What Everyone Should Know About Solar PV
In the times we live in, when caring for our planet and the environment has become increasingly important, it is a bit surprising that a lot of people still ask, “So, what is Solar PV?” The short answer to that question is that solar photovoltaics, or solar PV, is an increasingly popular technology used to transform a fraction of the enormous amount of radiation/energy the sun sends to earth into direct current electricity, which can then be used to operate any electrical devices or lighting we use, as well as heat our homes. As the need and demand for renewable energy sources continues to grow, the manufacturing of solar PV system and solar cells has greatly increased over the past few years, leading to a drop in the cost of installing such equipment.
Thing everyone should know about Solar PV:
- How solar energy is actually produced
- Where solar panels can be installed
- The most important advantages of using PV panels
Getting informed about what solar PV is, how does solar PV work and why it is good for the environment is something everybody should do to play their part in taking care of the planet we all live on together.
Solar PV Panels Explained
The production of solar energy is surprisingly simple. The sun’s light contains energy. Usually, when sunlight hits an object, the energy simply turns into heat, which is why you get warm or even hot from sitting in the sun. But there are certain materials that, when hit by sunlight, proceed to transform the energy into an electrical current instead. And this electrical current is what can then harnessed for power. Silicon is one of the materials that does this to sunlight. Moreover, the production of solar energy usually goes something like this: silicon is mounted beneath non-reflective glass to produce photovoltaic panels that collect photons from the sun’s energy and convert them into DC electrical power. That DC power then flows into an inverter, which transforms it into basic AC electrical power. And voila! The process is complete and the power produced can be used for anything from charging your laptop to heating your home.
Solar panels can be installed on rooftops, over parking lots, close to walls or even on the ground. Basically, the point is to choose a location that will get the maximum amount of sunlight possible, so as to produce more power. Rooftops tend to be popular because they are exposed to a lot of sunlight, but this could prove impractical if the rooftop is simply too small for the panels to be able to produce a sufficient amount of energy, or if there are trees creating shade over the house.
PV panels have many advantages, but the most important ones are:
- They provide clean, green energy, and absolutely no harmful emissions.
- Solar energy is supplied by nature, and is, therefore, free and infinite.
- The costs of the operation and maintenance of PV panels are very low compared to the costs of other renewable energy systems, and are getting progressively cheaper by the year.
- PV panels are easy to install and do not intrude in any way on the residential lifestyle.
Solar PV panels are most likely the future of energy production. So the more and the sooner you know about them, the better!
