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How Does Solar Energy Work?

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Facts about Solar Energy and Solar Power Plants

The earth receives more than enough energy from the sun in an hour to supply the world's energy requirement for the whole year.

Unfortunately, only a tiny portion of it is harnessed and the world still relies on power plants that burn fossil fuels. The good thing, though, is that there is a constant increase in demand for solar energy; and over the years of continuous development, solar panels are much cheaper today.

During peak hours, the maximum power density that the sun can give is about 1kW per square meter. In other words, one square meter of solar panel can produce as much as 100 GWh (gigawatt hours) of electricity in one year. That is enough to power 50,000 houses.

If a Solar power plant is build on 1% of the total land area of the Sahara desert, it will satisfy the world's energy requirement.

The efficiency of solar panels depends on several factors such as pollution, clouds, temperature and atmospheric humidity.

Solar power plants are very similar to other conventional power plants - with one significant difference: The majority of power plants draw their power from fossil fuels like oil, coal and gas.

When power plants burn fossil fuels, they produce greenhouse gases that contribute to global warming. Solar power plants or solar thermal power plants (or Concentrating Solar Power plants) utilize the power of the sun's rays to generate electricity.

The process could not be any simpler. The solar panels receive heat from the sun, which will be reflected to the receiver. The receiver converts into steam the concentrated solar energy. The steam is stored on tanks which will be used to turn the turbines and generate electricity.

The whole process does not involve any burning of any fossil fuels. Thus, solar power plants do not contribute to global warming.

The increase in the use of solar energy will bring down the demand for oil.

Today, there are more than 10,000 households with solar energy systems and the number is constantly increasing. If the demand for solar energy as well as other forms of alternative energy, the demand for oil will drop and the cost fuel will likely to follow.

Residential solar energy system can turn your electric meter backwards. Given that you are connected on a power-grid, the excess energy that your solar energy system produces will go to the electric lines to be used by other homes. As a result, any excess energy you give will be reflected on your bills. Your electric supplier will even pay for the electricity you supplied.

Residential solar energy system can save you money.

While the initial cash out for installing solar energy system at home is big, the device will pay for itself in the long run. Not only you will save money on solar energy system, you also help the environment by not contributing to carbon emissions.

Solar energy systems are reliable and can last for a very long time.

PV cells are last from 25 to 40 years. Many manufacturers of solar panels give 25 years product warranty. This is the assurance that solar panels are very dependable.

In addition, solar panels require little or no maintenance and the can be installed on most places where there is sunlight throughout the year.

Contents at a Glance

Solar Energy - The Future of Generating...
Solar Home Energy: What is it for?
Solar Energy - It is Popular. So Why is...
How Does Solar Energy Work
The Cost of Solar Energy System
Solar Energy Bargains to check out

Solar energy for residential houses is nothing new. It has just been relegated to the background in lieu of rising cost of real estate; newer more advanced building materials, design and the limitation of resources.

Since man started building homes, sunlight played a major influence in the design. In fact, even in the more advanced urban planning method of the Ancient Chinese and Greeks, the orientation of the buildings is as much as possible directed towards where it could capture the most sunlight.

The ancients might not be as intellectually sophisticated then to use catch phrases as passive solar and thermal mass but when they build, they were building in compact proportion, employing overhangs, producing insulation and building in manners that direct the airflow within the structure and producing well lit, well ventilated spaces using the relative position of the sun to the orientation of their structures.

Lately, as the conventional sources of energy became more expensive, homeowners were once again turning to the sun for energy requirements.

Since the 1950's, harnessing the sun's rays has been developing and today the solar cell technology has achieved very efficient levels that modern (so-called green house) designs apply the sun's power to provide energy for the home.

While solar energy is free, the device that will convert it to run our appliances is not. To provide Solar energy for the home, solar cells called photovoltaic made from semi-conducting materials, are grouped into modules. These solar panels are mounted on rooftops, yards or open spaces where it can capture the maximum amount of sunlight.

Whenever possible, the panels will be installed facing south to get the most out of the sunlight but tracking systems are also used to follow the direction of the sun. The solar panels collect the energy from the sunlight. The process basically is that when the panels are exposed to sunlight, the electrons are separated form the atoms. This movement of the electrons creates electricity.

To store power, pumps are often used - circulating water in the cells. The water goes into a storage tank where the power is stored, ready for use. Sometimes, the use of gravity is employed if it will just the same store the heated water in to the tank.

In spite of all the development in solar energy though, the use of this technology is not enough to provide power to the whole house. The best method so far can only fulfill about 80% of a households power needs. The employment of solar energy for the home will still require the use of the conventional power distribution method.

Powering the homes by solar means will still, for a while be augmented by a local power distribution agency. To many, this is already a good starting point. Homeowners that feel that the high cost of powering their houses through solar power, is justified when compared to the price that is now being paid for conventional electrification method where horrendous amounts of CO2 are being dumped into the atmosphere just to generate a pitiful amount of electricity.

However, due in part to the rising costs of energy, the technology for solar energy has been undergoing rapid phases of development. Experts are confident that within five years, powering the home through the solar method will be made widely available for those who prefer it as its sole energy source.

Need help from the experts?

Please take a minute to read more about this here, I think you will find it useful:

Solar energy for Homes

Solar Home Energy: What is it for?

Solar energy-this term basically does not cause a stirring in the mind as the explanation that comes at hand is indeed too simple.

Everyone knows what is meant by solar energy, and that is, the energy that comes from the sun. In its most basic sense, solar energy and other solar home equipment are nonetheless environment-friendly and not risky at all.

But then you need not become one fine environmentalist first before you will be able to come across with whatever advantageous benefit solar home energy has.

Why is the solar home energy said to be environment-friendly? What are its general benefits?

Practically speaking, when solar home energy is used, the electrical bills tremendously go down as compared to the other type of home energy available for all people. Why would you pay for such expensive bills when all you need to do is to employ solar home energy?

Another major advantage of the solar home energy is the absence of the very complicated and dangerous wiring. Solar energy lights in the garden path or any other solar energy-powered items used in your home are ready to be installed less the wiring to be dealt with.

In reality, these solar light bulbs are equipped with darkness sensors so they need not be turned on to give off light and they need not be turned off as well when they are no longer needed.

As a sort of simple explanation, the solar light bulbs will simply have to be purchased, taken out of the boxes, installed, and then presto! You just have to situate them where you want them to be and never worry about them ever again.

A List of the Benefits of Solar home Energy

Why is the solar home energy equally beneficial? Why is it more recommended for use? Here are some of its benefits which are truly worth the attention to be graced by anyone:

Solar home energy is environmentally friendly. As mentioned a while ago, solar home energy will not harm the environmental features. It is specifically clean and renewable as well. More so, it does not cause pollution just like what the rest of the traditional electrical forms do.

Solar home energy systems need the least maintenance. They are not fuel-powered so no need to buy the refills.

Solar home energy makes you save a lot of money. The energy that is derived from the sun can be accessed for free as you make use of solar lights, solar panels, and the likes. The federal government most of the time gives out financial incentives. You don't get affected by the rise of the fuel rates since you are using solar home energy.

Making use of the solar home energy makes you entirely independent from the foreign and centralized energy sources. Power outages will not likely affect you in any manner.

Most of the solar energy items are very easy to install thus lessening the complicated work of the wiring systems.

Some Common Disadvantages of the Solar Home Energy

Of course the disadvantages will not be taken aside. Here are some of the most common disadvantages of the solar home energy:

The employment of a solar home energy can be expensive at first. But as time passes by, it becomes light to the pocket.

The strength of the solar home energy will relatively depend on the location of your home in relation with its facing to the sun. Also, the area of your home is another point to consider. You will need large areas to install the solar panels.

The Various Solar Energy Items

There are lots of solar energy devices that you may opt to buy. Included are the solar flashlights, solar heaters, car ventilators, solar video cameras, solar radios, solar pool purifier, solar mosquito inhibitor, solar lighting, and solar fountain pumps.

Here is a How Does Solar Energy Work resource for you to check out:

Fuel Cell Fundamentals

by: Ryan O'Hayre, Suk-Won Cha, Whitney Colella, Fritz B. Prinz

Amazon Price: $50.60 (as of 06/01/2012)

As the search for alternative fuels heats up, no topic is hotter than fuel cells. Filling a glaring gap in the literature, Fuel Cell Fundamentals, Second Edition gives advanced undergraduate and beginning level graduate students an important introduction to the basic science and engineering behind fuel cell technology.

Emphasizing the foundational scientific principles that apply to any fuel cell type or technology, the text provides straightforward descriptions of how fuel cells work, why they offer the potential for high efficiency, and how their unique advantages can best be used.

Designed to be accessible to fuel cell beginners, the text is suitable for any engineering or science major with a background in calculus, basic physics, and elementary thermodynamics.

This new edition provides updated and enhanced examples, problems, and pedagogy for classroom use and features a significantly enlarged section on the practical applications of fuel cell technology. A solutions manual will be developed.

Solar Energy - It is Popular. So Why is it Not Yet Widely Used?

The fact is, the 350,000,000 terawatts of power available from the sun is so huge that an exposure to a full sun in only 15 minutes will be enough to generate the world's energy requirement

Compare that with energy that is generated by nuclear and fossil fuel. Presently, the available data for fossil and nuclear fuel is 10,800,000 terawatts which we all know to be non renewable.

To produce electricity, utility companies burn fossil fuels that translate to 1.3 pounds of carbon dioxide to produce 1kw of electrical power. This unwanted CO2 emissions are dumped into the atmosphere. This then translates into each typical home being accountable yearly for 22,000 pounds of CO2 emissions.

The harnessing of the sun's rays is clean and safe. It produces no emissions and it is practical and may in the years ahead, prove very economical. In the United States, only 0.1% of power that is generated is solar energy driven. So what are the obstacles?

According to the Wall Street Journal (in an article that was released in its August 2008 issue), there are groups, backed by political groups that are lobbying against the putting up of transmission lines for solar power. The construction of distribution lines for solar energy is also being blocked by environmental activists that restrict the delivering of solar energy to those who want it in their homes.

Another obstacle is that the power grid in the United States which was designed more than 100 years ago is now so congested in many regions. To deliver the solar power to consumers, scientists and engineers will have to come out with another cost efficient plan to transfer huge amounts of energy from one location to another.

Solar panels are considered expensive. Although a home increases its value by folds when solar powered, the costs still could be prohibitive to most that unless the non silicon flexible solar panels that are now being developed are released for market consumption, powering homes through solar energy could still be very limited.

Other forms of rewards to avoid fossil fuel use should still be effectively placed. The 30% tax cut to projected cost previously awarded will be more attractive if other federal credits are included to encourage further investments.

The global warming issue that has been brought to the papers is a recurrent subject of talk shows and remains to be a good news item. Also, the too unstable pump prices, should and for most part, already be a good incentive to use this alternative source of energy.

However, effective solar energy transmission to homes will remain to be very hard unless these obstacles are breached. Assuming that these obstacles are solved today, it will still take some 10 years to convert 20% of American homes into solar energy users. Meanwhile, solar panels on individual homes remain to be the most viable alternative.

The good part to solar energy quest is that technology is advancing very rapidly. Nano technology for solar power is being developed and may be available in five years time. Other breakthroughs in cell designs are also being developed that could, in the next few years, be a cost-effective way of generating energy without having to rely anymore on fossil and nuclear power.

How Does Solar Energy Work

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The Cost of Solar Energy System

Solar energy is free but the tools that will enable you to harness this free energy are not.

If you are planning to install a solar energy system right at your home and would like to know how much it would cost, there are 3 things you need to consider:

First, the cost depends on how much energy your household requires. More energy you require means more solar panels and higher cost of installation. The good thing is, the technology to harness the power of the sun is relatively cheaper than it was several years ago.

Second, the government is offering a rebate to those who will switch to alternative form of energy. That means, the government will shoulder a portion of the total cost of the system.

Third, you can get tax credits when you switch to Solar energy system. The amount of tax rebate depends from state to state but the range can go from $1000 to $2000.

All these affect the overall cost of your installation.

A photovoltaic system can cost roughly at $8000 to $10000 per 1kW system. This equates to $8 to $10 per Watt. An average American household with 3 bedrooms requires at least 1.5kW to as much as 3kW. Thus, installation can cost from $14000 to $30000, before rebates and tax credits.

Government rebate varies from state to state. As a reference, an average California household that requires 1.5kW system can get as much as $4200 rebate (1.5kW= 1500 watts x $2.80 per watt = $4200).

A household that requires 3kW system can get as much as $8400 (3kW= 3000 watts x $2.80 per watt = $8400).

Before, tax credit goes as much as 30% but it is lowered to 7.5% of system cost after rebate.

So an average household with 1.5kW system can get $735 ($14000 - $4200 x 7.5% = $735) worth of tax credit while the 3kW system can get $1620 ($30000 - $8400 x 7.5% = $1620) worth of tax credit.

Example A: 1.5kW system

Cost of solar electric system: $14000
Less rebate: $4200
Less tax credit: $735

Cost of the system after rebate and tax credit: $9065

Example B: 3kW system

Cost of solar electric system: $30000
Less rebate: $8400
Less tax credit: $1620

Cost of the system after rebate and tax credit: $19980

Again, these are rough estimates just to give you an idea of the cost of installing solar energy system. They do not represent real figures.

Top tips:

Energy independent home has higher resale value and is more preferred by home buyers. So, if you are planning to sell your home in several years, installing solar energy system does not only provide substantial saving on electric bill, it also is a good home improvement option.

If you want to finance the cost of your solar energy installation, include it in your mortgage.

If you want to reduce your electricity load, switch to energy efficient appliances. Buy electric appliances with ENERGY STAR seal.

Low energy requirement means lower installation cost.

Residents of areas with higher electricity rate can benefit most on solar energy system.

If you can't afford the photovoltaic system, you can install solar hot water system that costs roughly from $2000 to $4000.

Solar energy is best for houses that are located far from the existing power lines.