https://www.pv-magazine.com/2023/01/13/swiss-startup-makes-first-attempt-to-deploy-solar-on-railways/
I see a few problems with hthis solar pannel in gauge thing. Might work in Europe.
this came accross my linked in feed.
What is the take on it
shane
A pessimist sees a dark tunnel
An optimist sees the light at the end of the tunnel
A realist sees a frieght train
An engineer sees three idiots standing on the tracks stairing blankly in space
IMO, this will work better the closer to the equator you are. Like all solar you need a way to store the power until needed, such as when the work day ends and the cooking/heating the home/cooling the home starts, when solar production is falling. Then over night occurs.
But people/companies with the money to do this will check the econimics before doing anything.
NVSRR https://www.pv-magazine.com/2023/01/13/swiss-startup-makes-first-attempt-to-deploy-solar-on-railways/ I see a few problems with hthis solar pannel in gauge thing. Might work in Europe. What is the take on it
Invented by someone who has never operated or maintained a railroad.
Probably the worst place to put something that only works if it's clean and that is about the most likely place to be damaged.
Use the right of way. Cool.
Between the rails, not a snowball's chance.
Dave H. Painted side goes up. My website : wnbranch.com
dehusmanUse the right of way. Cool. Between the rails, not a snowball's chance.
Nothing mentioned about vibration forces either. If they are using European equipment as a standard, they will be sorely surprised whe. They get to us lines.
Maybe it will work well. Maybe it will work in some environments. Maybe it won’t work at all. We just don’t know.
I think the solar panels will get broken quickly. The muesum in my town runs trains and they have found many traction motor covers on the track. Anything that falls from a train will bust solar panels. Also dirt and grease will cover them up.
-bmtrainmaster
Some of us have worked for railroads and we know.
Stuff falls out of cars.
There is dragging equipment.
Track has to be tamped and lined.
There is snow, rain, ice and dust.
It is about as harsh an environment as you can ask for.
The people who came up with this may have been operating in Europe where they don't have the same freight traffic, with grain trains dropping grain, coal trains dropping chunks of coal and 150 car long trains. They may have studied the project in a temperate climate that doesn't have blowing snow, sand and dust And temperatures that range from -20 to 150 degrees. They may have studied it in a semi-urban enviromnent where you don't have deer, antelope, cattle, coyotes, etc walking across the tracks.
A solar panel on a roof or on a solar rack is inclined at an angle so water and snow (and dirt) have a chance to run off it. Railroad track is nominally flat, so there will be way lesss of a self cleaning action. Dirt, dust and grime will tend to pool on the flat surface.
Last but not least, if a train stops over it. It will block the sunlight.
chutton01Hmm, don't maintainance vehicels travel along the ROW sides as well.
Right of ways are up to 100 ft wide, the railroad is 20 ft wide and an access road is maybe 15 ft wide. That still leaves 65 ft of room for solar panels.
Europe still creates brake dust and ballast dust. Solar has a lineside or limited onboard role, but traction power? Ehhhhhhhhh.
are there potential problems? sure. are there potential solutions? sure. i am trying to picture how something falls out of a railcar and lands underneath it. it may not work but it might and is far better then those stupid windmills. devising a method to sweep or scrub the panels shouldn't be too difficult. damage? sure but so would the area next to the track. it doesn't hurt to get real world results.
dehusmanRight of ways are up to 100 ft wide, the railroad is 20 ft wide and an access road is maybe 15 ft wide. That still leaves 65 ft of room for solar panels.
And panels on posts to the side of the right of way can also be properly angled for optimal sunlight use. And being angled the occasional rain will help clean them.
A landfill that was retired 20 years ago near where I live is slated to be used for a solar farm. It's a hill so it is tall and above the trees and other buildings. It's a former landfill so it can't be used for other purposes and has no trees or buildings on it.
I wonder how flexible the panels are. American railcars are heavier than European equipment and the track deflects more when the trains run over it. As a truck rolls across the track the the track deflects down 1/8 to 1/2 inch. I wonder how the panels adapt to constant flexing as the panels "do the wave" 200-300 times every time a train goes over them.
dehusmanI wonder how flexible the panels are. American railcars are heavier than European equipment and the track deflects more when the trains run over it. As a truck rolls across the track the the track deflects down 1/8 to 1/2 inch. I wonder how the panels adapt to constant flexing as the panels "do the wave" 200-300 times every time a train goes over them.
The installation view (that does look like scooping water!) shows detail of how the string would be installed or taken up for track maintenance. If I were doing this, the mounting rods would be sprung and the 'ramp' would compress them to get the mounting ends around the railhead.
We'll presumably start to see more implementation details by May, when the first prototype tests are supposed to be starting.
I wish them luck.