Solar-Powered Plane Covered with Over 17,000 Solar Panels Can Stay in the Air for Months without Needing Refueling

Written by Valdemar Medeiros

Published on 09/05/2022 at 09:32

Updated on 09/05/2022 at 11:01

A Skydweller Aero busca produzir o primeiro “pseudosatélite” comercialmente viável do mundo – Crédito: Skydweller Aero Inc.

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The Solar-Powered Airplane Solar Impulse 2, Capable of Flying for Months, Has Batteries That Can Survive for Up to 10 Thousand Cycles and Withstand Temperatures Above 50°C

The Solar Impulse 2, a battery-powered airplane recharged by solar energy, completed its world tour on July 26, 2016, returning to Abu Dhabi after more than a year and 40,000 km (25,000 miles) since its departure. With seventeen individual flights and accumulating nearly 600 hours in the air, the solar-powered airplane broke nineteen world records on its historic journey. Along the way, its solar panels provided over 11 megawatt-hours (MWh) of electricity, which powered four 13 kW motors during the day and stored the excess for nighttime flights.

Airplane Batteries Can Survive Up to 10 Thousand Cycles

YouTube video — *Solar Impulse Aircraft – The Starting Point of Solar Impulse 2 – Reproduction/Youtube*

The airplane’s world tour had a complication: the potential overheating of its 154 kWh Kokam battery bank during the 118-hour flight from Japan to Hawaii. The batteries feature Kokam’s patented Ultra High Power NMC (Nickel Manganese Cobalt) technology, a variation of lithium-ion chemistry. These batteries can survive up to 10,000 charge cycles, have low internal resistance, and dissipate heat 60% better than standard NMC batteries.

Their combination of energy density and power density makes the Ultra High Power NMC batteries ideal for electric vehicles. On its flight to Japan, the Solar Impulse 2 faced challenging weather, so the ground team decided to conduct an unscheduled test flight before the trans-Pacific crossing. Everything went well and the solar-powered airplane was quickly cleared for takeoff.

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Solar-Powered Airplane Receives New Batteries

*Solar Impulse 2 Arrives from Geneva at the Skydweller Hangar in Albacete, Spain, in July 2020 / Skydweller Aero Inc.*

Upon landing in Honolulu, technicians removed the batteries and sent them back to their assembly plant in Germany, where they underwent extensive testing and new batteries were installed for the remainder of the journey.

As it turned out, the original batteries were not damaged by the heat, and engineers determined that the Solar Impulse 2 would be safe to fly without replacing the batteries. However, it is better to be safe than sorry.

The delay proved worthwhile from a design perspective. While the airplane was grounded, engineers adjusted the cooling system by adding a pilot-controlled airflow outlet (shown in the image above), which allows outside air to cool the batteries when necessary. The ventilation can be closed in cooler temperatures to prevent the batteries from freezing.

Aircraft May Serve as a Basis for New Projects in the Aviation Industry

Although a fully solar-powered airplane is not practical, hybrid and fully electric powertrains – whether assisted by solar energy or not – can reduce the carbon footprint of medium to small aircraft.

The research and development that the Solar Impulse team conducted and the lessons they learned will provide a boost to the aviation and automotive industries as they reach new heights in energy efficiency and electric propulsion.

Solar-Powered Plane Covered with Over 17,000 Solar Panels Can Stay in the Air for Months without Needing Refueling

The Solar-Powered Airplane Solar Impulse 2, Capable of Flying for Months, Has Batteries That Can Survive for Up to 10 Thousand Cycles and Withstand Temperatures Above 50°C

Airplane Batteries Can Survive Up to 10 Thousand Cycles

Solar-Powered Airplane Receives New Batteries

Aircraft May Serve as a Basis for New Projects in the Aviation Industry

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Solar-Powered Plane Covered with Over 17,000 Solar Panels Can Stay in the Air for Months without Needing Refueling

The Solar-Powered Airplane Solar Impulse 2, Capable of Flying for Months, Has Batteries That Can Survive for Up to 10 Thousand Cycles and Withstand Temperatures Above 50°C

Airplane Batteries Can Survive Up to 10 Thousand Cycles

Solar-Powered Airplane Receives New Batteries

Aircraft May Serve as a Basis for New Projects in the Aviation Industry

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The oldest tree in the world, alive since before the birth of Jesus Christ, is cut down in a scientific study and the case changes environmental preservation rules.

An entire island in the Pacific wants to surround itself with a colossal barrier against the ocean to try to escape increasingly violent waves and not be swallowed by the sea in the coming decades.

Peru built a tunnel at an altitude of 4,738 meters cutting through the Andes Mountains, and the road leading to it reaches 4,818 meters, making it the highest paved road in the entire world.

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