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We are living in a world where there are limited resources. Our needs are unlimited and these resources are not enough to meet our demands. We need energy to run our electric devices that are a part of our daily life.  We are currently using wind, water and other petroleum products to create energy that is not enough to meet our demands. So we need something special to fulfill our energy need with lower cost and more efficiency.

For the last twenty years or so, the word “solar revolution” is being heard on almost all the platforms.  It is estimated that this will take over at least 50% of energy production. The main idea behind is that solar energy will be used to generate electricity and this form of electricity will suit almost every part of the world. Moreover this technique will reduce the cost of electricity being produced.

The Photovoltaic Cell

The landmark of this solar revolution is photovoltaic cell that is used in solar panel to generate electricity. Multiple photovoltaic form an array and multiple arrays form a solar panel. Main issue in implementation is this concept is its installation cost. Since this cost is very high, making this process difficult to implement. As far as renewable energy market is concerned, photovoltaic cells’ efficiency is the landmark in its popularity.

Financing for Installation

As far as its demand is concerned, it hasn’t shown a downward trend. Still it is inflating. If you are concerned about the photovoltaic cell, there are a number of government support programs that can assist you. In some areas there are schemes that offers you free solar panels so that you can have benefits of this new invention.

Advantage of Using Photovoltaic Cell

Major advantage of this phenomenal invention is that it doesn’t cost you even a penny, after its installation. So the electricity that is produced is free of cost. And in the longer run, they will pay you back, what you have invested in this product. Hence your return over investment is maximum in this case

Simple Installation

As far as installation is concerned, this is very easy to install and is very efficient. Where there is enough space to install this panel, you can install it. So you can install it on your roofs, gardens etc. Whether is not a major concern for you, because it is an intelligent device. It uses a whether station built in to forecast the whether needs and when electricity is produced, it uses its built in mechanism to match this electricity to the electricity that is being supplied by the electricity providing company.

Technorati Tags: Photovoltaic,Cell,energy,petroleum,technique,panel,investment,cells,panels

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Our Earth receives 174 petawatts (PW) of solar radiations at the upper atmosphere, out of which almost 30% is reflected back to space whereas the rest is absorbed by clouds, oceans and land masses.

The Earth’s land surface, oceans and atmosphere that absorb solar radiation, raises their temperature. This causes warm air that contains evaporated water from the oceans to rise, causing atmospheric circulation or convection.

The water cycle gets completed when the air reaches a high altitude, where low temperature prevails, and the water vapor condenses into clouds, which rain onto the Earth’s surface.

The energy from the sun which is absorbed by the oceans and land masses helps to keep the surface temperature at an average of 14 °C. This energy is used by green plants to carry out photosynthesis, which produces food, wood and the biomass from which fossil fuels are derived.

Solar energy has been consumed by humans since ancient times using a number of ever-changing technologies. Together with other secondary solar resources such as wind and wave power, hydroelectricity and biomass, these energy account for most of the available renewable energy on Earth. However, currently, only a minute fraction of the available solar energy is used.

Solar power technologies provide electric energy by means of heat engines or photovoltaics. Some of the commonly used solar applications include space heating and cooling through solar architecture, potable water via distillation and disinfection, daylighting, hot water, thermal energy for cooking, and high temperature process heat for industrial purposes.

It is possible to characterize solar technologies as either passive or active, depending on the way they capture, convert and distribute sunlight. Active solar techniques include use of photovoltaic panels, pumps, and fans to convert sunlight into useful outputs, whereas passive solar techniques include selecting materials with favorable thermal properties, designing spaces that naturally circulate air, and referencing the position of a building to the Sun.

The total solar energy absorbed by Earth’s atmosphere in a year by the oceans and land masses is around 3,850,000 exajoules (EJ). Out of this, photosynthesis captures about 3,000 EJ per year in biomass.

The total amount of solar energy that reaches the earth’s surface is so enormous that in one year, it accumulates about twice as much as the amount that will ever be obtained from all of the Earth’s non-renewable resources combined of coal, oil, natural gas, and mined uranium combined.

Technorati Tags: Solar,Energy,atmosphere,temperature,plants,fossil,coal,panels,biomass,

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It has been reported that the scientists in Georgia and New Jersey are busy in devising ways to take off the solar panels from the roofs of homes and cars, and moving them into basements and walls.

This will enable the homeowners to decorate their rooftops however they want, as the new panels would continuously provide solar power while protecting the delicate photovoltaic cells.

Zhong Wang, a scientist at Georgia Tech said that this might be the world’s first 3-D solar panel system.

The scientists at Georgia Tech are aiming to capture sunlight by using fiber optics cable instead of the traditional solar panels. They will then turn it into electricity by using the optics cables, coated with zinc oxide.

Although the fiber optic cables would be installed on the roof of a house, car or any other structure, but only the very tip of the cables would be exposed to the outside environment.

Sunlight will enter the tip of the fiber and travel to the end. It will then be absorbed and turned into electrical energy along the way. Once the light reaches the end of the fiber, it will bounce back, giving the zinc oxide another chance to absorb any light missed during the first pass.

The fibers can be cut to any length depending on the needs of the user. A 10-centimeter (four-inch) fiber would conservatively generate about 0.5 volts.

In order to power a 10-watt light bulb, about 10,000 fibers, each about 10 centimeters (four inches) long would be required. Although it might sound like a lot of fibers, but it’s about the same size as a small handful of human hair.

However, the fibers aren’t very efficient. Currently, they are only able to convert about 3.3 percent of all the light that enters them into electricity. On other hand, the silicon-based solar cells can absorb 30 percent of light.

The scientists are hopeful that further work could get his number up to 8 percent.

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The method of making solar panels is complicated and delicate which is why there are delays in advances of solar process. However, advances in semiconductors and photovoltaic design have been made that permitted progressively more efficient and inexpensive solar cells to be developed.

Crystalline Silicon Solar Panels

The process of developing a crystalline solar panel is as follows:

• First silicon is cut into tiny disk and than a centimeter thick. These thin,
• Wafer-like disks are then polished and if any damage found, they are then fixed and repair.

• Metal conductors and resources included to modify an electric charge in a semiconductor are spread everywhere in each disk.
• Fourth step is the alignment of conductors in a very thin, grid like matrix on the top of the solar panel, and are spread in a flat, thin sheet on the side facing towards the earth.

In order to protect solar panels a thin coating is then done on the top of the photovoltaic cell. It is then attached to a substrate which is a semiconductor crystal used as a base. This attachment is done with the help of conductive cement which is quite costly. This prevents the solar panel get over heated.

Amorphous Silicon Solar Panels

Amorphous silicon solar panels are an advancement of a photovoltaic cell that is different in terms of output, structure, and manufacture than previously made photovoltaic which is made of crystalline silicon.

The improvement process of Amorphous Silicon solar panels also helps in causing less damage in transport or installation. This can help ease the risk of harming your significant investment in a photovoltaic system.

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