{"id":4541,"date":"2016-05-31T10:07:16","date_gmt":"2016-05-31T16:07:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ulprospector.com\/knowledge\/?p=4541"},"modified":"2022-04-18T08:35:04","modified_gmt":"2022-04-18T14:35:04","slug":"polymers-aiding-solar-impulse-2s-round-world-adventure","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ulprospector.ul.com\/4541\/polymers-aiding-solar-impulse-2s-round-world-adventure\/","title":{"rendered":"Polymers aiding Solar Impulse 2\u2019s round-the-world adventure"},"content":{"rendered":"

Solar Impulse 2 is much more than an airplane. The solar-powered marvel is, essentially, a flying materials lab. It\u2019s also an engineering and innovation showcase. And, in the eyes of its visionary creator, it aspires to be both a beacon of sustainability and an inspirational symbol of the promise of renewable energy.<\/p>\n

Late on May 21, this single-seater plane, made mostly of carbon fiber composites, arrived in Dayton, Ohio, after an 18-hour flight from Tulsa, Okla. Late on May 25 it arrived in Lehigh Valley, Pa., after a nearly 17-hour flight.\u00a0<\/b>Next stop is John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York, before embarking for Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates, on the final legs of its round-the-world mission, which started in March 2015.<\/p>\n

The Solar Impulse 2<\/h2>\n
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The Si2 boasts almost 50 international partners, including some top material suppliers who are contributing\u00a0to the plane’s high tech success.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
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Swiss boat builder\u00a0D\u00e9cision SA\u00a0developed a honeycomb structure of polymer-matrix composites to encapsulate the photovoltaic cells on\u00a0the Solar Impulse 2’s wings.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
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The pilot of the Impulse wears a flight suit made with Emana polyamide-based smart yarn from Solvay.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

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German company Covestro has developed a variety of products for the Solar Impulse, including a multilayer polycarbonate windscreen, durable coatings for the wings’ surfaces, insulated polyurethane foam for the cockpit, and insulating material for the cockpit door.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
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Belgian materials supplier Solvay Specialty Polymers contributed fifteen products used in over 6,000 of the Si2’s components.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

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The Si2 began a mission to fly around the world in March of 2015. It’s shown here\u00a0on a maintenance flight over Hawaii in March of 2016.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Solar Impulse began 17 years ago as a dream of Bertrand Piccard, a Swiss pilot, psychiatrist and adventurer who wanted to showcase the possibilities of renewable energy.<\/p>\n

Piccard went to all the major aircraft makers to seek their involvement in building an unbelievably lightweight, entirely solar-powered plane. They all declined or said it couldn\u2019t be done. But Piccard kept searching. Eventually he found an unlikely but willing partner \u2013 Swiss boat builder D\u00e9cision SA. A specialist in polymer-matrix composites, D\u00e9cision developed a honeycomb structure, sandwiched between layers of carbon fiber, that encapsulates the photovoltaic cells.<\/p>\n

In 2003, Piccard \u2013 who is now 58, chairman of Solar Impulse and still flying \u2013 connected with Andr\u00e9 Borschberg, a mechanical and thermodynamics engineer, entrepreneur and pilot who had flown fighter jets for the Swiss Air Force. Four years of research and two years of construction followed, with the first Solar Impulse plane, known as HB-SIA, making its maiden voyage in December 2009.<\/p>\n

Borschberg \u2013 the project\u2019s co-founder and CEO \u2013 flew the Si1 prototype for more than 26 hours in July 2010. He rose above 27,000 feet and recorded the first solar-powered night flight. That original Solar Impulse plane holds eight world records. But that was just the start.<\/p>\n

The team took what it learned and developed Solar Impulse 2 (Si2), a lighter-weight, more advanced version of the plane. Unveiled in April 2014, Si2 consists largely of carbon fiber, has a wingspan of 72 meters (or 236 feet \u2013 longer than that of a 747), yet weighs only 2,300 kilograms (or 5,100 pounds \u2013 about as much as an SUV). It is 25 meters (82 feet) long, and has 17,248 photovoltaic cells built into the wings that supply four electric motors with renewable energy. The solar cells recharge four lithium polymer batteries.<\/p>\n

These allow the aircraft \u2013 which travels at a speed of 30-60 mph \u2013 to fly at night and have virtually unlimited autonomy. When it flies, the Solar Impulse follows a pattern of soaring to 28,000 feet (8,534 meters) during the day, then using battery power as it glides down to lower elevations at slower speeds for much of the night. Last year it flew nonstop \u2013 at an average ground speed of 61 km\/h (38 mph) \u2013 for five days and nights, on its record-shattering trip from Japan to Hawaii.<\/p>\n

SolarImpulse.com<\/a> lists almost 50 partners in this very international project. Belgian materials supplier Solvay Specialty Polymers became a partner back in 2004. Germany\u2019s Covestro LLC has developed numerous materials for Si2. Swiss watchmaker Omega developed the low-energy instruments on board. Swedish engineering giant ABB and the Swiss elevator maker Schindler are key contributors. At various stages, the team has sourced honeycomb materials from Germany, carbon fiber from Japan, lithium polymer batteries from South Korea, and photovoltaic cells from California.<\/p>\n

Fifteen Solvay products are found in more than 6,000 components of Si2, including lightweight, high-strength plastics, films, fibers, lubricants and coatings. Its Halar ECTFE fluorinated film<\/a>, for example, provides a transparent, protective covering for the plane\u2019s solar cells.<\/p>\n

And Solvay\u2019s Emana polyamide-based smart yarn, coupled with a far infrared technology, is used in the pilot\u2019s flight suits. The material absorbs human body heat and re-emits it through the interaction of infrared waves with the body. This serves to reduce muscle fatigue and enhance muscle recovery thanks to bioactive minerals that stimulate the blood micro-circulation.<\/p>\n

Covestro, meanwhile, first engaged with Solar Impulse in 2010, back when it was still known as the Bayer MaterialScience unit of Germany chemicals giant Bayer AG. The unit spun off and rebranded itself last year.<\/p>\n

Si2 charged Covestro with designing and building the plane\u2019s cockpit. This was no easy task, given that the temperature outside the plane can hit – 40 degrees C and the pilots cannot afford to expend any energy on heating (or cooling) the cockpit. This structure needs to keep the single pilot safe and comfortable for up to several days at a time.<\/p>\n

Over the past six years, Covestro has developed and provided Si2 with various products that significantly reduce the weight of the plane, and play a number of other key roles:<\/p>\n