SOLAR PV - SOLAR PHOTOVOLTAIC

The conversion of sunlight into electricity with the use of solar cells is called solar photovoltaic, or solar pv for short.

The technology is simpler than it would seem.

The photons from the sunlight are attracted to the solar pv panels and interact with the electrons speeding them up and creating energy.

The demand for this type of technology is on the rise as globally, people are looking for clean energy sources.

What you see when looking at the roof of a home or building that utilizes solar photovoltaic energy is a dark panel.

The solar cells are organized together on a board that is protected from the environment with a glass sheet. The cells are electrically connected to form a solar photovoltaic module or what is commonly known as a solar panel.

A single module can create enough energy to power an emergency phone; however, to power a single home or an entire power plant the solar pv modules must be arranged in arrays.

Essentially, solar photovoltaic cells are electrically linked to create a module and the modules are electrically linked to create solar pv arrays.

These arrays or series of panels are placed on the roof of a home or within a solar field to face the sun and often follow the sun to utilize as much of the solar photons as possible.

The electricity generated from the solar pv arrays can power a home, assist in powering a home or can be collected and distributed through a power plant.

Although the technology is readily available and solar photovoltaic panels are being purchased and installed in locations around the globe the cost is still significantly higher than the cost of conventional grid electricity, making it continue to be on the wish list of many.

This wish list may soon be fulfilled for people in Japan, Germany and the United States.

The significant financial incentives to use solar pv in Japan and in Germany has triggered the increase in demand and thus the growth in production.

In the United States the incentives to utilize natural and renewable energy sources such as solar photovoltaic includes tax breaks.

In addition, Australia and Israel also offer financial incentives such as feed-in tariffs for solar generated electricity.

On a global level the use of solar photovoltaic for electricity has a long way to go; however, great strides are being made and the speed in which this occurs is increasing.

The three leading countries in using solar pv are: Germany, Japan and the USA and represent nearly 90% of the usage.

This may soon change as China is developing a solar pv production facility and is expected to have a peak capacity of about 1,500 mega watts.

The technology continues to grow with solar plants and farms being created around the world and exploration of the advances in solar photovoltaic continues.

Currently, there is a 45 mile stretch of roadway in Idaho that is being used to test the possibilities of using roadways for solar power by installing the modules in the road since rural roadways often have unobstructed access to the sun.

Soon, harnessing the sun will be the standard for electricity generation.