Photovoltaic Energy

Paolo Abagar, Mario Miguel Celdran, Arjan Delos Santos, Keno Hibaya, Kevin Richard Miraflores, Lovely Jane Vallinas EE 147 Energy Conversion EECE Department Mindanao State University Iligan Institute of Technology Iligan City, Philippines

I.

INTRODUCTION Pearson, Chapin, and Fuller reported their discovery of 4.5% efficient silicon solar cells. Then in 1964 the Nimbus spacecraft was launched with a 470-W PV array which was its first practical application. However, it was not until 1940 that the first modern solar cell manufacturing began. This used silicon as the semiconductor material, patented by the American inventor, Rusell Ohl. In 1955, the American utility, Western Electric, began to market solar cell arrays. The first practical applications for these devices were in artificial satellites. They were an efficient way of providing electricity to remote bodies. Vanguard 1 thus became the first satellite to use a photovoltaic module to feed the transmitter, which consumed a mere 5 milliwatts. By the mid-70's, photovoltaic modules began to be used in different terrestrial applications. These included clocks, games and calculators. Over recent decades, photovoltaic technology has continued to advance, leading to the development of photovoltaic systems connected to networks. This has triggered an industry whose main objective is to supply modules for large photovoltaic farms to generate electricity on a quite different scale. In this market, TSolar has become the byword for excellence.

The term "photovoltaic" has two parts: (phs) a Greek word meaning light, and volt, a word coined in honour of the inventor of the electric battery, Alessandro Volta ( 1745-1827). It is produced when sunlight is converted into energy with the use of solar cells or semiconductors. -Photovoltaics is the field of technology and research related to the practical application of photovoltaic cells in producing electricity from light, though it is often used specifically to refer to the generation of electricity from sunlight. Photovoltaics (PV) is a method of generating electrical power by converting solar radiation into direct current electricity using semiconductors that exhibit the photovoltaic effect. Photovoltaic power generation employs solar panels composed of a number of solar cells containing a photovoltaic material. Materials presently used for photovoltaics include monocrystalline silicon, polycrystalline silicon, amorphous silicon, cadmium telluride, and copper indium gallium selenide/sulfide. Due to the increased demand for renewable energy sources, the manufacturing of solar cells and photovoltaic arrays has advanced considerably in recent years .

II.

HISTORY III. PROCESS

Photovoltaic energy has been discovered for almost two centuries. Photovoltaic effect was first discovered by a 19 year old French experimental physicist named Edmund Becquerel while he is experimenting with an electrolytic cell made up of two metal electrodes. Until in 1954, Bell Labs researchers

Photovoltaic (PV) cells are made up of at least 2 semi-conductor layers. One layer containing a positive charge, the other a negative charge.

The photovoltaic process converts sunlight, which is the most abundant energy source on the planet, directly into electricity. The sun emits photons (light), which generate electricity when they strike a photovoltaic cell. So in the same way a photovoltaic cell, made from a semi-conducting material, is a device that converts light into electricity . Sunlight consists of little particles of solar energy called photons. As a PV cell is exposed to this sunlight, many of the photons are reflected, pass right through, or absorbed by the solar cell. When sunlight strikes the solar cell, electrons are knocked loose and move toward the treated front surface of the solar cell. This creates an electron imbalance between the front and back of the cell and causes electricity to flow the greater the intensity of light, the greater the flow of electricity. Solar cells are made of silicon, a special type of melted sand, consisting of two or more thin layers of semi-conducting material, usually silicon. The layers are given opposite charges one positive, one negative. When enough photons are absorbed by the negative layer of the photovoltaic cell, electrons are freed from the negative semiconductor material. Due to the manufacturing process of the positive layer, these freed electrons naturally migrate to the positive layer creating a voltage differential, similar to a household battery. When the 2 layers are connected to an external load, the electrons flow through the circuit creating electricity. Each individual solar energy cell produces only 1-2 watts. To increase power output, cells are combined in a weather-tight package called a solar module. These modules (from one to several thousand) are then wired up in serial and/or parallel with one another, into what's called a solar array, to create the desired voltage and amperage output required by the given project. Due to the natural abundance of silicon, the semi-conductor material that PV cells are primarily made of, and the practically unlimited resource in the sun, solar power cells are very environmentally friendly. They burn no fuel and have absolutely no moving parts which makes them virtually maintenance free, clean, and silent.

Illustrations:

thus some of the light energy is converted into electric energy . IV. TYPES OF PV CELLS

Monocrystalline Silicon Cells These are made using cells sliced from a single cylindrical crystal of silicon, this is the most efficient photovoltaic technology, typically converting around 15% of the sun's energy into electricity. The manufacturing process required to produce monocrystalline silicon is complicated, resulting in slightly higher costs than other technologies.

Polycrystalline Silicon Cells

Photovoltaic effect was first observed by French physicist A. E. Bacquerel in 1839. Photovoltaic effect is directly related to the photoelectric effect.When the sunlight or any other light is incident upon a material surface, the electrons present in the valence band absorb energy and, being excited, jump to the conduction band and become free. Illustration:

Also sometimes known as multicrystalline cells, these are made from cells cut from an ingot of melted and recrystallised silicon. The ingots are then saw-cut into very thin wafers and assembled into complete cells; they are generally cheaper to produce than monocrystalline cells, due to the simpler manufacturing process, but they tend to be slightly less efficient, with average efficiencies of around 12%.

Thick-film Silicon This is a variant on multicrystalline technology where the silicon is deposited in a continuous process onto a base material giving a fine grained, sparkling appearance. Like all crystalline PV, it is normally encapsulated in a transparent insulating polymer with a tempered glass cover and then bound into a metal framed module.

Other Thin Films A number of other materials such as cadmium telluride (CdTe) and copper indium diselenide (CIS) are now being used for PV modules. The attraction of these technologies is that they can be manufactured by relatively inexpensive industrial processes, certainly in comparison to crystalline silicon technologies, yet they typically offer higher module efficiencies than amorphous silicon. Most offer a slightly lower efficiency: CIS is typically 10-13% efficient and CdTe around 8 or 9%. A potential disadvantage is the use of highly toxic metals such as Cadmium with the need for carefully controlled manufacturing and end of life disposal, although a typical CdTe module contains only 0.1% Cadmium which is reported to be a lower quantity of the metal than is found in a single AA-sized NiCad battery.

These highly excited, non-thermal electrons diffuse, and some reach a junction where they are accelerated into a different material by a built-in potential. This generates an electromotive force, and

V. 1. 2. 3.

ADVANTAGES Available nearly everywhere Inexhaustible and abundant Clean energy Solar power is clean energy with little environmental impact, and does not release air pollutants or noise while it is being generated. Compared to other means of generating power (hydraulic, nuclear, thermal), it demands little in terms of installation condition or scale. The distance between the point where the energy is generated and consumed is therefore short and keeps power loss minimal during supply. With few moving parts in its system it has no mechanical corrosion and long life. Above all, it benefits from an infinite source of energy.

VI. 1.

DISADVANTAGES Expensive This is due to its installation, any regulatory fees, semi-conducting material used, and infancy. Lack of consistency and reliability We know that this system relies on the steady absorption of sunlight. But there are factors that limit the availability of sunlight: Latitude efficacy falls as the distance from the equator increases. Clouds/Weather Night

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3. 4. 5. 6.

Takes up a lot of space Solar panels consume land, as power generation per unit square is low Panel deterioration Environmental pollutants - A few of the more notorious substances contained in panels and associated equipment include: Cadmium. Lead

4.

Production manageable Noise Free

end-wastes

and

emissions

are

5. 6. 7. 8. 9.

Less transmission/distribution losses protects against rising energy prices Excess heat can be used for co-generation There is room for improvement 8. 7.

Only areas of the world with lots of sunlight and very low heat are suitable for solar power generation When there is no solar energy to be collected you'll have to have adequate battery backup to get you through the nights and rainy days. It takes a considerable amount of solar panels depending on your location to produce the same amount of electricity

10. Long-lasting 11. Maintenance and operating expenses are low Solar Energy systems are virtually maintenance free and will last for decades. Once installed, there are no recurring costs. They operate silently, have no moving parts, do not release offensive smells and do not require you to add any fuel. 12. Get paid 13. Solar energy systems are now designed for particular needs. For instance, you can convert your outdoor lighting to solar. The solar cells are directly on the lights and cant be seen by anyone. At the same time, you eliminate all costs associated with running your outdoor lighting.

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10. Current devices which utilize solar energy are expensive. 11. Solar panels require quite a large area for installation to achieve a good level of efficiency. 12. Heat degrades the system faster and also degrades in time

VII. 1.

APPLICATIONS Power Stations As of July 2012, the largest photovoltaic (PV) power plant in the world is the Agua Caliente Solar Project in USA (247 MW). 2. In Buildings (Building-Integrated Photovoltaics (BIPV)) and Rural Electrification Photovoltaic arrays are often associated with buildings or houses: usually mounted on top of the existing roof structure or on the existing walls. Building-integrated photovoltaics (BIPV) are increasingly incorporated into new domestic and industrial buildings as a principal or ancillary source of electrical power. A 2011 study using thermal imaging has shown that solar panels, provided there is an open gap in which air can circulate between them and the roof, provide a passive cooling effect on buildings during the day and also keep accumulated heat in at night.

3. Agua Caliente Solar Project Some use innovative tracking systems that follow the sun's daily path across the sky to generate more electricity than conventional fixedmounted systems and there are no fuel costs or emissions during operation of the power stations.

In Transport PV has traditionally been used for electric power in space. It is being used increasingly to provide auxiliary power in boats and cars. A selfcontained solar vehicle would have limited power and low utility, but a solar-charged vehicle would allow use of solar power for transportation .

CEPALCOS 1mwp Photovoltaic Power Plant From the start of its commercial operations on September 26, 2004, the PV plant has exported to CEPALCO a total of 4,169,100 kWh or an average of 1,389,700kWh annually CEPALCOs 1MWp plant, with installed costs close to 5.3 Million US Dollars, uses 6,500 solar panels on 2 hectares of land

SINAG is the Philippines first entry to the World Solar Challenge

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Standalone devices

solar-photovoltaic-quick-pros-and-cons-of-solarpv [9.] http://www.nef.org.uk/greencompany/active-pvcells.htm [10.] http://www.tsolar.com/en/portal.do?IDM=242&N M=2 [11.] http://www.powersourcesolar.com/5151/

PV was used frequently to power calculators and novelty devices. Solar powered remote fixed devices have seen increasing use recently in locations where significant connection cost makes grid power prohibitively expensive.

VIII.

REFERENCES

[1.] http://www.solarenergy.net/Articles/howphotovoltaic-cells-work.aspx [2.] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Photovoltaic_system [3.] http://pveducation.org/pvcdrom/solar-celloperation/photovoltaic-effect [4.] http://www.triplepundit.com/2012/04/solarphotovoltaics-pros-cons/ [5.] http://www.triplepundit.com/2012/04/solarphotovoltaics-pros-cons/ [6.] http://www.solarguide.co.uk/solar-pv [7.] http://www.solarpowerplanetville.com/photovolta ic-solar-panels-advantages-and-disadvantages [8.] http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/blog/ post/2012/12/advantages-and-disadvantages-of-