The document summarizes the history and components of solar cars. It discusses how the first solar car was created in 1955 and outlines the key parts of solar cars including the electrical system, drive train, solar array, materials used, and advantages. The electrical system uses batteries and power electronics to store and maximize energy from the solar panels. The drive train includes an electric motor and transmission to power the wheels. Solar arrays consist of solar cells that convert sunlight to electricity. Materials like carbon fiber and honeycomb structures are used due to their strength and lightweight properties. Advantages are that solar energy is renewable and doesn't cause pollution.

1. SOLAR CARSSOLAR CARS
SeminarSeminar
Represented by:
Name : Arpit Verma
Roll no. : 50 (1116/YCET/13)
Branch : Mechanical

2. CONTENTS
History
What is solar energy??
Solar car
Electrical system
Drive train
Solar array
Limitation
Material used
Advantages

3. HISTORY
The first solar car invented was a tiny 15-inch vehicle created by
William G. Cobb of General Motors & is called the Sun mobile.
Cobb showcased the first solar car at the Chicago on august
31,1955.
The solar car was made up of 12 selenium photovoltaic cells & a
small pulley electric motor turning a pulley which in turn rotated
in the rear shaft wheel.

4. What is solar energy ??
Solar energy is radiant energy that is produced by sun.
The sun radiates more energy in one second then people have
used since the beginning of time.
The sun is the big ball of gasses-mostly hydrogen & helium
atoms. During nuclear fusion, the sun’s extremely high pressure
& temperature causes hydrogen atoms to come apart & their
nuclei to fuse to become one helium atom. The solar energy
travels to the earth at a speed of 186,000 miles per second.

5. SOLAR CAR
A solar car is a solar vehicle used for land transport .
Solar car combine the technology used in aerospace, bicycle,
alternative energy & automotive industries.
Solar cars can depend upon PV cells to convert sunlight into electricity.
When the sunlight strike PV cells, they excite electrons & allow them
to flow, creating an electric current. PV cells are made of semi-
conductor materials such as silicon, gallium & nitrogen. Its efficiency
rate is 15-20%.

6. Borealis III Racing with the Sun
- Photo by Colin Burnett

7. ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
 Made up of batteries and power electronics.
Batteries
• Lead-Acid
• Nickel-Metal Hydride (NiMH)
• Nickel-Cadmium (NiCad)
• Lithium Ion
• Tesseract uses 512 li-ion batteries

8. Energy Flow Diagram of a Solar Car

9.  Peak Power Trackers
• maximize the power
• protect the batteries from being damaged by overcharging
• efficiencies above 95%
Motor Controllers
• decides how much current actually reaches the motor
• up to 90% efficient

10. DRIVE TRAIN
 Consist of the electric motor and the means to by which the motor's
power is transmitted the wheel
 power generated is less than 5 hp
 only one wheel in the rear of the car is driven by the electric motor
motor types
• brushed DC
• dual winding DC brushless
• induction

11. Dual-winding DC brushless
• used as an electronic transmission
 Types of transmissions
• variable ratio belt drive
• hub motor

12. SOLAR ARRAY
 made from silicon, by joining an n-
type and a p-type semiconductor
 grouped into space grade and
terrestrial grade categories
 Encapsulation
 Array
 SUNRUNNER'S array consisted of
14,057 razor-blade sized, 16%
efficient space grade cells.

13. Figure of Solar array

14. LIMITATIONS
• Only 1000 W/m2 of energy reaches the earth’s surface in an hour of
“peak sun”
• average solar array configuration spans 8m²
• total amount of energy hitting the solar car during peak sun is
8KWh/m²
• average solar cells are only able to convert 12% to 18% to electricity
• the total amount of converted energy available to a car consists of 700-
1500 Watts
• three primary areas of energy loss consist of
• aerodynamic drag, braking, and rolling resistance

15. MATERIALS USED
 composite material
 combination of a filler material sandwiched between layers of a
structural material
 structural materials
• Carbon fibre, Kevlar and fibre glass
 filler materials
• Honeycomb and foam
 bonded together using epoxy resins

16. ADVANTAGES
Solar energy is renewable.
Solar energy is environment friendly.
It can be installed anywhere.
It doesn't produces harmful gasses.
It doesn’t damage to the earth or its atmosphere.
It doesn’t cause any pollution.
It reduces dependence on fossil fuel.

17. DIADVANTAGES
It takes a lot of space.
It only works when the sun is shining.
It doesn’t produce much electricity for one single panel.
Its installation cost is high.
Solar cells are not efficient yet.
Current devices which are utilized are expensive.
The efficiency of the system also relies on the location of the sun.

18. THANK YOU