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SOLAR CARS

SOLAR CARS. AN OVERVIEW. Powered by sun’s energy Solar array collect the energy from the sun and converts it into usable electrical energy Power trackers convert it into the required voltage Motor controller sends power to the motor Divided into five Driver Controls & Mechanical Systems

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SOLAR CARS

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  1. SOLAR CARS

  2. AN OVERVIEW • Powered by sun’s energy • Solar array collect the energy from the sun and converts it into usable electrical energy • Power trackers convert it into the required voltage • Motor controller sends power to the motor • Divided into five • Driver Controls & Mechanical Systems • Electrical System • Drive Train • Solar Array • Body and Chassis

  3. Borealis III Raycing with the Sun- Photo by Colin Burnett

  4. DRIVER CONTROLS & MECHANICAL SYSTEMS • Standard features • Steering • Precise steering alignment • SUNRUNNER utilized a rack and pinion system that was attached to the steering arms by means of tie rods • Brake • Designed to move freely by eliminating brake drag • Hydraulic disc brakes • Regenerative braking

  5. Suspension • front suspension- MacPhearson struts or double A arms • MacPhearson strut requires a large vertical clearance • Double A arms require less vertical clearance, but consist of more components • rear suspension is a trailing arm, similar to that in motor cycles • Wheels • rolling resistance • three or four wheels • wheel designs are similar to those of bicycle tires

  6. ELECTRICAL SYSTEM • Made up of batteries and power electronics • Batteries • Lead-Acid • Nickel-Metal Hydride (NiMH) • Nickel-Cadmium (NiCad) • Lithium Ion • Tesseract uses 512 li-ion batteries

  7. Energy Flow Diagram of a Solar Car

  8. Peak Power Trackers • maximize the power • protect the batteries from being damaged by overcharging • efficiencies above 95% • Motor Controllers • decides how much current actually reaches the motor • up to 90% efficient

  9. DRIVE TRAIN • Consist of the electric motor and the means to by which the motor's power is transmitted the wheel • power generated is less than 5 hp • only one wheel in the rear of the car is driven by the electric motor • motor types • brushed DC • dual winding DC brushless • induction

  10. Dual-winding DC brushless • used as an electronic transmission • Types of transmissions • variable ratio belt drive • hub motor

  11. SOLAR ARRAY • made from silicon, by joining an n-type and a p-type semiconductor • grouped into space grade and terrestrial grade categories • Encapsulation • Array • SUNRUNNER'S array consisted of 14,057 razor-blade sized, 16% efficient space grade cells.

  12. Solar array

  13. LIMITATIONS • Only 1000 W/m2 of energy reaches the earth’s surface in an hour of “peak sun” • average solar array configuration spans 8m² • total amount of energy hitting the solar car during peak sun is 8KWh/m² • average solar cells are only able to convert 12% to 18% to electricity • the total amount of converted energy available to a car consists of 700-1500 Watts • three primary areas of energy loss consist of • aerodynamic drag, braking, and rolling resistance

  14. BODY & CHASSIS • goals • minimize the aerodynamic drag • maximize the exposure to solar insolation • minimize weight • maximize safety

  15. Body Shapes • Unified aero body and panel • Fixed or tilting, flat panels with a separate driver cab • Catamaran shape • uniquely designed shape • MAIZE & BLUE and SUNRUNNER are catamaran shaped.

  16. Chassis • space frame • welded tube structure to support the loads and the body • body is a lightweight, non-load bearing, composite shell • Semi - monocoque or carbon beam • composite beams and bulkheads to support the loads • integrated into a non-load bearing composite belly pan • monocoque • uses the body structure to support the loads

  17. MATERIALS USED • composite material • combination of a filler material sandwiched between layers of a structural material • structural materials • Carbon fibre, Kevlar and fibre glass • filler materials • Honeycomb and foam • bonded together using epoxy resins

  18. FALLING SHORT • characteristics that a commercially viable car • extremely reliable • comfortable • be able to function on its own • maintain the required speed • amenities such as air conditioning, radio, and power locks and windows • Solar cars • Limited seating capacity • Frequent flat tyres • Often was incapable of maintaining highway speeds

  19. THE FUTURE IN THE SHORT TERM • terrestrial application of the rovers that NASA uses in space • Data collection in a hot, sun rich area • Carry-over of expertise • substantial advances to the design of electric vehicles • better motors, better use of batteries, and better motor controller design • composite hull car • spread the word about the use of harnessing solar power

  20. IN THE LONG RUN • Electric car • Increase in petroleum prices • short distance commutation • improvements

  21. THANK YOU

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