SOLAR ENERGY: HOW SOLAR PANELS WORK.
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Back in the days, we used to rely on other non-renewable sources of energy such as crude oil, coal and others being a few to mention. Not until recent times, who knew that the sun which supplies life to all living things on earth can also be harnessed into useful work in the form of solar energy. Nowadays most of our homes even out gadgets are powered by solar energy.
So how did we take this giant step into utilizing the suns energy?
On average, every square meter of earth’s surface receives 164watts of energy. In others words, assume I have a solar powered lamp of say 150watts and I decide to place them per square meter on the earth’s surface, I would be able to light up the whole world with the suns energy to last billions of years. But I can’t use this solar energy to power up my TV directly hence the need for solar cells. Hence the advent of solar cells and solar panels.
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A solar cell is an electronic device about the size of a man’s palm; that catches the sun’s rays or sunlight and turns it directly into electricity. It is octagonal in shape and has a bluish black tint. Solar cells are often bundled together to make up solar modules which are coupled into larger units we call solar panels.
Solar panels, as we commonly find today are called photo-voltaic solar panels-photo indicating light and voltaic representing electricity. They produce electricity through a phenomenon called photoelectric effect.
Photoelectric effect was first noted by French physicist named Charles Becquerel in 1839. He discovered that certain materials would produce a small electric current when you expose them to light.
Put simply, a solar cell works as thus: inside a solar cell you have two wafer thin layers of silicon sandwich. The uppermost layer has been specially treated such that its atoms are unstable-electrons which would be readily given off at the slightest hint of excitation. Also the bottom layer has been specially treated but this time the atoms at the bottom have a few empty spaces that requires filling. So the top layer wants to lose electrons, the bottom layer wants to gain electrons; the perfect condition for electricity to be produced.
The only thing left is for the solar panel to be exposed to sunlight in order to excite the electrons on the top silicon layer granting them enough energy to move. Once excited, the electrons then begin to flow from the top layer to the bottom thus producing electricity (which is the flow of electron or charges). Metal contacts placed on either side ensure continuous movement of electricity through a circuit.
But this electricity thus generated is DC (direct current) whereas the electricity we use at home to power our appliances is AC (alternating current). So the current has to go through an Inverter (an electronic device whose function is to convert DC into AC) which converts it from DC to AC before it can be pumped into your house and utilized.
The usefulness of solar panel cannot be over-emphasized and the need to produce efficient yet less not detrimental source of power generation leads us to delve more into this field. With time cars that run on solar powers would be developed giving rise to a cleaner, unpolluted ecosystem since cars employing ICE’s (Internal Combustion Engines)are major causes of pollution with the emission of carbon(iv)oxide into the atmosphere.
Solar power hasn’t been caught on my most parts of the world yet because from the economic viewpoint, the cost repercussion of setting up a solar plant or the commonly used solar panels, is still higher than the cost of utilizing polluting fossil fuels. And most developing countries which aren’t technologically advanced will find that a hard burden to bear so they shy away from such prospects. But with further research and technological advancements, I believe we can beat cost and turn to this renewable source of energy in days to come.
Thanks for reading through,please drop your comments.
I can't wait to witness cars running on solar energy as you have predicted here.
That would be a great leap in the technological stride. We wouldn't then be subject to the whims of those controlling our oil sector limiting the amount of petrol to be sent to the masses at their own wish.Thanks for reading through.