Tesla Gigafactory to get world's largest rooftop solar array

Tesla has big plans for its big roof in Nevada. The electric automaker/energy company has said from the beginning that its Gigafactory (which, as future plans have expanded, has come to be known as 'Gigafactory 1') would be a net-zero-energy production facility powered by renewables. Electrek reports that on a recent tour for investors, though, Tesla said just how massive onsite solar power generation capacity would be: 70 megawatts.

That's about seven times larger than any other rooftop installation in the world. (For comparison, the current largest installation on a single roof is a 42-acre, 11.5-MW solar farm on the Dera Baba Jaimal Singh in Beas, India.) Thanks in large part to this solar power system, Tesla says the GF1 won't directly consume any fossil fuels. The factory will be able to store excess energy in Tesla's own Powerpack batteries for use when the sun isn't shining. It's likely that Tesla will also be using its own photovoltaic panels, thanks to its acquisition of SolarCity.

Additionally, the Gigafactory will use a closed-loop system to save water, will heat its factory using waste heat – a byproduct of battery manufacturing – and recycle batteries onsite. A document given to investors also outlines how Tesla is lowering operational costs and the cost of cells and batteries, for which production recently began. Tesla says GF1 will have 35 GWh of annual cell production capacity and 50 GWh of battery production capacity by the end of its current construction phase.

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Solar Powered Electric Bicycle Is Lightweight - VIDEO

Albert van Dalen is an inventor/tinkerer from the Netherlands. He has designed and built what he calls the world’s first solar powered electric bicycle, the Maxun One. It has a top speed of 15 mph from solar power alone and is manufactured to a very high standard. Because it is charged by the sun, you never have to charge the battery yourself. Van Dalen says it even works on cloudy days.

Van Dalen says, “The solar bike is made very lightweight, sportive and fast, despite the solar panels it rides almost as light as a road bike. The solar panels are small enough to allow easy riding in traffic, and large enough to perform well, even on a semi-cloudy days. A small battery provides energy in the absence of sunlight.”

An electric bicycle is a popular idea, but it has a significant disadvantage — it weighs much more than a conventional bike. Batteries and motors are heavy. There just no way around it, at least not with today’s technology. An electric bicycle is too heavy to use with a normal bike rack or to carry up a flight of stairs. The Maxun One weighs just 38 pounds. Some electric bikes weigh twice as much.

Van Dalen has a several inventions and patents to his credit. He can tell you how to make a fine spot welder yourself or build a device to calibrate your multimeter. My personal favorite is his guide to debouncing electrical switches and buttons.

“The development of the solar bike was a technical challenge,” he says. “all components have to be of the highest level, such as the solar cells, for which a superior, anti reflective, low loss coating had to be developed. Aerospace materials are used to reduce the weight of the whole solar bike to 17kg, but also make it strong enough to withstand stress caused by riding at high speed on bad roads. Furthermore the solar bike remains stable at high speed, even with both solar panels.”

Van Dalen is justly proud of his creation. “With the Maxun One solar bike, high tech, beautiful design and usability come together. Because it is the first solar bike of its kind in the world, it’s called the “One”.

Enjoy this video that shows the Maxum One being ridden around van Dalen’s hometown of Maastricht. American viewers may need to adapt your thinking a bit because of all the bicycles on the road. In some countries, bicycles, not SUVs, are the preferred means of transportation.

Official: $1.3 Billion In Incentives Brings Tesla Gigafactory To Nevada

“Nevada Is It”

Nevada Gov. Brian Sandoval and Tesla CEO Elon Musk announced Thursday that Tesla will indeed build their Gigafactory in the state of Nevada.

All it took was up to $1.3 billion worth of incentives over 20 years.

The Governor called the todays event a “monumental announcement that will change Nevada forever,” while adding that he expected every dollar the state spends in aided Tesla to comeback 80 fold.  “Even the most skeptical economist would conclude that this is a strong return for us.”

Here Is The Site Of Tesla’s Gigafactory – Currently At The ‘Pad’ Stage (Image via KTNV Channel 13)

At full capacity the plant is expected to employ up to 6,500 persons.

If the Tesla CEO is to be believed, his company walked away fromeven more money offered by other states in lieu of a higher confidence that facility will indeed be ready by 2017.

Translation: that basically that Nevada had the least amount of red-tape to deal with.  Mr. Musk did not get into any details of offers from the losing states – California, Texas, Arizona or New Mexico.

Musk did note that the plant could actually be operation by late 2016 thanks to the speed at which the process has been moving of late.

“I would like to recognize the leadership of Governor Sandoval and the Nevada Legislature for partnering with Tesla to bring the Gigafactory to the state. The Gigafactory is an important step in advancing the cause of sustainable transportation and will enable the mass production of compelling electric vehicles for decades to come. Together with Panasonic and other partners, we look forward to realizing the full potential of this project.” –  Elon Musk

Later in the press conference, Elon Musk was asked if the hunt was still on for a second battery location, to which the CEO said,

“Nevada is it.”

The specific details and approvals will be hashed out in a special legislative session early next week, and while the exact amount of the incentives is not know (as the utilization of the factory puts money on a sliding scale), it starts at around $865 million according to the executive director of Sandoval’s Office of Economic Development, Steve Hill.

The Governor’s office figures that the factory will ultimately generate $100 billion for the state economy and  create 22,000 new jobs over the next 20 years.

Micro Honda EV Lands On Solar-Powered Island

Honda has announced that it will be launching a new program around their micro-electric-vehicle prototype the “Micro Computer Beta,” or MC-β. This program involves the installation of three solar powered EV charging stations in Miyakojima City, Japan.

The pairing of solar powered charging stations and the MC-β  will be a combined effort of Honda and Toshiba, with Toshiba responsible for building the stations themselves. As you may know, the MC-β prototype is a petite 98” long electric vehicle, perfect for the small island roads of Miyakojima. The EV is powered by an eight horsepower motor that tops out at a leisurely pace of 43 miles per hour. With a single-charge range of fifty miles, the vehicle should have no problem making it to the next charging station no matter where they are placed on the tiny island.

You may find yourself asking “Why Miyakojima?” This tiny island is actually the perfect place for these short-range EVs. Miyakojima, part of Okinawa, is a city consisting of several islands between the southern tip of Japan and Taiwan.  At just under 79 square-miles, one charge will quite literally take you from one end of the island to the other. This will allow participants in the EV experiment to have little worry about running out of power while on the road.

With 50,000 inhabitants, Miyakojima is about as populated as a small suburb, yet has nearly twice the area of Boston, MA. This will help ensure a limited strain will be placed on the blossoming infrastructure allowing it to be tested slowly, as well as the ability to properly analyze its limitations and make incremental improvements to the program as needed.

The Mega-Solar project helps provide up to 30% of Miyakojima’s power usage.

This is by no means Miyakojima’s first advancement in green power technologies. In 2010, Okinawa and the State of Hawaii teamed up to begin an initiative to increase their use of clean energy. Up to 30% of Miyakojima’s power is currently provided by either solar or wind powered sources. The Mega Solar Experiment Study Facility, opened in 2010 by the Okinawa Electric Power Co. operates 22,000 solar panels on the southern coast, generating up to 4 megawatts of clean energy. Up north are five wind turbines pumping out up to an additional 4.2 megawatts of power.  Backing up this combined 8.2 MW system is a 4 MW battery that helps to compensate on cloudy or rainy days.

By combining the clean energy provided by the expansive solar panel setup, the gargantuan wind turbines and the soon to be solar powered EV charging stations, Miyakojima is determined to lower emissions by 40 percent by 2030 and 70 percent by 2050. These are just some of the big efforts being put forth in this small island community and they will undoubtedly help provide invaluable information on changing the way we power or lives.

Sources: AutoBlogGreen | Asahi Shimbun

Ford unveils C-MAX Solar Energi concept; “plug-in” hybrid not dependent on electric grid can fully recharge from sun

Ford’s C-MAX Solar Energi concept combines a rooftop solar panel with an off-board solar concentrator—essentially an inexpensive Fresnel lens canopy. The vehicle moves beneath the canopy during the day to maintain maximum concentrated solar irradiance. Click to enlarge.

Ford Motor Company announced the C-MAX Solar Energi Concept, a sun-powered hybrid vehicle that can deliver the efficiency of a plug-in hybrid without depending on the electric grid for recharging. Instead of recharging its battery from an electrical outlet, Ford C-MAX Solar Energi Concept uses a special Fresnel lens-based solar concentrator as a stationary canopy working with solar panels on the vehicle roof to recharge directly from the sun.

The concept vehicle uses a day’s worth of sunlight to deliver the same performance as the conventional C-MAX Energi plug-in hybrid, which draws its power from the electric grid. Ford C-MAX Energi gets a combined EPA-estimated 108 MPGe city and 92 MPGe highway, for a combined 100 MPGe. C-MAX Solar Energi Concept, which will be shown at the 2014 International CES in Las Vegas, is a collaborative project of Ford, SunPower Corp. and Georgia Tech.

Ford C-MAX Solar Energi Concept. Click to enlarge.

SunPower, which has been Ford’s solar technology partner since 2011, is providing high-efficiency solar cells for the roof of Ford C-MAX Solar Energi Concept—about 1.5 m² worth, according to Mike Tinskey, Ford’s Director, Vehicle Electrification and Infrastructure. Because the PV cells alone would generate only about 300W—insufficient to charge the vehicle’s battery—Ford turned to Georgia Institute of Technology for a way to amplify the sunlight in order to make a solar-powered hybrid feasible for daily use.

Researchers developed an off-vehicle solar concentrator that uses a special Fresnel lens to direct sunlight to the solar cells while boosting the impact of the sunlight by a factor of eight. The Fresnel lens is a compact lens originally developed for use in lighthouses. The patent-pending canopy-vehicle system tracks the sun as it moves from east to west, drawing enough power from the sun through the concentrator each day to equal a four-hour battery charge (8 kW).

With a full charge, Ford C-MAX Solar Energi Concept is estimated to have the same total range as a conventional C-MAX Energi of up to 620 miles, including up to 21 electric-only miles. Additionally, the vehicle still has a charge port, and can be charged by connecting to a charging station via cord and plug so that drivers retain the option to power up via the grid, if desired.

After C-MAX Solar Energi Concept is shown at CES, Ford and Georgia Tech will begin testing the vehicle in numerous real-world scenarios. The outcome of those tests will help to determine if the concept is feasible as a production car.

By tapping renewable solar energy with a rooftop solar panel system, C-MAX Solar Energi Concept is not dependent on the traditional electric grid for its battery power. Internal Ford data suggest the sun could power up to 75% of all trips made by an average driver in a solar hybrid vehicle. This could be especially important in places where the electric grid is underdeveloped, unreliable or expensive to use.

The vehicle also reinforces MyEnergi Lifestyle, a concept revealed by Ford and several partners at 2013 CES. MyEnergi Lifestyle uses math, science and computer modeling to help homeowners understand how they can take advantage of energy-efficient home appliances, solar power systems and plug-in hybrid vehicles to significantly reduce monthly expenses while also reducing their overall carbon footprint.

Is Tesla's Solar City Sibling The 'Energy Company Of The 21st Century'?

Some solar-energy companies have had a hard time in recent years, but SolarCity may look a little more promising.

That isn't just because Tesla Motors CEO Elon Musk is the company's chairman, either--though it can't hurt.

Instead, says The Atlantic (on Mashable), it's because the company is starting to use Tesla battery packs for energy storage, as part of its solar array systems--a move increasingly thought to be an essential part of the push towards greener electricity.

Energy storage offers the best way of regulating and buffering the inconsistent flow of energy from renewable sources like wind, solar, and tidal generation, ensuring supply will be sufficient to meet energy needs when demand is highest--and reducing wasted energy when it isn't.

By charging the batteries when power generation--in this case, from photovoltaic solar panels--is at its highest, customers can make use of greener energy in the most efficient way.

As demand creeps up around peak times (which don't necessarily match the peak times of generation), power can be used from the battery pack. SolarCity calls it 'DemandLogic', as it ensures customers avoid paying extra "demand charges" to their local utilities if they use power during the highest-demand hours.

SolarCity's Tesla-based battery packs are ideal for this, with high capacity for maximizing storage. Battery packs can be customized for each business, but the goal is to store roughly 30 percent of the electricity generated by the solar array.

SolarCity CEO Lyndon Rive says DemandLogic could save commercial customers as much as 20 percent in demand charges.

There are other benefits too, such as emergency power should the grid go down in a storm. The backup battery power could be essential for keeping small businesses running if their external power source is knocked out.

It's not all commercial, of course. Some homeowners in California have already started using Tesla packs, installed by SolarCity, to cover their peak energy usage by storing power from solar arrays on their rooftops.

Thanks to strong incentives--subsidies of 60 percent in California, writes The Atlantic--customers pay relatively little for the battery packs.

Tesla itself actually uses grid storage at some of its Supercharger sites, where solar-generated electricity generated actually outstrips demand from Model S customers visiting the DC quick-charging stations.

Existing electric utilities are less keen on the idea, predictably, but with the DemandLogic system they aren't pushed out entirely. Businesses remain connected to the grid, and still draw much of their energy from it.

Rive says SolarCity is a "secondary provider" that can be viewed more as a cost-reducer than a sole energy provider.

SolarCity has big plans, however--aiming to become "the energy company of the 21st Century".

Those don't sound like the words of a company that wants to remain a "secondary provider".

And as the idea of demand-based energy storage and solar arrays catches on, Tesla's battery packs and SolarCity's solar arrays may start to become a familiar (and cost-reducing) sight.

Source: Green Car Reports

Worth It? A $40,000 Portable Solar-Powered EV Charger

Both a perk and a drawback of electric cars is the refueling system; you either have to spend anywhere from $500 to $2,500 getting an EV charger installed in your home, or hope there are enough public charging stations to go around. A new option has emerged from Envision Solar called the EV ARC, a portable, solar-powered EV charging station.

Tipping the scales at some 10,000 pounds, there isn’t an electric car for sale that could tow the “portable” EV ARC charging system anywhere. You’re looking at using either a big diesel or gas-powered V8 to get this charging station around. Most of that weight comes from a 22 kWh battery pack, inverter, and huge solar array that can capture up to 16 kWh of energy per day.

The solar array can rotate on its own, allowing it to capture 25% more energy, says Envision, and currently the EV ARC uses Eaton chargers. There is enough battery capacity to recharge most low-end EVs (like say, the Nissan Leaf) per day, though the 22 kWh capacity would only deliver about a quarter-charge to a Tesla Model S with the 85 kWh battery pack.

Given the EV ARC’s $40,000 price tag, Tesla owners are about the only people that can afford it. Envision execs say they could halve the price tag with a large order for say, a municipal government or corporate order, and the solar charger will eventually pay for itself. But if you ask me, the real potential lies in military applications. The U.S. armed forces are exploring the use of solar energy at both Forward Operating Bases and at major military installations to offset the use of fuel-intensive generators.

Think about it; a small Army outpost that could deploy its own vehicular refueling station anywhere there is access to sunlight. That could save resources, and lives.

But as a commercial-viable product for the average EV consumer? At $40,000, or even $20,000 it’s a long shot.

Source: Plug-In Cars | Envision Solar

Electric Car Prototype Can Run 12 Miles On Solar Power Alone

Due to the very specific processes by which the universe works, it isn't really possible to power a modern electric car via on-board solar panels.

Current photovoltaic cells simply don't produce enough power over a specific area to supply the needs of a power-hungry electric road car. It's why World Solar Challengevehicles are like giant solar tables with a mere bubble for the driver.

A new small electric car prototype called P-MOB is aiming to change that though--and can run for up to 12 miles using nothing more than solar power generated by its on-board panels.

According to TheGreenCarWebsite, it's a collaborative project supported by Siemens Germany, Mazel, IFEVS, Polimodel, Fiat, and the University of Sheffield in the UK. $3.7 million in European Union funding has been injected into the project, with the aim of producing an efficient, safe and compact electric vehicle.

In testing at Fiat's test track in Turin, Italy, it's certainly succeeding on the efficiency front, proving its ability to run for 12 miles entirely using solar power.

It uses two electric motors for all-wheel drive, and touts a top speed of 62 mph. That sounds slow by modern electric car standards, but consider the P-MOB's intended usage and it doesn't look so bad. The idea here is to run very short journeys, often in cities, on as little energy as possible. You'd be lucky to break 10 mph in many European inner-city commutes, nor drive further than ten miles--so 62 mph and a 12-mile electric range makes more sense than it sounds.

Nor would it be limited to just 12 miles. While mono-crystalline silicon solar cells help attain that 12-mile solar range, the model is also fitted with a battery pack. This can be charged from a mains electricity supply just like any other EV.

Potentially, parking the P-MOB outside your house on a sunny day could even reduce your electricity bills, since excess energy generated by the car could be sold back to the grid.

The latter breaks no new ground, but is increasingly seen as an important factor in the future of electric vehicles. If you speak Italian, or simply want to see the car in action, check out the video below:

A 12-mile solar electric car--and one of such compact dimensions--isn't likely to be a reality in the U.S. for a long time, but fret not. You can still get all the benefits of solar power with few of the drawbacks by charging your electric car with home-mounted solar panels...

Source: Green Car Reports

The Solar-Powered Camry Fighting Family Sedan is Here - VIDEO

Imagine a solar-powered electric car with room for 4 (four) adults and their luggage that has a full-charge operating range of more than 300 miles that can re-charge itself in a parking space without the need for a charging station. Would that kind of range be enough range to quell any lingering “range anxiety” worries? Would the ability to carry 4 people in relative comfort without the need for any fossil fuels be a game-changer? We’ll be able to stop imagining and start finding out very soon, thanks to the Stella – an honest-to-goodness 4-passenger, solar-powered electric family sedan with an astonishing 370+ mile range!

The Solar Car Gets Super-sized

Ultra-lightweight materials like carbon and aluminum-honeycomb composites make the stella lighter and stronger than comparably sized machines, and work in concert with some slick aero bits to give the Stella a range of more than 350 miles. In most cases, however, the energy generated by the Stella’s solar panels will be more than the car actually needs to keep its batteries “topped off”, and the Stella is equipped to send its excess energy back into to the power grid – making Stella an “energy-positive” car.

Like, Holy crap!

You can get a better sense of how the solar-powered family sedan, built by a team of students from the Eindhoven University of Technology (TU/e) to tackle Australia’s World Solar Challenge this October, in the videos, below. Enjoy!

This is a translation/summary of the Eindhoven team’s announcement, by Hans Huis, who was on the scene, and who filmed the video of the Stella’s first drive at the bottom of this page.

The Solar Team Eindhoven (STE) of Eindhoven University of Technology (TU/e) presented the world’s first solar-powered family car. “Stella” is the first “energy-positive car” with room for four people, a trunk, intuitive steering and a range of 600 kilometers (373 miles).

Source | Photos: Inhabitat, via Gizmodo.

Sunswift Eve Aims To Be A Mass Market Solar Cars

The ultimate dream of electric vehicle enthusiasts is a solar-powered car that looks, feels, and performs like a conventional gas-powered automobile. The Sunswift Eve is the latest solar car effort from the University of New South Wales, taking years of solar racing experience and loading it into a car designed for the mainstream.

Solar-powered cars have been around for decades, though mostly they have raced back and forth across the Australian Outback in low-speed races with funky-looking rides.The University of New South Wales Sunswift team has participated in these races since 1995, fielding four different solar-powered vehicles and even winning the 2009 World Solar Challenge silicon class. This is a team with plenty of experience drawing performance from the sun.

Taking that racing experience and translating it into a road-going automobile is something major carmakers do all the time. While performance details haven’t been mentioned yet, it basically looks to be a lightweight fiberglass couple-style body covered in solar panels and sporting a very aerodynamic design. It’ll be interesting to see what kind of performance they can draw out of this thing.

Could we see legitimate solar-powered cars in our lifetime? Seems a bit ambitious and too sci-fi, but it has to start somewhere, and maybe the Sunswift Eve points the way forward.

Source: Autoblog Green

Indianapolis-area mall offers free charging at new "plug-in ecosystem"

Indianapolis-area plug-in vehicle owners looking to burn a bunch of dollars at the local mall can at least save a few by plugging into a solar-powered station at the Clay Terrace mall in Carmel, the New York Timesreports.

The Simon Property Group-owned center last week deployed what it calls its "Plug-In Ecosystem," which includes a fast charger that pulls electricity from the grid as well as solar panels that can offset some of that power use. Simon Property, Duke Energy, Toshiba and Itochu Corp. are among the entities that partnered on the project, which lets folks charge for free.

While Indiana is home to the country's best-known fuel-powered car race, the state is also the US home ofThink, the now defunct electric-vehicle maker. Additionally, Indianapolis Mayor Greg Ballard has been on a crusade to eventually convert all of the city's fleet vehicles to plug-ins.

For the curious, Indiana is home to about 60 publicly accessible EV-charging stations, enough for one for every 110,000 registered vehicles – whatever their powertrain. Overall, there are about 5,400 publicly accessible EV-charging stations in the US, or about one for every 50,000 registered vehicles.



Source: Autoblog Green

1967 Toyota 2000GT Solar Electric Vehicle

Q may have packed James Bond's cars with plenty of killer tech (get it?), but the 1967 Toyota 2000GT you see above has got it's own bad boy secrets. Well, if bad boys like zero-emission electric vehicles.

Weighing just 1,460 kilograms (3,218 pounds), this modified 2000GT is all-electric under the skin – and on the skin in some areas. A high-performance solar panel embedded into the hood and a transmission solar panel sits in place of the rear glass. These feed energy into to a 345-volt, 40-kWh lithium-ion battery which, in turn, powers a 120-kW electric motor. Together in the stylish 2000GT, this powertrain is good for a top speed of over 200 kilometers an hour (124 miles per hour).

The car is on display at the Detroit Auto Show this week, but we fist caught wind of it a year ago when a video popped up showing the work of Japan's Crazy Car Project. Since then, some powertrain components have been upgraded (it used to have a 35-kWh battery). You can see the original video of the car in action here.



Source: Autoblog Green

Solar Impulse EV Airplane Aiming For New York-To-California Flight In 2013

Do solar electric vehicles have a future…in the sky? Some innovative aero-engineers seem to think so, and they aim to prove the viability of their concept by flying across the U.S. using nothing but the sun for power. The Switzerland-based Solar Impulse team is aiming for make a sun-powered flight across the continental U.S. sometime in the next year.

Having already completed an inter-continental flight from Spain to Morocco earlier in the year, the Solar Impulse team is now setting their eyes on the birthplace of flight; America. Their lightweight solar airplane has a 200-foot wingspan and is powered by four 10-horsepower electric motors that give it a cruising speed of just 60 to 70 mph.

Doesn’t sound like much. But given that the Solar Impulse plane is powered by electricity pulled from the sun, I think Bertrand Piccard and Andre Borschberg, leaders of this project, deserve a fair amount of credit. Their ambitions to fly all the way around the world may have to wait a bit longer. But a transcontinental flight across the U.S. would drum up a lot of publicity and excitement for the world-hopping HB-SIA solar plane, which will feature an even bigger wingspan and a pressurized cockpit.

But will solar-powered flight ever be more than just a functional experiment?

Source: Wired