Comments on: Researchers. Why can’t solar power be used to recharge hybrid car batteries?

By: Zar N

Zar N — Sun, 07 Mar 2010 07:15:59 +0000

The average car using 33.5 horsepower consumes about 25,000 watts. Assuming about 12 hours of daylight, and 1 hour of driving time per day, the total output of your solar cells would have to be about 2000 watts (25,000 / 12.)

Given that typical output of a solar panel is 12 watts per square foot, one would need about 167 square feet of solar panels to operate a car, which is about a 13 ft by 13 ft square. this is not unreasonable for a rooftop, but may be a bit costly.

However, the process of storing power in a car’s battery, then using it to power a car is less efficient than directly using it in your home, as most solar panels are used.
References :
http://www.generators.smps.us/solarpower.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Watt

By: tbteddy64

tbteddy64 — Sun, 07 Mar 2010 06:30:59 +0000

The problem lies in two parts.
1. With the current technology hybrid cars can only hold enough charge for about 40-200 miles before they have to be re-charged. Chevy is coming out with two hybrid car models in 2010 where you can drive on pure electricity (no gas) for the first 40 miles each day. After that it converts to a regular hybrid like a Prius. Telesa Motors just came out with a car that can go up to 200 miles before recharging on pure electricity, put this advanced technology will cost you $110,000.
2. It also takes 5-7 hours to recharge (depending on battery size) even if you use your home electricity. So after you use up the battery for the day you can’t just stop into a gas station and recharge and keep going.
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By: special-chemical-x

special-chemical-x — Sun, 07 Mar 2010 06:09:59 +0000

As they say, if it was a good idea then it’s probably been thought of before.

It’s not that it is not a good idea. It is. BUT how much square footage of coverage do you need to store enough electricity to power that car each day?(solar cells still aren’t particularly efficient at translating all the energy of light into stored electricity.)

Unfortunately, it’s quite a lot more than the average house plus it’s fence has…
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By: rotus

rotus — Sun, 07 Mar 2010 05:26:59 +0000

Well, currently, no plug in Hybrids are available (at least in the US). There are kits to modify your hybrid to accept plug-in charging. If you have this, there is no reason that solar panels couldn't be used to charge the batteries of a Hybrid, given that you have enough panels.
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By: Chad D

Chad D — Sun, 07 Mar 2010 04:48:59 +0000

From what I understand solar power isn't that efficient. Another obvious flaw would be if a car is garaged, parked under something, or if it's a cloudy day. So it's probably to impractical to depend on it soley. Some cars(top tier luxury cars) do use solar power to power a ventilation system while the car is parked so the car remains cooler during a hot day(it can drop the temp like 10 degrees).
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By: nickelrustler

nickelrustler — Sun, 07 Mar 2010 04:31:59 +0000

nothing…and the solutions actually get easier the more you think about them.

You have 4 rotating wheels…they regenerate energy..they capture some already

Your solar idea

wind energy as you travel, it’s a constant.

By the time you are done…there is almost no wasted energy!

Hmmm!
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