The sun is a very valuable source to the world today. We use it for heat, plants use it to grow, and energy such as solar power. Solar power is the conversion of sunlight into electricity. Solar power is the next alternative to all other sources of energy out there. Fossil fuels such as oil and gas are non-renewable, which means they are limited.
Scientists and engineers today works extremely hard to develop ways to utilize solar radiation or sunlight directly by converting it into useful heat or electricity. Solar energy is harvested from the radiant power produced by the sunlight rays. The harvested energy is turned into electric power. Our modern technology today has increased the ability to harness and utilize solar energy. This has led to a switch from using conventional means to generate power to the new renewable energy source.
FOCUS QUESTION Description of the building product CITATION http://whatis.techtarget.com/definition/solar-power NOTES Definition: Solar is an energy efficient device that collects the sun’s light on the day then convert it to energy for use PV; photovoltaic are also called solar cells, It is used to convert sunlight directly into electricity. The name PV comes from the process of converting light (photons) to electricity (voltage), this is called the PV effect. Reflection Relevance for task FOCUS QUESTION Attributes that lead to energy efficiency CITATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solar_cell_efficiency NOTES The efficiency of the solar cells used in a photovoltaic system, in combination with latitude and
The Sun provide Earth with large amount of energy enough to power the great oceanic and atmospheric currents, the cycle of evaporation and condensation that bring fresh water in land and drives water flow, and the typhoon, hurricanes, and tornadoes that so easily destroy the natural and built landscape. Sunlight can be converted into electricity by exciting electrons in a solar cell. It can yield chemical fuel via natural photosynthesis in green plants or artificial photosynthesis in human engineered system. Concentrated or unconcentrated sunlight can produce heat for direct use or further conversion to electricity. Figure 1.1 shows the solar photons convert naturally into three forms of energy which are electricity, chemical fuel and heat.
Solar power can be separated into two types, active and passive. The first one is made with the use of mechanical devices, as if big panels made of solar cells or the pumps that are used to circulate water through a water heating system. The second one is without the use of mechanical devices, as using natural light and heating, so it will depends of the orientation of the construction and the selection of favourable materials. Analysing the type of energy that the solar energy is converted into, it can be separated into three. Solar thermal energy is the first one, which is the conversion of solar energy into heat.
Solar energy is a good alternative to replace fossil fuel as the major energy source because solar power is renewable at absolutely no cost to supply energy infinitely. The world pollution is getting worse. Any effort that can reduce the pollution to the environment helps to save the earth. Solar panels can harness the energy from the sun and convert it to electricity. Therefore, the use of solar panels is environment friendly.
The second method consists in using concentrated solar heat energy and big power utilities to indirectly make electricity. Solar thermal is the most common way of using solar power. The process of heating water with the sun’s energy is more popular in the areas where it is usually warm and sunny. This is also a greatly useful economic solution. After the solar panels are bought and installed, apart from check-ups, the rest of the process is free!
Antireflection coating became an integral part of designing different types of solar cells. Reflections can be minimized in certain wavelengths thus result in higher overall efficiency. In order to understand the working principle behind antireflection coatings, we must first understand the nature of light and it’s interaction with other materials. It is of utmost importance for solar cell designers and researchers to understand both the particle and wave nature of light in order to design a high efficiency solar cell. The Sun’s energy which radiates into the Earth’s surface and harnessed by solar cells are composed of broad spectrum of electro-magnetic (EM) waves combined together which form visible light that have different power densities depending on the wavelength of propagation.
The Advantages of Solar Energy. It is a renewable energy resource! This means it can be harnessed anywhere irrespective of place, and we cannot run out of it, unlike other forms of energy e.g. fossil fuels. we’re capable of exploiting solar power as long as we have the sun.
This beam collects Solar Energy and converts it into Electrical Energy. This concept is more advantageous than conventional methods. The SPS will be a central attraction of space and energy technology in coming decades. It is not a pollutant but more aptly, a man made extension of the naturally generated electromagnetic spectrum that provides