How to Use Car Parts for Solar Power
Equipment specifically designed for solar power is expensive. The trick is to buy something that's been mass-produced for something else and then adapt it to solar energy creation. By using junk car parts, it is possible to build a complete solar powered system that can generate 1 kilowatt of electricity and 10 kilowatts of heat for around $2,000. Put simply, this process involves the reconfiguring of salvaged old cars parts into a simple Organic Rankine Cycle, or ORC, engine that runs on the heat of the sun.
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Things You'll Need
- Power steering pumps
- Alternator
- Radiator
- Parabolic troughs
- Piping sourced from plumbing suppliers
- Traction batteries
- Glycol automotive anti-freeze fluid
- Refrigerant, such as the R134 found in a car's air conditioner
- Absorption chiller, similar to the propane powered refrigerators in RVs
Instructions
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Solar Generator: System Overview
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Parabolic troughs are a curved, mirrored construct used to reflect direct sunlight onto piping containing a fluid running the length of the trough, carefully positioned at the focal point of the reflectors.
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Circulating through the pipes is a thermal absorption fluid such as glycol, which reaches temperatures of up to 300 degrees Fahrenheit. This fluid then passes through a heat exchanger, where it transfers its heat to a working fluid, or refrigerant, that vaporizes and spins turbines in the ORC.
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The turbines generate about 1,000 watts to charge a bank of batteries. The refrigerant is then cooled, recovering heat to make hot water for domestic use or to power an absorption process chiller, similar to the propane-powered refrigerators found in RVs.
Adapting Car Parts Into A Solar Generator
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Power steering pumps are utilized as both the feed pump and steam turbine.
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A radiator serves as the engine's heat exchanger, cooling the refrigerant before a power-steering pump returns the fluid to the boiler.
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An alternator is used to generate electricity.
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Tips & Warnings
Power-steering pumps, alternators and radiators, including less-expensive reconditioned ones, are easy to come by and can be sourced from car salvage yards.
A link to a detailed study of the theory, construction and testing of this solar powered generator can be found in the resource section.
Due diligence and care is required when working with chemical compounds at high temperatures.
References
Resources
- Photo Credit old engine image by John Sfondilias from Fotolia.com
