Solar power boat list

[Herreshock]

@Herreshock
Nothing about steam. Did you read the linked paper? Theyr efficiency calculation is wrong, the respective data are inconsistent and they earned 40 mW (Milliwatt) electric power. Did you understand the arragement of the 6 splitted mirrors? I did not. Sketches show only sun rays at angles belonging to morning, noon and evening. What about the other hours of daylight?

Check the conclusions

We have calculated the geometrical concentration ratio of the solar collector used in the system with the relation shown in Eq. (4) [29,30]. Aperture area of the Fresnel lens is 1 m2 which is 10000 cm2 and focused concentrated area of spot size is 50 cm2. Therefore geometrical concentration ratio comes out to be 200. It also signifies high heat accumulation on copper box which is required for heating the water.
aperture area of the collector
C.Rgeo = ¹4º
surface area of the receiver
The combination of large Fresnel lens and segmented mirror system used in our experiment works efficiently for at least four hours during daytime without tracking. However at early in the morning and late in the evening hours without tracking, the light rays hit the Fresnel lens surface under a large inclination angle which may lead to some losses. The Thermoelectric generator module used in the system is very small. In future we plan to incorporate an array of TEG modules in series and the output can be significantly improve with this system and hence the efficiency of this system will enhance.

The trackless fresnel lens works fine but would require orientation on morning and evening so basically this type of trackless design ( one of the few designed yet) works as 3 position tracking system and usually efficiency is related to mirroring so aluminium deposition coated has 90% reflection efficiency while a fresnel lens efficiency is less and depends ift its glass or toxic plastic

With just a aluminium panel in vertical position it can reflect the morning and evening sun to the trackless fresnel lense, just as sort of static heliostat

 

[Herreshock]

At sea level ir radiation is 1000W/m2 . Not bad . Question is how to harvest that energy . Heat collector + stirling or piston steam engine or steam turbine. Heat collectors are more efficient than photovoltaic.

Steam turbines are similar than gas turbines and they work at high RPM and can be acoustically insulated however a rotary engine like Di Pietro or normal air engine for tools can work too and with more TORQUE and less rpm. They have 80-90% efficiency with compressed air and at the same time steam can cook and desalinate while Stirling doesn't.

This is a good solution for cruising sailing besides a well designed multi stage solar still like the one advertised by MIT that beat osmosis desalination while there are other multi stage solar still systems published by universities across the world

 

[Heimfried]

[...]Heat collectors are more efficient than photovoltaic.

What is the meaning of this efficiency on a boat? In the said paper they harvested water with a temperature up to 88 °C. What do you do with it on board? Wash your dishes or take a shower?
In the capter "Experimental results" is a "table 2" which shows (at 11:30 h) Q = 350 kJ (Kilojoule) harvested thermal energy in one minute, that means 350 kJ/60 s = 5.8 kW thermal power.
The irradiation at this time is 750 W/m² the aperture is 1 m², so the device takes 0.75 kW in and gives 5.8 kW out. There is whole lot of flaws and errors in this paper.

 

[Herreshock]

What is the meaning of this efficiency on a boat. In the said paper they harvested water with a temperature up to 88 °C. What do you do with it on board? Wash your dishes or take a shower?
In the capter "Experimental results" is a "table 2" which shows (at 11:30 h) Q = 350 kJ (Kilojoule) harvested thermal energy in one minute, that means 350 kJ/60 s = 5.8 kW thermal power.
The irradiation at this time is 750 W/m² the aperture is 1 m², so the device takes 0.75 kW in and gives 5.8 kW out. There is whole lot of flaws and errors in this paper.

Sure you beat university peer reviewers..., you could make the experiment yourself and publish the data if you are interested on the topic, im not wasting time with numbers now but these INDIAN STUDENTS DID A GREAT JOB creating this paper

 

[Heimfried]

[...] but these INDIAN STUDENTS DID A GREAT JOB creating this paper

I don't think so. Anyway to talk more about this disagreement, will not be helpful for this thread.

@yabert
As "Electric Philosophy" may be the most relevant one to your plans here is an additional link (including the Alaska turn).
https://www.soundingsonline.com/features/nothing-but-the-sun

 

[yabert]

As "Electric Philosophy" may be the most relevant one to your plans here is an additional link

Thanks. I also enjoy the details and data of this boat.

 

[yabert]

This is a thread of solar powered boats and this is on-topic

The purpose of this thread is to share a list of existing boat powered by solar.
Not to debate about water steam engine technology.
If you know a boat who work on steam engine powered by solar, please share the details here. That will be one more on the list.
If no, please start another thread to debate about steam engine. thanks.

 

[Herreshock]

The purpose of this thread is to share a list of existing boat powered by solar.
Not to debate about water steam engine technology.
If you know a boat who work on steam engine powered by solar, please share the details here. That will be one more on the list.
If no, please start another thread to debate about steam engine. thanks.

If you want to build a steam engine that's your issue and I'm not promoting any brand here, this thread is about "solar powered boat" and we are talking about solar stirling and steam

 

[montero]

I think every boat and ship in this world is solar powered already . One or another way .

 

[Herreshock]

I think every boat and ship in this world is solar powered already . One or another way .

Yes, Wind power is created by sun and heat differentials so basically wind power is photon solar energy

 

[portacruise]

I think every boat and ship in this world is solar powered already . One or another way .

What about the nuclear ( fission) powered ones?

If I remember my physics classes correctly, the maximum efficiency of heat engines is limited by the Carnot cycle.. Basically, the smaller the differences between the thermal reservoirs the poorer is the efficiency.
My guess is that Sterling engines that use other working fluids besides water / Steam might be more practical for small temperature differences between reservoirs. Proposals have been made about exploiting the temperature difference between solar warmed surface water and deeper colder ocean water, but I don't know any boats that are powered that way and it doesn't seem practical. Maybe for a movable floating artificial Island niche were solar cells might create too much shading?

 

[fallguy]

I will attest that all solar designs today on boats, that is, panels, will someday be exchanged for some other technology. The flat panel concept takes too much space and tends to raise vcg.

I doubt steam is it. Nothing can be stored unless the engines charge batteries, of course.

My hunch is collectors will change and be less locked in to overhead frames. Battery weights will drop.

Hull sides may be built with collector panels, there is lotsa real estate available visavie freeboard.

Not trying to start a war, but helping the OP consider alternatives to frames up high.

I have lotsa places on my boat where solar could be used less than optimally. If the collector itself has a wider range of angles and the collectors are not burdened by worst one; things would really change.

look close, there is 620w of panels on top; they weigh 106 pounds before frame to attach and weight is high

 

[montero]

What about the nuclear ( fission) powered ones?

If I remember my physics classes correctly, the maximum efficiency of heat engines is limited by the Carnot cycle.. Basically, the smaller the differences between the thermal reservoirs the poorer is the efficiency.
My guess is that Sterling engines that use other working fluids besides water / Steam might be more practical for small temperature differences between reservoirs. Proposals have been made about exploiting the temperature difference between solar warmed surface water and deeper colder ocean water, but I don't know any boats that are powered that way and it doesn't seem practical. Maybe for a movable floating artificial Island niche were solar cells might create too much shading?

Nuclear fission ones are powered probably by other suns .
I just consider Herreshock idea of solar thermal energy harvesting for propulsion . I'm 100% sure that's possible . Final efficiency and long term reliability in salt enviroment is a challenge.

 

[Herreshock]

I will attest that all solar designs today on boats, that is, panels, will someday be exchanged for some other technology. The flat panel concept takes too much space and tends to raise vcg.

I doubt steam is it. Nothing can be stored unless the engines charge batteries, of course.

My hunch is collectors will change and be less locked in to overhead frames. Battery weights will drop.

Hull sides may be built with collector panels, there is lotsa real estate available visavie freeboard.

Not trying to start a war, but helping the OP consider alternatives to frames up high.

I have lotsa places on my boat where solar could be used less than optimally. If the collector itself has a wider range of angles and the collectors are not burdened by worst one; things would really change.

look close, there is 620w of panels on top; they weigh 106 pounds before frame to attach and weight is high
View attachment 199792

We have been accustomed to be customers and have everything ready and reliable after purchase, and immediate as consequence of huge oil and electricity advertising brainwash trough few decades.

Besides of that they have created complex propietary machinery so people cannot self-build or repair these archaic items.

On the other hand i can build any motor or electrical engine as any current factory with cnc machinery but again is following a trap.


For thermal storage systems theres plain sand, molten salt (used in current nuclear Armageddon reactors) or plain soy wax for low weight or high energy density but again in the case theres " no wind for sails or sun for CSP solar propulsion" just use rowing oars and a crew can row a lightweight boat or any boat with calm conditions without much effort

 

[portacruise]

This one is pretty fast, speed might be useful in case of emergencies,

‘India’s fastest’ solar-electric boat Barracuda launched https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/indias-fastest-solar-electric-boat-barracuda-launched/article67638927.ece

Nuclear fission powered ships appear to be very efficient/ fast but not very practical at smaller sizes, and they they might be costly when it's time to decommission them because of the radioactive waste. I got curious, and looking around on the internet, found they use the very heavy Radioactive isotopes of elements like uranium or maybe plutonium as a fission fuel source of heat for turbines. Fission doesn't appear to be a form of solar power, all suns use lightweight hydrogen to produce lightweight helium, which cannot be used for fission fuel. Because of the nuclear stability curve, the heaviest element that could be theoretically created in tiny amounts by sun fusion is iron, which can't be used as fuel for a fission reactor.

Nimitz-Class Aircraft Carrier: How Fast Can It Go (Or Flank Speed)? https://nationalinterest.org/blog/buzz/nimitz-class-aircraft-carrier-how-fast-can-it-go-or-flank-speed-211888