February 2009 Archives
The Westfalia inspired Verdier hybrid diesel RV seems to have dropped off the map. Having enjoyed numerous media spots on several high profile websites and a flood of "I want one" comments wherever pictures are posted, now its official website now seems to be down and the buzz has cooled off. With a price range of $40K to $70K depending on the solar options and other accessories you choose, the produce certainly seems affordable. Especially compared to the Tesla Roadster or other cutting edge clean tech cars priced well over $100K.
The addition of solar panels to the roof of an RV is not a new concept. for years the availability of add on panels has sparked interest in trehuggers everywhere looking to enjoy the outdoors without spoiling them. There are even roomers that future models of the popular Toyota Prius will have built in solar panels to run the air conditioning system and already available the EarthRoamer off road RV XV-JP has an 80 Watt panel built in stock to power the refridgeration system for storing food. You can even get aftermarket solar panels for existing cars, although they are fairly weak.
We would hate to lose such an inspiring vehicle and certainly hope that Verdier is just staging some sort of press release or revamping their site. If you know anything about this amazing concept car or offer services to convert old RV's to electric or solar like our friends over at Salida Conversions please share below. The best resource we have found outlining the Verdier solar RV project can be found at here and includes a timeline and background on the concept spanning through 2006 with links to the founder's diary which is now also offline.
Just a heads up for all of you solar deal seekers out there. The site Woot at http://www.woot.com/ has a one day special today selling an 18 watt solar panel that can be connected to a variety of devices. The solar panel is made by Sunsei and includes a controller as well as several different styles of charging connectors, cigarette lighter adapter and what look like small jumper cables "aligator clips" for charging your car battery. See the picture below for more details:
While this looks to be a decent deal we have seen similar products (at a similar price range) available from Kragen auto parts out here in Northern California and some Radio Shack stores. If you miss out on the sale visit Google here for similar products.
In the world of roof mounted solar products there are two primary contenders, solar thermal and photovoltaic. Solar thermal is essentially the use of heat energy produced by the sun hitting your roof to heat water or oil being passed over dark surfaces. Photovoltaic is the conversion of light wave photons into electricity through the process of bombarding electrons. PV is more expensive and less efficient than solar thermal but has many more applications, for instance you could heat water using the electricity produced by solar thermal panels on your roof. By contrast, converting hot water or oil into anything other than hot water and heat is a bit more challenging. There are however several large installations of solar thermal electricity plants that use steam power and stirling motors to create electricity. In any application of sun energy, electricity is the clear winner in terms of "sun currency" but the limitations of silicon used to produce PV wafers and the fancy technology built into solar panels makes them cost prohibitive.
One unsung alternative to these methods is to use water or other easily phase shifted liquid to mimmic the natural water cycle at work in the Earth's ecosystems today. For decades hydro electricity plants have been providing a clean natural source of energy for people all over the world. While damming rivers may destroy or alter natural river habitats, it does offer one alternative to nuclear or coal plants which create much more pollution. Every day water from the world's oceans naturally evaporates as the sun shines down and heats the surface. Water vapor then rises up and forms clouds which drift over land and mountains. The water that lands above sea level has stored kenetic energy which can be captured by dams and then used to power large motors which create electricity. Basically, the water aided by gravity flows downward back towards the oceans and if caught in a dam is used to push padels connected to wire and magnets that create electromagnetic induction and thus electricity as they turn - this is the same energy you feel when you put two repelling magnets next to each other.
Could this same natural process be used on a smaller scale to create electricity for home owners? Consider the following graphic and theory: What if a specially designed large plastic semi-clear tank was placed onto the roof of a house. The bottom of the tank would be painted black because that color obsorbs the most heat and would help evaporate the water while the very top edge of the tank (closest to the apex of the roof) would be coated with silver paint to reflect heat and keep it cooler. The tank would be partially filled with water and would be laid on its side as shown in the graphic below. As the water at the bottom of the tank (near the gutter of the roof) was heated by the sunlight it would evaporate and rise to the top of the tank just like in a steamroom. Once it reached the top, the air pressure would build and the walls would be cooler (due to the silver paint) and the water would condense against the tank walls and eventually drop down into a trough. Next, instead of sliding back down the plastic tank, the water would be guided down the small trough to the top corner of the roof where it would be collected and dripped down over a hyper efficient waterwheel mounted to the exterior side of the house. Over time as more and more water evaporated upwards, condensed, and dripped down the gutter the wheel would turn like a water wheel and power a motor to produce electricity just like a hydro electric dam.
In this way the power of solar thermal energy could more directly be converted into electricity. This design would fit most houses with slanted roofs mimmicking the mountains found in nature and would only require the use of common materials such as plastic, paint, tubes, and a small motor which would be much more affordable than PV and silicon used in photovoltaic panels. While this technique has not been tested, it would certainly work to some extent because it mirrors the natural systems that we see around us everyday and rely on toe power hydro electric plants. Furthermore, it could be tuned on a larger scale to drive massive turbines or enhanced with the use of mirrors. Please add your thoughts and constructive feedback to this solar thermal water wheel concept below and help drive the discovery of renewable energy sources.
Adding to the allure of a "living room on wheels" that any RV or VW bus might similarly offer are the extreme off roading capabilitis built into every EarthRoamer. Both models are completely powered by diesel which serves to run the stove (in the XV-LT version), and heat the water you'll be using. Simplicity is something you want when you're way out in the middle of nowhere on an adventure, and the XV-JP delivers with a queen sized bed in a fold out tent pop top. This model has even been tested on the legendary Rubicon Trail and survived as the first camper ever to make it through. The XV-JP is also one step closer to off the grid nomadic living with the addition of an 80 watt solar panel on the front of it's overhead living space. These panels only provide enough electricity to keep the fridge cold, but it's a step in the right direction, and if biofuels were being used you could leapfrog your way across the entire nation going from McDonald's to Wendy's to Burger King without spending a dime on diesel. Actually, we contacted the company about the use of biofuels and they said "The vehicle can use biodiesel which is available commercially at fuel pumps throughout the country... but that it is NOT designed to run on raw veggie oil" more info and a map of US fueling stations can be found here.
In June 2007 Car and Driver did an article entitled "10 Vehicles for the Apocalypse - If the end is nigh, what are you going to drive?" and we here at Solar Power Authority feel they may have missed one vehicle... the EarthRoamer of course. However, in this case we might have to forgive them because the Jeep Wrangler Unlimited Rubicon was included (in its stock form) and with the additions outlined here we think it might have ranked even higher than 5th place on their list. More apocalypse style vehicles can be found at Wired Magazine online here.These courses are designed to provide managers, sales, and marketing people as well as other professionals with a solid foundation in the principals and core knowledge of Nanotech and Solar industries giving them enough information and credibility to move into these fields. The California Institute of Nanotechnology works closely with employers in the area and in turn can help place students in new positions and paid internships.
The CNCP course costs roughly $3500 and is available only to working professionals with at least three years of experience, a college degree, and who can pass a GMAT/GRE style one hour test covering math and critical reasoning skills. I personally sat for the test just a few days ago, and while I don't yet know if I passed, I can say that I enjoyed the experience and would highly recommend anyone in the area or anyone with an interest in Nanotech or Solar to check it out. For more information contact the California Institute of Nanotechnology at (866) 577-2456 or visit http://www.cinano.com.
Current course offerings listed below with more information here:
- Certified Nanotech CleanTech Professional (CNCP)
- Micro-Nano-Fabrication for Photovoltaics Workshop (available free to CNCP participants)
- Apprenticeship in Nanotech & Clean Tech - Paid on the Job Training
- Train the Trainer Certificate in Nanotechnology
- Business Re-Engineering Certificate in Nanotechnology
Solar Resources
Rebate Programs