• Skip to main content
  • Skip to secondary menu
  • Skip to primary sidebar
Did That… Just Really Happen?

Did That... Just Really Happen?

Did that just really happen

  • World
  • U.S.
  • Business
  • Tech
  • Entertainment
  • Sports
  • Science
  • Health

You can now drive around on a Tesla and charge it using printed solar panels [Video]

May 3, 2022 by Nena Serrano 6 Comments

WHAT’S BEING CLAIMED:

  • Prof. Paul Dastoor and his team are planning a road trip on a Tesla in some of the world’s most remote regions.
  • This project is called the Charge Around Australia, which is intended to demonstrate that solar panels are the solution for mobile power generation.
  • This project is estimated to cover 9,400 miles in 84 days and is expected to include stopovers in schools to introduce and help others see the potential this new technology brings.

Scientists from Australia and the United Kingdom are planning a 9,400-mile road trip in a Tesla to some of the world’s most remote regions. For this feat, charging the batteries by unrolling a plastic solar panel sheet.

This project is called the Charge Around Australia. It is intended to introduce solar technology and help demonstrate how it can be used to generate renewable energy for off-grid electric car charging on a drive around the coast of the country.

Prof. Paul Dastoor, the person responsible for printed solar panels, said that these locations in Western and Central Australia could be considered the most remote in the world. 

He explained that choosing these locations for the project is a big undertaking, but subjecting these solar panels to the most extreme conditions — with high temperatures, long distances, and minimal water — is the ultimate test to demonstrate its potential role in limiting fossil fuel use and slowing down climate change.

The limiting factor for consumers choosing to buy electric cars is the “range anxiety” and fear that there are limited charging stations. This is on top of electric cars being more expensive. To address these issues, companies have developed portable EV chargers but came up short in some areas: they are slow, expensive, and prone to theft.

These solar panels, which are printed on a machine used to make wine labels, could be the solution to all these problems. These panels are made from transparent solar electrodes laminated in PET plastic and the estimated cost to print these panels is $3.33 per square foot. Prof. Dastoor and his team are able to produce ⅓ of a mile or 0.5 kilometers of solar panel per day.

The project is estimated to last for 84 days and is expected to include stops at around 70 schools to introduce this new technology.

The research team is hoping that Elon Musk will find their research interesting for “showing how our innovative technology is now combining with his developments to develop new solutions for the planet”, Dastoor told Reuters.

Source: Good News Network

Filed Under: Tech Tagged With: Australia, solar panel, Tesla

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Dave Newbry says

    May 12, 2022 at 7:36 pm

    How many of those panels does it take to charge the Tesla? How are they stored while the car is in motion? Can you drive and charge at the same time? If not, how much down time is required to leave with a full charge?

    Reply
  2. Maurice Isaac Snr says

    May 12, 2022 at 9:01 pm

    About 200 sq ft of panels ( crudely 15ft X 15 ft) will be needed assuming:
    1 Standard solar efficiency
    2. Only 100 miles per day
    3. 1 hour recharge..

    Only 20 sq ft for 10 hrs recharge ( 4ft X 5 ft)

    Reply
    • Tim Stoffel says

      June 11, 2022 at 1:55 am

      That 200 square feet is not that big– 1 10 X 20 or 2 5 X 20. Now, plan your trip so you have a charging stop late midmorning and again midafternoon for an at least 2 hour charge, you might be able to get between Reno and Las Vegas in a day, using no commercial power for recharge.

      Reply
  3. Anony Mous says

    June 10, 2022 at 8:36 pm

    That’s barely 111 miles PER DAY! And who’s going to pull over on a highway and unroll 35-40 feet or so of solar panel?
    What do you do on a cloudy, rainy, or snowy day? Hibernate?
    Nice demo, but totally unrealistic.
    You could probably go further with a bit of a breeze and a sail.

    Reply
  4. Richard Izzo says

    August 11, 2022 at 9:12 pm

    How will work in foggy London town?

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Primary Sidebar

More Interesting Stories

Would you dare? World’s longest glass-bottom bridge opens to tourists [Video]

WHAT’S BEING CLAIMED: The Bach Long pedestrian bridge in Vietnam is now open to tourists. The bridge is 2,073ft long and 492ft above the ground. Vietnam is now open to international travelers.  A massive glass bridge claiming to be the world’s longest has opened, but it’s not for the faint-hearted. The Bach Long pedestrian bridge in Vietnam, […]

Retired soccer player sold Diego Maradona’s traded shirt for $9.3 million

WHAT’S BEING CLAIMED: Steve Hodge, an English retired soccer player, sold Diego Maradona’s “Hand of God” jersey for $9.28 million. Hodge swapped jerseys with Maradona at the 1986 World Cup. The sale is the highest price ever paid for a piece of sports memorabilia. Steve Hodge, a retired English soccer player, became $9.28 million richer […]

Family brings home lost coyote pup after mistaking it for a puppy

WHAT’S BEING CLAIMED: A family in New England mistakenly brings home a coyote pup after they thought it was a lost puppy. They found the young coyote “wandering and distressed by the side of a busy road.”  When they realized their mistake, the family reached out to the Cape Wildlife Center in Barnstable, Massachusetts for […]

Nursing home resident sent to a morgue in a body bag — found alive [Video]

WHAT’S BEING CLAIMED: A nursing home resident was sent to the morgue in a sealed body bag, but upon checking, the person inside was still alive. Personnel in personal protective equipment recorded the incident on video, which has been posted on social media. The nursing home director and 3 other officials have been fired and […]

© 2023 Who Knew News. All Rights Reserved.
Privacy Policy | Terms of Use | Do Not Sell My Info