Solar Impulse 2: Tomorrow's Technology for Today's
Solar Impulse 2: Tomorrow's Technology For Today's Needs By Heenay K. Patel
This week the Solar Impulse 2 completed the 11th leg of its journey, taking off from Phoenix, Arizona and landing in Tulsa, Oklahoma after an 18 hour flight. But the experimental Swiss aircraft has a far more ambitious goal than crossing from one U.S. state to another: to circumnavigate the globe using only the power of the sun. Zero fuel. Zero emissions. 100% clean energy. Around The World In Sustainable Ways Founded by André Borschberg and Bertrand Piccard, both of whom alternately pilot the aircraft, the privately financed project took off in 2015 with the aim of “flying around the world in a solar airplane to promote clean technologies,” according to the company website. The ambitious voyage began in Abu Dhabi on March 9, 2015, and since then the plane has covered a distance of 27,000 km, logged in 351 hours of flight time, produced 7,690 kWh of solar energy, and set several FAI (Fédération Aéronautique Internationale) records. Since its initial departure, the Si2 has visited India, Myanmar, China, Japan and most recently the United States, with the aim of heading to Europe and eventually returning to Abu Dhabi, thus completing its circumnavigation of the world. Of the Si2's many accomplishments, the biggest is perhaps crossing the Pacific Ocean from Japan to Hawaii, a journey which took 5 consecutive days and nights using only the energy stored in its batteries. As stated on the company website, the record-breaking 117 hour flight gives a clear message that “everybody could use the same technologies on the ground to halve our world’s energy consumption, save natural resources and improve our quality of life.” As Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said to the United Nations in 2013, Solar Impulse represents “A giant step forward...sending a strong message to people around the world.” So, exactly what kind of technologies power the Si2 and how much promise do they hold for the future?
Flying High—Aiming Low Successor to the original Solar Impulse (which itself holds eight world records including the first ever solar plane to fly through the night), the Si2 is often described as a flying laboratory, and with good reason....In development for over 12 years, the single-seat aircraft has a wingspan greater than the Boeing 747 yet weighs no more than your average car. It has the power of a small motorcycle but can achieve altitudes of 28,000 feet. The aircraft's body is composed of advanced carbon-fiber sheets three times lighter than paper, 17,000 solar cells that can convert sunlight into electricity with 22% efficiency, 16 LED landing-lights which consume less power than two bedside lamps, as well as utilizing 4 energy-efficient motors, protective resins and energy-dense batteries. Although the Si2 is capable of flying at 28,000 feet, its ambitions are more down-to-earth. When asked what were some of the main goals of the project, Victoire Margairaz, a Media Relations Officer for Solar Impulse, replied via email: “to demonstrate that clean technologies...have the potential to change lives, societies and future markets in an unprecedented way.” She went on to say, “Our primary purpose is not to revolutionize industries, but the way in which people think about energy and clean technologies...All the technologies developed by our partners, such as electrical motors with 97% efficiency, LED lamps...extremely efficient insulation foam that can reduce energy consumption for houses, light materials, high energy density batteries and ultra-thin solar cells, can be used on the ground to contribute to a cleaner and more sustainable world.” It seems that the main objective of Solar Impulse isn't in the air, but on the ground. In fact, the company website has a list of innovative technologies used in the aircraft along with their “Application on the ground.” For example, in partnership with Solvay, Solar Impulse developed a protective resin which is used to shield the aircraft's cells but can potentially be used for “Domestic roof solar cells which last longer and are adaptable to more areas.” Then there's the high-density thermal insulation foam, created jointly with Solvay and Covestro, which is used to insulate the Si2 cockpit and can one day be utilized in “Walls, windows and doorways...to seal air leaks in buildings.” It's this combination of creativity and functionality that makes the Solar Impulse 2 so intriguing. Successes And Setbacks When questioned about the advantages of solar power compared to other renewable energies such as wind, bio-fuel and electric, Victoire Margairaz answered that the Si2 is “able to store solar energy accumulated during the daytime flight in order to spend the night flying. Achieving perpetual flight is what makes it unique.” As the 5 day oceanic journey from Japan to Hawaii proved, in theory the Si2 is capable of flying forever, but in reality the aircraft has its share of obstacles. “One of the main challenges is the human factor,” wrote Margairaz, “i.e. pilot’s sustainability. No sleep is permitted whilst the plane is flying over populated areas.... Another challenge is the weather...This is due to the airplane’s light weight but also to its huge wingspan.” The Si2 has made significant advances over its predecessor regarding such challenges. Informs Margairaz: “...we have a more reliable aircraft with numerous safety systems and leak-proof electrical circuits in order to fly in humid conditions. Finally, we have a form of autopilot, that we call Stability Augmentation System (SAS)...so that the pilot will be allowed to rest.” While Solar Impulse has taken great strides towards sustainable air travel, any plans to commercialize solar-powered flight is still far off. “The aviation industry is well aware of its need to change, but the switch to zero fuel cannot be done quite as drastically as with Solar Impulse,” stated Margairaz in her email exchange. “Intermediate steps are needed....Aviation will most likely be the final means of transportation to stop using fuel.” For now the Si2's potential is more aspiration than achievement, but that's the whole point. As Bertrand Piccard explained on his company website: “Solar Impulse was not built to carry passengers, but to carry messages. We want to demonstrate the importance of the pioneering spirit....” Just as Steve Jobs helped to raise the profile of Apple and Elon Musk is currently doing for Tesla, Picard and Borschberg may do the same for Solar Impulse and the future of sustainable energy. When questioned about the leadership of these two Swiss pioneers, Victoire Margairaz had this to say: “By pushing back the boundaries of the possible, going into the unknown and taking on a project deemed unfeasible by industry experts, Bertrand Piccard and André Borschberg want to support concrete actions for sustainability and show that the world can be run on clean technologies.” As Solar Impulse 2 prepares to complete its circuit of the earth, the aircraft symbolizes the concrete potential of
renewable energy.
This week the Solar Impulse 2 completed the 11th leg of its journey, taking off from Phoenix, Arizona and landing in Tulsa, Oklahoma after an 18 hour flight. But the experimental Swiss aircraft has a far more ambitious goal than crossing from one U.S. state to another: to circumnavigate the globe using only the power of the sun. Zero fuel. Zero emissions. 100% clean energy. Around The World In Sustainable Ways Founded by André Borschberg and Bertrand Piccard, both of whom alternately pilot the aircraft, the privately financed project took off in 2015 with the aim of “flying around the world in a solar airplane to promote clean technologies,” according to the company website. The ambitious voyage began in Abu Dhabi on March 9, 2015, and since then the plane has covered a distance of 27,000 km, logged in 351 hours of flight time, produced 7,690 kWh of solar energy, and set several FAI (Fédération Aéronautique Internationale) records. Since its initial departure, the Si2 has visited India, Myanmar, China, Japan and most recently the United States, with the aim of heading to Europe and eventually returning to Abu Dhabi, thus completing its circumnavigation of the world. Of the Si2's many accomplishments, the biggest is perhaps crossing the Pacific Ocean from Japan to Hawaii, a journey which took 5 consecutive days and nights using only the energy stored in its batteries. As stated on the company website, the record-breaking 117 hour flight gives a clear message that “everybody could use the same technologies on the ground to halve our world’s energy consumption, save natural resources and improve our quality of life.” As Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said to the United Nations in 2013, Solar Impulse represents “A giant step forward...sending a strong message to people around the world.” So, exactly what kind of technologies power the Si2 and how much promise do they hold for the future?
Flying High—Aiming Low Successor to the original Solar Impulse (which itself holds eight world records including the first ever solar plane to fly through the night), the Si2 is often described as a flying laboratory, and with good reason....In development for over 12 years, the single-seat aircraft has a wingspan greater than the Boeing 747 yet weighs no more than your average car. It has the power of a small motorcycle but can achieve altitudes of 28,000 feet. The aircraft's body is composed of advanced carbon-fiber sheets three times lighter than paper, 17,000 solar cells that can convert sunlight into electricity with 22% efficiency, 16 LED landing-lights which consume less power than two bedside lamps, as well as utilizing 4 energy-efficient motors, protective resins and energy-dense batteries. Although the Si2 is capable of flying at 28,000 feet, its ambitions are more down-to-earth. When asked what were some of the main goals of the project, Victoire Margairaz, a Media Relations Officer for Solar Impulse, replied via email: “to demonstrate that clean technologies...have the potential to change lives, societies and future markets in an unprecedented way.” She went on to say, “Our primary purpose is not to revolutionize industries, but the way in which people think about energy and clean technologies...All the technologies developed by our partners, such as electrical motors with 97% efficiency, LED lamps...extremely efficient insulation foam that can reduce energy consumption for houses, light materials, high energy density batteries and ultra-thin solar cells, can be used on the ground to contribute to a cleaner and more sustainable world.” It seems that the main objective of Solar Impulse isn't in the air, but on the ground. In fact, the company website has a list of innovative technologies used in the aircraft along with their “Application on the ground.” For example, in partnership with Solvay, Solar Impulse developed a protective resin which is used to shield the aircraft's cells but can potentially be used for “Domestic roof solar cells which last longer and are adaptable to more areas.” Then there's the high-density thermal insulation foam, created jointly with Solvay and Covestro, which is used to insulate the Si2 cockpit and can one day be utilized in “Walls, windows and doorways...to seal air leaks in buildings.” It's this combination of creativity and functionality that makes the Solar Impulse 2 so intriguing. Successes And Setbacks When questioned about the advantages of solar power compared to other renewable energies such as wind, bio-fuel and electric, Victoire Margairaz answered that the Si2 is “able to store solar energy accumulated during the daytime flight in order to spend the night flying. Achieving perpetual flight is what makes it unique.” As the 5 day oceanic journey from Japan to Hawaii proved, in theory the Si2 is capable of flying forever, but in reality the aircraft has its share of obstacles. “One of the main challenges is the human factor,” wrote Margairaz, “i.e. pilot’s sustainability. No sleep is permitted whilst the plane is flying over populated areas.... Another challenge is the weather...This is due to the airplane’s light weight but also to its huge wingspan.” The Si2 has made significant advances over its predecessor regarding such challenges. Informs Margairaz: “...we have a more reliable aircraft with numerous safety systems and leak-proof electrical circuits in order to fly in humid conditions. Finally, we have a form of autopilot, that we call Stability Augmentation System (SAS)...so that the pilot will be allowed to rest.” While Solar Impulse has taken great strides towards sustainable air travel, any plans to commercialize solar-powered flight is still far off. “The aviation industry is well aware of its need to change, but the switch to zero fuel cannot be done quite as drastically as with Solar Impulse,” stated Margairaz in her email exchange. “Intermediate steps are needed....Aviation will most likely be the final means of transportation to stop using fuel.” For now the Si2's potential is more aspiration than achievement, but that's the whole point. As Bertrand Piccard explained on his company website: “Solar Impulse was not built to carry passengers, but to carry messages. We want to demonstrate the importance of the pioneering spirit....” Just as Steve Jobs helped to raise the profile of Apple and Elon Musk is currently doing for Tesla, Picard and Borschberg may do the same for Solar Impulse and the future of sustainable energy. When questioned about the leadership of these two Swiss pioneers, Victoire Margairaz had this to say: “By pushing back the boundaries of the possible, going into the unknown and taking on a project deemed unfeasible by industry experts, Bertrand Piccard and André Borschberg want to support concrete actions for sustainability and show that the world can be run on clean technologies.” As Solar Impulse 2 prepares to complete its circuit of the earth, the aircraft symbolizes the concrete potential of
renewable energy.
