The Technical Details behind Solar Energy Production - Essay Example

Solar Energy Solar power is a widely used technology projected to be a prolific energy source for the future. Today, solar energy supplies electric power to hundreds of thousand of people worldwide. More than ten thousand people are employed in the solar energy market that produces revenues of at least $1 billion dollars. The advantages of solar power are obvious. It is an abundant, non-polluting and free energy resource as long as the sun shines. The sun provides the earth with 10,000 times more energy than its people consume, however, this resource remains essentially unexploited. There are several reasons why solar energy production hasn’t been more widely used. It is the purpose of this paper to discover more of the technical details behind solar energy production to discover why it isn’t more widely used and what is being done to increase its implementation. The way that solar power works is through what are termed photovoltaic cells. These cells are becoming increasingly more refined thanks to new technologies being developed around the world. Basically, “the PV cells consist of a positive and a negative slice of silicon placed under a thin slice of glass. As the protons of the sunlight beat down onto the PV cell they knock the neutrons off the silicon. The negatively charged free neutrons are attracted to the silicon but are trapped by the magnetic field that is formed from the opposing fields. Small wires on the silicon catch these neutrons and when connected in a circuit an electric current is formed” (Lenkefi, 2005). Current solar technology is primarily used in the market of solar water heaters with nearly 5 percent of homes employing them, while the use of solar panels to generate the electricity needed for the rest of the home, never high, has been declining (Fyfe, 2003). This decline has led some companies, such as Origin Energy and Pacific Solar, to begin work on new technologies that would reduce the levels of expensive materials and thus drive the overall cost of solar panels down. Part of the problem of trying to encourage individuals to invest in solar energy is the expense coupled with the payoff. Although many governments have offered various sorts of rebate packages to encourage investment in the technology and thus hopefully drive the price down to a more competitive figure, the effects of these types of programs have not been significant enough to have much real effect yet. According to Fyfe (2003), “Grid-connected PV systems - at around $14,000 after a $7500 government rebate - are still too expensive for most people.” At the same time, the gains made as a result of these solar panels have not been significant enough to encourage further investment because “solar panels rarely provide the total energy needs of a house, but if people have solar hot water and are energy efficient the panels can provide the bulk of it” (Fyfe, 2003). Again, though, with increased interest and technology development, both the cost of the technology as well as appliance efficiency may eventually be brought into closer alignment, becoming both available to the average consumer and capable of fully powering the household as well as feeding into the main power grid. At present, the expense of individual home installation is prohibitive for most consumers but this is changing with time. “Solar power is a prime choice in developing an affordable, feasible, global power source that is able to substitute for fossil fuels in all climate zones around the world” (“Solar Generation”, 2003). While the cost of solar cells and the feasibility of installing them on individual homes has been a point of contention and extreme expense, new developments in technology have made it possible to establish large-scale solar ‘farms’ that can contribute to the larger national electrical grid. New ways of collecting energy may increase the efficiency of the individual panels while new ways of storing energy may contribute to efficiency of transfer. Other technologies are introducing the possibility of generating solar energy through specially designed windows that would take less expense to produce as well (“Cost Effective Devices Available Soon,” 2008) and thus both bringing down the cost of individual home installation as well as offering yet more benefit to the large corporation or office building. Contributions to the national grid make fuel in the form of electricity available in households for the powering of all devices, including plug-in hybrid electric vehicles. Both wind and solar technologies are capable of providing a great deal of energy with no waste materials to deal with and without permanently destroying natural resources. However, a comparison of wind and solar energy is provided by Detronics Limited (2006) that demonstrates how the two technologies are more probably complementary sources of energy rather than competing forms. The company found that the purchase price of the wind system at a specific location was approximately $7 per watt of energy produced while the cost of the solar powered system averaged $12.25 per watt, making it seem obvious that the wind powered system was much preferable. However, calculating the speed and availability of wind at a given location in a given time frame makes the production of electricity a guessing game at best with wind power as opposed to more traditional methods. While solar energy collection is also less predictable than fossil fuels, it is more predictable in terms of available sunlight in a given time of year and the most advantageous location for the solar array. While it is unlikely that solar power will be able to completely replace the burning of coal or gas in the immediate future, the development of more efficient and less costly technologies may help to alleviate some of the present concerns over global warming. Used in conjunction with other sustainable energy generation, such as geothermal energy or wind energy, solar energy may be capable of reducing the tremendous drain on national power grids while continuing to provide citizens with the quality of life to which they’ve become accustomed. With other efforts, such as alternative means of transportation that do not burn fossil fuels, these sustainable energy sources may eventually reach the level of development that can replace fossil fuel energy creation. However, if the government and the citizens do not support these technologies now, while still in their infancy and perhaps not at their greatest level of effect, there will be no funding available to bring about this higher level of development. It is imperative for all nations of the world to reduce the effects of greenhouse gases on our atmosphere, particularly for those developed nations to concentrate on new means of acquiring the energy needed to power large urban centers even during peak hours. Although solar power isn’t completely reliable, affordable or able to replace older forms of energy production, it is one step in the right direction for South Australia, economically, culturally and globally. Works Cited “Cost Effective Devices Available Soon.” Science Daily. (July 11, 2008). April 21, 2009 < http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/07/080710142927.htm> Detronics staff. Renewable Energy Comparison of Wind and Photovoltaic Solar. Canada: Detronics Ltd., 2006. Fyfe, Melissa. “Has the sun set on solar power?” The Age. (March 11, 2003). Lenkefi, Peter. “How Does Solar Power Work?” EzineArticles.com. (September 6, 2005). April 21, 2009 “Solar Generation Report.” Greenpeace. (July 10, 2003). April 21, 2009 Read More