In our shift to electric and hybrid cars, the solar power potential remains largely unexplored. The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) now demonstrated its solar hybrid electric car. “Vehicles using fossil fuels persistently bring serious problems to environment and life. In this perspective, Solar and Electrical energy based hybrid vehicles provide the most effective and viable long-term solution by using renewable energy sources for mobility,” said the organisation.
The issues that had to be sorted out before the car could be viable for transport were many. Such as, the right solar panel to suit the rooftop of car, a supercapacitor to meet the high peak current of beyond 100 A level, an integral gear box to augment the performance of the Brushless DC (BLDC) motor and of course control electronics for the battery and solar panel interface and drive electronics for running the motor in a smooth way. The biggest one of course was the conversion of the internal combustion engine (ICE) based vehicle, which was a Maruti Suzuki Omni, to fit in with the electric motor.
Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre (VSSC), ISRO, Thiruvananthapuram, demonstrated the running of a solar hybrid electric car using in-house expertise and resources within ISRO.
A solar panel fitted on rooftop of the car charges the battery by absorbing the sunlight. Now, this electrical energy needed to be converted to mechanical energy to drive the wheels and this was achieved by integrating an efficient power conversion module between energy system and electric motor. The usage of a Brushless type motor helped in improving the torque and reducing energy input while also helping in weight savings.
To drive the car, energy was supplied to the vehicle by energy density Lithium ion batteries connected across high power density supercapacitors. The battery delivered the sustained energy requirement while the super-capacitor supported the peak power demand during high torque conditions. This arrangement of power sharing helped in enhancing the life of power-restricted batteries.
The safety measures were taken into due consideration while combining various active subsystems of different behaviour for a focused objective.
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Author: Technology Vista
