This is more logical than it may seem. Solar panels comprise one part of the system that Honda hopes will be created to make a new generation of zero-emission, hydrogen-powered cars.
The company is unique among carmakers in that it already has an energy business. It makes generators for the home that use a tiny engine burning natural gas to provide domestic electricity and heating. Honda’s Home Energy Station, a newer prototype, would also be able to produce hydrogen, which could be used to run a fuel-cell car, such as its FCX Clarity.
Fuel-cell cars run on hydrogen, which combines with oxygen from the air to generate power. Water is the only by-product. However, large-scale production of fuel-cell cars is still many years away. Indeed, Honda doesn’t expect the FCX Clarity to hit the market until 2018.
Hydrogen-powered travel is likely to struggle to gain momentum because of the huge infrastructure it would require, such as hydrogen pipelines and filling stations. Yet Honda is doing its best to help the revolution along. Hence the solar business.
Soltec’s solar panels are made from a compound semiconductor that has been constructed from copper, indium, gallium and selenium, as opposed to the crystalline silicon typically used. The power-generation layer is one-fortieth the thickness of a human hair. They are not as efficient in electricity generation as the best crystalline silicon panels but they have certain advantages.
Join us on our
Share this page with your friends
on your favorite social network: