All About Solar Energy

With the world's supply of fossil fuels such as coal, oil, and natural gas being depleted, alternate forms of energy production are in need.  One of these forms of energy production is solar energy.  The sun is arguably the biggest source of energy available to us.  It could easily provide us with all the energy we need, and it won't run out anytime soon.  There is only one problem...harnessing this energy.  Right now solar energy accounts for less than 1% of the world's total energy production.  About 85% of this energy production comes from fossil fuels.  Three of the major arguments against solar energy are that energy can only be produced in nice weather, there is no room for solar panels, and its cost.  Looking at the first issue, it is true that solar panels don't work effectively at night or during adverse weather.  However, there are very powerful batteries that can store the energy made during the day so that power can be used at night or during storms.  As for the issue of space, solar panels are bulky.  But think of the Sahara Desert.  It is estimated that an area of 640,000 square km could provide the world with nearly all the power it needs.  The Sahara Desert, one of the sunniest places in the world, spans 9,000,000 square km.  As for the cost of solar panels, they are pricey.  This is mainly because they require large amounts of silicon which is not readily available.  However, this price can be offset with time, as anyone who invested in solar would save money on energy in the long run.

 

After learning more about solar energy, you may ask, how does solar energy work?  Obviously I could go into great detail to answer this question, but I am going to keep it simple.  There are two different types, solar thermal and photovoltaic.  Solar thermal is used to generate heat from the Sun's energy.  I am going to focus on photovoltaic because this is how electricity is made from the Sun.  The solar panels in the photovoltaic method contain silicon (a semi-conductor) based solar cells that absorb the Sun's light.  Being a semi-condutor means the silicon readily donates its electrons.  The energy from the Sun's light "excites" the electrons in the silicon solar cells, creating electron flow or electricity.  This is in the form of a direct current or DC.  This DC power can be stored in a battery.  Since your house uses alternating current or AC power, the DC power has to flow through an inverter to change it to AC.