
Originally Posted by
EX12693
The thing about energy is that its practicality all boils down to energy density and power output
10 kW is about 13.5 hp. From an entire roof of solar panels. That's not even enough to run the air compressor in my garage. The same energy output over one hour is stored in 1/4 gallon of diesel. Compared to other energy sources, even intermediate ones, the energy density of solar power just isn't there.
At the sun's zenith, sunlight will produce about 1kw per square meter. My Honda Civic will make 110 hp, which is about 82kW. Assuming we can build 100% efficient solar panels (a physical impossibility), that means it would take 82 square meters of solar panels just to generate the same amount of power. At 882 square feet, even at 100% efficiency, that's just not practical for continuous power generation. Not to mention the best solar panels now are only 25% efficient, needing 4x more area.
With the addition of batteries, the practicality goes up a bit, but only for intermittent power usage. The largest battery Tesla has is 85kW/h. So parked inside a 200 square foot single car garage (18.5 sq m), using modern solar panels, it would still take 9 hours of full sunlight to recharge half the battery. This limits driving to less than 150 miles and only every other day. And as the energy density of batteries increases, using solar to charge them will become even less practical.
Not bagging on alternatives to fossil fuel, but solar is not a viable alternative.
Bookmarks