MAREN:
of the world's estimated 1.4 billion vehicles
run on fossil fuels,
releasing a whole bunch of pollutants.
Can you believe that a typical car
emits roughly 4.6 metric tons of CO2 every year?
Fortunately, momentum to take gas vehicles off the road
is building around the world
with many countries planning to phase out
fossil fuel powered vehicles in the coming years.
And at the forefront of this shift
towards alternatively powered vehicles
are the teams competing in the World Solar Challenge.
By now, we know all about the sun and the technology
like the batteries, solar cells and aerodynamic structures
that are being used to harness the sun's power.
We even understand the mechanics
of how to power a solar car.
And don't worry, if you're fuzzy on the details here,
then you can go watch our previous videos
in this Learning Playlist
where we talk about all of that stuff.
So, now, let's explore what's it gonna take
to power all of our cars using the sun.
It all comes down to pretty much one thing.
The amount of solar power
that a car is able to generate
compared to the amount of power it uses up.
Electric cars, gas powered cars,
self-driving cars, you name it,
have pretty big power demands.
So while incorporating solar technology
into lightweight vehicles
like e-bikes and drones is relatively easy,
the same can't be said for larger vehicles like cars
which can easily weigh at least 2,000 kilograms
and need to be able to maintain
constant power at high speeds.
Plus, most commercial cars today are also outfitted
with power draining AC units,
radio systems and complex computer circuits.
This poses a bit of a problem for photovoltaic systems,
which as we've learned in previous episodes,
are by their very nature only as powerful
as the amount of photons they're able to absorb.
The more photons a solar cell absorbs into its material,
the more electricity can be produced.
And basically, cars require a lot of energy to work.
And if we want to power them with solar energy,
there's not a whole lot of surface area to work with.
And then there's the fact that the solar cells we use
out in the real world today
don't often reach their already limited efficiency.
Right now, the best research-grade solar cells
are still at, like, 30%.
And that's in a lab environment,
like, a teeny tiny solar cell.
MAREN:
in improving the conversion rate of solar cells.
And work is underway to push their potential even further,
whether that's through finding new materials configurations,
developing more sophisticated anti-reflective coatings
to let the cells capture more light,
or even figuring out how to manipulate light waves
so that they're easier for the cells to absorb.
But until solar cells reach their maximum efficiency
and then some,
designing solar vehicles to be as aerodynamic
lightweight and efficient as possible
will remain the primary focus.
So, while powering a car on sunlight alone
does remain a challenge,
it's certainly not impossible,
because solar cars are a reality right now.
I've been given a pretty unique opportunity
to ride in a solar car
while it is going around the figure eight track.
This is the Minnesota team. They've drafted me.
And who's spot am I taking?
MAN: Uh, you're taking Chris' spot around here.
-DEREK: Chris? -MAN: Yeah.
-[CHUCKLES] -That's okay.
Is there something I should know?
-You'll figure it out. -[ALL LAUGHING]
DEREK:
so kinda like a concept solar coop.
Man, this is intense. [CHUCKLES]
WOMAN: All right, solar car to Ricky. Am I clear to start?
DEREK:
Clearly, it's not quite ready for production.
But the ride is surprisingly smooth,
though very loud.
-Now I'm feeling the speed. -WOMAN: Yep.
And before you know it...
There we go. That was the end of it.
-That's it? -That was the official rounds.
-Wow! -I know.
That was easy. [CHUCKLES]
That was very nicely done.
Hurray!
While I wasn't able to fly over to Australia
to ride around in a solar cruiser, unfortunately,
I did get the chance to speak
with a few Stanford Solar team members
about whether they see solar cars
taking off beyond the race track.
Yeah, I think that there's a chance
that solar technology could make its way
into mainstream automobiles.
There's always the chance that, you know,
some company comes out with a great innovation
that really pushes the industry forward.
There are definitely limitations
especially with the efficiency of solar powered cells
and how much energy it takes to actually run a car.
But if you make your car aerodynamic,
and you make your car light,
and you make your array really good,
then you're gonna be hard to beat.
If there's one thing that I hope for,
with solar cars specifically,
I really hope that it makes more people excited
about working on these new sources
for renewable and sustainable energy.
MAREN:
at the Stanford Solar Car team's garage,
or racing across the Outback at the World Solar Challenge.
We've actually got a little known
but rapidly growing solar vehicle commercial market.
Startups like Sono Motors and Lightyear
are going all-in on solar.
ARJO:
about making commercial solar cars
is showing to the world
that we can be much more efficient
with the energy that we have available
without having to compromise
on the convenience you get every day.
You improve the aerodynamics a bit,
you improve the weight a bit,
you increase the solar panel array a bit,
you increase the efficiency of the solar panel a bit,
and then combining all of that,
you basically match energy consumption and energy yield.
We're not 100% there yet, but we're getting pretty close.
The closer you get,
the more practical the car becomes to use every day.
MAREN:
are also developing ways
to incorporate solar panels into their cars.
Albeit mainly as a way
to lend cars a few extra miles of range
or power some of the auxiliary system.
It's a little less ambitious, sure,
but it's certainly a step in the right direction.
And research teams all over the world
are working tirelessly
to make the next revolutionary breakthrough
in solar panel technology,
which could be exactly what our cars need to level up.
There's just too much at stake here
to let that big beautiful star above our heads go to waste.
So, there you have it, folks.
That's a wrap for our
I hope you learned a lot
and that you enjoyed the ride as much as I did.
Now, go outside and get some sun.