Alternate Fuel For Cars - Is Solar Power the Answer

There are currently a number of different fuels being proposed as alternatives to fossil based fuel petrol and diesel. These include - electricity, hybrids, biodiesel, ethanol, methanol, hydrogen, solar power and others.

Solar Power

Solar power is the conservation of energy from the sun into electricity via photovoltaic cells which then power an electric car. Solar powered cars have been around for some time but usually very light, custom built, cost £1m and are totally impractical.

The only main car manufacturer to produce any type of solar powered car was Mazda but that was only a hybrid with the solar panel in the roof helping to charge an electric battery. A French company has produced a solar powered car but it has limited range and with a top speed of less than 60 is only designed for city driving. It is also going to cost over £20,000.

James Dyson announced in 2008 that he planned to build a solar powered car. The vacuum cleaner inventor is hoping to rival the G Wiz which is one of the few electric cars on the market but it only has a range of 40 miles and takes over eight hours to charge.

The 2010 Prius will have solar panels on the roof, but only to help charge the electric hybrid battery.

Advantages

Solar energy is abundant and free, has no pollutants, no need to refuel and is free to run.

Disadvantages

Solar energy not always available in rain soaked Ireland and UK. It also doesn't work very well at night which in the UK and Ireland can last for 16 hours in winter. Possibly practical if technology around photovoltaic cells evolves and you live in California or Spain. If you live in the UK or Ireland then you could be limited to those five days per year that the sun is strong enough to power the car., then hope you home before dusk.

So are solar powered cars the answer to conserving fossil fuels and the environment? At this point the technology needs to improve the conversion rates to make it viable. The photo cells need to be able to convert low levels of solar light otherwise it will never be practical for countries like the UK and Ireland.  

Hugh McDubhgaill is the publisher of http://www.leaseBamIreland.com - the online resource for car leasing and contract hire in Ireland.

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