Comments on: World’s First Cargo Ship Propelled by Solar Panels

By: mamun2a

mamun2a — Mon, 27 Jul 2009 04:52:58 +0000

confusing news. but there is hope for running ship without Fossil Fuel.
good luck. -mamun2a, Dhaka, BD

By: frado

frado — Tue, 21 Jul 2009 18:55:34 +0000

“Propelled by solar” is a very misleading title.

It’s all diesel pushing the ship forward, evidenced by the blue smoke plumes.

By: izit

izit — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 08:01:04 +0000

Sailors have been using traditional solar panels on boats for decades now, with more exposure to salt water than they’ll ever get on top of a cargo ship. Keep in mind that well-tempered solar panels from the 1970’s have withstood hail & hurricanes, and most work fine to this day (the supports go before the glass will!)
Everyone is right – this is not a craft that “runs on” solar – but there are many boats that do run %100 on solar, and the number is increasing as their efficiency, savings and dependability are realized (especially with dualgens and LEDs added to the package).

By: nick.chapple

nick.chapple — Tue, 07 Jul 2009 17:32:57 +0000

I can imagine the harsh ocean environment would “eat” away standard PV panels pretty quickly. Its more of a step to show the first craft using direct solar power into the ship’s main electrical grid.
I hope its OK to drop a trade name here as the company nanosolar with its head office in San Jose, CA currently print a clever solar cell foil creating immense energy which can be applied to various surfaces. With a ship incased in such a foil might be something we see in the next 10 years.
Imagine a craft that could supply energy back to the national grid while morred in port

By: theauthor

theauthor — Tue, 07 Jul 2009 16:25:52 +0000

The author of this article is flat out wrong in her title. If she had read the release she would’ve found that the panels do nothing involving the propulsion of the ship. They only provide 10% of operational electricity when the ship is IDLING and IN PORT. Also, there are much more effective and less expensive ways of reducing the fleets carbon emissions they go way beyond what 328 panels can do. There’s a much more through and accurate article concerning this ship here.

http://www.sincerelysustainable.com/transportation/cargo-ship-partially-powered-by-solar-array-on-deck

By: Jeremy

Jeremy — Tue, 07 Jul 2009 12:04:01 +0000

10% is a start I suppose, by why only 328 panels? There’s room for about five times that number on the deck alone, and you could line the sides with them too

By: StructureHub

StructureHub — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 18:45:29 +0000

Definitely a much needed development, although I wonder why so much of the top deck’s square footage has no solar panel. The biggest challenge when it comes to pollution and the marine shipping industry is introducing even a little regulation to limit emissions. The industry is notoriously unrestrained, in part because so much of its existence occurs in international waters and involves so many jurisdictions, each with their own priorities and varying ability to abide by substantive environmental standards.

E.g., http://articles.latimes.com/2008/jul/25/local/me-pollution25