Solar Power Electricity

Discover the essential basics of using solar electric power so you can understand your project. Planning a solar project for electricity begins with understanding this section. This is an excellent place to start for those just beginning. Solar power works well for most household electricity items. It is cost effective to use solar power for home electricity.

Solar power is the conversion of sunlight to electricity. Sunlight can be converted directly into electricity using photovoltaics (PV), or indirectly with concentrating solar power (CSP), which normally focuses the sun's energy to boil water which is then used to provide power. Photovoltaics were initially used to power small and medium-sized applications, from the calculator powered by a single solar cell to off-grid homes powered by a photovoltaic array.

The three types of photovoltaic solar panels are Monocrystalline, Polycrystalline and Amorphous, each has its advantages and disadvantages. The fact with photovoltaics is that it is becoming more commercially viable system because the cost of solar panels is declining to generate a useful amount of power.

In 2008, Solar power supplied 0.02% of the world's total energy supply. Use has been doubling every two, or fewer, years. If it continued at that rate, solar power would become the dominant energy source within a few decades.

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Since solar radiation is intermittent, solar power generation can be combined either with storage or other energy sources to provide continuous power, although for small distributed electricity consumers, net metering makes this transparent to the consumer. On a larger scale, a combined power plant have been popular, using a mix of wind, biomass, hydro-, and solar power generation, resulting in 100% renewable energy.

Using solar power to produce electricity is not the same as using solar to produce heat. Solar thermal principles are applied to produce hot fluids or air. Photovoltaic principles are used to produce electricity. A solar panel (PV panel) is made of the natural element, silicon, which becomes charged electrically when subjected to sun light. Solar panels are directed at solar south in the northern hemisphere and solar north in the southern hemisphere (these are slightly different than magnetic compass north-south directions) at an angle dictated by the geographic location and latitude of where they are to be installed.

Typically, the angle of the solar array is set within a range of between site-latitude-plus 15 degrees and site-latitude-minus 15 degrees, depending on whether a slight winter or summer bias is desirable in the system. Many solar arrays are placed at an angle equal to the site latitude with no bias for seasonal periods.

This electrical charge is consolidated in the PV panel and directed to the output terminals to produce low voltage (Direct Current) - usually 6 to 24 volts. The most common output is intended for nominal 12 volts, with an effective output usually up to 17 volts. A 12 volt nominal output is the reference voltage, but the operating voltage can be 17 volts or higher much like your car alternator charges your 12 volt battery at well over 12 volts. So there's a difference between the reference voltage and the actual operating voltage.

The intensity of the Sun's radiation changes with the hour of the day, time of the year and weather conditions. To be able to make calculations in planning a system, the total amount of solar radiation energy is expressed in hours of full sunlight per m², or Peak Sun Hours. This term, Peak Sun Hours, represents the average amount of sun available per day throughout the year. It is presumed that at "peak sun", 1000 W/m² of power reaches the surface of the earth. One hour of full sun provides 1000 Wh per m² = 1 kWh/m² - representing the solar energy received in one hour on a cloudless summer day on a one-square meter surface directed towards the sun.

To put this in some other perspective, the United States Department of Energy indicates the amount of solar energy that hits the surface of the earth every +/- hour is greater than the total amount of energy that the entire human population requires in a year. Another perspective is that roughly 100 miles square of solar panels placed in the southwestern U.S. could power the country. The daily average of Peak Sun Hours, based on either full-year statistics, or average worst month of the year statistics, for example, is used for calculation purposes in the design of the system. To see the average Peak Sun Hours for your area in the United States, you can use our solar radiation map. Choose the area closest to your location for a good indication of your average Peak Sun Hours.

So it can be concluded that the power of a system varies, depending on the intended geographical location. Homes in the northeastern U.S. will need more solar panels in their system to produce the same overall power as those living in Arizona. We can advise you on this if you have any doubts about your area.

The primary components for producing electricity using solar power for an on-grid application, which provides common 120 volt AC power for daily use are Solar panels and an inverter. Off-grid applications or on-grid with battery backup, your solar electric system could also include a charge controller and battery. Solar panels charge the battery, and the charge regulator insures proper charging of the battery.

The solar panels or the battery provides DC voltage to the inverter, and the inverter converts the DC voltage to normal AC voltage for use in the home. If 240 volts AC is needed, then either a transformer is added or two identical inverters are series-stacked to produce the 240 volts.

Solar Panels

The output of a solar panel is usually stated in watts, and the wattage is determined by multiplying the rated voltage by the rated amperage. The formula for wattage is VOLTS times AMPS equals WATTS. So for example, a 12 volt 60-watt solar panel measuring about 20 X 44 inches has a rated voltage of 17.1 and a rated 3.5 amperage. V x A = W 17.1 volts times 3.5 amps equals 60 watts If an average of 6 hours of peak sun per day is available in an area, then the above solar panel can produce an average 360-watt hours of power per day; 60w times 6 hrs. = 360 watt-hours.

Since the intensity of sunlight contacting the solar panel varies throughout the day, we use the term "peak sun hours" as a method to smooth out the variations into a daily average. Early morning and late-in-the-day sunlight produce less power than the mid-day sun.

Naturally, cloudy days will produce less power than bright sunny days as well. When planning a system your geographical area is rated in average peak sun hours per day based on yearly sun data. The average peak sun hours for various geographical areas are listed on the solar map.

Solar panels can be wired in series or in parallel to increase voltage or amperage respectively, and they can be wired both in series and in parallel to increase both volts and amps. Series wiring refers to connecting the positive terminal of one panel to the negative terminal of another. The resulting outer positive and negative terminals will produce voltage the sum of the two panels, but the amperage stays the same as one panel. So two 12 volt/3.5 amp panels wired in series produces 24 volts at 3.5 amps. Four of these wired in series would produce 48 volts at 3.5 amps. Parallel wiring refers to connecting positive terminals to positive terminals and negative to negative. The result is that the voltage stays the same, but amperage becomes the sum of the number of panels.

Charge Controller

A charge controller monitors the battery's state-of-charge to insure that when the battery needs charge-current it gets it, and also insures the battery isn't over-charged. Connecting a solar panel to a battery without a regulator seriously risks damaging the battery and potentially causing a safety concern. Charge controllers (or often called charge regulator) are rated based on the amount of amperage they can process from a solar array. If a controller is rated at 20 amps it means that you can connect up to 20 amps of solar panel output current to this one controller.The most advanced charge controllers utilize a charging principal referred to as Pulse-Width-Modulation (PWM) - which ensures the most efficient battery charging and extends the life of the battery. Even more advanced controllers also include Maximum Power Point Tracking (MPPT) which maximizes the amount of current going into the battery from the solar array by lowering the panel's output voltage, which increases the charging amps to the battery.

Many charge controllers also offer Low Voltage Disconnect (LVD) and Battery Temperature Compensation (BTC) as an optional feature. The LVD feature permits connecting loads to the LVD terminals which are then voltage sensitive. If the battery voltage drops too far the loads are disconnected - preventing potential damage to both the battery and the loads. BTC adjusts the charge rate based on the temperature of the battery since batteries are sensitive to temperature variations above and below about 75 F degrees.

Battery

The Deep Cycle batteries used are designed to be discharged and then re-charged thousands of times. These batteries are rated in Amp Hours (ah) - usually at 20 hours and 100 hours. Simply stated, amp hours refers to the amount of current - in amps - which can be supplied by the battery over the period of hours. For example, a 350ah battery could supply 17.5 continuous amps over 20 hours or 35 continuous amps for 10 hours.

To quickly express the total watts potentially available in a 6 volt 360ah battery; 360ah times the nominal 6 volts equals 2160 watts or 2.16kWh (kilowatt-hours). Like solar panels, batteries are wired in series and/or parallel to increase the voltage to the desired level and increase amp hours. The battery should have sufficient amp hour capacity to supply needed power during the longest expected period "no sun" or extremely cloudy conditions. A lead-acid battery should be sized at least 20% larger than this amount. If there is a source of back-up power, such as a standby generator along with a battery charger, the battery bank does not have to be sized for worst-case weather conditions. The size of the battery bank required will depend on the storage capacity required, the maximum discharge rate, the maximum charge rate, and the minimum temperature at which the batteries will be used. During planning, all of these factors are looked at, and the one requiring the largest capacity will dictate the battery size.

Using an Inverter

An inverter is a device which changes DC power from the solar panels or stored in a battery to standard 120/240 VAC electricity (also referred to as 110/220). Most solar power systems generate DC current which is stored in batteries. Nearly all lighting, appliances, motors, etc., are designed to use ac power, so it takes an inverter to make the switch from battery-stored DC to standard power (120 VAC, 60 Hz).

In an inverter, direct current (DC) is switched back and forth to produce alternating current (AC). Then it is transformed, filtered, stepped, etc. to get it to an acceptable output waveform. The more processing, the cleaner and quieter the output, but the lower the efficiency of the conversion. The goal becomes to produce a waveform that is acceptable to all loads without sacrificing too much power into the conversion process. Inverters come in two basic output designs - sine wave and modified sine wave. Most 120VAC devices can use the modified sine wave, but there are some notable exceptions.

Efficiency Losses

In all systems, there are losses due to such things as voltage losses as the electricity is carried across the wires, batteries and inverters not being 100 percent efficient, and other factors. These efficiency losses vary from component to component, and from system to system and can be as high as 25 percent. That's why it's a good idea to speak to someone who has extensive design experience - like us! - to properly configure the right equipment for you.