Like any other source of energy, solar panels have their pros and cons. They should be carefully assessed before you begin to select the components of the heating and power supply system for your home. So, what are the advantages and disadvantages of this energy source?

Benefits of using solar panels

If we compare them with other energy sources that are autonomous and alternative, then solar panels can be considered the most efficient among them. To get enough energy from them, you need to combine several of these panels. Already from an area of ​​ten square meters, you can get up to 1 kW of electricity. And for a house in which three or four people live, a combined battery panel of twenty square meters will fit perfectly. During the day, in the summer, this source of energy is quite capable of providing the entire house. Twice the size of the panel, it is possible to generate almost 500 kW of electricity per month from solar energy. This is enough even for the heating system.

Among other advantages of solar batteries, it is worth noting a long service life. In addition, you will not be dependent in any way on possible malfunctions that occur in the electricity supply company. Remember, you probably had to sit without light just because there was a break in the power line or for some other reason. In the case of solar panels, this simply cannot happen. They do not need constant maintenance, and the probability of their breakdown is extremely small. After installing the system for electricity (and in some cases - for heating) you will no longer have to pay.

Cons of using solar powered batteries

The number of disadvantages of these batteries is not so great. However, they are quite serious and may well make a person refuse to buy this source of energy. First of all, they include the high price of these batteries. This means that they will pay off for a very long time. And people, as you know, are rarely willing to wait, and want to benefit from the purchase as soon as possible.

Compared to traditional energy sources, the efficiency of solar-powered batteries is quite low. Their power also leaves much to be desired, and therefore it is impossible to feed devices with high power from them.

The problem with the prices of these batteries is not so much that they are very high, but that this amount has to be paid immediately, and not gradually. So, only those who have significant free funds and can spend them without harming the current budget can afford to purchase such an alternative energy source.

Also, the battery owner will have to ask other questions, for example, "How to synchronize the voltage from the batteries with the voltage that comes from the local substation?". To do this, you will have to purchase special equipment, which will also result in additional costs.

In general, summing up all of the above, we can say that at present only fairly wealthy owners of their own houses can benefit from this energy source. They can safely wait until the batteries pay for themselves.

Today, the advantages and disadvantages of solar panels allow us to talk about these energy sources as the most promising for the near future. Why is it so good and what allows us to talk about the advantages of batteries not only for the home, but also for large enterprises and factories. This article is intended not only to highlight all the advantages, but also to reveal the disadvantages that are either hushed up by manufacturers or not disclosed during the sale.

The benefits of solar panels

• The first plus is inexhaustibility and all-accessibility of the source of energy. The sun is almost anywhere on the planet and in the near future, it is not going to disappear anywhere. If this source of energy disappears, then we will definitely not be worried about where to get electricity from.

• The second advantage of solar panels is their environmental friendliness. Every consumer fighting for the health of his native planet considers it his duty to purchase environmentally friendly energy sources such as a windmill or, in our case, solar panels. But it's the same with electric cars. Batteries themselves are environmentally friendly, but in their production, as well as in the production of batteries, power plants and various conductors, toxic substances are used that pollute the environment.

• By the way, speaking of comparison with windmills, solar panels are much quieter. They don't make any sound at all compared to noisy windmills.

• Batteries wear out very slowly, because there are no moving parts, unless you use drives in your system that turn the solar cells towards the energy source. However, even with such a system, solar panels last up to 25 years or more. Only after this period, if the batteries are of high quality, their efficiency begins to decrease and they gradually need to be replaced with new ones. Who knows what technologies will be in a quarter of a century? Perhaps the following batteries will last you for the rest of your life.

• By installing such a source of energy for the home, You will not think that the energy supplier will suddenly cut off your house for technical reasons. from energy supply. You are always your own boss. More precisely, its power supply system. There are no problems either with sudden price increases or with energy transportation.

• After your energy solar power plant pays off, You will receive essentially free energy in the house. Of course, first for a certain period, you need to recapture investments.

• Another benefit of solar power plants is the possibility of building. The question rests only on the area available to you. It is the modularity of the batteries that allows you to easily increase the power of the system if necessary. You just need to add new solar panels and power them into the system. Although these advantages of solar power plants are covered by a significant problem, namely the need to equip large areas. We are talking about square kilometers of solar cells.

• The solar panel does not consume any fuel, which means You are not dependent on fuel prices, as well as do not depend on fuel supplies. The advantages of solar panels are also in the uninterrupted supply of electricity.

Cons and disadvantages of solar panels

Despite all the above advantages, batteries also have a lot of disadvantages that need to be evaluated when choosing source of energy. It is important to understand all the cons before buying, so that later you can be prepared for what you have to face. For a number of reasons, solar panels are used more often as an auxiliary source, and not as the main one.

• The very first disadvantage the need for a large initial investment, which are not required for a normal connection to the mains supply. Also, the payback period for investments in the power grid with solar panels is very blurry, because everything depends on factors that do not depend on the consumer.

• Low level of efficiency. One square meter of an average solar array produces only about 120 watts of power. Such power is not enough even to work normally on a laptop. Solar panels have a significantly lower efficiency compared to traditional energy sources - about 14-15%. However, this drawback can be considered rather conditional, because new technologies are constantly increasing this indicator and development does not stand still, squeezing more and more energy efficiency out of the same areas.

• In the CIS countries, solar Batteries are quite expensive, because the state does not support the purchase of such energy sources and does not subsidize the desire of its citizens for "green" energy. Of course, the situation is much better abroad. After all, the United States is interested in the country's transition to environmentally friendly energy sources.

• Another disadvantage is work efficiency dependent on weather conditions and climate. For example, solar panels lose their effectiveness during cloudy weather or in fog. Also at low temperatures, in winter, the efficiency of solar panels drops. And if the panel is not of good enough quality, then at high temperatures. Therefore, it is still necessary to support solar panels with some main energy sources, or use hybrid solar panels. It is also important that solar panels can work differently in different latitudes of the planet. In each individual area, a different amount of solar energy comes out in a year. Therefore, the efficiency of the solar system also depends on the location of your home. However, as well as from the time of day, because at night there is no sun, which means there is no energy production.

• Batteries cannot be used as an energy source for equipment that consumes high power.

• solar power system requires a lot of assistive technology. Accumulators for energy storage, inverters, as well as a special room for installing the system. For example, nickel-cadmium batteries significantly lose their power when the temperature drops below zero Celsius.

• In order to produce more power from solar energy, large areas needed. If we talk about an industrial-scale solar power plant, then these are square kilometers. Of course, for domestic use of panels, you will not need such areas, but still consider this point if you want to expand.

Here are the pros and cons of solar panels. We hope our article has helped you decide what you need.

Recently, the study of the issue of alternative energy is gaining more and more popularity.

The urgency of environmental problems and the depletion of fossil fuel reserves annually involve an increasing number of countries in the search for renewable heat sources. One of such environmentally friendly, inexhaustible natural resources is solar energy. Today, this is perhaps the most technologically advanced and promising sector of alternative energy.

The scope of opportunities in this area is truly limitless. Scientists have calculated that twenty solar days are equal to all the reserves of oil, coal and other fossil fuels on the planet in terms of their resource content!

Solar battery as the most economical DC generator

On the basis of the process of generating solar energy into electrical energy, solar batteries were created, which in our time have become available to the general consumer.

The principle of operation of solar panels is based on the “photoelectric effect”.

The battery itself is a solar cell with many semiconductors on the surface. When interacting with the sun's rays, semiconductors begin to "movement", as a result of which an electric current is generated.

It should be noted that the power of one such panel is relatively small and directly depends on their geographical location, seasonality and even time of day. To increase efficiency, several panels are combined into modules, increasing the battery area. As a rule, the required area proportionally depends on the scale of the power supply facility. Currently, the largest solar panels in the world are located in the Mojave Desert. Their power is 354 megawatts, and the occupied area is about 1000 hectares!

Benefits of using solar panels

The main and indisputable advantage of solar panels is their inexhaustible source of energy - the Sun! The users of such a universal generator are completely independent of the functioning of suppliers, rising prices or problems in the fuel industry.

The duration of operation of most modern solar panels reaches 20 or even 40 years! At the same time, all maintenance of the equipment consists only in inspecting and cleaning the panels from organic debris.

Another indisputable advantage of this type of energy is its environmental friendliness. Since, when converted into electricity, solar energy does not pollute the air and does not affect the environment, it is safe to say that solar panels are a universal, profitable and safe source of electricity, both for most industrial enterprises and for domestic needs!

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Solar batteries as a source of energy work on the basis of the absorption and conversion of sunlight by some crystals. These crystals have the properties of semiconductors - in them, the areas with an excess and lack of electrons are physically separated by the so-called p-n junction. Without external action, the p-band electrons do not pass through the barrier layer. But light photons carry energy that rips the outer electrons of the atom out of orbit and allows them to get into the n-zone. Thus, the energy of the photons that make up the light beam in the thickness of the panel coating leads to the appearance of a potential difference, and this is the cause of the electric current.

Solar panels are an efficient and budgetary source of heat

It is enough to introduce electrodes into the structure, and the current will be able to flow freely and power electrical appliances, or, if batteries are connected, accumulate electricity in them.

Solar panel design

Historically, of all the known crystalline semiconductors, silicon is the most commonly used for the production of solar panels. First, it is a very common element. Secondly, it has been used in microelectronics for a long time, and the technologies for growing silicon crystals are well developed.
A solar panel in section can be represented as a pie, where the bottom layer is a metal plate that works as a negative electrode (cathode), then n-type silicon, close to it is a p-type silicon wafer, then a positive electrode (anode) having a lattice structure and protective glass.

One solar panel for power supply, sufficient to power powerful thermal heating devices, is not enough. Therefore, they are combined into batteries using a series-parallel connection.

Types of solar panels

The amount of current generated by a lightbar depends on a number of factors. This is the illumination, the number of working photons depends on it.

Monocrystalline solar cell

The surface area, the larger it is, the more absorbed energy. Efficiency is a very important value, and it depends on the properties of the crystals used in the panel. Commercially available solar panels based on:

• monocrystalline
• polycrystalline
• amorphous silicon

Polycrystalline solar cell

You can tell them apart by their appearance. Monocrystalline panels are almost black, polycrystalline are bluish. The amorphous silicon panels are gray and very thin and can be bent.

The absorption coefficient of single-crystal silicon wafers is noticeably higher than that of others. In practice, even they almost never have the declared 20% efficiency. Polycrystalline panels give out about 10% of the power. Wafers based on amorphous silicon not only have the lowest photoelectric conversion coefficient, but also quickly lose it due to the high sensitivity of a thin layer of silicon to burnout.

Solar cell based on amorphous silicon

Their use is advisable only in areas where cloudy weather prevails, in these conditions they demonstrate better performance than other types of solar panels.

How a solar installation works

Solar panels for home heating work as a source of electrical energy, they do not emit heat directly. The current that is received from the battery makes it possible to power electric heaters, infrared heat sources. As a rule, all consumers work from the AC mains, and the photocells of the solar panels supply direct current. To solve this problem, all solar panels for heating are understaffed with an inverter that converts direct voltage to alternating voltage. In addition, a controller is needed to successfully charge the batteries that are included in the circuit to provide night power.
The scheme of work is as follows: in solar time, the direct current coming from solar panels is converted into alternating current by the inverter and supplied to consumers with a voltage of 220 volts. At night, the batteries do not work, and the battery becomes the power source, which is also connected to the inverter.

Pros and cons of solar panels

Many people have a desire to have a source of energy independent of a centralized supply. In order to clearly imagine the picture of using the Sun as an alternative, you need to understand well all the pros and cons of such a battery for heating a house.

Undoubted advantages:

• Independent electricity and heat supply. Even in settlements with developed infrastructure, it is necessary to reduce dependence on public electrical networks. Far from civilization, having solar panels that allow you to light and heat the house is especially valuable.
• Source of free electricity. Electricity tariffs are constantly rising, and using your own energy source makes it possible to save money.
• Durability of work. The service life of solar panels is about 40 years. Over time, the efficiency of the panel should decrease.
• Environmental friendliness of energy generation, during its production there are no harmful emissions into the atmosphere.

Cons of installing solar panels: High price the solar panels themselves and related equipment. It is worth calculating the payback period of the installation and comparing it with its service life. Over time, alternative energy will become more accessible, and this minus will come to naught. A powerful installation that is able to meet the needs of heating appliances requires a large surface area. From one square meter of area in full light conditions, you can get up to 120 watts of electricity. The calculation shows that at least 20 square meters are required for lighting and heating the house.

solar battery cost

The cost consists of the price of all panels that will be included in the installation, and the cost of equipment. This is a battery, a controller that prevents the battery from overcharging. In addition, you will need an inverter to convert DC to AC and a relay to switch modes.

Panels based on monocrystalline silicon are more expensive than others, but this is offset by a gain in power.

Solar collectors

So-called collectors convert solar energy directly into heat. They have heating elements inside which liquid circulates. Through the heat exchanger circuit, energy is transferred to the working fluid, which accumulates in the tank.

Heating system based on vacuum-type solar collector

Such heating systems are already widely used in the world. Two types of collectors have been developed, flat and vacuum. For use in winter, you should choose a vacuum collector, it retains heat more reliably. But the flat collector has an advantage, it has great strength and reliability.

The solar collector needs less space than solar panel installations, but requires a large volume of working fluid and storage tank.

Solar panel selection

The choice is made based on the economic feasibility of using a battery of one type or another in a particular area. In areas with a mild climate where cloudy days are not uncommon, the efficiency of solar panels for heating will be low. Solar collectors, on the other hand, can still store enough heat. Where clear weather is not uncommon, solar panels will provide sufficient electricity.

In general, a solar collector for heating is much more efficient, with its help you can use not 15, but 90 percent of solar energy.

Solar battery installation

There are several rules that must be strictly followed.

Installation of solar panels

• The place for solar panels should not be shaded.
• Solar panels should be easily accessible for washing and snow removal.
• Batteries are installed in an inclination. The optimal tilt angle in the northern hemisphere is an angle equal to the geographic latitude of the area.
• Batteries are oriented strictly to the south.
• Installation is carried out on the walls of buildings, on roofs, on supports installed on the ground. In this case, it is necessary to provide sufficient distance between the panels so that they do not obscure each other. The aluminum frames of the panels have holes for mounting, and no special equipment is needed to install the panels.

Outcome

Solar battery is a promising and affordable form of alternative energy. With its help, you can significantly save on electricity and heat, if you take into account the long operating time of the installation.

In this video you can learn more about the features of solar panels.

INTRODUCTION

The idea of ​​creating this project did not come to me by chance. My uncle recently visited Israel, where people everywhere use solar energy for domestic needs (lighting, heating houses, water, etc.). I was very interested in this topic, and I decided to learn more about it and tried to create a model of a house illuminated with a solar battery (or solar module).

Solar battery- a household term used in colloquial speech or non-scientific press. Usually, the term “solar battery” means several combined photoelectric converters (photocells) - semiconductor devices that directly convert solar energy into direct electric current.

The history of the creation of a solar battery

Even in ancient times, people began to think about the possibilities of using solar energy. According to legend, the great Greek scientist Archimedes set fire to the enemy fleet that was besieging his hometown of Syracuse using a system of incendiary mirrors. It is known for certain that about 3,000 years ago, the Sultan's palace in Turkey was heated with water heated by solar energy. The ancient inhabitants of Africa, Asia and the Mediterranean obtained table salt by evaporating sea water. However, most people were attracted by experiments with mirrors and magnifying glasses. The real “solar boom” began in the 18th century, when science, freed from the fetters of religious superstitions, went ahead by leaps and bounds. The first solar heaters appeared in France. The naturalist J. Buffon created a large concave mirror that focused the reflected sun's rays at one point. This mirror was capable of quickly igniting a dry tree on a clear day at a distance of 68 meters. Shortly thereafter, the Swedish scientist N. Saussure built the first water heater. It was just a wooden box with a glass lid, but the water, poured into a simple device, was heated by the sun to 88 ° C. In 1774, the great French scientist A. Lavoisier first used lenses to concentrate the thermal energy of the sun. Soon in England they polished a large biconvex glass that melted cast iron in three seconds and granite in a minute.

The first solar panels capable of converting solar energy into mechanical energy were built again in France. At the end of the 19th century, at the World Exhibition in Paris, the inventor O. Mouchot demonstrated an insolator - an apparatus that focused rays on a steam boiler using a mirror. The boiler powered a printing press that printed 500 newspaper prints per hour. A few years later, a similar apparatus with a capacity of 15 horsepower was built in the USA.

Advantages of a solar battery

One of the main advantages of solar energy is its environmental friendliness. True, silicon compounds can cause little harm to the environment, but compared to the consequences of burning fossil fuels, such damage is a drop in the ocean.

Semiconductor solar panels have a very important advantage - durability. Moreover, caring for them does not require particularly great knowledge from the staff. As a result, solar panels are becoming more and more popular in industry and everyday life.

A few square meters of solar panels may well solve all the energy problems of a small village. In countries with a large number of sunny days - the southern part of the United States, Spain, India, Saudi Arabia and others - solar power plants have long been operating. Some of them reach quite impressive power.

Today, projects are already being developed for the construction of solar power plants outside the atmosphere - where the sun's rays do not lose their energy. The radiation caught in the earth's orbit is proposed to be converted into another type of energy - microwaves - and then sent to the Earth. All this will memorize fantastically, but modern technology allows such a project to be carried out in the very near future.

Solar energy has been around for a long time. But for a long time it was not considered as a major source of energy due to the high cost of production. Time passed and technology developed. Solar panels have fallen in price and become a serious source of energy. Last year, the total capacity of solar power plants worldwide exceeded 20 gigawatts! And this figure has doubled every three years since the beginning of this century. Only Russia is on the sidelines (and in vain, because the payment for electricity in the country is high).

Disadvantages of a solar battery

Depending on weather and time of day.

As a consequence, the need for energy storage.

High construction cost.

The need for constant cleaning of the reflective surface from dust.

Heating of the atmosphere above the power plant.

Where are solar panels manufactured?

In our time, the topic of developing alternative methods of obtaining energy is as relevant as possible. Traditional sources are rapidly drying up and in some fifty years they can be exhausted. Even now, energy resources are quite expensive and have a significant impact on the economy of many states.

All this makes the inhabitants of our planet look for new ways to obtain energy. And one of the most promising areas is the production of solar energy. And this is quite natural. After all, it is the Sun that gives life to our planet and provides us with heat and light. The sun heats all corners of the Earth, controls the rivers and the wind. Its rays grow at least one quadrillion tons of all kinds of plants, which, in turn, are food for animals.

The production of solar panels is growing at a frantic pace, trying to keep up with the skyrocketing demand. At the same time, the demand for both industrial power plants and domestic consumption is growing.

China is the leader in the production of solar panels. Almost a third (29%) of the world's production is produced here. At the same time, most of it is exported to the USA and Europe. It is noteworthy that the Americans, being the largest consumer, produce only 6% of all solar panels, preferring to invest in promising large factories in China.

Not far behind China are Japan and Germany, which produce respectively 22% and 20% of global production. Another leader is Taiwan - 11% of the market. All other countries produce significantly less solar panels.

Making a house

The idea of ​​using solar panels for the needs of people attracted me so much that I decided to make a model of a house out of cardboard, illuminated by an LED powered by a solar battery. To do this, I assembled the appropriate electrical circuit diagram. To be able to use lighting in cloudy weather and at night, it is possible to connect a battery to the circuit.