#maxeon

SunPower Divides to Conquer In 1985, SunPower began providing the best photovoltaic products available to public and commercial markets. In 2003, SunPower had 35 employees doing all they could to accomplish that goal, but in 17 years they grew to almost 7,000 employees helping markets in the United States and other countries. SunPower has thus been an industry leader in solar cell manufacturing…

SunPower Flexible Solar Panels

In recent articles we discussed different thin film photovoltaic technologies in development or in current use. SunPower is a leading player in the solar energy industry and therefore spends significant funds on research and development, improving its own silicon-based technologies and investing in new, promising techniques. As a result, you can now take advantage of SunPower’s maximum efficiency…

New Post has been published on http://www.mselectriclv.net/sunpowers-solar-panels-to-power-the-first-piloted-stratospheric-solar-flight/

SunPower’s solar panels to power the first piloted stratospheric solar flight

SolarStratos (prototype pictured) aims to reach the stratosphere more than 80,000 feet above Earth using SunPower solar technology /SunPower SunPower has joined the “Mission SolarStratos” expedition as the exclusive solar cell provider for its aircraft. […]

Click here to view original web page at www.pvbuzz.com

Known as one of the world’s most innovative and sustainable energy companies headquartered in California’s Silicon Valley, SunPower has a pioneering legacy of powering unique solar projects.

Within the next two years, SolarStratos is expected to be the first solar-powered plane to soar above the Earth’s troposphere and into the stratosphere – flying twice as high as a commercial airliner’s typical cruising altitude – without a drop of fossil fuel.

SunPower® Maxeon® solar cells were selected for SolarStratos aircraft’s because they are highly efficient, durable, lightweight, and about as thin as a human hair.

New Post has been published on http://www.mselectriclv.net/this-32kw-plane-will-fly-twice-as-high-as-commercial-jets-on-sunpower/

This 32kW plane will fly twice as high as commercial jets on SunPower

  SunPower isn’t just powering roofs and solar farms these days. The company, which touts its solar panels as the most durable and efficient on the market, is looking at other applications. I’d be hard pressed to find one as awesome as the upcoming Mission SolarStratos expedition which will be powered by its 22-24% efficient Maxeon™ solar cells.[…]

Click here to view original web page at electrek.co

The SolarStratos is an electric plane that has the flight characteristics of a low drag glider. It has extremely long thin wings and a very small profile. However it is outfitted with an electric motor, a very efficient front propeller, and wings and tail covered with around 24 square meters of solar panels. Inside fit up to 2 pilots in fighter configuration and what appears to be a 20kWh battery (nearly the same size as the 125 mile Hyundai IONIQ).

Interestingly this plane will not be pressurized, requiring the pilots to wear space suits that are also powered by the energy from the solar panels and stored in the battery.

Some stats from the press release (below):

Length: 8.5 meters – about 30 feet, or the distance from the end zone to the 10-yard line on an American football field

Wingspan: 24.8 meters – about 81 feet, or the length of two standard city buses

Weight: 450 kilograms – about as heavy as a grand piano; to make SolarStratos its lightest, the cabin will not be pressurized, requiring pilots to wear astronaut suits that are pressurized by solar energy

Engine: 32-kilowatt electrical engine, about one-third the size of what would power an electric vehicle

Energy: 22 square meters of SunPower Maxeon solar cells, each reaching 22 to 24 percent efficiency

Batteries: One 20-kilowatt lithium ion battery

Autonomy: Self-generates electricity with solar to power the plane for more than 12 hours

SunPower has been part of the solar industry consolidation of late amid lower profits, tax uncertainty and squeezing margins. Pairing up with SolarStratos is likely more marketing than actual new business model, however.

That said, and the reason it is interesting to us, is that we’re slowly moving toward electric powered flight being a reality for long haul aviation. Right now, electric aviation is limited to short flights with limited cargo but with improving battery technologies, stronger, lighter building materials and theoretically solar wings, range could be improved to where electric flight makes sense for many more applications.

Solar panels as thin as a hair, almost weightless and durable that can deliver 22-24% efficiency are an important part of that mix.

Based on a post by @scorpio-skies a few weeks back, I brought to you the missing Steel type Eeveelutions.

Deregulate Thyself – Dropping the Grid at Home and at Work

How do we know that solar and other forms of distributed generation have arrived?  Look no further than your closest utility.  With solar panel prices declining over 60 percent just in past few years and with installed capacity booming we now have a coast to coast battle for your rooftop.

The latest wrinkle in this unfolding combat between utilities working to maintain their monopolies and…