Solar breakthrough

[Tim R.]

It looks like solar panels will be getting a lot more efficient. Some guys at RPI invented a coating for solar panels that dramatically reduce the 1/3 of light that gets reflected away from the panels. This coating also allows the panel to absorb a much higher amount of light from indirect light. This technology can be applied to existing panels so manufacturers will not need to modify their process very much. See the link below for the full article. Very exciting.

http://news.rpi.edu/update.do?artcenterkey=2507

 

[Ross]

With government funding I wonder who owns the process. It sounds like a real breakthrough for fixed position panels. We will all benefit from this one. With LED lighting and this improvement in solar electricity we may soon need only a small battery for starting the engine and one to run everything else.

 

[Bob S]

And they're not far away from making Nicad batteries banks economical. That means we can all convert to electric motors- no more diesel, oil changes, exhaust, heat exchangers:dance: and with unlimited solar power!

I just hope I'm around to see it.

 

[Stu Jackson]

The largest draw on almost everyone's energy budget

if you have one, is the fridge. So, a good sized house bank will still be required if you have a fridge. The second largest draw seems to be anchor lights, so LEDs there will really help.

If they can reduce the amp draw of these refrigerator beasts, then we've truly gotten somewhere.

Please, don't throw ice cubes at me!

 

[Franklin]

The second largest draw seems to be anchor lights

Unless you got one of those below deck autopilots or radar

 

[Stu Jackson]

Very good point, Franklin. An energy budget is a very good thing to prepare for your boat if you haven't already. And what we've found, ever since we installed our Link 2000, is that the acceptance rate of the battery bank controls the amount of amps you can push into a battery, even if you have a large high output alternator and a large shorepower charger. What we get put back is about half as much (or, to say it another way, it takes twice as long to put back in) as I'd originally budgeted.

 

[Anchor Down]

"Breakthrough" is Justified

The most interesting 'graph:

Lin’s discovery could antiquate these automated solar arrays, as his antireflective coating absorbs sunlight evenly and equally from all angles. This means that a stationary solar panel treated with the coating would absorb 96.21 percent of sunlight no matter the position of the sun in the sky. So along with significantly better absorption of sunlight, Lin’s discovery could also enable a new generation of stationary, more cost-efficient solar arrays.

96% absorption, from dawn to dusk, with no re-positioning. Can't wait 'til that hits the market.

A corresponding "breakthrough" in battery technology will change the way we generate, store and use electrical energy onboard.

 

[Napa Ed]

Re: The largest draw on almost everyone's energy budget

I don't know how much food you really need to keep cold. A Norcold 40 1.5cuft draws 2.5A @12V. AC/DC to boot. A local chandlery keeps one on the floor of their shop with a bucket of frozen otter pops. Cold, quiet, low draw, portable.

 

[Stu Jackson]

Do the math

2.5 A times 24 hours = 60 AH, which is a pretty hefty draw. And even if it's half that for cycling, 30 ah alone requires a good size battery bank. Our A/B uses 60 ah / day and we have a nice comfortable 360 ah house bank.

 

[sailingdog]

I have an Engel, which is basically the same thing as a Norcold IIRC, and it doesn't cycle for more than 10-15 minutes out of the hour, unless you have it on freezer mode. The settings on the Engel go from 0-5, with anything above 1.5 being basically freezer modes.

2.5 A times 24 hours = 60 AH, which is a pretty hefty draw. And even if it's half that for cycling, 30 ah alone requires a good size battery bank. Our A/B uses 60 ah / day and we have a nice comfortable 360 ah house bank.

 

[Napa Ed]

nice and comfortable

2.5 A times 24 hours = 60 AH, which is a pretty hefty draw. And even if it's half that for cycling, 30 ah alone requires a good size battery bank. Our A/B uses 60 ah / day and we have a nice comfortable 360 ah house bank.

Power consumption is listed between 0.7 and 2.3 amps at 12vdc. So basically if you don't put the unit in freeze mode in Death Valley you're talking an all around anchor light. Easily offset with a 50 watt solar. Search around. People are satisfied with the new engel- norcold units. complete units for less than $675.

Now if you're the type to keep a barcalounger in the captains quarters, they may not be right for you.