PV Gap

Lester Said:

How do solar FARMS convert solar energy into electrical energy?

We Answered:

Hey Me, there are 3 basic types of solar farms. The first, built in the 70's used large mirriors to focus sunlight on a boiler that made steam with the heat. The steam was then used to run a steam turbine generator. It worked pretty well when the sun shined. The second was the photovoltiac farm, using solar electric panels. These type panels use silicone layers to convert the incoming photons directly to a voltage. They are simple and generally maintence free, but very expensive for the amount of energy they generate. A better use for photovoltiac panels is in remote homes and other applications. Since the sun is spread fairly evenly over the middle third of our globe, a few panels on each home works better than piling them up in one place, then having to ship the electricity to all the homes. We have an array on our garage roof right now that powers most of the loads in our home, so now our electric bill runs about $6 per month, probably a good use for photovoltiacs.

The latest type involves using concentrator mirrors to heat oil to nearly 600 degrees and then storing it in huge thermally insulated tanks. The super heated oil is then used to boil water for steam to run steam turbines whenever power is desired, and at whatever rate it is needed at that time. The real advantage of this is that the oil in the huge tank stays hot most the night, so we can even use it to produce solar generated electricity at night, a tremendous advantage over the other two types of solar farms. The Germans are working on a large farm that will be placed in the Northern Sahara Desert and can power most of Europe. It will be done with sun that shines almost daily on a desert space that has little to no existing life to displace. The excess energy will be used to desalinate sea water for irrigation right on sight. This will actually create small habitat for plants and animals where none currently exists, using the same plot of land that the solar concentrators will sit on. Most of the desert will remain untouched. If you would like more info and some fantastic pics, google, "North African Solar Project," and check out several of the links and articles that come up. This is probably the most promising application of solar power yet. I will list a few other sources below as well. Good luck, and take care, Rudydoo

Martin Said:

please tell how we convert solar energy to electrical energy?

We Answered:

Solar energy is converted into electrical energy using photocells which can be stored in small quantities in storage batteries for later use. Solar lamps is an example of such an application.

Jacob Said:

How do u change Solar Energy into electrical energy?

We Answered:

By means of a solar cell, which is a special type of photodiode (pn junction semiconductor).