Effectiveness of Solar Cells
The performance of solar cells has improved greatly since the first modern silicon solar cell was invented. Bell Labs released the first silicon solar cell on April 25, 1954. This solar cell was able to convert about 6% of the solar energy it collected to electricity.
This was a huge improvement over the selenium solar cell, which had been the most common type prior to the introduction of the silicon solar cell. Selenium solar cells produced at only about 0.5% efficiency.
Since then, the bulk of the research in this area has been put toward the task of improving the efficiency of solar cells, and decreasing the cost of manufacturing them. It’s proven to be possible, using exotic materials, to build cells with up to 40% efficiency. Unfortunately, using these materials substantially increases the cost of producing cells; these high-performance cells can cost over 100 times as much as ordinary 8% efficient cells to produce. Decreasing production cost is perhaps even more important than improving efficiency when it comes to encouraging more homeowners to adopt solar power.
Under ideal conditions, the sun can deliver around 1,000 watts of power per square meter. A solar cell’s advertised production is based on this figure. Sunlight intensity can be affected by things like dust, pollution, elevation, and weather. Certain events, such as volcanic eruptions, can even reduce sunlight on a worldwide basis for periods of a year or longer. Solar cells used at a higher elevation generally produce with superior efficiency. This is because, as elevation gets higher, the air gets thinner, and the effects of dust and pollution are decreased.
Currently, multicrystalline solar cells produce at about 14-19% efficiency. Although this is substantially more efficient than earlier solar cells, this kind of solar cell isn’t considered the ideal, as it may not be possible to improve it any more than this. Much of the current research being done involves amorphous silicon cells, which currently operate at about 8% efficiency.
At present, what would we need to do to replace all of the fossil fuel-based energy generation in the US with solar power? With current technology, it would take just over 10,000 square miles of solar panels. There is much more unused land than that, and it could certainly be used for this objective.
In order to have power even when the sun isn’t shining, solar power systems have to involve some type of power storage as well. This need is usually met through the use of batteries. Batteries can also be used to meet increased demand on hot days and so on.
Since the invention of the first solar cell, solar cell efficiency has increased significantly, from 0.5% to as high as 40%. Although the efficiency of mass-production solar cells is not expected to increase significantly in the short term, solar cell prices continue to decrease.
If you will install your own solar power system, you must take into account the kind of roof panel that you are going to use. If you are interested to know more about roof solar panels, go to Roof Solar Panels.
If you want to build your own solar panel, read these two guides Build Solar Panel and GreenDIY Energy Review.
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