Filed under: EV/Plug-in, Solar, Toyota
Solar charging station for EVs is brand spanking old
At the Santa Monica Civic Auditorium, we find a microcosm of what could be the future of garages. Under the cover of the "SolarPort" resides as many as 39 Toyota RAV4 EVs. They charge their batteries using nothing but the sun's power captured by solar panels on the roof. The excess power they generate is routed to the Civic Auditorium, offsetting their electric bill each month, and since they generate 44,400 Kilowatt-hours of power per year (for comparison, the average house uses 4000-8000 KW-hours per year), that was clearly a wise move. As you notice by the shots of the EVs (as well as the dust collecting on the charge terminals), these are not new RAV4s. This is a system that has been functioning for a couple years now, which seem to be going by without extensive maintenance. The project was paid for by the City of Santa Monica, Edison Technology Solutions, with support from the U.S. Department of Energy, the California Energy Commission, and the Utility Photovoltaic Group (now the Solar Electric Power Association), and built by Solar Unity Company, Inc.
This is an excellent demonstration of using resources to their full efficiency. Imagine having a carport similar to this at a suburban apartment complex. When the residents are not charging their vehicles (whether they be plug-in hybrids or full EVs), excess solar power is sent to the building's grid, or an emergency backup battery system, like a U.P.S. for an entire building. It could not be cleaner toward the environment, and it's free, depending on how you look at it. Your transportation costs are now part of your electric bill, which is supplemented by a free, unlimited energy source. As soon as some popular, marketable electric cars are released to the consumer, these innovations will become even more viable. Too bad it's taking so long for the rest of the world catch on to what the Santa Monica Civic Center has had for years.
More details to come.
Gallery: Solar charging station
[Source: Santa Monica Civic Auditorium]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
1985 Gripen 6:29PM (5/22/2007)
I love this idea and it seems positively utopian. However, I'd be very interested to learn how much it cost them overall and when the intital cost of investment will pay itself off. Those solar panels, EVs, and charging stations couldn't have been a cheap initial investment. Sure the EVs NEVER have to fill-up with gasoline and they don't even have to PAY for the electricity as its solar-generated locally, but how long before everything's paid-off?
It seems to me that the City of Santa Monica could make a small fortune selling their EVs on eBay to the private sector! Maybe use that savings to buy a bunch of plug-in hybrids they can use in that same station.
I don't know what the lifetime on the batteries in those RAV4s is, but I'm sure it can't be too much longer. They can get a pretty penny for them now while they still have some useful life in them.
I can't wait for a PRACTICAL EV sedan that looks like a car. I need only around 100 miles range so I would think that some advanced NiMH batteries could suit the bill instead of having to wait 10-years for the preferred advanced lithium ones.
Reply
Charles S 6:57PM (5/22/2007)
I think people need to do some research on the RAV4-EV (and about NiMH for vehicles) before they jump on the conclusion that EV won't last.
The lifecycle of batteries can vary greatly based on usage, but proper charging cycles has proven to be a key in battery longevity. I am still using the same 10-years old NiCd battery in my shaver, because I follow the proper charging guidelines.
My hybrid car is now almost 6 years old, 70k later. No problem. My original battery warranty was for 8 years or 80k miles but Honda has retroactively upgraded it to 10 yrs and 100k. That's pretty good for old-school NiMH batteries.
Reply
Mike Weston 7:01PM (5/22/2007)
Are the charging interfaces standardized? The "real" EVs all charge at 220 rather than 110, right? So don't we need a standard for the plug? Or has that happened already?
Reply
1985 Gripen 7:32PM (5/22/2007)
Charles, forgive me for not reading any white papers on the longevity of Toyota RAV4 batteries (but your anecdotal evidence in an electric shaver or hybrid car is hardly scientific either). I'm only going off information I remember reading that the estimated lifetime of automotive batteries is around 10 years. The RAV4-EV started selling in 1997. I'll let you do the math.
Even if these were some of the last RAV4 EVs purchased in 2002, that would mean already half of their battery's lifetime has passed. The estimated replacement cost of the battery pack is $26K.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toyota_RAV4_EV
Mike Weston: there were three or four major charger standards. There was (just off the top of my head) different kinds of adapters (small paddle, large paddle, AVCON) and different types of charging (inductive or capacitive). The Toyota RAV4 EV used a standard 220V 30A "dryer-style" plug. I've read that now Tesla is pushing yet another standard.
http://www.evchargernews.com/
Reply
Charles S 8:33PM (5/22/2007)
Gripen, I am not asking for you to prove your scientific prowess, but rather my argument is against your assumption that the RAV4-EV are likely to be useless in the near future.
We all have read that the estimated lifespan of RAV4's battery is ten years, but does that mean that on the 12th month of the 10th year that every RAV4-EV will cease to function? On the flip side, I have met owners of hybrids who have already ran well beyond the 100k mark on their hybrids, so does that mean that I have to provide scientific dissertation on the matter?
My beef is mainly with the popular assumption that all batteries have a drop dead date. I disagree, and I have my share of positive and negative outcomes.
On another note, under your assumption, maybe I should quickly sell my hybrid NOW, before the warranty expires. But sadly, by the same negative public assessment, people also look upon my mileage and decided that they won't risk the chance that the "drop dead" date will occur at 100k. Personally, that's fine by me. I like my hybrid so much, even a used hybrid in the future would be an option, the cheaper the better.
I don't want this to turn into a personality grudge match. I know it's likely that most batteries will fall into the statistical norm. That's fine. I take very good care of my hybrid and its batteries, and I plan to drive it well beyond the warranty period.
Reply
Sebastian 11:40PM (5/22/2007)
This is very inspiring and gives a lot of hope. It's already viable, but with newer technologies, installing PV and using electric cars will be cheaper, more efficient and more lasting. After all, don't all sources of energy we use come ultimately from the Sun?
Reply
1985 Gripen 2:18AM (5/23/2007)
Sebastian: no. Geothermal. :-)
Charles S.: I know that there are statistical anomalies and that not all NiMH batteries will stop working at the 100K miles or 10 years mark. But the fact is that when they get to a certain age their performance diminishes quite markedly. Maybe at 120K miles the range is only half of what it used to be. Does that mean you can't use the car anymore? Heck no. I'm glad you love your hybrid so much. That's great. I'm just saying that at the prices I've seen RAV4-EVs go for on eBay that little fleet in Santa Monica is worth a pretty penny! I myself wouldn't mind owning one if I could afford it.
Martin Eberhard of Tesla has pointed out that batteries suffer severely diminished performance as they age. He was pointing out that his cars' lithium batteries (unlike the NiMH ones in the RAV4 EV) could be safely disposed-of in a landfill if an owner were silly enough to do so, because the battery is much more valuable to be recycled.
"I wouldn’t recommend them as a dessert topping, but the Tesla Motors Lithium-Ion cells are not classified as hazardous and are landfill safe. However, dumping them in the trash would be throwing money away, since the battery pack can be sold to recycling companies (unsubsidized) at the end of its greater than 100,000-mile design life. Moreover, the battery isn’t dead at that point, it just has less range."
http://www.teslamotors.com/blog2/?p=8&js_enabled=1
Reply
kert 5:42AM (5/23/2007)
er, there are RAV4EVs on the roads that are well beyond 100K mile mark, some beyond 150K.
google on "rav4ev miles logged"
Reply
Owen 7:30AM (5/23/2007)
I have a little $10 solar cell that I put on my dashboard that plugs into my cigarette lighter that I use to keep my battery charged on my car when I don't drive it for several weeks and it works, I've tested it with my multimeter and it really does put out a small charge. One thing that baffles me is why none of the manufacturers have even mentioned putting solar cells on the roof. Heck even if I had a 4x2 sun shade that I put up in my windshield everytime I park my car for 9 hours during work, I bet it would come close to re-charging the 4 miles of electricity I used to drive there. Every little bit counts. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solar_car Now I know those cars are special, but they do show how solar energy can be harnessed to recharge batteries.
Reply
Kent Beuchert 9:00PM (5/23/2007)
Distributed electricity production is just plain
dumb. A central powerplant can produce electricity
almost 10 times more efficiently than a solar panel. Throwing away money in ego boosting
grandstanding acts doesn't cut it when it comes to
solving our energy problems. We only have so much money to invest in energy. Use your brain for a change.
Reply
Jordan 8:00PM (5/28/2007)
I say bravo! Let's have more "ego boosting grandstanding acts!" As I physicist, I am impressed that this works. Perhaps its not cost effective right now to do distributed power generation, however if the market was allowed to develop, it certainly would become so. Once in mass use an item (like a solar panel) can drop drastically in price. I think our dependence on central power generation has stunted our growth and creativity in this regard. Imagine if everyone had to concern themselves with the best and cheapest way to produce energy? Imagine how that would change the way we live. I think that's the point we really need to get to. So, again, bravo! Bring us more.
Reply
Heather 11:41AM (5/29/2007)
Kent-The point is to use renewable energy. The electric cars I have read about require such little ongoing maintenance(ie Tesla)it really makes using gas cars "just plain dumb" at the end of the day when you are comparing overall energy output.
.9 Thanks for the tip - you answered the question on my minde- Why don't we have portable solar recharging for electric cars? We have solar watches, calculators, yard lights, sign lights, gates, etc.
Reply