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Video: TNO expert discusses outlook for future development of solar vehicles

Bonna Newmann
Image: pv magazine
One of the biggest contradictions of the green transition is the use of fossil energy for cooling, while at the same time complaining about global warming.
Unlike heating in cold climates, which is really necessary for survival, and thanks to which humans have inhabited cooler climate zones on earth for millennia, cooling is a newly invented luxury service, without which it was only 50 years ago that it was perfect.
A good example is the automotive industry.
Engineers have worked hard to improve the efficiency of internal combustion engines. For each 100 g of fuel consumption, the cut-off has been reported as a major achievement.
And then the driver calmly switches on the air conditioner, with which fuel consumption jumps up by at least a liter.
In a cold climate, every car with an internal combustion engine works like a cogeneration plant — mechanical energy drives the car forward and the residual heat heat warms the cabin. At the same time, in a warm climate, people are sitting in traffic jams in the sun and simply burning fossil fuels to drive around the air conditioner and complaining about heat waves.
It would be logical to stop this counterproductive behavior and ban fossil-powered air conditioning.
This would create real demand for electric cars where they would really benefit the most. And of course, they could be charged with solar energy in this climate.