New York City Leads the Nation With First Solar Powered Train
New York’s Stillwell Avenue Subway Station officially became the first
solar-powered train station in the country on October 3, according to Schott
Solar, the company that installed the solar modules, which light up the roof of
the Coney Island station.
“The MTA of New York should be congratulated for its forward thinking,” said
Dr.Udo Ungeheuer, Chairman of the Board of Schott, AG. “The solar roof that
covers the Stillwell Avenue Station should serve as a model for subway systems
around the world. As a global leader in technology, we are looking forward to
participating in the growth of the solar market and we’ll work to set
international benchmarks.”
Called “thin-film building-integrated photovoltaic (PV) solar components,” the
system blends seamlessly with the architecture of existing buildings. “The
Stillwell Avenue Station illustrates what can be done with photovoltaics today,”
says Steve Cohen, Product Manager, of SCHOTT’s Architectural Glass division.
“Solar systems no longer have to be bulky add-ons, they can become an integral
part of a structure.
The solar roof consists of 2,800 thin-film modules and covers a surface of
76,000 square feet. The system has a nominal power of approximately 210
kilowatts (kWp). This generates an annual output of 250,000 kilowatt hours (kWh)
that the train station uses to offset its own power needs. During the summer,
the system satisfies 2/3 of the station’s entire power demands. During the
winter, it supplies 1/6th of the electricity that the station requires. Because
they are semitransparent, the modules provide shade, yet still permit 20 to 25
percent of daylight to pass through, all of which reduces energy costs for
lighting the station.
The thin-film modules made of amorphous silicon are manufactured by Schott
Solar, Inc. Schott’s amorphous silicon thin-film solar panels were chosen in a
rigorous evaluation process based on a variety of criteria, including price of
the panels, cost of installation, power-generating efficiency and aesthetics.
The solar panels also had to meet stringent structural and maintenance
requirements such as the Dade County hurricane test.
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