DIY Solar Panels World » Cells

“Who Else Wants to Build DIY Solar Panels?”

admin — Sun, 11 Dec 2011 22:00:24 +0000

If you’re interested in making DIY solar panels, this may be the most important place you discovered. Here’s why…

For every curiosity you have in your mind, there will almost certainly be a resource available to satisfy it.

Whether you want to build a solar panel by connecting individual photovoltaic (PV) cells or buy it retail… whether you are a do-it-yourself, homemade guy or a swear-by-a-brand person, we have mini-resources prepared for you.

Otherwise just write to us to request for it…and we’ll get it up just for you.

In the future, we’ll broaden our scope to include bits and pieces of other types of renewable energy generator like wind turbines.

For starters, you can browse the following pages to get up to speed with the DIY solar power world. Tell me what you think:

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How to Make a Solar Powered Tricycle

admin — Fri, 06 Jan 2012 09:59:37 +0000

With good solar panels, you can make a solar powered tricycle. It is really fun to whiz around in a tricycle modified to use solar energy as its source of power. You can easily turn heads and attract attention from passersby.

What you need is a tricycle made with aluminum frame. This will ensure the weight of the tricycle is light enough. Otherwise we may need an extra solar panel for more power. And this is not going to be cheap…

Here is a list of things you’ll need for this project:

1. A tricycle
2. Solar panels, mounts and aluminum frame
3. Battery pack
4. Charge controller
5. Motor

To make your job simpler, you can buy an electric tricycle motor kit to convert your ordinary tricycle into an electric tricycle.

The kit includes a brushless high-powered DC motor, a battery pack and a cruise controller (motor controller). After converting your tricycle, you can start installing the solar panels onto your 3-wheeled vehicle.

The type of tricycle motor I like requires an input of 48 volts. Therefore I’ll have to find a solar panel that allows me to charge a battery pack that can drive this motor.

A good candidate will be a solar panel with 16% efficiency, made using high quality polycrystalline cells. The solar panel frame has to be covered with tempered glass so it won’t break easily.

Ideally, the solar panel has to produce a maximum of 80 watts at 70 volts. (Open circuit voltage will probably reach around 83 volts.) The current output I’ll look at is around 1.2 to 1.5 amperes, with short-circuit current of 1.3 to 1.6 amperes.

However you have to choose a solar panel that fits your needs. First start by choosing the motor, then the battery pack and finally the solar panel.

After you have chosen all the required parts, you can proceed to fix the frame that supports your solar panels. You must attach the frame onto your tricycle before you mount the PV panels. This is because PV panels are heavy. It’ll probably weigh more than 12 kg and this will hinder you as you work on the frame.

Your battery pack will likely be integrated with a charge controller. Therefore you only need to get the correct type of plug to transfer energy from your solar panel to the battery pack.

Otherwise you may need to get a separate charge controller. This will help to regulate the input voltage at the battery pack. Many controllers are able to stop the charging current once the batteries are fully charged. This prevents battery damage.

Once the cables are connected properly, test your tricycle by riding it for a short distance. When you’re all set, use cable ties to fasten loose cables to the frame for safety and good organization.

Note:

A tricycle cannot depend solely on solar power. At times, a passing cloud will reduce the sunlight intensity. This diminishes the power output from the solar panels and you’ll get less acceleration than expected.

It is better to use a battery pack to drive the DC motor as the solar panel puts energy into it. This makes a solar powered tricycle more usable.

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How To Calculate The Wire Size Required For Making Solar Panels

admin — Mon, 02 Jan 2012 21:59:51 +0000

Electricity is like water while wires are like pipes. With smaller pipes, less water can pass through. Similarly with thin wires, less current can flow through.

You must use the proper wire size so electricity from your solar panels can reach its destination (like your battery bank) without severe loss of power.

A simple calculation will help you decide what wire size to use. A common standard for wire size is based on the AWG (American Wire Gauge).

Step 1: Decide on the voltage for your solar power system: 12, 24, or 48 volts

With lower voltages, you’ll require thicker wires. Recall:

Power = Current x Voltage

The power output remains constant. Therefore when voltage decreases, current increases.

Using thinner wires means you’ll have to spend less on cables. However this is not a great consideration if you do not have long cables to manage.

Do note that whatever voltage you decide on, the rest of your equipment (like charge controller and inverter) will also have to follow suit.

Step 2: Determine the maximum current (in Amperes) your solar panels will produce

You can get this figure from your datasheet. If you have built your own solar panel, you can first find out the maximum output current of each solar cell from its datasheet. Then calculate the resultant output current according to how you connect the cells together.

After you have got the maximum current rating for one solar panel, simply multiply it by the number of parallel-connected panels you have in the array.

Note: If you connect the PV panels in series, the voltage adds up. If you connect them in parallel, the current adds up while the voltage remains the same.

For example, if you have two 12-volt PV panels connected in series, the output voltage becomes 24 volts while the output current remains the same. If you connect these two panels (rated at 10 amps each) in parallel, you’ll get a current output of 20 amperes while its output voltage remains at 12 volts.

Step 3: Estimate the length of your cables

Estimate the distance between your solar panels and your battery bank (or wherever you want the cables to run to) in feet. Then add to this figure by another 5% to cater for loops and tiebacks, if needed.

Finally multiply this figure by 2 because one cable will run to the battery bank while the other will run back from the battery bank. (One positive and one negative.)

Step 4: Determine the allowable voltage drop across your cable

Power loss and voltage drops are unavoidable. For your initial calculation, you can simply use 3% as an estimate.

Eventually, you’ll have to use your voltage meter to measure the actual value across your solar panel array output and determine what’s allowable.

Step 5: Use the chart below to find out which wire you should use

First, you have to calculate the VDI value:

VDI = (Current x Distance) / (% Voltage Drop x Voltage)

Then compare this value to the table below to find the type of wire you should use.

For example, I have chosen a 24-volt system that gives me an output of 20 amps. My cables will run a total distance of 100 feet, to and fro. My allowable voltage drop is 3%.

Therefore my calculation will be:

VDI = (20 x 100) / (3 x 24) = 2000 / 72 = 27.8

Referencing the table below, I should be using a 2-gauge wire according to the AWG standard.

Note: Your max operating current must not exceed the max current ratings as stated in the table.

Wire Size	Area	Copper
AWG	(mm2)	VDI	Max Amp
16	1.31	1	10
14	2.08	2	15
12	3.31	3	20
10	5.26	5	30
8	8.37	8	55
6	13.3	12	75
4	21.1	20	95
2	33.6	31	130
0	53.5	49	170
0	67.4	62	195
0	85	78	225
0	107	99	260

1	2	3
2	3	4

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