With the boom of solar power and the unprecedented growth in renewable energies, you may be left wondering, what is solar power used for? If solar power is going to continue to be a larger and larger aspect of life, knowing about it is a good thing. Let’s break down what solar power is used for. 

Generate Electricity

Solar power is used to generate electricity. This is done in a number of ways, from photovoltaic cells which turn sunlight into electricity, to capturing the thermal energy of the sun. The electricity that is produced by solar energy either goes to the grid or is used to power batteries in a home. 

Solar battery systems are the main way that people live off-grid and still maintain a modern quality of life. They are used by those who live in cities to help offset the cost of electricity. If you combine a solar power system with a battery backup, you can even be protected against power outages. 

Green Energy

If you’ve ever asked yourself, what is solar power used for, the true answer is green electricity. Solar power, like other renewables, is much safer and healthier for the planet than burning fossil fuels. The energy generated by solar power comes from the sun, a source that will last for billions of years. 

Fossil fuels are a finite resource, and using them leaves governments around the world beholden to others. In this way, green energy and solar power are used to help free people from the power of oil-producing nations and corrupt big businesses. 

Where Is Solar Power Used? 

Solar power is most often used in two different ways. On-grid solar is used to augment the electrical grid of a town or city. The produced electricity is sent into the grid to be used, and the homeowner is awarded credit for the energy they provide. 

Off-grid solar energy is used as part of RV living, boat living, and many other nomadic lifestyles. It is also used to power vacation homes in remote areas, off-grid cabins and has even brought power to undeveloped parts of the world. With solar, you don’t need extensive infrastructure. 

Having Solar Installed

One of the best solar power tips is to have a professional solar installation done for your home system. A professional system will take the best advantage of the natural sunlight in your area. Don’t try to struggle with installation, get right to saving money. 

What Is Solar Power Used For

So, what is solar power used for? Solar energy can be used for everything, and it is used to produce clean, efficient, and renewable energy. Solar energy is changing the world and how we interact with it. 

Solar power brings freedom to those who want to travel and provides hard-working people with cheap energy. 

If this article was helpful or interesting, please take a moment and check out our website for more information. 

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Nowadays, it’s not uncommon to see solar panels providing energy to road signs, businesses, and even some spacecrafts. Are you curious about solar energy science? Keep reading to find out more about new solar panel technology and how it works!

How Does Sunlight Become Energy?

The detailed science behind solar energy and light waves can get pretty complicated, but the basics are quite simple. It all begins with the sun. The sun is in a constant state of nuclear fusion, which means it is always releasing energy. 

The energy released by the sun travels all the way to earth in the form of particles of light and heat. These powerful, energy-packed particles are called photons. Photons in sunlight can be “captured” to create electricity using solar panels.

How Do Solar Panels Work?

At the heart of solar panel technology is an innovation called the photovoltaic solar cell. New York inventor Charles Fritts invented the first solar cell when he coated selenium with a layer of gold. Selenium in solar cells would later get replaced with silicon, but both metals work as conductors for electricity.

When photons from sunlight heat up a solar cell, electrons are released. When they’re in the presence of a conductor like selenium or silicon, these released electrons create an electrical current. 

Like a battery, conductors in photovoltaic solar cells have positive and negative layers. This method of generating electricity is the photoelectric effect. The term photovoltaic is also sometimes used in place of photoelectric, but they mean the same thing.

The technology behind solar panels used today is a lot like those early concepts. Photovoltaic solar panels have many silicon-based solar cells. The more solar panels you have installed, the more electricity they will generate. 

What Happens with the Electricity?

The electricity generated by PV solar panels is direct current (DC) electricity. This means the electrons flow in one direction, like they’re on a one-way street. 

Both the United States power grid and generators use alternating current (AC) electricity. The tricky part is getting the DC electricity from solar panels into the AC grid. Solar inverters are a solar panel tech device that take care of this problem.

Solar inverters take DC electricity from many solar panels (referred to as a solar array) and convert it into AC electricity. This new AC electricity is now compatible with the power grid. Excess energy gets sent back to the grid and used elsewhere, stored for later, or returned to your home at no cost. 

The ability to generate and store electricity is just one of the many benefits of solar installation. As solar panel tech continues to improve, it’s going to get even better.

Daylight’s Burning

Solar energy is clean, efficient, and can even lower your electricity bills. It’s easy to see why so many homeowners and businesses are choosing to go solar. New solar panel technology has come a long way since the late 1800’s, and it’s going to be sticking around for a while.

If you found this article interesting, be sure to visit the rest of our website for more great topics!

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The thermal conversion of high temperature is to transform solar energy into thermal energy stored in a fluid. Devices called collectors are used to heat the liquid.

The photovoltaic conversion involves direct transformation of light energy into electrical energy. Solar panels made of photovoltaic cells (silicon or germanium) are used for this.

 The photovoltaic solar cells convert light from the sun directly into electricity by photoelectric effect called, whereby certain materials are able to absorb photons (light particles) and release electrons, generating an electric current. On the other hand, solar thermal collectors use panels or mirrors to absorb and concentrate solar heat, transfer it to a fluid and conduct it through pipes for use in buildings and facilities or also for the production of electricity (solar thermoelectric).

What are the benefits of solar energy?

Solar energy has numerous benefits that place it as one of the most promising. Renewable, non-polluting and available worldwide , it contributes to sustainable development  and job creation in the areas where it is established.

Likewise, the simplicity of this technology makes it ideal for use in isolated network points, rural areas or those with difficult access , such as the rural area of ​​Cajamarca, in Peru, where ACCIONA has promoted various projects to facilitate the electrical self-sufficiency of its population. Solar energy is also useful for generating electricity on a large scale and injecting it into the grid, especially in geographical areas whose meteorology provides abundant hours of sunshine per year.

The solar collection modules require relatively simple maintenance, which, together with the progressive and accelerated decrease in the cost of photovoltaic cells –-, explain the currently favorable prospects for solar technology. Solar plants, moreover, do not emit polluting gases and are extremely quiet.

Another beneficial aspect of the energy that comes from the sun is its condition as a generator of local wealth, since its implantation in one country reduces the energy dependence of other countries. Although it is true that solar energy – like wind energy – is intermittent, that is, directly dependent on weather or day-night cycles, the rapid advance experienced by electrical storage technologies will increasingly minimize this circumstance and increase the participation of this type of energy in the energy system.

SUMMARY OF BENEFITS OF SOLAR ENERGY

• Renewable
• Inexhaustible
• Non-polluting
• Avoid global warming
• Reduces the use of fossil fuels
• Reduces energy imports
• Generate wealth and local employment
• Contributes to sustainable development
• It is modular and very versatile, adaptable to different situations
• Allows applications for large-scale power generation and also for small cores isolated from the network

How do you get energy from the sun?

The sun provides energy in two different ways:

• It provides heat , harnessed by mirrors so that the sun’s rays are concentrated in a receiver that reaches temperatures of up to 1,000 ºC. Heat is used to heat a fluid that generates steam. The steam finally moves a turbine and produces electricity.
• It provides light that is converted to electricity through photovoltaic solar panels. Photovoltaic panels are made up of groups of cells or solar cells that transform light (photons) into electrical energy (electrons).

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