Can this be done? An electric car with a solar panel...?

Question

...on the top. The problem with electric cars is that right now they can only go for about 200 miles before a recharge, which you plug into a wall outlet. Could a solar panel be added to the roof of a vehicle so that it recharges (even if its only a partial charge) while you drove, or at least while your parked in a parking lot.

Think of the Ford Edge with its vista roof. Instead of one large moonroof, one large solar panel to charge a lithium-ion battery. Would this be too expensive to build? Would a solar panel not provide enough power?

Answer 1

LobsterT is on the right track, but a bit optimistic about the amount of solar energy received.  The solar irradiance needs to be averaged over 24 hours, all seasons and all weather types.  An average yield in Canada is 3 kW-h/m^2 per day (the number is higher farther south).  An electric car uses about 0.2 kW-h per km, so a car with 2 m^2 @ 15% efficiency could travel 1.5 km.  It would make more sense to mount solar panels on a house, say 100 m^2.  About 1/3 of the power could charge a battery for an electric car (The average commute distance is 24 km.)  and the balance could be sold to the grid and withdrawn later for a longer trip.

Answer 2

It's been done:

http://www.zapworld.com/electric-vehicle...

It doesn't increase the range, because solar panels aren't very efficient.  They'll charge the battery up slowly, but it won't make much difference while you're driving.  Basically it decreases the amount of electricity you need to recharge the battery.

Answer 3

If you are determined This can be done if you have the money to buy the building materials. It can run to solar panels.

Answer 4

Yes it can be done and has been done in some cases.  With a little searching you may come across  a man who put solar panels on his Prius and got over 100mpg.  Solar panels typically only output 12 volts so you would need a few of them in series, let's say two to bump up the voltage to 24 volts.  Then if the electric motor runs at 240 volts, you'll need to convert it to AC, and step that voltage up.  I'm not sure where you get that part from.  Then, the energy density of typical solar panels at best in real world situations is around 15% efficient.   This means that it may not provide all of the energy necessary for a car to travel but maybe only 1/100th even if the whole roof is covered. Let's say that the roof is 2 square meters and solar gain is 600 watts per square meter.  That means that with an efficiency of 15% (the best), you'll get 180 watts.  A current car may be using 40 horsepower at 65mph (Ford Escape estimate).  That is 25,000 watts.  So, you'll only get 0.6% of the energy from the panels.   I don't know of any kits for cars but do know quite a lot about putting panels on homes in California.  Oh, btw, the 180watt panels would be about $1000 plus add more money for the cost of the extra tools and custom installation.

Answer 5

yes and no.

every year, there's a solar car race.

none of the cars are really street legal.

and they don't go very fast, or very far, even though the race is held in a sunny flat place, like the middle of Australia.

http://www.winstonsolar.org/challenge/

note the funny shapes, and the large number of solar panels on each car.

you might also note that the cars are pretty fragile ---- you wouldn't want to drive them around town.

for lots more links, google  solar car race

Answer 6

Read a book called "Solo: Life with an electric car" by Noel Perrin.  He talks about owning an electric car covered with solar panels.  Upshot: It doesn't work, the solar panels only take in enough juice to drive 2-3 miles a day.  On a good day.

On the other hand, look up something called (I'm spelling it right) Sunraycer.

Answer 7

It can be done, but the result is very little added range because even with the most efficient panels, it is not enough electrical power to make much difference. Just not much energy from the sun in such a small area.

A solar panel that size will only produce 50-100 Watts even when angled to the sun. That is no where near enough energy to make a difference.

Answer 8

To provide enough power the trailer should be as large as 2 ea 18 wheel trailers.

Answer 9

It would help a bit.  

Take a look at solar racers.  They are all solar panel and battery with a seat for a light driver and limited water.