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Solar Roof Info for 2023 Prius Prime

Discussion in 'Gen 5 Prius Main Forum' started by drash, Mar 28, 2023.

  1. drash

    drash Senior Member

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    The Japanese website car.watch.impress.co.jp (Car Watch) has some info and the maker of the glass solar roof.

    新型「プリウスPHEV」にカネカの結晶シリコン太陽電池を採用 - Car Watch

    Partial translation:
    "Kaneka's Crystalline Silicon Solar Cell Adopted for New Prius PHEV

    March 28, 2023 Announcement

    [​IMG]

     Kaneka announced on March 28 that it has adopted a crystalline silicon solar cell developed by Kaneka, which achieved the world's highest conversion efficiency of 26.7%, for the roof glass of Toyota's new Prius PHEV. bottom.

     The crystalline silicon solar cell adopted this time is a heterojunction back contact type that combines heterojunction technology and back contact technology, and boasts the world's highest level of conversion efficiency. A design close to that of

     Heterojunction technology is a technology that joins semiconductor materials with different physical properties. It can reduce defects by combining crystalline silicon and amorphous silicon, and can improve conversion efficiency by combining materials with different wavelengths of light that can be converted into electricity. . Back-contact technology is a technology that creates electricity only on the back side of the solar cell. By concentrating the electrodes on the back side, the light-receiving surface can be widened.

     In addition to the high conversion efficiency and excellent design of the company's proprietary technology, it was highly evaluated for its curved surface design that made it possible to install it on the car body. Batteries were adopted. In the future, the company will continue to strengthen proposals for automotive solar cells as a solution that contributes to driving distance extension and carbon dioxide reduction, aiming for further adoption in electric vehicles. We also intend to contribute to the realization of a carbon-neutral society through the spread of solar cells in a wide range of applications, such as contributing to ZEH and ZEB in buildings."

    The older 2017 Solar Roof was something like 22.5% using Panasonic HIT solar cells (NEDO, Sharp, and Toyota to Begin Public Road Trials of Electrified Vehicles Equipped with High-efficiency Solar Batteries | Corporate | Global Newsroom | Toyota Motor Corporation Official Global Website) and put out 180W. The solar roof on the 2023 Prius Prime is the same size as the older 2017 Prius Prime so the new solar roof should put out about 188W or close to 190W. Pretty impressive since cheap solar panels on a roof are about 15 - 18% while top performing ones (read: more expensive ones) get about 21 - 22%.
     
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  2. dbstoo

    dbstoo Senior Member

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    I'm looking forward to evaluating that option for my needs.
     
  3. Trollbait

    Trollbait It's a D&D thing

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  4. drash

    drash Senior Member

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    All-new Toyota Prius Plug-in Hybrid
    European 2023 Prius PHV site says 8 kilometers per day, so about a 31% improvement or 236W if the efficiency in electronics has improved. These are optimum conditions so extrapolate that to the 2.9 km average you may get 3.8 km (~2.4 miles) on average. I highly doubt it'll put out 236W.
     
  5. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    it's a tough one, because it depends on latitude, sun longevity and clear skies
     
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  6. Trollbait

    Trollbait It's a D&D thing

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    And its price.
     
  7. E-GINO

    E-GINO Active Member

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    My 2017 Prius PHV gets around 7 km of energy per day, in summer with correct exposition and clean roof.
    The solar charge system fitted in my Prius is a bit cumbersome: the energy coming from the solar cells flows into a small NiMh battery placed under the aft armrest.
    When such battery is full, HSD is temporary awakened (probably due to the need to activate the DC/DC converter) and the NiMH battery is emptied into the LiIon traction battery.
    I know it because the anti theft system fitted in my car had to be patched by its manufacturer due to false alarms provoked by HSD temporary awakening.
    Anyway I am curious about the solar charge system has been implented in the 2023 Prius PHV w/ solar roof. Did Toyota followed the same design of the MY 2017?
     
  8. dbstoo

    dbstoo Senior Member

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    I'm not looking for a cost effective solution. What appeals to me about it is the 1 mile of charge per hour of sunlight. That's assuming that the car travels 4.5 miles per kWh like my 2017 model does. 200 watts would be enough to recharge after a 2 mile drive to the dentist. He takes up to 2 hours for a visit. :(

    The good side is that before the novacaine wore off I'd have at least enough power to get home even if there is a power failure, rationing of gasoline/electricity or restrictions on charging from home solar panels or from home backup generators. All of those situations have come to pass or have been discussed / proposed by the California utilities and government.

    I believe that at some point in the not so distant future it will be quite advantageous to have a mobile power source that is independent of the whims of big business and governments.
     
  9. Trollbait

    Trollbait It's a D&D thing

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    Well, the traction battery is now where the solar was in the previous model. Maybe it directly charges the main battery now.
     
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  10. ChapmanF

    ChapmanF Senior Member

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    I guess it won't matter to me, but I'm rooting for another five billion years or so.
     
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  11. E-GINO

    E-GINO Active Member

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    I wrote “aft” armrest while I should have wrote “forward” armrest - I am sorry english is my second language- anyway considering the amount of “costs-wise” modifications implemented in 2023 Prius your hypothesis makes a lot of sense…
     
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  12. Maxwell61

    Maxwell61 Active Member

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    The European presentation, now old (they talk of 69 km range and 19 g/km CO2, obsolete data), shows that the buffer solar roof battery is gone and the 12V battery (?) charged by the solar roof while driving, moved in the trunk. See the first pic with the gen 4 layout and the 2nd relative to the gen 5:

    1645480185_prius3.jpg.309de20c37e88d4186a9079ec5fb51e6.jpg

    1900857776_prius4.jpg.94116254d0128a0e9d5710b08b44232f.jpg

    @E-GINO : Laevus is saying the old EU rated spec for gen 4 solar roof was 5 km, do you remember it? 8,7 km over 5 km will give some 300 W for the gen 5.
    P.S. The same 5 km is mentioned by Toyota IT newsroom:
    TOYOTA PRIUS PLUG-IN: OGGI IN OFFERTA LANCIO A SOLI 34.900 EURO

    This is the full video:



    I want to add a consideration: Homologation tests EPA or WLTP are unlikely to use the charge to the 12V given by the solar roof during driving, which is expected, with all the electric devices on board, to amount to something. I'm expecting some real life better FE for this.
     
    #12 Maxwell61, Mar 29, 2023
    Last edited: Mar 29, 2023
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  13. Trollbait

    Trollbait It's a D&D thing

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    Well, I thought Toyota had used the NiMH battery from the hybrid for the solar system, and that went under the rear seat.
     
  14. E-GINO

    E-GINO Active Member

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    It is nice to know that now the buffer battery is gone: less weight, less complications and provably better efficiency due to direct flow… still I like to know how exactly it has been implemented.

    @Maxwell61:in merit to my records of MY 2017 solar roof, read here if you please
     
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  15. McCarthy

    McCarthy Junior Member

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    That's cute.

    My solar roof puts out 465 watts.



    upload_2023-3-30_0-3-3.png
     
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  16. dbstoo

    dbstoo Senior Member

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    That sounds interesting. I'm assuming that you are feeding the traction battery of the car. Is that correct? How about a few specs? Please?

    Did you do the upgrade, or was that a professional work?
    Which car are you using? The, year, model and make is sufficient.
    Did you have to change the car's charging system firmware, hardware or software?
    How many watt hours does your installation provide to the battery pack per day? (after losses)
    What's the amps at the quoted 465 watt output?
    What is the surface area of the installation, in sq feet?
    What's the output (volts, amps, watts.. any two is fine) when partially shaded?
    Did it impact your car's aerodynamics?
    How many miles per kWh were you able to travel before the add-on?
    How many miles per kWh are you traveling now?
    Did the wind noise go up, or did it go down after the install?
    Did the passenger compartment temperatures go up with the install, or did the temperatures go down due to the extra shade?
    What are you doing to protect the solar panels from heat, impact, etc?
    What's the weight of your aftermarket solar installation add? I would guess that there's mounting hardware, charger, cables, panels and probably a storage battery to store the low voltage energy for up converting to something the EV's charging circuit can use.

    Thanks!
     
  17. Gokhan

    Gokhan Senior Member

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    The problem with the solar-roof option is that it is only available on the XSE Premium, which has poor fuel efficiency and EV range because you can't get the 17" wheels with it; so, you are still far better off getting the SE trim with the 17" wheels instead.
     
  18. JoeBlack

    JoeBlack Member

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    That sounds really interesting. I will most likely go for solar roof, as I was bummed out I had to choose between blind spot monitoring, HUD, JBL, front beepers or no extra equipment and solar roof on 2016-2022 PHV model.
    On 2023 PHV, you probably can have pretty much everything and solar on top of that. That's nice, you won't have to sacrifice some feature to get another.
     
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  19. HoustonEvolution

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    Thats a great idea that needs to develop further. Unfortunately now, I just don't see it as practical for an average person who is looking to improve mpg. I guess the idea is that it will eventually be integrated from the start into cars. To replace this right now, I can't help but wonder what it would do to a car warranty. Not to mention ROI.
     
  20. Gokhan

    Gokhan Senior Member

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    If has the same area, then it will be 214 W.

    Nevertheless, I don't see the point of having the solar roof since you can't have the 17" tires with it, as they are not available on XSE Premium. Perhaps the solar roof can partially make up for the ~ 20%-lower efficiency and BEV range of the 19" tires of the XSE Premium trim.