Learn About Solar Panels for a Better World

The components of solar power systems are called solar panels, these panels will take the light from the sun and turn it into usable energy such as electricity for your home. These panels can usually been seen on the roofs of houses who have solar power.  

Solar cells

Solar cells are what make up a solar panel. These cells are interconnect in groups to make up a solar panel and are packed into an assembly, which is known as the photovoltaic module. When sunlight hits one of these cells, electricity becomes generated because of the photovoltaic effect discovered in 1839. However, it was not put to use until R. Ohl invented the solar cell in 1946, which made use of this effect.

Today there are dozens of technology in the manufacture of solar cells. Silicon is the most widely used material. As silicon is also used by the semi-conductor industry, both semi-conductor and solar cells industries compete for silicon. But as thin film amorphous technologies have been turning out more efficient solar cells, other materials, like gallium arsenide, copper indium diselenide and cadmium telluride, have become significant.

At present, silicon cells (also known as wafer or bulk cells) capture 93% share of the market, while thin-film cells have 7%.  

Solar cells must be efficient for them to work when space is a premium. This will also determine the period of payback, which is about 10 years with the best panels being sold today. Silicon cells of monocrystalline and polycrystalline have 8% to 18% efficiency, with amorphous cells at 4% to 8%. Evergreen Solar Panels and AEE Solar Panels make high effiency panels.

Solar panels

You will rate solar cells by the voltage that they possess, their currents and power. You will need multiple cells interconnected together to make up a practical power output. You can do this in a number of ways involving various ways of connection and increasing currents. These solar cells are interconnected into packaged photovoltaic modules that have been given the name solar panels.

For very large solar panel systems, they will be arranged and interconnected into very big arrays.

Connecting 30 to 32 cells in series produces a panel with 15 to 16 volts, ideal for charging batteries because you don’t need a charge regulator. This type of panels is good for small systems where low power is needed, like charging batteries and electrifying fences. For bigger systems where there is a lot of sun, panels with 33 to 34 cells in series producing 16.5 to 17 volts are used. There are also panels with 35 to 36 cells in series having 17.5 to 21 volts. This type of cell works well in places with hot climates where high temperatures cause power loss.

You can basically lump solar panels into two main categories. They are concentrating and non- concentrating. Concentrating is mainly used to absorb direct sunlight and works great in that aspect. Non-concentrating works well with absorbing reflected sunlight but can accomplish both tasks.

In terms of wattage, commercial solar panels are available from 5 watts to 230 watts. Panels with the higher wattage are preferred by most home solar systems, since you can save on mounts, wiring and installation costs. In a list of cheap solar panels that appeared in the web, twelve manufacturers of panels are included with products rated from 40 to 230 watts. Prices depend on brands, quantity of purchase and, of course, wattage. The lowest price listed is $72 for a 60-watt unit; the highest, $666 for a 224-watt unit. Panel prices must be evaluated on dollar per watt basis for realistic price comparison. The lowest figure is $1.20 per watt, while the highest is $2.44 per watt.