I live in Chicago and I walk past these trash cans every day that have a large solar cell on the top of them. These trash cans are supposed to collect energy which runs a trash compactor inside. This theoretically results in more room for more trash which means the city can spend less money picking up garbage.

My instinct tells me that this plan doesn't work. I just want to ask the community what your thoughts are about this.

The trash cans are in downtown Chicago, surrounded by skyscrapers. Do solar cells need direct sunlight in order to be able to generate a usable level of energy? I can't see the cells getting more than 3 hours a day of usable sunlight.

Also, the solar cells are covered with a plastic shell to protect the cells from dirt, grime, etc. However, the shells are thereby dirty which further inhibits solar energy from reaching the cells.

Is this idea technically feasible in the "hostile" environment that these trash compactors are in?

A little tid-bit on the side - I had a college professor once tell me that he worked for an oil company building a solar array to power radios that would go on oil rigs. A problem they had was bird feces. Apparently bird waste is high in uric acid which would stain the plastic covering of the cells, thereby reducing the amount of energy that could get to the cells. There's lots of pigeons in Chicago, although I've never seen one perched on a trash can :).

I live in Chicago and I walk past these trash cans every day that have a large solar cell on the top of them. These trash cans are supposed to collect energy which runs a trash compactor inside. This theoretically results in more room for more trash which means the city can spend less money picking up garbage.

My instinct tells me that this plan doesn't work. I just want to ask the community what your thoughts are about this.

The trash cans are in downtown Chicago, surrounded by skyscrapers. Do solar cells need direct sunlight in order to be able to generate a usable level of energy? I can't see the cells getting more than 3 hours a day of usable sunlight.

Also, the solar cells are covered with a plastic shell to protect the cells from dirt, grime, etc. However, the shells are thereby dirty which further inhibits solar energy from reaching the cells.

Is this idea technically feasible in the "hostile" environment that these trash compactors are in?

A little tid-bit on the side - I had a college professor once tell me that he worked for an oil company building a solar array to power radios that would go on oil rigs. A problem they had was bird feces. Apparently bird waste is high in uric acid which would stain the plastic covering of the cells, thereby reducing the amount of energy that could get to the cells. There's lots of pigeons in Chicago, although I've never seen one perched on a trash can :).

edit: spec sheet for the BigBelly compactor

I live in Chicago and I walk past these trash cans every day that have a large solar cell on the top of them. These trash cans are supposed to collect energy which runs a trash compactor inside. This theoretically results in more room for more trash which means the city can spend less money picking up garbage.

My instinct tells me that this plan doesn't work. I just want to ask the community what your thoughts are about this.

The trash cans are in downtown Chicago, surrounded by skyscrapers. Do solar cells need direct sunlight in order to

I live in Chicago and I walk past these trash cans every day that have a large solar cell on the top of them. These trash cans are supposed to collect energy which runs a trash compactor inside. This theoretically results in more room for more trash which means the city can spend less money picking up garbage.

My instinct tells me that this plan doesn't work. I just want to ask the community what your thoughts are about this.

The trash cans are in downtown Chicago, surrounded by skyscrapers. Do solar cells need direct sunlight in order to be able to generate a usable level of energy? I can't see the cells getting more than 3 hours a day of usable sunlight.

Also, the solar cells are covered with a plastic shell to protect the cells from dirt, grime, etc. However, the shells are thereby dirty which further inhibits solar energy from reaching the cells.

Is this idea technically feasible in the "hostile" environment that these trash compactors are in?

A little tid-bit on the side - I had a college professor once tell me that he worked for an oil company building a solar array to power radios that would go on oil rigs. A problem they had was bird feces. Apparently bird waste is high in uric acid which would stain the plastic covering of the cells, thereby reducing the amount of energy that could get to the cells. There's lots of pigeons in Chicago, although I've never seen one perched on a trash can :).