EcoQuad - Device for Sustainable Transport by Hybridization of Electricity and Photovoltaic Solar Energy

Abstract

Over the past decades, global warming has been widely discussed around the world. Along with the phenomenon itself, it is also discussed the fact that one of its main causes is the emission of polluting gases into the atmosphere, which in turn are produced by cars and other means of transportation. About the situation, it has become common for environmental issues to be explored and the tendency of large automobile companies to start the production of vehicles that do not use fossil fuels, in addition to seeking solutions also related to the format of these vehicles. However, such solutions have several flaws, because they are rarely accessible to the population, in addition to using different energy sources that are still harmful to the environment. Another obstacle that can be noted is the lack of interest of the population in other types of vehicles that are not common or convenient and that require some adaptability. New solutions must be created so that economic, social and ecological aspects are met. In this way, the development and execution of a personal car called EcoQuad is presented, whose purpose has an educational and political character, thus seeking to promote a new style of production based on the hybridization of electric and solar photovoltaic energy. As a scientific character, the development of this project aims to prove the ecological and efficient aspects that can be achieved together through the hybrid energy system described. Because it is a hybrid vehicle, powered by batteries and solar panels that work together, the cost benefit is superior to ordinary vehicles, because with the correct distribution of energy used from the battery bank and solar modules, vehicle maintenance will be more affordable and less frequent. For such an experiment to be possible to be executed, it is concluded the need to expand the technological nationalization, which would make the project commercially viable. The project was guided by teachers and executed by high school students from Colégio Puríssimo Coração de Maria, ICM Education Network, and was presented at the Brazilian Science and Engineering Fair (FEBRACE) in 2023, winning 1st place in the Engineering category and 4th place overall in the largest Science and Engineering Fair in Latin America.