Reply #3: That's good but powering a ship with Solar is even better [View All]

[txlibdem]

Solar powered container ships:

"Energy from 328 panels is helping to power the ship's thrusters, hydraulics and steering gear, providing about 10 percent of the ship's total electricity usage."
http://inhabitat.com/auriga-leader-cargo-ship-gets-power-from-solar-panels/

"The Hybrid Car Carrier project led by Sanyo, Mitsubishi and shipper Mitsui OSK Lines (MOL), aims by 2012 to create a car container ship that relies on solar power for part of its journey.

In order to reduce CO2 emissions from fossil fuels, the group is working on a hybrid solar/diesel ship that uses photovoltaic solar panels laid out on deck to generate power during part of its voyage.

That power will be stored in massive lithium-ion batteries capable of pumping out up to 3,000kW/h –- enough to replace the output of the ship's traditional engines, at least while docking in port."
http://bionicbong.com/eco/thinking-green/sanyos-solarpowered-container-ship/

"We'd heard that Nippon Oil and Nippon Yusen were working on a million-dollar solar upgrade for a car freighter called the Auriga Leader back in August, and it looks like things have gone as planned -- the cargo ship launched today from Kobe, Japan. The $1.68m project involved the installation of 328 solar panels, which produce 40 kilowatts of power -- a measly 0.3 percent of the engine power required to move the 656-foot, 60,000-ton ship when fully loaded with 6,400 cars, but enough for seven percent of the juice required for lighting and other systems. That's a slow start, but we'll take what we can get, we suppose..."
http://www.engadget.com/2008/12/24/first-partially-solar-powered-cargo-ship-launches-in-japan/