For emergency power, after hurricanes, I made a concept 3-D mechanical model of a portable solar powered energy source. The unit could also be used as an educational tool, being towed to locations for demonstrations.
The features are as follows:
1. Array size: 1.5 k-Watt, 2 axis of motion, one of which is manually adjusted.
2. Off grid, on grid.
3. Battery pack size - 72 each of a 12 volt battery, with capacity of 88 amp hours (C20) = 76 kWatt-hours
Discussion: In September, one can get 209 kWatt-hours solar per month, or 6.9 kWatt-hours per day. Obviously, the pack can not be recharged with a days worth of sunshine. See the NREL website for Houston data. The battery pack can power a 3000 watt load, assuming 100% efficiency of DC to AC conversion, for 25 hours.
The following is a link to the 3-D model. -->Give it a moment to load. For examination, it is fully rotatable and zoomable.