The Sun Factory: solar powered driving

Electric vehicles can be even cleaner than they already are, according to Klaas Hoekstra of The Sun Factory. The company developed a method in which solar energy can be directly used for recharging electric vehicles. At the company its already possible to recharge a car with solar- and wind energy, without using any regular electricity. Hoekstra wants to make this feature available for the general public in the future.

‘The idea to charge electric cars with solar- or wind energy started at home’, says Hoekstra. Earlier this year Hoekstra recharged his electric Tesla with solar energy at home. ‘I have some solar panels on the roof and during the day the energy is transmitted to the net. At the end of the day the generated solar energy is used to recharge the car. That’s why I’m annually driving energy-neutral.’

The Sun Factory is one of the main sponsors of the DONG Energy Solar Challenge. The company provides solar panels for all boats in the A-and B-class of the DSC.

Double mission Polish team DSC12

The Polish team from the Technical University of Gdansk has a double mission, winning with a boat in the A-class and with a boat in the B-class, but they also have a training goal with their old solar boat. Next year the Polish are participating for the fourth time in the DONG Energy Solar Challenge.

The Polish won the B-class in the Dutch Open Solar Boat Challenge earlier this year. ‘The plan is to use this boat as a training boat next year, ’ said Litwin. ´With this boat we collect data for research and we would also like to train the younger skippers on this boat.´

The boat from the A-class is currently under construction. ´We hope to finish the designing, building and testing the boat in December.´ The team uses carbon fiber in the construction of the boat. ´We believe the light weight is the most important about the boat.´

Read more about the Polish team of the Technical University of Gdansk in the weblog with Wojciech Litwin.

Digital classes for participants DSC12

Always wanted to know how solar panels can be assembled the best? Or how the propeller of a solar boat works? You can, soon! Through the websites of the DONG Energy Solar Challenge (DSC) and the Technical University Delft, digital lectures will be given soon.The organization of the DSC and TU Delft are going to give these digital lectures together. Several experts will explain what is involved in building a solar boat. The lectures are given by the chairman of the Technical Committee, Joris Melkert.

The lectures will be about the regulations, solar cells and the design of the propeller, but also about team building. The lectures will be in English and will be available on the Internet for all participants.

Solar: technology trend in 2012

In the same year the fourth edition of the DONG Energy Solar Challenge (DSC) will start, solar technology is an upcoming trend. Danny Oosterveer of the website www.Marketingfacts.nl writes about this trend in his blog after the annual report of the famous Dutch trendwatcher Adjiedj Bakas.

Trendwatcher Bakas makes an annual report on the trends for the coming year. ‘Solar technology is making leaps and bounds – gadgets such as solar chargers, photovoltaic cell phone batteries and even bags with solar power. There is a strong demand for energy-efficient gadgets and designers. This is a good source of inspiration, so we’re going to hear more about this in 2012’, says Oosterveer in his blog (in Dutch).

First Finnish participant in the DSC12

For the first time a Finnish team will appear at the start of the DONG Energy Solar Challenge in July 2012. The honour is for team Midnight Sun. The team exists of students from the universities of applied sciences of Mikkeli and Kymenlaakso. ‘It’s a great challenge, because we’ve never built  a solar boat before’, says project leader Kari Dufva.

According to Dufva the expectations of the team are high. ‘We especially expect to have a good time during the challenge in Friesland, the northern province of the Netherlands. Building a solar boat for the first time is not an easy assignment. I do expect this to be a special educational project for our students.’ The two universities both have their own specialties. ‘Students of Mikkeli develop the technical parts of the boat and students of Kymenlaakso design the hull of the boat.’

Third Day of Sustainability

This year the Day of Sustainability is held for the third time in the Netherlands. The foundation of Urgenda organizes the national event on Friday 11 November. On the Day of Sustainability companies, governments, institutions and individuals organize thousands of activities. The AOC Friesland is one of the participating institute. Last year they also participated in the DONG Energy Solar Challenge (DSC) together with the university of applied sciences Van Hall.

Besides of all national activities there are also several activities planned in the northern province Friesland. Students of the AOC Friesland from the cities Sneek, Buitenpost, Heerenveen and Leeuwarden will exchange old glow-lamps with sustainable LED-lights in different neighbourhoods in the cities. Meanwhile other students brainstorm with companies to create new sustainable initiatives.

Over 100.000 Dutch people are participating in the Day of Sustainability. They are showing it is time to take matters into their own hands with a large social movement to create a sustainable world.

Battle for innovation prize

Innovation pays off. Not only during the battle for the fastest time, but also in the race for the innovation prize. This prize will be handed out for the fourth time during the DONG Energy Solar Challenge in 2012. The team with the most innovative or exciting sustainable features on their boat wins. So for all teams: be creative! The organization is very curious about the first innovative designs.

Lucky winner of the innovation prize in 2010 was Andela Shipbuilding. The team combined a way to decrease the water resistance by using hydrofoils with a very light construction of the solar boat. Other winners of the innovation prize were KTS Teylingen College in 2008. They won because of the innovative design of the location of the motor, the steering system and the detachable steering wheel. With this features they were able to lift the boat over land along the route, the so-called klunen. The Hanze Solar Team of the Hanze University Groningen won in 2006 because of the adjustable solar panels .

Vento Sul dominates Desafio Solar Brasil 2011

Brazilian team Vento Sul has won the Desafio Solar Brasil (DSB) 2011. The third edition of this solar boat race was held in the Brazilian coastal city of Paraty. The DSB consists of several stages in and around Paraty. It is the third time Vento Sul has won this race.

The four-day solar boat race consisted of two different classifications. One for the catamaran and one for the monohull. Team Vento Sul of the university of  Florianópolis won both the classifications. The team also participated in the DONG Energy Solar Challenge in 2010. Fourteen teams competed in the event.

Participants of the DSB don’t have to wait for long to get another chance. The next race is already scheduled for March 17th to March 24th in 2012. The southern Florianópolis is then the battleground of the solar boat race.

Liyang signs letter of intent DSC12

During an official meeting in Leeuwarden mayor Jianghua Su of Liyang, China signed a letter of intent to participate in the DONG Energy Solar Challenge (DSC) in 2012. Two weeks ago a delegation from the Chinese city also visited the Frisian capital. Then they looked at the boat that’s build by NHL University and others.

Possibilities for the future were also discussed during the meeting. ‘If we participate in the fourth edition of the DSC, then the fifth edition of the DSC will be in Liyang’, the Chinese mayor joked.

Not only were the Chinese visitors in Leeuwarden for the DSC. The government of Liyang and the government of Leeuwarden also signed contracts for joint projects in China and the province of Friesland. After the official signing the Chinese visitors concluded a three-day visit to Leeuwarden.

Third edition of the Brazilian solar boat race starts

The third edition of the Desafio Solar Brasil (DSB) starts today in Paraty, Brazil. Fourteen competitors participate in this Brazilian solarboatrace. They sail four different stages around the coast of Paraty. The DSB is according to the organization,  inspired by the DONG Energy Solar Challenge (DSC).The race starts with a prologue. The three days after that the participants have to cover routes with distances up to 34 km. The organization of the DSB website wants to bring the attention to the Brazilian companies and universities that are working with solar-energy.

In 2008 one Brazilian team participated in the DSC. Four Brazilian teams participated in 2010. ‘The idea of creating our own solar boat race was formed with the participation of the team of the University from Rio de Janeiro in the Frisian solar boat race’, so can be read on the website of the DSB.