What Is Solar Energy?
By: Eric Huesca, SEO Content Writer
May 3, 2022
Ever drive down the road and you get blinded by the sun as if there was a solar flare? Those same blinding rays of sun can be harnessed into electricity and dispersed throughout your household. That big yellow ball of fire in the sky isn’t only to provide energy to plants, but it is now used to provide energy to our home and items in that home. Imagine charging your phone using power derived from the sun, it’s possible and highly beneficial.
Solar installation in Ohio by solgen power
In early human civilization, humans had already used solar energy to create fire and sunrooms. Sunrooms are rooms that are designed to use the energy of the sun to warm up
Sunlight hits a solar panel and the panel then converts it into electricity that then can be harnessed and used throughout your home. The photovoltaic effect is the process of how materials generate voltage and electrical current when exposed to light. This all happens in a solar panel to create electricity and then a solar inverter is used to convert DC to AC electricity. A net meter will track and measure the usage of energy in your home. It can also produce thermal energy which is also used for homes and businesses for heating up the buildings, rooms and the water heating system.
Benefits Of Solar Energy
Even with snow on your panel during these cold times, light is able to reach the panels and provide energy to you. The solar energy provided to you by the system will feed your whole household power and help drive down the cost of energy bill per month. For a lot of Americans, utilities are an obstacle to get over. It is needed in order to keep things going in your home, like keeping food cold in the fridge. One of the most beneficial things solar brings is non dependency, being able to not depend on other energy options and now having more available options for people to choose from. Solar panels have made it so that people can start taking ownership of one of the energy sources they use. Solar frees them from the monopoly of utility companies, there are options.
What being clean means is that there was no pollution created while the energy was being made. Coal-fired power plants use the burning of coal to create heat so that water steams up and creates pressure into turbines that produce electricity. Burning coal produces plenty of smoke, sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxide, carbon dioxide, mercury and other metals. Burning coal has already polluted the planet and damaged ecosystems. That is why green options like solar energy were created.
Some have been credited by the city for sending power back to the grid. It helps you with lowering your utilities every single month and therefore making it a great investment. Solar energy and getting it installed in your home helps drive the equity up while saving every month. Depending on your location, the amount of equity going up varies. Even the Government provides a credit in tax season for getting solar installed, that is due to moving to a renewable option. This incentive is to help boost people’s decision to switch to a cleaner alternative. There are plenty of financial benefits that you get from going solar, it makes it one of the most beneficial and rewarding investments.
Installing a solar panel on the roof of a customer
Some have been credited by the city for sending power back to the grid. It helps you with lowering your utilities every single month and therefore making it a great investment. Solar energy and getting it installed in your home helps drive the equity up while saving every month. Depending on your location, the amount of equity going up varies. Even the Government provides a credit in tax season for getting solar installed, which is due to making the switch to a renewable option. This incentive is to help boost people’s decision to switch to a cleaner alternative. There are plenty of financial benefits that you get from going solar, it makes it one of the most beneficial and rewarding investments.
Why Is Solar Energy Clean?
Solar Energy is a clean alternative energy resource rather than harmful energy resources like fossil fuels. No more buildings pumping out smoke and toxins just to provide energy, there are cleaner options already in the market. Solar expels no pollutants and the parts that make up solar power systems are recyclable. Solar energy is a renewable energy source which means that the resources for energy will never go away and as time goes on, will provide a means to an end. Solar energy being clean and renewable provides a good sense of direction to problems we face today.
Even thermal energy is a lot safer than gas heating. Gas heating always provides a danger since it becomes hazardous from inhaling or it being highly flammable. Using solar as heat to warm up objects that would regularly require fire is a prime example of how clean using energy from the sun really is. As more people move to solar, the need for more harmful energy options will disappear, helping make this world become green for everyone. Saving this planet is the ultimate goal and even though we are stepping in the right direction, we still have plenty to do.
How Solar Energy Works
Harnessing solar energy revolves around the utilization of solar panels and photovoltaic cells. Essentially, solar panels, which are commonly mounted on rooftops or areas with ample sunlight exposure, work as the main gateways for converting sunlight into usable electricity.
Each solar panel comprises numerous smaller units called photovoltaic cells, often made from semiconductor materials like silicon. The role of these photovoltaic cells is critical, as they are the elements that directly transform the energy from the sun into electricity. When sunlight strikes the cells, it gets absorbed by the semiconducting material, thereby setting the stage for the magic of solar energy conversion.
This absorption of sunlight by the photovoltaic cells triggers an exciting process. The energy derived from the sun’s light causes electrons in the semiconductor material to be knocked loose from their atoms. The photovoltaic cell is cleverly designed with positive and negative layers that create an electric field. As a result, once the electrons are freed, they get propelled out of the silicon junction due to the presence of this electric field.
The movement of these displaced electrons leads to the formation of an electric current. This phenomenon is known as the photovoltaic effect, which essentially is the process through which solar energy is transformed into direct current (DC) electricity. However, since most homes and appliances operate on alternating current (AC), this DC electricity undergoes conversion using an inverter. Once the electricity is in the AC form, it’s distributed throughout a home or building, powering everything from light bulbs to refrigerators. Surplus power generated can even be sent back to the grid or stored in a battery for later use.
Absorption of Sunlight
At the core of each photovoltaic cell is a semiconductor material, typically silicon, meticulously structured to harness the power of sunlight. When sunlight falls on the silicon material, it gets absorbed, marking the first step in the transformation of solar energy into electricity. This is made possible because sunlight is composed of minute energy packets called photons, which have the capability to displace electrons from their atomic orbits in certain materials, like silicon.
The silicon in a photovoltaic cell isn’t just a simple layer; it’s cleverly structured into two separate layers, each carrying a specific charge. One layer is doped to have more electrons and carries a negative charge, while the other is doped with fewer electrons, hence carrying a positive charge. When these two layers are brought together, an electric field is created at the junction.
This electric field is integral to the working of a photovoltaic cell. When sunlight is absorbed and electrons are knocked loose, they are caught in this electric field. The field propels these electrons out of the silicon junction, creating a flow of electricity. This is very similar to the working mechanism of a battery, where a positive and a negative end create an electric field, driving the flow of electrons from one end to another.
However, unlike a battery, which eventually runs out of power and needs recharging, a photovoltaic cell keeps on producing electricity as long as it’s exposed to sunlight. This is due to the nature of the semiconductor material and the created electric field, which keeps displacing and channeling electrons, thereby continuously generating power. Thus, through the thoughtful design and layering of silicon, photovoltaic cells serve as reliable and sustainable power generators, harnessing sunlight to create usable electricity.
Creation of Electric Current
Photovoltaic cells operate under the principle known as the photovoltaic effect, a physical and chemical phenomenon first observed by French physicist Edmond Becquerel in 1839. In essence, the photovoltaic effect is the creation of voltage or electric current in a material when it is exposed to light. In the case of solar panels, this material is a semiconductor, typically silicon.
When sunlight hits the silicon layers within a photovoltaic cell, energy from the absorbed light knocks electrons loose from their atomic orbits. The strategically created electric field at the junction of the two silicon layers then pushes these displaced electrons, causing them to move in a unified direction. However, for this movement of electrons to be useful, there needs to be a pathway for them to travel, which is where the circuit comes into play.
By connecting a conductive wire to the positive and negative sides of the cell, a closed circuit is created. The displaced electrons, propelled by the electric field, move along this circuit, forming what we refer to as an electric current. This movement of electrons is essentially the electricity that we harness. However, it’s important to note that the electricity generated by photovoltaic cells is in the form of direct current (DC), wherein electrons flow in a single direction around the circuit.
In our homes and businesses, however, we mostly use alternating current (AC), where the direction of the current periodically reverses. Therefore, the DC electricity produced by solar panels has to be converted into AC electricity before it can be used, a task achieved by an inverter. Despite this extra step, the process of converting sunlight into usable electricity through photovoltaic cells remains one of the most efficient and sustainable methods to harness solar energy. Through the photovoltaic effect, we can utilize the abundant sunlight to power our world with minimal environmental impact.
Conversion to Usable Electricity
Photovoltaic cells operate under the principle known as the photovoltaic effect, a physical and chemical phenomenon first observed by French physicist Edmond Becquerel in 1839. In essence, the photovoltaic effect is the creation of voltage or electric current in a material when it is exposed to light. In the case of solar panels, this material is a semiconductor, typically silicon.
When sunlight hits the silicon layers within a photovoltaic cell, energy from the absorbed light knocks electrons loose from their atomic orbits. The strategically created electric field at the junction of the two silicon layers then pushes these displaced electrons, causing them to move in a unified direction. However, for this movement of electrons to be useful, there needs to be a pathway for them to travel, which is where the circuit comes into play.
By connecting a conductive wire to the positive and negative sides of the cell, a closed circuit is created. The displaced electrons, propelled by the electric field, move along this circuit, forming what we refer to as an electric current. This movement of electrons is essentially the electricity that we harness. However, it’s important to note that the electricity generated by photovoltaic cells is in the form of direct current (DC), wherein electrons flow in a single direction around the circuit.
In our homes and businesses, however, we mostly use alternating current (AC), where the direction of the current periodically reverses. Therefore, the DC electricity produced by solar panels has to be converted into AC electricity before it can be used, a task achieved by an inverter. Despite this extra step, the process of converting sunlight into usable electricity through photovoltaic cells remains one of the most efficient and sustainable methods to harness solar energy. Through the photovoltaic effect, we can utilize the abundant sunlight to power our world with minimal environmental impact.
Distribution of Electricity
Harnessing solar energy in a residential setting is a finely tuned process that takes into account the specific needs of the household. Once the inverter has transformed the direct current (DC) electricity into the alternating current (AC) form used by most household appliances, this energy is then channelled throughout the house via the home’s existing electrical wiring system.
Electrical panels, also known as breaker boxes or distribution boards, serve as the hub for household electricity. They distribute the newly converted AC power to different circuits that run to various parts of the house. This distribution ensures that every device, appliance, and outlet has access to the solar energy produced by your panels. From here, solar energy can power everything from your lights and refrigerator to your television and computer.
However, it’s important to note that solar panels often generate more electricity than a home can use during peak daylight hours. So, what happens to this excess electricity? In many cases, the surplus is sent back into the grid through a system known as net metering. This process involves a special meter that spins backwards when your solar panels produce more electricity than your home needs, effectively “storing” your excess power in the grid for later use.
Under a net metering agreement, utility companies credit homeowners for the excess electricity they feed back into the grid. These credits can then be used to offset the cost of electricity drawn from the grid when your solar panels aren’t producing enough electricity, such as at night or during periods of heavy cloud cover. In this way, the surplus electricity generated by your solar panels doesn’t go to waste, and it can help offset the cost of your energy consumption during less sunny times.
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