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SOLAR
POWER ON THE RIVER MURRAY (WATERWAY)
The
Prince Alfred College - Westpac Sunboat II was designed
and constructed by students and staff at Prince Alfred
College in Adelaide. She utilises our most natural
energy resource - the sun. The story of Sunboat II
begins on January 1, 1993. On this day the PAC-Ford
Sunboat I completed a 2000 kilometre journey on the
River Murray.
Having battled severe weather conditions for many weeks,
the team finally landed at the Murray Mouth.
The Prince Alfred College team achieved its goal of
setting a new world record for a solar powered boat on
an inland waterway. Checks with the Shell Book of Firsts
and the Guinness Book of Records and other sources at
the time, indicated that Sunboat 1 and its crew achieved
the goal with three records:
-
1.
the longest trip on an inland waterway by a solar
powered boat
-
2.
the largest solar powered boat in the world
-
3.
the first solar powered catamaran to be designed and
constructed in Australia.
The
journey was recorded on the Inland Rivers National
Marathon Register by the Signal Point River Murray
Interpretive Centre at Goolwa. In March 1993 Prince
Alfred College was presented an Advance Australia
Award at Government House for its work in the
development of Solar power. South Australian Maritime
Museums have expressed the desire for the boat to become
a permanent part of their collections.
PRINCE
ALFRED COLLEGE - WESTPAC SUNBOAT II
The
success and interest in Sunboat I encouraged Prince
Alfred College staff and students to design and
construct Sunboat II. The project is the largest of its
kind to be undertaken by an educational institution in
S.A., Australia and possibly the world.
The
craft represents a major improvement of an already very
successful project which gained a world record and an
Advance Australia Award in 1992-93. The new design is
seen by some people as the most advanced Solar boat of
its kind in the world. (Certainly the largest.) The
design generated at the school is unique and may point
the way to the future for this type of craft.
The
final design was arrived at after many variations were
created and tested on computer. One of the students
involved in this design process wants to become a Naval
Architect, and has already taken part in work experience
of this nature.
The
"state of the art" electronics were initially
computer designed. A group of students converted the
design to printed circuit boards and then completed
wiring and assembly. The 11.3m (37') x 5.5m (18')
tri-hulled boat is powered by the energy generated from
1728 solar cells.
Construction
of the boat involved sophisticated construction methods
and has resulted in a boat of great strength, light
weight and maximum in-built buoyancy for safety.
The hulls of the boat were constructed from hi-tech
materials which included Divinycell fabrics - made from
kevlar and carbon fibre - requiring highly specialised
fibre glassing techniques incorporating polyester, epoxy
resins and special adhesives. Some of these materials
are used in the manufacture of submarines at Port
Adelaide.
Students
were able to develop new skills in hi-tech areas such as
computer aided design (CAD), aluminium and stainless
steel fabrication, electronics, photo voltaic power
application, modern boat building methods, boat design,
modern plastics, lateral thinking and problem solving,
plus the traditional skills of woodwork, metalwork and
drafting.
Once
the actual voyage commenced, everyone was focused on
creating a new world record run for a solar powered
boat. The trip was designed to provide students with the
opportunity to practice navigation, steer a straight
course, avoid snags, reefs, correctly operate 2 way
radios, operate and check on-board computers, take the
boat through locks and correctly moor the boat each
night. Social aspects included learning to live in a
confined space and interacting with others in a
positive, helpful manner. Every boy taking part in the
voyage had to first achieve a boat operator's licence
and pass a practical boat skills course.
One
of the unique aspects of this venture was the way staff
and students worked together as a team. Anyone with a
good idea was encouraged to contribute. The
development of the project and organisation of the
journey was coordinated by Mr Malcolm Gray, Head of the
Art and Design Department at Prince Alfred College.
Assisting him in this role were staff members, Phil
McLaughlin, Peter Sillett and Garry Simcock.
The
boat has accommodation for six people, full headroom, a
galley, toilet, solar powered refrigeration, and is
equipped with a satellite phone - which brings an
everyday reality into the solar powered equation. The
boat has been designed so it can be trailed on the road.
This again presented another range of problems that had
to be overcome. (Everybody will look at this one as it
goes by on a 12m trailer.)
The
plan of action involved taking the boat to Yarrawonga
and travelling the 2,200 kilometres to Goolwa in world
record time. To achieve this the river needed an
increased water level above pool height - but not too
much - or the boat would not get under bridges along the
river. The boat had to have to be taken out of the water
at Yarrawonga to transport it around the weir, then
reassembled to continue to Lock 26 where it was again
removed from the water to by-pass the lock which was
being reconstructed.
Once
at Goolwa the boat was turned around and travelled back
up stream, stopping at major towns to enable people to
view the boat and gain some idea of what a solar powered
boat has to offer now and in the future.
The
trip began on 1st December, 1995, and ended on January
8th, 1996. The voyage lasted a total of 38 days and
covered a distance of 2,507km.
The
advantages of a Solar Powered Boat:
-
No
pollution!
-
Minimal
running costs!
-
Minimal
noise!
-
Power
cells guaranteed for 10 years!
-
Power
cells can last for 20-25 years!
-
No
impact on fragile environment!
STATISTICS
ABOUT SUNBOAT II
-
main
hull: 11.28m (37') long, 2.35m (8') wide
-
small
hulls: 9.3m (30.5') long
-
assembled
boat: 5.49m (18') wide
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solar
panels: 1728 solar cells
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motor:
36 volt
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steering:
hydraulic steering
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accommodation:
6 berth with 1.8m (6'2") headroom, galley,
toilet, hand-basin, solar powered refrigeration,
solar powered lighting
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communications:
2 way radio, Satellite telephone
Prime
Sponsor of the Prince Alfred College - Westpac
Sunboat II
Westpac
Bank
Westpac
was the first Bank to be established in Australia in
1817. Since that time, Westpac has guided and
supported the development of industry throughout
Australia. Westpac in SA has shown particular
support for high technology industries in recent
times. Our commitment to technological development
is continuing through the sponsorship of projects
such as the Prince Alfred College - Westpac Sunboat
II. Westpac congratulates the students, teachers,
parents and friends of PAC who have worked hard to
ensure the success of this project. May your journey
be world record breaking!
The
Prince Alfred College Council, Staff & Students also
thank the following sponsors to the project:
ACRILIX
PLASTICS
ALLIED
TECHNOLOGIES PTY LTD
AUSTRALIAN
SATELLITE & COMMUNICATION SERVICES
AUSTRALITE
DOORS & WINDOWS
AUTO
INSTRUMENTS
BALDOR
MOTORS AND DRIVES
BANNER
HARDMART
BAROSSA
VALLEY ESTATE (BAROSSA WINES)
BOB
SPROTT FASTENERS
BRICE
METALS
CAMEC
CAPRAL
ALUMINIUM
CIBA
CLARKE
PETROLEUM
CLIPSAL
COCA
COLA BOTTLERS
COOPERS
BREWERY
CSR
SOFTWOODS
D.J.C.
AGENCIES
DIVINYCELL
INTERNATIONAL PTY LTD
DUNLOP
FLEXIBLE FOAMS (THE FOAM CENTRE)
DURACELL
EAGLE
MARINE ENGINEERING
ENTECH
ENERGY
SOLUTIONS
ETSA
OUTBOARD
MARINE CORP (AUST) - EVINRUDE
FIBER
GLASS INTERNATIONAL
FLOAT
PAC
FRIDGE
MATE
G.N.B
TECHNOLOGY (MARSHALL BATTERIES)
GLASCRAFT
MARINE
GOULDING
PUBLIC RELATIONS
HANIMEX/FUJI
FILM
HY-DRIVE
ENGINEERING PTY LTD
J.T.A.
AUSTRALIA (POLAROID)
KELLOGG
(AUST) PTY LTD
LEONARDS
POULTRY (POULET FRAIS PTY LTD)
MAKITA
MAUGHAN
THIEM MOTOR CO PTY LTD
MAXCO
INDUSTRIES (PHIL RUNGIE AGENCIES)
MOMENTS
FOREVER PHOTOGRAPHICS
MT
LOFTY SPRING WATER
NATIONAL
MUTUAL
NEC
OPTUS
PREMIER
ART SUPPLIES PTY LTD
PROTEC
PAINTS
QUIN
MARINE
RIVER
MURRAY CHARTS
RODAQUIP
(UNIDEN)
S.A.
TRAILER & CHASSIS EQUIPMENT
SAVAGE
BOATS
SIEMENS
SOLAR INDUSTRIES CALIFORNIA
SHOWA
SOLAR ENERGY SINGAPORE
SOLAR
POWER ASSOCIATION
SPORTS
MARINE
SPRINT
GRAPHICS
SWIFT
PRINTING
TRANCIEVER
SERVICES
TREG
TRAILERS
TRIM'S
MENSWEAR
TRITON
DESIGN & MANUFACTURING
WARWICK
WILSON TOYOTA
WESTPAC
BANKING CORPORATION
WIA
(WELDING INDUSTRIES OF AUST.)
Contact
Prince Albert College: pactech@nexus.edu.au
CONTACT:
nelson@solarnavigator.net
07905 147709 (UK)
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