People today are becoming more and more concerned about the environment especially because the effects of global warming are now very evident. People are now starting to turn to renewable energy as the raw material for generating power. One of these renewable energy sources is the sun which produces the light utilized by solar devices to produce electricity. Solar panel electricity has now become a much sought out commodity.
The amount of electricity produced by a solar panel depends primarily on a number of things: size of the panel, efficiency of the panel, and the amount of sunlight it receives. Larger panels produce more power since they receive more sunlight. Regular panel size is 4’ 5’’ x 2’ 2’’. It produces a maximum solar panel electricity of 120 Watts, or 7 amperes and 12 volts. This power, however, is for ideal conditions only and on a daily basis, it is not actually met. Ideal conditions are met in outer space only where there is nothing much to interfere with the sun’s radiation. On earth, the closest to ideal conditions is on the equator.
Solar Panel Power Ratings -
Solar panels have different power ratings. The ratings determine the maximum power a panel can produce. Solar panel electricity rating of 180 Watts means that that solar panel can produce no more than 180 Watts in ideal conditions (or 1000 Watts of sunlight per square meter). Most areas don’t have this much sunlight. The average sunlight in an area, called “insolation,” will determine what percentage of the rating your panel would actually produce. You can find out the “peak sun hours” per day of your location from most solar technology suppliers.
Solar panel electricity varies for different types of panel. Each type has its own manufacturing cost and efficiency. There are two main types of solar panels: crystalline silicon panels and thin-film panels. The former is made of crystalline silicon and is the more common of the two; the latter is usually made up of amorphous silicon, cadmium telluride, copper indium gallium selenide, or organic materials. Thin-film was invented only recently.
Crystalline silicon (c-Si) solar panel electricity is currently more efficient than single-layer thin films. Also, crystalline silicon panels are more durable lasting for several decades. They are, however, more expensive and much bulkier than the thin-film ones. There are two types of c-Si panels: monocrystalline and multicrystalline. The two are cut differently and have different efficiencies. Monocrystalline, at present, is more efficient. C-Si panels can convert at most 20% (in ideal conditions) of sunlight into electricity.
The most well developed thin-film material today is amorphous silicon (a-Si). They are made using a roll-to-roll process which involves vapor deposition. Current a-Si panels are about 7-13% efficient but there are also those which are more efficient than the c-Si panels. Many scientists predict that this efficiency can be made to go up to 12-20% in the future. Some experimental a-Si panels can absorb light waves that are not part of the visible light spectrum so they can function even when there is little light. Also, they are cheaper since they require less material for production.
