Australian scientists to power Tesla on 15,000-km trip with printed solar panels

hridge2020

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Tesla Cybertruck Australian scientists to power Tesla on 15,000-km trip with printed solar panels Australian scientists to power Tesla on 15,000-km trip with printed solar panels 2022-04-20 08


A group of Australian scientists is testing printed solar panels that will power a Tesla on a 15,000-kilometer road trip. Charge Around Australia (CAA), an Australian company, will power a Tesla electric car with 18 printed plastic solar panels, each 18 meters long. The panels will be rolled out alongside the vehicle to soak up sunlight and charge it.
This trial run is announced several days before Earth Day. It will begin in September, and scientists hope that people will consider taking steps to help prevent climate change.
"The team will be testing not only the endurance of the panels but their true potential for other applications," said Paul Dastoor, the inventor of printed solar panels. "This is actually an ideal testbed to give us nformation about how we would go about using and powering technology in other remote locations, for example, in space," he added.
This is a significant step forward in the fight against pollution, and it will be interesting to see whether or not different car manufacturers adopt this technology.
What are printed solar panels?
The lightweight printed solar panels are laminated in PET plastic and cost around $10 per square metre. These panels are created using a commercial printer that was originally used to print wine labels. The test run will last 84 days, and the team plans to visit 70 schools to give students a taste of future technology.

Finally, Dastoor said, “showing how our innovative technology is now combining with his developments to develop new solutions for the planet”.


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I don't know the technical aspect or whether it will be traveling on the all sunny side of Australia but this makes total sense -- yup, plastic solar panels for easy removal and patch of damaged and failed panels.
 

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Hmm so each of those printed (not 3D printed btw) 18m long panels makes around 1.2kWh per day to achieve that 180km range per day? Or is the equivalent of a 5kW array on a sunny day.

Sorry, takes up to much space for that, and work out to be more expensive than off the shelf PV panels, so why do it?
 

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Hmm so each of those printed (not 3D printed btw) 18m long panels makes around 1.2kWh per day to achieve that 180km range per day? Or is the equivalent of a 5kW array on a sunny day.

Sorry, takes up to much space for that, and work out to be more expensive than off the shelf PV panels, so why do it?

The biggest difference is their printed panels are very lightweight.
5KW of standard panels (10 panels of 500W) weighs about 280 Kg and would not fit in a Model 3.


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Australian scientists drive a Tesla across the country powered by printed solar panels Scientists in Australia are testing printed solar panels they will use to power a Tesla on a 9,400-mile journey beginning in September, which they hope will get the public thinking about steps to help avert climate change.
Apr 20, 2022
GBNews

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A futuristic demonstration of emerging renewable energy material – printed solar cells, is being trialled in a public setting for the first time as it nears commercial readiness. The University of Newcastle renewable energy tech - which is ultra light-weight, ultra flexible, recyclable and cheap to manufacture, will power interactive public lighting in Sydney. The material, similar in thickness and appearance to a chip packet, is manufactured using conventional printers.
2020 July
https://www.newcastle.edu.au/newsroom/featured/public-debut-for-printed-solar

-------------------------------
 


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What printer settings do I use to print solar panels? Can I use 8.5"x11" or do I need a printer capable of 11"x17" ? Maybe have to use Legal paper to pass code?
18 ea 18x1 meter panels is quite a roll out operation. This is great. I just wish I knew the watt density of the panels.
 

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Australian scientists to power Tesla on 15,000-km trip with printed solar panels 2022-04-20 08...jpg


A group of Australian scientists is testing printed solar panels that will power a Tesla on a 15,000-kilometer road trip. Charge Around Australia (CAA), an Australian company, will power a Tesla electric car with 18 printed plastic solar panels, each 18 meters long. The panels will be rolled out alongside the vehicle to soak up sunlight and charge it.
This trial run is announced several days before Earth Day. It will begin in September, and scientists hope that people will consider taking steps to help prevent climate change.
"The team will be testing not only the endurance of the panels but their true potential for other applications," said Paul Dastoor, the inventor of printed solar panels. "This is actually an ideal testbed to give us nformation about how we would go about using and powering technology in other remote locations, for example, in space," he added.
This is a significant step forward in the fight against pollution, and it will be interesting to see whether or not different car manufacturers adopt this technology.
What are printed solar panels?
The lightweight printed solar panels are laminated in PET plastic and cost around $10 per square metre. These panels are created using a commercial printer that was originally used to print wine labels. The test run will last 84 days, and the team plans to visit 70 schools to give students a taste of future technology.

Finally, Dastoor said, “showing how our innovative technology is now combining with his developments to develop new solutions for the planet”.


Source
will Cybertruck include solar charge port?
 

FutureBoy

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So with the panels rolled out on the ground, will the local reptile population decide that the solar platform is an excellent place to come warm up? Hopefully blocking a portion of the roll doesn’t prevent the rest of the roll from pushing charge out to the vehicle.

On the other hand, if you are stranded and needing some protein, perhaps a large sunning platform will attract reptiles you could catch and consume.

On a side note, where in the wilderness do they expect to find a bunch of flat space without random plants and bushes sticking up (not to mention rocks) preventing the sheets to lay out flat? 18 sq meters is quite a lot of space.
 


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Great for camping. If you get to your site , roll out your cells or hang them in the trees and charge up while you go for a hike.
 

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Hmm so each of those printed (not 3D printed btw) 18m long panels makes around 1.2kWh per day to achieve that 180km range per day? Or is the equivalent of a 5kW array on a sunny day.

Sorry, takes up to much space for that, and work out to be more expensive than off the shelf PV panels, so why do it?
I don't think that 18 square meters of solar makes only 1.2KWH per day. Of course, if it did then I would not be excited about it. I am already excited about the CT and the Aptera. At my age I can only get excited about so much! If this stuff is half as good as the stuff on the Aptera it will produce several hundred miles of range in a sunny day. Free travel!
 

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too bad Tesla doesnt let u charge while driving.

Also I would REALLY like to know more about this printed panel
I believe the Aptera will allow for charging while driving......I have reservation in case the CT doesn't show up before the Aptera is production released.......46k list for CT and 8.5k for Aptera......but I live in Irvine, Ca, 85 miles from Aptera, which means I will be closer on the list because they will distribute to locals first
 

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18 ea 18x1 meter panels is quite a roll out operation. This is great. I just wish I knew the watt density of the panels.
I don't think that 18 square meters of solar makes only 1.2KWH per day. Of course, if it did then I would not be excited about it. I am already excited about the CT and the Aptera. At my age I can only get excited about so much! If this stuff is half as good as the stuff on the Aptera it will produce several hundred miles of range in a sunny day. Free travel!
Each of the 18m long solar panel rolls will make around 277W (5000÷18).

To get these rough numbers I just calculated the expected consumption of the M3 to get that range, divided by the days they are travelling to drive it. It could be +/- 50-100% depending on solar insolation and whatever charge overheads they allow and how they drive. But in general this is a pretty low value for such a huge area and not even a tenth of a normal panel at around 15W per sqm. Hence the comparable price.

I'd rather go with fold up or roll up high efficiency monocrystalline panels, instead of covering 18x18m of ground that would be around 5x5m and would also fit in the boot. This is borderline demonstrating to people that solar is not good at charging a EV.
 

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What printer settings do I use to print solar panels? Can I use 8.5"x11" or do I need a printer capable of 11"x17" ? Maybe have to use Legal paper to pass code?
Check your local Staples for the ink cartridges labeled "Silicon", and be sure to get the "High Yield" version.
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