What is Solar: Definition and 1000 Discussions

Solar power is the conversion of energy from sunlight into electricity, either directly using photovoltaics (PV), indirectly using concentrated solar power, or a combination. Concentrated solar power systems use lenses or mirrors and solar tracking systems to focus a large area of sunlight into a small beam. Photovoltaic cells convert light into an electric current using the photovoltaic effect.Photovoltaics were initially solely used as a source of electricity for small and medium-sized applications, from the calculator powered by a single solar cell to remote homes powered by an off-grid rooftop PV system. Commercial concentrated solar power plants were first developed in the 1980s. As the cost of solar electricity has fallen, the number of grid-connected solar PV systems has grown into the millions and gigawatt-scale photovoltaic power stations are being built. Solar PV is rapidly becoming an inexpensive, low-carbon technology to harness renewable energy from the Sun. The current largest photovoltaic power station in the world is the Pavagada Solar Park, Karnataka, India with a generation capacity of 2050 MW.The International Energy Agency projected in 2014 that under its "high renewables" scenario, by 2050, solar photovoltaics and concentrated solar power would contribute about 16 and 11 percent, respectively, of worldwide electricity consumption, and solar would be the world's largest source of electricity. Most solar installations would be in China and India. In 2019, solar power generated 2.7% of the world's electricity, growing over 24% from the previous year. As of October 2020, the unsubsidised levelised cost of electricity for utility-scale solar power is around $36/MWh.

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  1. B

    Short Circuit Current in Solar PV Cells

    I'm reading about short circuit current in a solar PV cell and I am a little confused. The short circuit current is defined as the current across the solar cell when there is zero potential difference across the cell. At this point the short circuit current is equal to the light current. What...
  2. E

    Solar across multiple roofs

    I'm designing an off-grid system with solar panels on six different roofs spread out over about a hectare. There is also a generator on the site for backup and when the solar isn't enough. I need all the solar panels to feed one main distribution panel. What are my options? I've considered...
  3. Garth

    What Is the Significance of the Solar Eclipse on March 20, 2015?

    Just to let everyone know here in the UK we are waiting expectantly for the Solar Eclipse tomorrow morning - max at around 9.30am. 98% coverage in the north of Scotland and the Orkneys, Hebrides and Shetland islands, 85% down here in the south. The totality shadow crosses from the North...
  4. B

    Question about 12v Solar charger?

    Hi, I recently bought a smallish 12v DC solar panel for trickle charging my jetski battery. I've had a look at the panel with a multimeter and in good sunlight it makes easy 24V but very very low current. I was wondering if I stick a 99pence buck converter on in, forcing the voltage to a max of...
  5. Destruct_

    Solar panels -- connect as parallel circuit or series circuit?

    Hey, I have searched in the internet for the good or the negative points for a parallel- or a series circuit with a solar cell. But i didnt find something. I mean what is the difference when i connect many solar cells to a solar panel? What is better? A parallel or an series circuit? I know...
  6. S

    Confusion regarding Solar Eclipse

    If solar eclipse occurs at 12h 12m 12s actually. Then at what time one will see it on earth. Will the speed of light affect the time if moon starts covering sun at 12 h 12 m 12s when one will see covering on earth? at what time? I just want to know I am just curious do you think the time taken...
  7. J

    Has Anyone Experienced Challenges with the Weber-Davis Solar Wind Model?

    Hi, I was wondering if anyone here had any experience (preferably intimate) with the Weber-Davis solar wind model, i.e. ...
  8. T

    Survival probability solar neutrinos

    I am trying to explain why why the survival probability for solar neutrinos is different for different neutrino solar lines, and what causes this difference.
  9. M

    Virtual Solar System (formula for gravity in 3d)

    I've made a virtual solar system in Java3d. I'm trying to implement the orbiting of planets and ships. I get the basic formula F = G((m1*m2)/r^2))[\code] and saw a discussion here about the formula in 3d but, I don't know how to read a letter with an arrow over it, lol. Can someone help me...
  10. C

    ET Lives in a Multi-Planet Solar System

    by Ken Croswell If ET exists, he probably lives in a solar system with many planets. That's the implication of a new study that finds that the more planets a solar system has, the more circular their orbits tend to be. Link (including a color chart showing the correlation of orbital...
  11. S

    Can reflected light help generate electricity with a solar panel?

    Can we use a mirror to reflect sun's light on a solar panel and generate electricity?
  12. OmCheeto

    NASA NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory, 5 year video

    I didn't know where to post this, but, this video makes my eyes water.
  13. S

    Optimizing PV Solar Panel Efficiency with Wavelength Absorption and Reflection

    Hi, I am wondering if all the different wavelengths (ie colors) of light are absorbed by a PV panel, and if so is the absorption equal among all the wavelengths? Is there any wavelength(s) that are more readily reflected off the glass or the PV cell itself? Thanks a lot! Scott
  14. itchybrain

    Question about solar energy: angle of incidence

    My understanding is that the seasonal variation in temperature, amongst many other things, is a reflection of the Earth's tilt. Simply put, at the equator, sun rays fall "straight down" (100% vertical), and all of their energy hits the surface of the Earth. At different latitudes, these rays...
  15. shmijda

    Which has the most intense sunlight hitting it?

    Homework Statement Which has the most intense sunlight hitting it?Question 2 options: A point on the Equator at sunset The North Pole at Noon on the Summer Solstace Montreal at Noon on the Spring Equinox The South Pole on the (Northern hemisphere) Summer SolstaceHomework Equations none The...
  16. E

    Making a solar cell phone charger

    Good day everyone, So I have a spare solar panel that has been laying around and I want to put it to use. Its a small panel, about 8"X12". The specs read 8 Watts and 17 Volts I was thinking of maybe making a solar charger for phones and other 5VDC USB devices. I bought a 5VDC regulator kit...
  17. M

    Extra Solar Planets: Data & Answers

    Is there a website where data on extra solar planets is summarized? Questions such as: how far away are the parent stars from here?, what fraction of nearby stars have planets?, what fraction of the planets are "earth-like?, how many in "goldilocks zone?
  18. D

    Help with Prototype: Find Cooling Fans for Solar-Powered Box

    I am currently working on a prototype for a new product. Whithout exposing the product to much it is simply put a cooling box run by solar panels with a battery backup. Due to the fact that the surface area available for solar panels is limited the cooling module needs to be quite small and...
  19. 2

    Engineering Question about dc to ac circuits in solar panels?

    Homework Statement It can be shown that a square wave can be represented by a sum of sine waves as given by the formula below v = v0sinωot + v1sinω1t + v2sinω2t + v3sinω3t +... Solar cells have an output that is dc. The pd across a cell depends on the incident radiation and the efficiency of...
  20. Domenico94

    Solar panels and optical parametric oscillator

    Hi everyone. On these days, by watching solar panels and similar stuff, I just thought about it, and why they take such a wide surface to produce energy, and why their output is often low, as we all know. By navigating here on the internet, I've just seen a device called OPO (Optical...
  21. Paulene Gueco

    Efficiency of a Solar Powered Car

    As I am currently residing in Doha, Qatar, I've decided to base my mini-thesis on Solar energy. And although I haven't got it finalized yet, I'm thinking of investigating the efficiency of solar powered cars. I could build a toy car and input solar-powered batteries as opposed to another toy...
  22. J

    Maximizing Efficiency: Using Luxeon S LEDs for Solar Simulator Design

    I want to make a solar simulator with LEDs. I want to get a net intensity of 1 Sun(1000 W/m^2). My LEDs have the following specifications: LUXEON S LXS8-PW30 Luminous flux at 700 mA, 85°C* 1315 lm Radiant flux at 700 mA, 85°C 4113 mW 1931 CIE color points at 700 mA, 85°C (0.4304, 0.4030)...
  23. J

    LED Solar Simulator: Design, Schematics & LEDs

    Hi, I want to make a solar simulator with white LEDs as a part of my project. I searched net about it, but couldn't get much details about it? Can some one help me with the basic schematics, no. of LEDs required and the design? Regards, Jefin
  24. S

    Gas separation in solar splitting of water

    I saw recently a new article about some kind of PEC cell immersed in water which could separate water into hydrogen and oxygen. (It was news because they found a way to protect the cell from immediate corrosion damage) It seemed that somehow the scientists had designed a cell that could put the...
  25. N

    How to calculate solar cell efficiency with data in dark?

    Hi mates, I have to find solar cell efficiency by datas that given. These datas comes from an experiment in light and in dark. I found efficiency in light by square method with IV curve. But i don't know how to find in dark. The square method doesn't work cos data crossing the origin, no area to...
  26. D

    Solar Panel that you can see through?

    can you tell me if it is possible to make a solar panel that will let some light through and still capture the wavelength that makes electricity? or better yet see through.
  27. L

    The Big Picture of Solar Research

    From a top-level view, what exactly are people working on in solar these days? Efficiency? Cost? Both? What are the parameters people really have to vary? Crystalline, polycrystalline, amorphous? Binary, ternary, quaternary compounds? Crystal structure (I have heard perovskites are a hot...
  28. H

    Why is the Solar System Flat Instead of Spherical Like Atomic Structures?

    hi guys, why our solar system is flat? why planets are not revolving arround the sun as atoms revolve arround the nucleus? why galaxys are flat? why black holes are flat?
  29. J

    Can I charge a solar battery very fast with a large current?

    Homework Statement [/B] The main problem is if it is safe to charge a solar battery as quickly as possible assuming that I have a large current charger. Let's say I have: 70Ah Solar Battery 50 F, 15 V Ultra Capacitor C = Q/V Q = CV = (50)(15) = 750 I = Q/t It = Q = 750 Ampere-second E = 15...
  30. H

    CPV Solar Systems - Why Use Less Photovoltaic Material?

    Homework Statement Hey guys Concentrated photovoltaic systems are known for high efficiency performance compared to that of a standard solar panel. But, what's confusing me is the reason behind using lesser photovoltaic material in CPV systems. Can't we use the solar panel of the same size...
  31. ubergewehr273

    How are Solar Flares and Solar Winds Generated by the Sun's Magnetic Field?

    How are solar flares and solar winds generated due to the magnetic field of the sun ? Please elaborate and provide detailed explanation if possible.
  32. nsaspook

    Blu-ray disc can be used to improve solar cell performance

    http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/11/141125111816.htm?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+sciencedaily%2Fmatter_energy%2Fsolar_energy+%28Solar+Energy+News+--+ScienceDaily%29 Pretty cool use of a mass produced product but how much do you think a Chuck Norris disk...
  33. Y

    Hot spot heating of solar cell

    As I know, when a string of solar cells connected in series, if one of the cell is shaded, it will be reverse bias due to current mismatch and the voltage can be very high, say, 20V. But in short circuit condition, the overall voltage should be zero, if other cells are in forward bias, how can...
  34. L

    Help on solar powered car's power source

    < Mentor Note -- thread moved to HH from the technical engineering forums, so no HH Template is shown > I have taken part in a competition about solar car racing recently. The car I am going to make is just as big as a toy car. I have some problems about it's power source. I am going to use...
  35. D

    Need help developing an idea, solar energy heliostats

    So i was wondering could you use two helio stats so there was two refraction points, the second one focusing the beam of solar energy back downwards? If so could you use multiple helio stats to meet at refraction point # 2 magnifying the beam that's pointed downwards? In theory it should work...
  36. C

    First Measurement of the Ancient Solar System's Magnetic Field

    by Ken Croswell Earth and its planetary neighbors arose in a magnetic field strong enough to sculpt the disk of gas and dust that spawned our solar system and set the stage for a planet capable of developing life. That's the implication of new work that uses a meteorite to deduce the strength...
  37. R

    Solar Water Heater: How It Works & Energy Transfers

    Hi good day to you all :) can anyone explain with some detail the principles on how a solar water heater works and the energy transfers. THANKS
  38. D

    Using solar cell as a power laser meter

    The current and the voltgate from solar cell are verry small, so can i add a amplicifer circuit? And How add?
  39. MLTstudent

    Solar System Dynamics, advice for a intern.

    Hello Physics Forums Community, I have completed ODE, 3 semesters of intro Calc, 3 semesters of intro physics, taking linear now. I have recently gotten the opportunity to work on little projects with a professor of astrophysics at a university. On the first meeting, the professor handed me...
  40. J

    Solar System inside a black hole

    Is it possible for our solar system to be located inside a black hole which is our galactic centre?
  41. L

    Solar Updraft Tower turbine design

    I'm attempting to design a turbine for a small scale solar updraft tower. It produces between 1-3 m/s of air flow in a 0.3m diameter tower. I'm in need of resources that can guide me on designing the turbine fan. I've already got the Wind Energy Handbook, however I'm not even sure if following...
  42. J

    Unraveling the Relationship Between Magnetic North and Solar East

    This morning I was momentarily struck by the coincidence that magnetic North and "solar East" (the direction of the rising sun) happened to be (approximately) perpendicular, but now it doesn't really seem coincidental; as I understand it, spinning of the Earth causes a current that leads to the...
  43. E

    BH to Sun, back of the napkin calculation of solar mass

    Yesterday I had a bizarre idea. I supposed that a black hole (which I assumed to be a sufficiently dense sphere) became our sun. I know this is completely wrong, but please humor me and see what I've done. Suppose we have a sphere sufficiently dense, so that the Schwarzschild radius, r_s, is...
  44. F

    Electric field on surface of the Earth due to solar radiation

    This problem is actually an example I'm working through... 1. Homework Statement We are trying to estimate the (magnitude of the) electric field in the light waves from the sun hitting the surface of the Earth. Homework Equations The Poynting vector for a sinusoidal EM wave has magnitude...
  45. lpetrich

    I saw the 23 Oct 2014 N America partial solar eclipse

    I saw it yesterday. I live in the Pacific Northwest, which was clouded over. But at about 2:45 - 3:00 PM PDT, at local maximum eclipse, there was a break in the lower clouds, and I could see the Sun through the upper clouds. It was rather fuzzy-looking, but I could see a bite out of it from the...
  46. Meera.sheeda

    Rooftop solar hot water system

    Homework Statement You would like to put a solar hot water system on your roof but your not sure if it's feasible. A reference book on solar energy shows that the ground level solar intensity in your city is 800W/m^2 for at least five hours a day throughout most of the year. Assuming that the...
  47. S

    Silicon: The Key to Solar Panel Efficiency & Why Carbon Isn't Used

    How does the crystalline structure of silicon make it useful in solar panels? Why is carbon not used?
  48. J

    Solar Cycle: Current State & Update

    What is current state of the solar cycle?
  49. B

    Solar power market opportunities from technical point of view

    Hi guys, So, I'm a bit of an entrepreneur working on a social solar (small scale) endeavour in developing countries. However, I am wanting to build a sustainable company from standing out from the crowd in the solar industry. I'm just wondering if any of you have had experience with solar...
  50. N

    CFD calculations in solar updraft towers

    Hi all, I have been asked to contribute material for a presentation at my daughters school. The subject is alternative energy via solar methods and several other parents have already selected the obvious platforms (photovoltaics, CSP, etc.) and I thought solar updraft towers would be kind of...
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