Defining it as basically as possible, solar panel efficiency simply means the amount of energy we get out of a panel after leaving it out in the sun. There a number of ways in which this can be measured. This process of measurement becomes very important because the solar panel efficiency determines its usage, popularity and success. So if you are planning to install a solar panel in your house, check out the facts about solar panel efficiency and you will have a better idea of what to expect from it.
Discover the Real Facts About Solar Panel Efficiency
Before the energy efficiency of the panel is measured, the entire energy consumption needs of the house must be measured. Once that is done, the proper solar power panel efficiency can be comprehended. Researchers have discovered that of the entire solar energy hitting the solar power panels, only 20% is transformed into electrical energy. When this energy is used up by the appliances, the efficiency further falls and at times it is seen to be even as low as 5%. This is a problem faced by many people who have installed solar panels at homes. However, with research and review being done constantly, this problem is being tackled.
The above mentioned data has, of course, been derived from laboratory results. It is therefore important to remember that the results can vary as conditions in the lab and at home are often very different. Solar panel efficiency can be more at a lab or at home, depending on the amount of energy consumed, the conditions under which they are used and so on.
The solar power panel efficiency also depends on the manufacturing company of the panels. Some companies produce better quality panels and they have better efficiency and vice-versa. So while buying the solar cell panel, you have to be very careful and select a panel that will give you maximum efficiency. Do some market research, ask your friends who have already installed solar power panels in their homes and you will get a better idea. Go online and try to look for user testimonials as they prove to be very useful.
So if you want to asses the correct solar cell panel efficiency, keep the above mentioned tips in mind. You will be able to find the best solar panels with the highest efficiency. Solar energy is the future and if you are planning to shift to it, you surely are making the right decision!
Interesting Facts About Solar Panels
There is no doubt that solar energy is the future of energy. There is no need to highlight the constant search mankind has endeavor for cleaner and more efficient ways to supply energy. And the sun, once again, has come to the rescue. The beneficial effects of the sun impact on every aspect of life on the planet, from the smallest most humble forms of life to human beings. Without the sun it would be impossible to sustain any form of life. And, even more, sunlight has increasingly become a source of cheap and clean energy. You can make your own solar panels, and start little by little to make yourself independent of an obliged supplier: the power company. Start with a device, a water heater, for instance, or heating for one room. Pretty soon you will feel confident enough, as you gain the experience, to attempt bigger plans, such as completely relying on the sun to cover all your energy needs.
Before you make your own solar panels, here are some facts on how solar energy works, how it is collected and storage. Solar cells, also called photovoltaic (PV), are the core of any sun-powered device. They shyly started to be seen in small devices like calculators, half a century ago. Yes, that long, amazing, right? Solar cells were first developed in 1958. Remember how we used to play by covering the cell with one hand, and the calculator would turn off. The same technology started to be used in satellites in outer space; to cover the supply needs of power for this man made space crafts. Solar cells can “capture” up to 1.000 watts of energy every square meter. A group of cells is called a solar panel.
Solar cells are made of semiconductors, a special type of element that has the property of releasing electrons when in presence of a source of energy, in this case, the rays of the sun. These free electrons will circulate, thus energy is produced. The stage that has proven most difficult to achieve is storage. So far, solar energy has been stored in batteries, like car batteries. Batteries have chemical substances that de-compose and release ions -electrically charged particles. As the energy is used, the substances inside the batteries turn back to their original chemical composition. This system has proven to be somewhat inefficient, due to the limited capacity batteries have. A large number of batteries would be required to store and supply energy to a regular family home, let alone bigger consumers, like a factory or a car. Hence, new ways of storing energy had to be developed.
First it was the sun that came to our rescue. Now, the water does. Yes, plain water has the capacity to store energy, basically based on the same principle batteries work: by decomposing a substance. In this case, water is decomposed in its two composing elements: oxygen and hydrogen. Then, these two gases can be recombined inside a battery, providing pollution free cheap energy.
Facts About Solar Energy – Little Known, Yet Interesting
Ever wished you could win more games of Trivial Pursuit? Or go on a long winning streak of some trivial game show? Well, you have to start your trivial knowledge somewhere, so how about we give you some interesting facts about solar energy for your first category? Let the facts begin.
Which country uses the most solar energy?
If you guessed the United States, you’re wrong. Britain? Nope, try again. Brazil? Not yet. Germany? Bingo. Ethiopia? Germany was the right answer.
In spite of its location way up above the equator and its relatively small population, Germany currently uses more solar energy than any other country. That blows holes in the common assumptions made in the northern states that solar energy isn’t a plausible local energy solution.
Was Albert Einstein involved with solar energy?
Of course, he was! Did you think the guy who defined the equation for energy wouldn’t know the facts about solar energy? In fact, though his work in solar energy was overshadowed by things like relativity and nuclear weapons, it had a large part to do with his Nobel Peace Prize for Science in 1921. Albert Einstein in fact was responsible for numerous solar experiments with early photovoltaic solar panels. The only question is whether this is what made his hair stand up in all directions.
Can raw solar energy, without any sort of power cells, really boil water?
Yes, it can. In fact, we’ve even known how to do it for a long time. In Africa, scientists have taught people how to sterilize water bottles by placing them on top of dark surfaces. But to get water to the point of boiling, all you need is one of those handy little solar cookers from the 18th century. Or, you can get a full solar oven if you’d rather. The solar oven was invented in 1830 by John Herschel, an astronomer.
Are Einstein’s photovoltaic panels still in use today?
No, but kind of yes. Photovoltaic solar panels are still used today, but in the 1950s they were given a silicon base and became much more efficient than they had been when Einstein was doing his research. Silicon is a product of the seemingly unlimited resource we call sand. It only takes 1 ton of silicon to produce enough photovoltaic cells to make as much electrical energy as can be made from 500,000 tons of coal. Further, you don’t make all kinds of air pollutants when you use silicon based photovoltaic solar panels, as you of course do make when you burn fossil fuels for electricity production.
How has inflation affected the cost of photovoltaic panels?
Are you kidding? After all of that hyperinflation during the 1970s? Actually, photovoltaic panels cost about 200% less than they did in the 1970s and are in some cases twice as efficient at the conversion of solar energy into electricity as they were in the 1970s. So you get about four times as much electricity for your money from photovoltaic panels now. Sounds like hyper deflation to me. Seriously, it is just a matter of improved photovoltaic production technology.
