Naya Pakistan - Solar Power Rickshaws

[livingdead]

Lets not discuss the picture, plagiarism, etc. Discuss the content of the article, pictures are just fillers for most websites.

If India failed to produce that rikshaw, doesn't mean these guys are copying the same failure.

Move on.

Hope it materializes, but its on shaky ground as people suggested already (one of the reason why no govts in india should get involved in a private venture of a hobbyst, which I think they did not)

My prediction will be, its going to be a spectacular failure, and most of you will be blaming on politicians and how they are corrupt and once you take care of them, everything will start working.

Prove me wrong.

 

[cloud]

Just saying if anyone wants to do something, then they should focus on power assisted 'paddle Riksaws' and thelas, with slightly more width, a small battery and motor(or a small 50cc petrol engine). It will keep the cost in check(may be 30k more if done rightly) and will allow them to do more work and covering longer distance.

 

[ssethii]

we are having a bit of fun.. its a good attempt anyway.. the thought should be appreciated.

we already are an energy deprived country so we can't afford such fancy project. i need not to mention that which class of society uses rikshaws. is there anything new in it to be really appreciated.

 

[Major Sam]

There are all alot accidents bec of hastily driving by rickshaw drivers. even one little accident can damage whole solar sheet.

Its good development but to maintain is very risky job so i think its just wastage of money rather give cheaper solar panels to house holds to use it at home.

 

[niaz]

Like all other threads, this one also became a slanging match between Indian & Pakistani members. We are all mature and highly educated individuals and about time everyone should realize that puerile debates are counterproductive.

Discussion started with the news that “Solar Auto Rickshaw” technology has successfully been developed indigenously to help overcome the acute shortage of energy and rising costs of fuel”.

There is nothing new or extraordinary in this. University students have been piecing together different parts to produce solar powered cars as a study project for the last 30 odd years. However any innovation that reduces reliance on imported fuels is always welcome. History of solar power is as under:

Swiss Scientist Horace Benedict de Sassaure created first solar oven; basically an insulated glass box inside of which 110 Deg C way back in 1767.

French national Antoine Cesar Becquerel developed first photovoltaic cell in 1839 which produced an increase in electricity when 2 electrodes placed in an electrolyte were exposed to the sunlight.
Thus production of electricity from sunlight was known 170 years ago!

First solar cell as we know it was developed by Charles Fritts in 1883. However efficiency was only about 1% and therefore not commercially viable. It was not until the advent of space exploration that breakthrough in solar technology occurred and in 1958 Solar energy was used to power satellites & space stations. However solar panels were expensive and only about 12-14% efficient. It was only in 1970 when Exxon Corporation researchers designed an efficient and cost effective solar panel that made commercial use of solar energy possible.

Paul Macready developed a solar powered aircraft which flew from France to England in 1981 and first solar powered car was developed in Australia in 1982. Another major breakthrough occurred in 199 when crystalline Silicon PV cell made solar panels 36% efficient. Now solar power could compete with other forms of non-conventional electricity generation on cost.

You can see that neither Indians nor Pakistanis show up among the pioneers of solar technology. Car or rickshaw developed in India or by a Pakistan is not a great innovation. It is basically a piecing together/ alteration of something already developed in other countries decades before. Thus any talk of plagiarism by one or another is nonsensical to say the least.

Now let us come to the nitty grityy of solar power. China produces the cheapest and the largest number of solar panels in the world. I am aware that there are many companies that manufacture solar panels in India. It is rumoured that Indian solar panels are more expensive than produced in China.

Solar power has serious limitations. Firstly it won’t work in the dark. Secondly amount of power generated is directly proportional to the surface area of the panels. This makes its use for every day transport unwieldy. That is why even though a solar powered electric bicycle has also been available since 2008; use of solar power for ordinary peoples transport has not caught on. Solar power is however ideal for households where it can be used for providing hot water as well as for providing electricity for the light and the electric fans.

A country needs a mix of different kinds of electric generation. Base load would always be hydroelectricity or generation thru fossil fuel power plants. This however should be supplemented with nuclear, wind & solar power. So far per unit cost of solar power is still high. However it is possible that it would come down in the near future to make solar energy as cheap as one produced from coal.

I hate to admit it, but the fact remains that India is far ahead of Pakistan in terms or electricity generation from the wind as well as use of solar panels.

 

[livingdead]

@niaz, apart from obvious indo-pak troll match, the point made by Indians was not we are better, but this project is at best a pet project. Not sure why a govt will get involved without somebody in beurocracy going into the details and telling the obvious issues.

 

[ThunderCat]

Imagine if vehicles in most of Punjab and Sindh ran completely on solar power. With the overcrowding of our cities at least the smoke would completely clear out. And even if these domestic made solar technologies are a failure as some members pointed out we can import them if necessary. I saw a solar power car in Toronto last summer and it ran normally like a fuel powered car.

Just imagine everybody in Karachi using those cars. With rising temperatures in Pakistan the solar powered vehicles could absorb all the blazing sunlight instead of letting it spread like a wildfire.

 

[Dubious]

Thats all well and good, but Naya Pakistan should not use Purana India's products and show it as their own.

Solar-powered Rickshaw (tricycle) prototyped in India

Hello Indian, I am not sure how you efficiently managed to forget to include this bit:

That in India it is thought to be indroduced and the only thing that HAS been introduce
Soleckshaw

Still needing the pedal..

and that man's pix you put up...well he ran off to Delhi

and no he did not copyright his work so anyone can produce something similar or a modified version and not be called copying!

 

[Dubious]

Good move but fairly risky since the Panels will have to be either completely in light or completely in dark. If partially exposed to light, this might cause damage in the generation structure. Being a movable platform, the rickshaw will be highly prone to this risk.

Wont they have a capacitor to store the energy?! How can panels get damaged if partially exposed to light?

 

[SBD-3]

Wont they have a capacitor to store the energy?! How can panels get damaged if partially exposed to light?

I think the problem is more related to production of electricity than storage. A blog described all of this process in detail. I'll search it again and repost it here.

 

[ssethii]

Wont they have a capacitor to store the energy?! How can panels get damaged if partially exposed to light?

if in shadow a LED(light emiting diode) will act as a simple diode(a diode stops bidirectional current). the output current would drop drastically but i cannot think of any reason how it will damage the system.