The technology of solar power

There have been encouraging developments in solar technology as a result of man’s overuse of fossil fuels. Would we have ever been driven to adopt clean energy technologies if our air quality had not become so bad? Likely not, and there are some who even deny that the planet is warming. Solar energy is the cleanest, most plentiful energy source available to us at this time. The U.S. has some of the world’s richest solar resources. This is particularly true in the desert southwest and California. Technology now allows us to collect this resource in several ways, giving individual families and commercial enterprises adaptable ways to utilize both the light and heat of the sun.

Existing solar technologies

Currently, there are three main technologies by which solar energy is commonly harnessed: photovoltaics (PV), which directly convert light to electricity; concentrating solar power (CSP), which draws heat from the sun (thermal energy) to drive utility-scale, electric turbines; and heating and cooling systems, which collect thermal energy to provide hot water and air conditioning. Solar energy can be extended through distributed generation, whereby the equipment may be located on rooftops or ground-mounted arrays near to where the energy is used. Some technologies can be extended into utility-scale applications to generate energy as a central power plant.

Photovoltaic Technology

Photovoltaic (PV) technologies directly convert energy from sunlight into electricity. When sunlight strikes the PV module, made of a semiconductor material, electrons are denuded from their atomic bonds. The flow of electrons provides an electric current. PV modules contain no moving parts and are expected to last thirty to forty years or more with little maintenance required. PV electricity output peaks mid-day when the sun is at its highest position in the sky and can offset the most expensive electricity generated when demand is greatest. Homeowners can install a few dozen PV panels to eliminate their monthly electricity bills, and utilities can build large “farms” of PV panels to produce pollution-free "juice" to their customers.

Concentrating solar power

Concentrating solar power (CSP) plants use mirrors to concentrate the sun’s thermal energy to operate a conventional steam turbine to make electricity. The thermal energy concentrated in a CSP plant can be stored to produce electricity when it is needed, day or night. Today, over 1,400 MW of CSP plants operate in the U.S., and another 340 MW of CSP projects will be placed in service within the next year. The two commercialized CSP technologies are Power Towers and Parabolic Troughs. Other CSP technologies include Compact Linear Fresnel Reflector (CLFR) and Dish Engine. CSP specific conditions to produce energy, such as areas where direct sunlight is most intense (e.g., the U.S. Southwest) and contiguous parcels of dry, flat land.

Solar heating and cooling technologies

Solar heating and cooling technologies exist to collect thermal energy from the sun and use this heat to produce hot water and heating and cooling for residential, commercial and industrial applications. There are several types of collectors: flat plate, evacuated tube, Integral Collector Storage (ICS), thermosiphon and concentrating. These systems normally provide a return on investment in three to six years.

Water heating, space heating, and space cooling accounted for 69 percent of the energy used in an average U.S. household in 2005 – representing a huge market potential for solar heating and cooling technologies. For example, solar water heating systems can be installed on nearly every home in the U.S., and a properly designed and installed system can generate 40 to 80 percent of a building’s hot water needs. Similarly, solar space heating and cooling systems circulate conditioned air or liquid throughout a building using existing HVAC systems, without using any power.

Solar power is here to stay, and the sooner you explore how much you can save, the sooner you can enjoy the benefits of residential solar power.

Please visit our solar blog to find out more about the benefits of going solar.

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