FollowTraveling over water has always remained an important facet related intrinsically to human existence. Historically, it provided copious influx of trade from distant corners of the world. And now in the present scenario, water cruising has spread to also cover other societal disciplines like military, sports and tourism. This last field of tourism is certainly expanding at a brisk rate, and as a matter fact, is considered to be a major component of an economy in many countries. Taking that into account, designers from Fiten Solar team in collaboration with Cree and Squall Yacht have contrived to fuse green technology with tourism. As a result, the solar powered boat (the first from Poland) was born to be driven exclusively by ‘clean and green’ renewable energy.
Based on the spatial attributes of both racing and user comfort, this 6.2 x2.4 sq m craft will be fully powered by photovoltaic cells. The drive train consists of a 4kW motor integrated with a LiFePO4 battery pack. The solar paneling array is spread over an area of 6 sq m, and the power output from this setup provides an average speed of 8 km/hr, with top speed romping up to 14 km/hr. The overall speed can tend to be on the lower side (in comparison to racing crafts), but the zero emission power train also generates clean electricity for on-board utilities such as refrigerator, audio equipment, GPS navigation and lighting.
Other advantages are exclusively related to the boat’s sole solar powered engine mechanism. This entails mitigation of adverse impact on the environment from carbon emission and power generation. Moreover, from the perspective of practicality, the efficient engine doesn’t produce the bothersome noise, commonly emanated by internal combustion engines. This convenient feature makes the conception apt for a peaceful weekend getaway into marine wildlife and photography.
Source: ecofriend
