Re: [EVDL] What is needed to build a successful practical solar vehicle.
As far as I know the Xof1 car still holds the long distance record, at 35,000 km. Canadian Marcelo Da Luz and numerous volunteers and helpers built a purely solar powered car and drove it all over the U. S. and Canada beginning in 2008. Marcelo drove it from Niagara Falls to Chicago, Bemidji, Winnepeg, Moose Jaw, Edmonton, Dawson City, Inuvik (the furthest north one can go on a road), Anchorage, Whitehorse, Vancouver, Seattle, Portland, San Francisco, Los Angeles, New Orleans, Key West, Baltimore, and Pittsburgh. It retraced its earlier journey back to the Arctic Circle and Inuvik again, in August 2009. The car was very aerodynamic, was quite uncomfortable, weighed 460 pounds, carried 960 watts of PV and approximately 4kWh of Kokams lithium ion batteries. The body tilted up on struts for charging while stopped. It traveled 300 miles one sunny day, and even 130 miles at night. Top speed was 75 mph. Its consumption was 25 Wh per mile, more than ten times my own EV’s efficiency. Marcelo never charged from the grid. Curiously, the province of Ontario where Marcelo lives, prohibited solar cars at the time; maybe it still does. More information is at xof1.com. -- View this message in context: http://electric-vehicle-discussion-list.413529.n4.nabble.com/What-is-needed-to-build-a-successful-practical-solar-vehicle-tp4673799p4673831.html Sent from the Electric Vehicle Discussion List mailing list archive at Nabble.com. ___ UNSUBSCRIBE: http://www.evdl.org/help/index.html#usub http://lists.evdl.org/listinfo.cgi/ev-evdl.org For EV drag racing discussion, please use NEDRA (http://groups.yahoo.com/group/NEDRA)
Re: [EVDL] Building a true road going solar EV. Help everyone.
This may be a relevant adventure story, now 5 years old, about lessons from a Canadian solar car, which as far as I know still holds the distance record. Google XOF1, or look at XOF1.com and you’ll find some references. The car named XOF1 travelled more than 35,000 km in the US and Canada, using only 900 W of solar in 8 strings and about 3.8 kWh of Kokam cells. Marcelo never charged from the grid. One sunny day on a trip to Whitehorse the car travelled 300 miles, starting with a fully charged battery. It accelerated zero to 50 in 6 seconds. Efficiency is the key to this success; the car was very light and featured no creature comforts. It looked like a giant cockroach, and in Alaska was accused by a 911 caller of being not a cockroach but a UFO. A 3 wheeler, the car was driven by a single hub motor in the rear. The solar array lifted up on struts to allow the driver in and out of the car, and when stationary it could be tilted to the right at any angle to maximize charging current during morning and afternoon while the sun was low in the sky. That was particularly important when it travelled north of the Arctic Circle where the sun is always low in the sky. Its developer Marcelo da Luz, assisted by many supporters, built it with goals to build a solar car and set a world distance record, and take on a real challenge for a solar car—travel above the Arctic Circle. His broader mission was to fulfill a dream to inspire others--particularly children--to accomplish their own dreams, and to benefit mankind and the environment. I’d conclude that spectacular solar car performance is possible if one is willing to be uncomfortable while driving it. Surely more comfort is possible with less spectacular performance. Here are some stats: Weight Approx 300 kg (w driver) Occupants 1 (driver) Length 5 m Width 1.8 m Height 0.9 m Ground clearance0.4 m Frontal area0.723 sq. m Weight distribution 65% front, 35% rear Wheel track 1.2 m Wheelbase 2.0 m Wheel configuration 3 (2 front, 1 rear) Tires SLR93, 90 psi Chassis Polyurethane foam, covered with carbon fiber reinforced fiberglass Body (upper shell) Foam, covered with fiberglass SteeringHandlebar Front brake Hydraulic disc Rear brake Electrical (regen, motor) Battery EP Kokam, Li-Ion, 40 Ah, 27 Cells Battery voltage 96 v Motor NGM, brushless dc, 84-108 v Solar cells Siemens, mono-crystalline, 15% Array area 7.144 sq. m -- View this message in context: http://electric-vehicle-discussion-list.413529.n4.nabble.com/Building-a-true-road-going-solar-EV-Help-everyone-tp4671785p4671824.html Sent from the Electric Vehicle Discussion List mailing list archive at Nabble.com. ___ UNSUBSCRIBE: http://www.evdl.org/help/index.html#usub http://lists.evdl.org/listinfo.cgi/ev-evdl.org For EV drag racing discussion, please use NEDRA (http://groups.yahoo.com/group/NEDRA)
