DIY Solar Panels World

Solar Panel Battery — The Basics

A solar panel battery is made up of individual solar (photovoltaic) cells that convert solar radiation into electrical energy. This is known as the photovoltaic effect.

A solar panel battery is different from a normal battery. A normal battery converts chemical energy into electrical energy while a solar panel converts sunlight into electrical energy. While a normal battery has the capacity to store energy, a solar panel depends on external resources to do that.

A semiconductor is the medium through which electron movement takes place. As photons hits the surface of the material, electrons are displaced, creating a potential difference. This phenomenon was accidentally discovered when scientists observed that silicon doped with some impurities became very sensitive to light. Very soon, mankind began researching into various materials to make photovoltaic cells.

The first solar cells are large pieces of single-junction semiconductors made of silicon. The productions of such cells are very energy intensive and expensive. Later, other materials with semiconductor properties were experimented with success. Some of these were Cadmium Telluride (CdTe), Copper Indium Gallium Selenide, Amorphous Silicon And Micromorphous Silicon.

Engineers also discovered that such semiconductors could be deposited on thin pieces of glass or ceramic. This reduces the mass of solar cells. While such materials coupled with better production techniques do not promise higher energy conversion, but certainly enabled lower production costs

The efficiency of present day photovoltaic cell comes close to 20%. Further research gives us hope that someday we can reach efficiencies as high as 60%. This can probably be achieved by harnessing more of the solar radiation, tapping into the ultraviolet and infrared wavelengths.

Solar panel batteries are commonly installed in homes, office buildings and even on streets. Their size varies according to the application involved. Recently manufacturers have also designed another type of solar panel (known as Solar Shingles) meant to fit aesthetically into various architectural designs. These look like the roof tiles we commonly see, but they are coated with a layer of photovoltaic material.

Applications of a solar panel battery

While all solar panels look pretty much the same – dark, reflective-surfaced panels – their application varies widely.

Small solar panels can be used at your backyard or garden to power small electronics like your garden sprinkler, automatic gate opener or pond filters and aerators. Larger systems can also be installed at your home to replace all or part of your household energy needs.

Solar cells are also seen on many types of small gadgets and electronics like calculators, music players, mobile phones and LED torch. On the opposite end of the scale, large groups of solar panels can be used to produce massive amounts of energy to supply an entire city’s energy consumption.

Many large projects were designed and discussed. But the huge investment and seemingly long payback period has discouraged organizations from adopting solar power generators on any scale. Fortunately there are corporations like Google who are willing to trail-blaze the way for others to follow.

In both large and small solar power systems, some means of energy storage is necessary. This will retain excess power that’s generated during the day so it can be dispensed during the night. The most common form of energy storage is rechargeable battery. This is almost always the case, even for an off-grid solar power system. All it needs is a larger set of batteries.

For grid energy storage, possibilities (that are still not widely applied) include pumped-water storage, compressed air, thermal storage, frictionless flywheel, super-conducting magnetic storage and compressed hydrogen.

Scientists and engineers are hopeful that technology may advance to the point where implementation costs falls significantly – so that an average family may afford solar panels easily.

By then, more and more homes will make use of solar power to supplement their energy needs. Many other homes will go off-grid. Large corporations and governments can also install numerous solar electric power plants to sell cheap renewable energy to consumers living in areas without abundant sunlight. By then, most parts of our country (and even the world) may be ready to usher in a new solar panel battery era without fossil fuel.

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