The Quiet Achiever, and traversed the 4,052
existing vehicles with little stability, e.g. bicycles. Some km (2,518 mi) between Sydney, New South Wales and Perth,
trailers also include the batteries and others also the drive Western Australia in 20 days. That was the precursor of the
motor. World Solar Challenge.

Remote. By mounting the solar array at a stationary The Bridgestone World Solar Challenge is primarily a
location instead of the vehicle, power can be maximised and design competition to discover the worlds most efficient
resistance minimized. The virtual grid-connection however electric car. Celebrating its 30th anniversary, the BWSC will
involves more electrical losses than with true solar vehicles be held in Australia from October 8 to 15, 2017.
and the battery must be larger.
From racing cars, solar vehicles also affect the third world
The energy input for the structural materials of a countries. Roger Christen, a Quebecer who spent the last 28
photovoltaic system delivering 1 billion kWh is calculated to years in Africa, saw an opportunity to solve with a single
be approximately 300 kWh/m2. The energy input/output ratio product several important problems that Africans living in
for production is about 1:9 assuming a life of 20 years. remote areas face every day: having to walk long distances to
get water and lack of access to electricity.
Other parts of a solar vehicle includes:
The main problem is bringing the cost down enough to
The motors used in solar cars typically about 2 or 3 make it affordable. In order to achieve that, they have been
horsepower, yet experimental light solar cars may attain the using used bike frames and made several iterations. They say
same speed as a typical family car (100 mph (160 km/h)). that the latest Solar-E-Cycles can travel up 50 km (31 miles)
per day and it can reach a top speed 50 km/h (31 mph).
Solar cars can use AC or DC motors:
Furthermore, they are partnering with economic
If the motor is a DC motor, then it may run on anything development efforts in order to finance the manufacturing of
from 96 to 192 volts. Many of the DC motors used in electric the bikes and then rent them at low-cost $0.50 to $1 per day.
cars come from the electric forklift industry.
Chinese solar panel manufacturer Hanergy plans to build
If it is an AC motor, then it probably is a three-phase AC and sell solar cars equipped with lithium-ion batteries to
motor running at 240 volts AC with a 300 volt battery pack. consumers in China. Hanergy says that five to six hours of
sunlight should allow the cars thin-film solar cells to generate
The battery pack in a typical solar car is sufficient to allow between 8-10 kWh of power a day, allowing the car to travel
the car to go 250 miles (400 km) without sun, and allow the about 80 km (50 mi) on solar power alone.
car to continuously travel at speeds of 60 mph (97 km/h).
The Tindo bus is a 100% solar bus that operates as free
Batteries in solar applications have to meet the demands of public transport service in Adelaide City as an initiative of the
unstable grid energy, heavy cycling (charging and discharging) City Council. Bus services which use electric buses that are
and irregular full recharging. Theres a variety of battery types partially powered by solar panels installed on the bus roof,
fitted for these unique requirements. Considerations for intended to reduce energy consumption and to prolong the life
choosing a battery include cost, cycle life and installation and cycle of the rechargeable battery of the electric bus, have been
maintenance. put in place in China.

Telemetry is an automated communications process by The Sky-Sailor is a plane that contains solar cells on its
which measurements and other data are collected at remote or wings, developed by the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology
inaccessible points and transmitted to receiving equipment for in Zurich. It is hoped it will be able to search the Martian
monitoring. surface and even send pictures back to Earth.
 D. Advantages and Disadvantages REFERENCE:

Photovoltaic technology offers several environmental Retrieved from http://dieoff.org/page84.htm

advantages in producing electricity compared with fossil fuel Retrieved from
technologies. For example, using present photovoltaic
technology, carbon dioxide emissions and other pollutants are https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Photovoltaic_effect
negligible. Retrieved from https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hanergy
PV solar energy is perhaps the only energy technology Retrieved from
whose electricity generation cost could be reduced by half or https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alternative_energy
more over the next five years. Better and more efficient
manufacturing process and new technology such as advanced Retrieved from http://www.un-documents.net/ocf-07.htm
thin film solar cell is a good example of that helps to reduce
industry cost. Retrieved from
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carbon_emission
Their solar panels work silently so they dont add to the
noise pollution already on the road. Solar panels dont create Retrieved from
greenhouse gases, as gasoline engines do. Most importantly, https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_Solar_Challenge
solar energy is free, widely available, and grants the solar car
driver complete independence from foreign oil. Retrieved from https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sky-Sailor

Solar Power is an icon of the 'green power' movement, Retrieved from https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Telemetry
however the process of manufacturing the quartz based panels
Retrieved from https://www.dasolar.com/solar-energy/solar-
can be detrimental to the environment. Raw quartz (silica) is
used to create solar cells must be mined using harsh chemicals powered-cars
that harm the surrounding environment, as well as those
Retrieved from
working in the mines.
https://electronics.stackexchange.com/questions/129623/whic
Solar Vehicles are still developing for mass production h-kind-of-motor-would-be-better-for-an-electric-solar-car-
And making it available to the public. Many things have to be geared-or-non-gea
considered. The important thing is that with this technology,
the benefit outweighs the cost. Retrieved from
https://www.solarenergyworld.com/2012/08/07/how-solar-
power-myths-cost-money/

IV. CONCLUSION Retrieved from http://control.ee.ethz.ch/~solpow/

Energy is not so much a single product as a mix of

products and services, a mix upon which the welfare of
individuals, the sustainable development of nations, and the
life-supporting capabilities of the global ecosystem depend.
Energy is too important for its development to continue in
such a random manner. A safe, environmentally sound, and
economically viable energy pathway that will sustain fast and
safe transportation into the distant future is clearly imperative.
It is also possible. But it will require new dimensions of
political will and institutional cooperation to achieve it.

It is clear that a low energy path is the best way towards a

sustainable future. Many companies, NGOs and private
individuals had already started the way to make vehicles solar
powered. The bottom line is that electric and solar technology
will be an essential part of future low-emissions transportation
that will be attractive to consumers and better for the
environment. The bottom line is that solar technology will be
an essential part of future low-emissions transportation that
will be attractive to consumers and better for the environment.