What is Solar Energy

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What is solar energy?
Solar Energy is the energy received from the sun that sustains life on earth. For many decades
solar energy has been considered as a huge source of energy and also an economical source of
energy because it is freely available. However, it is only now after years of research that
technology has made it possible to harness solar energy.

Some of the modern Solar
Energy systems consist of magnifying glasses along with pipes filled with fluid. These systems
consist of frontal glass that focuses the sun’s light onto the pipes. The fluid present in the pipes
heats up instantly. In addition they pipes are painted black on the outside so as to absorb
maximum amount of heat. The pipes have reflective silver surface on the back that reflects the
sunlight back, thus heating the pipes further. This reflective silver surface also helps in protecting
everything that is on the back of the solar panel.
The heat thus produced can be used for heating up water in a tank, thus saving the large amount
of gas or electricity required to heat the water.
Solar Energy Facts
Solar Energy is already being successfully used in residential and industrial settings for cooking,
heating, cooling, lighting, space technology, and for communications among other uses. In fact,
fossil fuels are also one form of solar energy stored in organic matter. With fossil fuels making
major impact on the environment and raising issues of pollution and global warming, solar
energy has increased in its importance to industries and homes. While the reserves of fossil fuels
are restricted, there is no limitation to the availability of solar energy.

With improvement in solar energy technology and the increase in prices of fossil fuel, solar
energy is gradually becoming more and more affordable. In addition, there is additional cost in
the form of importation and transportation, required for oil, coal and gas.
On a surface on the Earth’s orbit, normal to the sun, solar radiation hits at the rate of 1,366 Watt
Per Meter Square. This is known as solar constant. While 19% of this energy gets absorbed in the
atmosphere, 35% gets reflected by clouds. So, the solar energy that reaches sea level is much
reduced.
In the last few years, the cost of manufacturing of photovoltaic cells has gone down by as much
as 5% in a year and the percentage of government subsidies have gone up. This means that every
year, it is becoming more and more affordable to use Solar Energy. In 2004, the global solar cell
production increased by as much as 60%. The amount of energy released by a single Kilo Watt of
solar energy unit is equivalent to burning as much as 76 Kg of coal that releases over 135 Kg of
carbon dioxide.
As per energy industry giant, Shell more than 50% of the global energy in 2040 is going to be in
the form of renewable energy.
Solar Energy for home
In the last few years the number of photovoltaic installations on homes connected to utility grid
has grown significantly. And, the demand for Solar Energy has grown due to policies in green
pricing from utilities and government rebate programs. The demand has also grown due to the
interest of households to get electricity from renewable, non-polluting and clean source.
However, most of the users are interest in solar energy, but they can pay only a limited premium
for it.
The returns on the initial high costs of installation are in the form selling solar energy to the grid
at premium rates and also in the form of long-term savings that come in the form of not having to
pay any utility bills.
When you have a solar system that is connected to the utility grid, the regular generation of
electricity is used at home and the excess electricity is exported to the utility. In this type of setup
you would not require any batteries because any additional demand will be met from the grid
supply. However, if you want to be free of the grid, battery storage will be required to supply
power during nighttime and during cloudy or stormy conditions.
Vacation homes or holiday homes that don’t have access to the grid can utilize Solar Energy in a
more cost-effective manner as compared to relying on the grid for running wires to the remote
location. People living in remote areas having sufficient sunlight can get reliable power in the
form of solar energy. The basic components required in the solar power system consists of a solar

panel, battery for storing all the energy gathered during daytime, a regulator and essential
switches and wiring. These types of systems are commonly known as Solar Home Systems
(SHS).
Solar Energy Cost
When you want to install Solar Energy system at home, you would require it to be sufficient for
meeting all electricity requirements in home for a day plus it should generate enough power to
store for 3 to 5 days for contingency purpose. Such a system would keep supplying power and
getting charged when the days are sunny. During rain or winters it would be able to keep backup
charge for a couple of days until the sun emerges. This means that such a solar power system is
going to supply you a regular flow of electricity.
Solar panels are one of the most important factors in the generation of Solar Energy. On an
average, 1 Sq. Ft. of Solar Panel generates 10.6 Watts of power. And, the cost of 1 Sq. Ft. of
Solar Panel is approximately Rs. 4,500. 10.6 Watt of power is sufficient to light a room. So, if
you want to power appliances like television, refrigerator and computer, you would need more
solar panels.
You would have to consider solar grid-tie, and install 60 to 70 solar panels on the roof to meet
the overall electricity requirement of your home. You must know that the cost of installing solar
panels is not at all cheap.
Advantages of Solar Energy
Solar Energy has more advantages than you can point out the disadvantages. When it comes to
considering solar power as mainstay source of energy for home and industrial settings, it beats all
other conventional sources of energy.
Once the initial cost of installation is met, the electricity generated by solar panels is free of cost.
In a stand-alone solar power system you don’t have to pay any utility bills. Another positive in
installing solar power systems is that government offers lots of rebates and incentives to cover
the initial cost. You can also sell the additional electricity generated by your system. Sometimes
the utility company will give you credits for selling the excess amount of electricity.
Another good thing about solar power is that the cost of the technology is decreasing almost
every few months and the efficiency is improving significantly. Today, you can find different
types of solar solutions that are more convenient to install. Solar Energy is a renewable and clean
source of energy and you don’t have to pay any transmission cost. This is because the energy
would be produced and consumed at the same place.
Depending upon your budget, you can get all or a part of your electricity requirements fulfilled
by solar energy. When batteries are used in the system to store electricity you can become

entirely independent of the grid. This also means that you don’t have to get bothered by power
failures in the grid, as you would be able to enjoy seamless supply of electricity.
Disadvantages of Solar Energy
Even though Solar Energy has several disadvantages, they are not major in degree and the
benefits of this renewable source of energy far outweigh them.
The initial cost of the installation and equipment is high. When you compare fossil fuel
technology with solar power technology, the former will seem to be far more affordable. Even
though Solar Energy is being used at an increasing rate, the initial costs don’t encourage the
maximum users to switch to this renewable source of energy.
If there is shortage of space for installing solar panels, you would not be able to generate
sufficient amount of Solar Energy required to meet your electricity requirements.
Considering all these factors, it doesn’t require much judgment to see that solar energy is the
mainstay of energy requirement in both households and industries, both in the future and in the
next few years. It is only a matter of time before Solar Energy technology becomes easily
affordable to make this untapped and unending source of energy a common phenomenon in
every household.

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