solar
Worlds Largest Solar Powered Yacht – PlanetSolar
Just unveiled in Germany, this Swiss built catamaran dubbed PlanetSolar is the largest of its kind with over 5,000 sqft of solar paneling covering most of the surfaces. With a top speed of 15 knots (17 miles per hour), this 66-ton boat carries 50 people with its crew of two. It’s 38,000 newer generation photovoltaic cells have an efficiency of at least 22% to help with converting the suns rays to turning the propeller. It’s no Code-X speed boat, but it is probably more efficient and practical.
Sticking to routes near the equator, the crew hopes to maximize the suns exposure to keep their average speed at 8 knots. They will be embarking on a 140 day voyage to cities like San Francisco, New York, Darwin (Australia), Hong Kong, Singapore, Abu Dhabi and Marseille. Maybe they could stop by the Pacific trash gyre on the way over.
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It’s Time to go Green
That sounds corny, right? It gets worse though. I almost said that as a response to somebody at a bus stop asking me if I had the time. It wasn’t without reason though, and it’s not as if absurd environmental phrases are constantly running through my head. The real reason is that I have a fairly decent-sized assortment of watches for somebody on a college student budget. Occasionally, one of them stands out – like today. A friend of mine, after noticing it and passing a quick compliment, noting my interest in green technology, suggested I check out a series of watches from the Citizen brand.
I
was never a believer when it came to solar-powered watches. Self-winding watches perform a relatively similar task albeit with some inaccuracy and cut the battery out of the equation completely. But it’s not that I thought this long-existent technology wasn’t feasible, I simply hadn’t heard much in terms of innovations in the market so I was never reminded about it and didn’t have enough initiative to give it much thought. The technology is relatively simple as these watches use solar panels not unlike those found in other common items like solar-powered calculators, the only difference being that a much greater amount of energy is than stored. I continued to be a skeptic though. I had always felt that these watches wouldn’t be at par with the ones I already owned. An inflated ego from a minor compliment and an all-to-human feeling of having to reciprocate for it forced me to give this concept some more thought and take the advice.
Solar Powered Electric Lawnmower
Designed by Studio Volpi in collaboration with GGP Group, this solar powered electric lawnmower is not only pretty for the eye, it’s also clean for the lung. Using the suns rays to charge while mowing, a removable polymer-ion battery system ensures your lawn care will be completed.
While this is a great concept, there is actually one in existence- and this one is automated! Similar to those robot vacuums, this is an automated solar lawnmower.
Solé Solar Roof Tiles by SRS Energy
Keeping in the solar powered theme of my last post, I wanted to focus a bit less on tongue-in-cheek novelty and hone in on some serious design.
Many architects, homeowners and commercial building owners out there aren’t very fond of the blocky look of solar panels, especially if their roof is highly visible or conforming to a specific style. For those who want renewable energy and beautiful design, SRS Energy has answered their wishes with their line of Solé solar roof tiles.
These solar tiles mimic the Spanish or Mission-style homes of California and Italian villas and have a curved surface and SRS Energy has partnered with US Tile to produce an easy to install standard size roof tile (which can be integrated with traditional clay tiles if desired). Instead of being the traditional orange/red colored clay tile, these solar tiles are made up of triple-junction amorphous solar cells produced by Uni-Solar. They are not quite as efficient as traditional crystalline silicon panels because of their curved shape semiconductor design, however, this is made up by the efficiency of the system.
Solarmania – 7 Interesting Personal Solar Paneled Objects
The advent of the the personal solar panel probably started with those solar powered calculators way back when. I remember I used to rip those little sun suckers out of as many calculators as I could get a hold of and try and make something cool… it never worked out.
But nowadays, solar powered accessories are all the rage. You find them on public trashcans, parking meters, boats, even stadiums. Here are just a sampling of some of the things we have slapped solar panels on and called them better.
Solar Sunglasses
Why hasn’t this been thought of sooner? It just makes so much sense, sunglasses = sun = solar energy, right? Something tells me you would have to be ON the sun (or at least looking directly at the sun) to even squeeze a watt out of those sexy little guys. I’d still rock them just for the green fashion prestige.
[via yanko design]
Solar Tent
Now that is just one cool looking tent. Makes me think of a big orange solar paneled armadillo. Not very practical for hiking, but with the remote finder that actually lights up the tent and other ‘gadgety’ accessories, it would make for a great concert tent.
[via engaget]
New Solar Panel Powered Stadium in Taiwan
A beautiful integration of renewable energy and modern green design, the recently finished solar stadium in Taiwan will welcome the 2009 World Games to 3,300 lights and two jumbo screens all on 100% solar energy. Designed by Toyo Ito, the 14,155 sq meter roof consists of 8,844 solar panels generating 1.14m KWh (that is 1.14 gigawatt hours of electricity) a year.
When not powering the stadium lights, the power will be funneled into the local power grid and is expected to meet almost 80% of the neighboring area’s energy requirements. It is estimated that this stadium will prevent 660 tons of carbon dioxide (CO2) a year from being released into the atmosphere when compared to a traditional powered stadium of this size.
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Verdier BioDiesel Hybrid Solar Eco-Camper
If you are thinking this is just an updated VW bus from way back (before i was born) then you are in for a big surprise. We aren’t talking dirty old bus camping, his takes mobile camping to a whole new level- a stylish and green level. Verdier takes the Westfalia VW van light years into the future- with so much going on, where do i start? First lets start with style. This looks like one of those car show prototype vehicles, a clean futuristic design with functionality you would expect from a 2001 Space Odyssey ship computer. The kind of vehicle that everybody drools over, but never quite makes it to production. An interior that is minimal, but not lacking, and carries the comforts and coziness of home. The clean lines and eye catching details that keeps turning heads for years to come. This sharp looking van comes in 5 different trims, from a fun yet classy retro woody, to a very clean, very chic deep black metallic.
All that AND its green you say? Yep, and we aren’t talking Hybrid Cadillac Escalade ‘green’ either. This is the real deal with a 4 speed automatic turbo BioDiesel Hybrid drive train, so when you aren’t on electric, you can be running on recycled cooking oil (not to mention the inherent superior mpg of a diesel engine). Combine that with integrated Sun Tracker solar panels on the roof (they use GPS and an onboard computer to calculate the optimum charging position of the panels), and you can charge up your batteries without fossil fuels and may not even need that diesel engine at all! It really is a self sustaining camping system.
The features and gadgets on this masterpiece will keep even the most ‘ADD’ of us occupied and happy. The ride height is adjusted pneumatically 3 to different positions for maximum comfort and just plain looks cool in camping mode. Two generous size gazebos pop out of each side, with matching folding furniture housed in a special compartment in the rear of the van (out of the way, so as not to clutter your living space). A swivel table with a cooking range and table are integrated right into the side of the van to give you an ideal outdoor cooking area and a fridge and freezer complete your kitchen. A projection home theater with 5.1 surround sound can be viewed inside, or reflected out a side window to create an impromptus drive-in theater for the whole campground to enjoy.
Now to the scary part we are all waiting for, the cost. For the full featured camping version with the Sun Tracker system, you are looking at $129,000. They also offer a ground power version which retains the solar cells and the hybrid drive train and seats 6 for a more affordable $69,000 if you don’t need all the camping features. With all the wealthy post internet boom hippies out there, i suspect you may see one of these coming soon to your local camp ground.
via [eco-chick]
