Old Solar Panels: Why is Solar Used As an Alternative Energy Source?

why is solar used as an alternative energy

Whenever you hear about solar energy, the first thing that comes to mind is how it can help reduce pollution, save the planet, and help you save money. This is especially true in the United States, where solar consumption is expected to grow. Here are a few things you need to know about solar energy.

Photovoltaic cells produce DC electricity

Basically, photovoltaic cells are thin semiconductor material used to convert sunlight into electricity. These cells are used to power solar lights, calculators and other electronic devices. Unlike other power sources, photovoltaic cells are environmentally friendly and produce no greenhouse gases.

Photovoltaic cells are made from silicon, which is the second most abundant element on Earth after oxygen. It is also the most common semiconductor material used in solar cells. This material is characterized by its ability to conduct electricity better than insulators, although its conductivity is not perfect.

The most important feature of a PV cell is its ability to convert sunlight into electricity. This is done by creating an electric field between p-type and n-type silicon. The electric field then forces electrons to flow toward the conductive metal plates.

This is also called the photoelectric effect. Since the earliest days of the 20th century, scientists have understood that when light is applied to a material, the electrical properties of that material change. This was first explained by Albert Einstein.

Solar collectors capture and concentrate sunlight to create steam

Using material to capture and concentrate sunlight to create steam is an old method of generating electricity. It has been used for centuries in a variety of ways. Today, it is used to sterilize medical instruments, purify water, and prepare food. A new system, called solar steam, is expected to have the potential to produce steam at a very low cost. It was developed by Rice engineering undergraduates, who won a Grand Challenges grant from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

Several types of collectors exist. There are concentrators, non-concentrating collectors, and flat-plate collectors. A non-concentrating collector is usually a metal plate that is painted black. It has an absorber area that absorbs the sunlight, and a tracking receiver that captures the energy at a focal point.

A concentrator uses a lens or mirror to focus the sun’s light onto a receiver. The aperture of the receiver is typically a mirror. The heat is then transferred through the absorber area to a fluid, usually water or glycol.

Renewable energy consumption expected to grow in the United States

During the next decade, renewable energy will make up one fifth of US electricity generation. This represents a 42 percent increase from 2010 to 2020. It is expected that wind and solar power will contribute most of the increase, with hydroelectricity accounting for the remaining 36 percent.

In addition to the economic benefits, increasing the use of renewable energy has numerous benefits for society. It reduces air pollution and mitigates climate change. It also creates jobs. In fact, every dollar of renewable energy investment creates three times more jobs than the fossil fuel industry.

The Renewable Portfolio Standard requires utilities to use renewable technologies. The Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 added a requirement that gas stations use 2.78 percent of gasoline from renewable sources by 2006. In addition, many states have established energy storage procurement mandates. These incentives have helped encourage the growth of clean energy industries in Texas.

The Energy Information Administration projects that CO2 emissions will decrease in 2020. Coal will continue to play a vital role in energy production, but it will be outperformed by renewables. The share of coal will drop to 19 percent by 2023.

Costs have fallen dramatically

Despite the fact that solar energy has been available for many decades, the costs of installing solar systems have recently fallen dramatically. Over the last four decades, the costs of solar energy have fallen from $378 per MWh to $68 per MWh. The costs of utility-scale solar are now about as competitive as the costs of all other forms of generation.

The Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL) has conducted research on the costs of solar energy over the past decade. It found that the costs of large scale solar projects have fallen by 47-80 percent from 2010, when solar was still expensive. The costs have fallen further over the past year. In the past three years, the cost of large scale solar has dropped below $1,000 per kilowatt.

The cheapest 20 percent of utility-scale solar systems were sold for less than $1.60 per Watt. The most expensive 20 percent of residential systems sold for more than $5.00 per Watt.