Inflatable non-imaging non-tracking solar concentrator based solar powered electric ships

Abstract

A solar powered electric ship system comprises an electric ship, multiple inflatable barges, and multiple inflatable non-imaging non-tracking solar concentrator based concentrating photovoltaic systems. The entire system is configured with the multiple inflatable non-imaging non-tracking solar concentrator based concentrating photovoltaic systems mounted on the inflatable barges, and with the inflatable barges mechanically and electrically connected to the electric ship. When in operation, the electric ship dragged the barges to navigate together with it, and have the inflatable non-imaging non-tracking solar concentrator based photovoltaic system to power it. The configuration dramatically reduce the battery bank size of the electric ship and make the portable floating concentrating photovoltaic system ultra-high efficiency, extremely low cost, and super light.

Claims

1. An electric ship system comprises: an electric ship, multiple inflatable barges, and multiple inflatable non-imaging non-tracking solar concentrator based concentrating photovoltaic systems; the multiple inflatable non-imaging non-tracking solar concentrator based concentrating photovoltaic systems are mounted on the multiple inflatable barges; the multiple barges are connected mechanically and electrically to the said electric ship; wherein, the multiple inflatable barges are dragged by the said electric ship to navigate together with it to supply power to it in its navigation.

2. The electric ship of claim 1, comprises a battery bank, a inverter, a converter, a electric control unit and battery management system, and a propeller.

3. The inflatable non-imaging non-tracking solar concentrator based concentrating photovoltaic system of claim 1, comprises an electric charger, a inverter, a converter, a inflatable non-imaging non-tracking solar concentrator based concentrating photovoltaic unit array with multiple inflatable non-imaging non-tracking solar concentrator based concentrating photovoltaic units.

4. The inflatable non-imaging non-tracking solar concentrator based concentrating photovoltaic unit of claim 3, comprises an inflatable non-imaging non-tracking solar concentrator and a photovoltaic receiver integrated with a heat exchanger.

5. The inflatable non-imaging non-tracking solar concentrator of claim 4, is a balloon type concentrator made of transparent film and reflective film, with its upper part transparent and its lower part reflective, as well as a bottom aperture transparent.

6. The reflective lower part of the inflatable non-imaging non-tracking solar concentrator of claim 4, is inflated into a 3 dimensional Compound Parabolic Concentrator (CPC).

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

(1) The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and constitute a part of this specification, illustrate several embodiments of the invention and together with the description, serve to explain the principles of the invention.

(2) FIG. 1 is the prior art (John A. Duffie and William A. Beckman, Solar Engineering of Thermal Processes, 4th edition, pp 337-350, 2013) of a schematic drawing on construction of the Compound Parabolic Concentrator (CPC) concentrator, which introduces some key concepts such as acceptance half-angle θ.sub.c, focus of each of the parabolas, concentrator aperture, receiver, and axis of parabola.

(3) FIG. 2 is a schematic drawing of the inflatable non-imaging non-tracking concentrator which is the assembly of two clear membranes and a reflective membrane inflated into a CPC with a transparent cover on top and a transparent cover on bottom.

(4) FIG. 3 is the inflatable non-imaging non-tracking concentrator based concentrating photovoltaic unit with a photovoltaic receiver.

(5) FIG. 4 is the schematic diagram showing the principle for CPC to concentrate both beam light and diffuse light.

(6) FIG. 5 is the schematic configuration of the electric ship system powered by the inflatable non-imaging non-tracking solar concentrator based portable floating photovoltaic system.

(7) FIG. 6 is the inflatable barge equipped with the inflatable non-imaging non-tracking solar concentrator photovoltaic system.

(8) FIG. 7 is one of the configurations of the exemplary embodiments of the electric ship system powered by the inflatable non-imaging non-tracking solar concentrator based portable floating photovoltaic system.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

(9) Reference will now be made in detail to the present exemplary embodiments, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings. Wherever possible, the same reference numbers will be used throughout the drawings to refer to the same or like parts.

(10) Referring to FIG. 1, the prior art, a schematic drawing on construction of the CPC concentrator, which introduces some key concepts such as acceptance half-angle θ.sub.c, focus of each of the parabolas, concentrator aperture, receiver, and axis of parabola. The incident light, no matter beam light or diffuse light, as long as falling into the acceptance half-angle θ.sub.c, will be concentrated to the receiver.

(11) Referring to FIG. 2, the CPC 210 made of reflective membrane is covered with a transparent cover 220 on the top and covered with a transparent cover 230 on the bottom to form a sealed assembly with a gas gate on the top transparent cover. Then the assembly is inflated into a shape of CPC covered with a clear top and a bottom.

(12) Referring to FIG. 3, the inflatable non-imaging non-tracking solar concentrator indicated with 210, 220, 230, is integrated with the photovoltaic receiver 240 integrated with heat exchanger.

(13) Referring to FIG. 4, when in operation, both the beam light I.sub.b and the diffuse light I.sub.d are concentrated to the receiver, as long as both the I.sub.b and the I.sub.d fall in the half acceptance angle θ.sub.c of the CPC.

(14) Referring to FIG. 5, the electric ship system consists of two subsystems: (1) the electric ship subsystem 100 including the battery bank 110, inverter 120, converter 130, electric control unit and battery management 140, and electric propeller 150; (2) the barge subsystem 300 including the charger 310, inverter 320, converter 330, and inflatable non-imaging non-tracking solar concentrator array 200.

(15) Referring to FIG. 6, the configuration of the barge includes a inflatable rubber boat 300 and a inflatable non-imaging non-tracking solar concentrator based concentrating photovoltaic unit array 200.

(16) Referring to FIG. 7, the configuration of the entire electric ship system includes the electric ship itself 100, barges 300, and inflatable non-imaging non-tracking solar concentrator based concentrating photovoltaic unit array 200.

(17) When in operation, the electric ship drags the barges with photovoltaic systems to navigate together with it, and the barges serve as the power plants to supply power to the electric ship.

(18) From the description above, a number of advantages of the electric ship system become evident. The solar radiation collection areas of electric ships are extended with power generation barges which are floating and portable. The heavy and low efficiency flat plate photovoltaic panels are replaced with light and high efficiency concentrating photovoltaic units. The conventional rigid body solar concentrators are replaced by the inflatable solar concentrators. The inflatable solar concentrators are non-imaging and non-tracking, which are able to concentrate both beam light and diffuse light. In summary, the present invention discloses an ultra-high efficiency, extremely low cost and super light photovoltaic system to power heavy duty ships and other ships.

(19) In the preceding specification, various preferred embodiments have been described with reference to the accompanying drawings. It will, however, be evident that various other modifications and changes may be made thereto, and additional embodiments may be implemented, without departing from the broader scope of the invention as set forth in the claims that follow. The specification and drawings are accordingly to be regarded in an illustrative rather than restrictive sense.

(20) Other embodiments of the invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art from consideration of the specification and practice of the invention disclosed herein. It is intended that the specification and examples be considered as exemplary only, with the true scope and spirit of the invention being indicated by the following claims.