Here is a subtle yet very clear difference between something that is a eco-friendly move that helps the planet and a commercial move that claims to do the planet plenty of good. Most often every green investment is driven by commercial motive (and it is unrealistic to expect it to be any different, as it is an investment at the end of the day). If the move benefits the planet to a substantial extent then it is always welcome. Nippon Yusen KK and Nippon Oil Corp claim that they are working on the world’s first solar powered ship, and this one seems to be more a propaganda stunt than a reality.
For starters, the ship would only be partially, if ever, powered by solar energy, which will not be easy to capture and use on a ship. The saline conditions and the vibrations of the ship are sure to reduce the efficiency further. Fuel savings are expected to be in the neighborhood of 6.5% and carbon dioxide emissions will be reduced by 1-2% or 20 tons per year. It will cost Nippon Usen about $1.4 million to create the solar panel system, which could probably generate tons of more power if placed better, strategically speaking.
While this might be an interesting blueprint to work with, wind energy and wave power are better energy sources to work with when in the wide oceans than with solar power. The fancy concept will be apparently used to transport Toyota cars, and that does not sound very green either.
Via: Greenpacks
Sameer, I have always felt a boats are ideal for any kind of alternate fuel, may it be solar or wind. With unrestricted sun light falling over the sea, solar can be very well used to power the boat. The problems of vibration and saline conditions is not much to overcome. And if not solar, wind can power the boats. However they may not be adequate to power a large ship.. can’t imagine a super liner powered by sun or wind... atleast not for now.
I do agree that boats are ideal for alternate power source usage but it has to come from a very wise combination of wind, wave and solar power. Any singular source could fall woefully short in providing substantial power to run considerably large ships. While the concept is great, this particular case I feel is just a publicity stunt. Just my opinion though...
