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Old 12-15-2016, 09:22 AM   #304 (permalink)
thingstodo
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Isaac Zackary View Post
I realize that. But I was thinking of a portable solar charger and the pride of taking my Leaf over mountain passes that no one else would ever think of taking a Leaf. Even 1.5kW might save me from calling a tow truck
This is the lightest panel that I have seen (at least domestically). Not exactly cheap ...

EVTV Motor Verks Store: Flexible Solar Panel 200w, Solar, Boat and Golf, 200wsolarpanel

5000W = 25 of those, at $400 each, is $10K. Plus the space to lay them out and the wiring to connect them and the charge controller. Even these are over 7 lb each. 25 of them is under 200 lbs but it won't be with all of the other stuff you need.

1500W is much more manageable.

These are set up to glue down to the top of a golf cart sun shade, or a boat. At least one guy has plastered them over the hood, roof and trunk of his car. But that's only 3 panels = 600W. I have not seen anyone put them on the sides/doors as yet.

I would think a trailer would work. Maybe have the frame of the trailer support the panels and give you some rough adjustment for angle. 5000W, 25 panels, roughly 5 feet x 2.5 feet each ... 7.5 x 40 feet gets you 24 of them. Maybe stored on rigid frames as 7.5 feet wide, 10 feet long, 3 x 2 = 6 panels per frame. Hinge them together and flip them out to ...7.5 feet wide and 40 feet long is a bit cumbersome

I assume that one 'layer' of solar panels is exposed, even when things are folded up, so you would be generating while driving or parked during the day. It would be worth it to optimize the space and the hinging to use as much of the 8 foot normal trailer width as you can. There would be a lot of design trade-offs around how long to make the trailer 'folded up' ... or maybe you'd just limit the panels to 7.5 feet wide and 20 feet long and get rid of the hinging complexity. That would get you 12 panels at 200W for 2400W max charging ... 36V at MPPT gives you 360V into your pack. Not quite enough to charge the Leaf. But they go to almost 44V open circuit, so you should be able to connect your charge controller output to your 400V pack directly (well, through a disconnect, fuses, etc but no DC/DC boost converter required)

20 feet long should fit into a normal parking spot ... so you can park beside it overnight
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