Solar Energy Techniques: Cleanest Sources Of Electricity

Solar Energy Techniques Name Institution Affiliation Summary Solar energy is one of the cleanest sources of electricity, as it requires no liquid or gaseous fuel for combustion or transportation from one point to another. Production and storage of electricity from the sunlight is economically more feasible than other forms of energy. Sunlight is free and more abundant and therefore, is an important source of energy required to operate activities such as lighting and operation of machines. Executive Summary The prices of fossil fuels have been increasing and the future of such sources is unpredictable due to their non-renewable nature. Furthermore, they have contributed heavily to the emission of greenhouse gases, which are the main causes of global warming. As such, people have turned to exploiting the readily available renewable sources such as solar, wind, geothermal, tidal and biomass forms of energy. One of the eco-friendly energy sources with huge potential is solar energy. Although this source has several benefits such as being cost-effective, renewable and environmentally friendly, it is underutilized and contributes only 1% of the total amount of electricity obtained from renewable sources. Some of the solar energy techniques currently under use include photovoltaic systems that have the ability to directly convert light energy into electricity and store it for later use. The other common technology under this category is solar thermal energy systems designed to collect the thermal radiation from the sun and convert it to heat, which is used for the production of energy or other industrial and domestic purposes. The third solar technology, which is relatively new is hydrogen and fuel systems. This technology produces hydrogen used to fuel vehicles and for electricity production. Every MWh produced reduces the emission by around 676kg per day. Also, these techniques have reduced the emission of sulfur dioxide and nitrogen dioxide by 1.9kg and 0.8kg respectively per MWh produced every day. Some policies have played a crucial role in the increase in the installation of solar energy techniques. For instance, carbon tax and Cap and Trade policies have been implemented in most European and the US states. Since most companies may fail to comply, they are turning to renewable energy sources that do not release greenhouse gases as an alternative. Solar Energy Techniques Introduction and Background The prices of fossil fuels such as oil have massively increased and the price of one barrel of oil is going for over $140 (Hall, 2010). In addition, fossil fuels have tremendously contributed to the emission of various greenhouse gases that are the main causes of global warming witnessed today. Therefore, this has necessitated the need for utilizing various renewable energy sources such as solar, wind, hydropower, and geothermal. The global market for renewable energy is huge and readily available, meaning it is a venture worth investing in. One of the most viable renewable energy sources is the sun. Solar energy has been in use since the ancient times, where the humans used the magnifying lens to concentrate the rays of the sun to light fire. Over the years, several technologies such as photovoltaic cell aiming to convert solar to other forms of energy, particularly chemical have been developed (Hall, 2010). While the installation of photovoltaic systems has dramatically increased in the past two decades, the solar technologies have for a long time suffered several drawbacks, consequently making them compete poorly in the current market that is largely dominated by non-renewable energy sources such as fossil fuels. Some of the challenges facing solar energy technologies include high installation costs, low conversion efficiency, and the intermittency. This has necessitated the development of the new technologies that will overcome challenges such as intermittency and low conversion efficiency (Hall, 2010). The recent advances in the photovoltaic technology have remarkably improved the conversion efficiency as well as making the solar energy more affordable than in the past. The amount of solar energy reaching the surface of the earth exceeds the current energy needed by several folds. Hence, this resource has enormous potential for the production of green energy that would meet the energy needs for thousands of projects and household activities. Unfortunately, this form of energy has been underutilized and it only represents approximately 1% of total electrical energy obtained from the renewable sources. However, the solar industry is growing at a higher rate due to stability resulting from a decrease in Solar Investment Tax Credit (ITC). The annual growth rate of the solar industry has averaged 59% in the past one decade (Solar Energy Industries Association, 2017). In 2016, United States harvested approximately 15, 000 megawatts from solar energy, which is a massive amount compared with the 7,000 megawatts produced in 2015 (Solar Energy Industries Association, 2017). Subsequently, the number of people working in the solar industry has doubled since 2012. Approximately 250,000 individuals work in this sector in the United States (Solar Energy Industries Association, 2017). There are over 9,000 firms in each US state. Increase in installation rate has resulted from a decrease in the cost by over 70% since 2012. The paper entails a discussion of current solar energy techniques and their role in the conservation of the environment. Discussion of the Issue Several techniques such as Photovoltaic systems, solar thermal conversion systems, hydrogen, and fuel cells are currently in use or are being developed. Photovoltaic technology is a method that uses a cell, which enables direct conversion of solar energy to electricity (Stanford University, 2006). The photovoltaic system has a semiconductor, which is an active component with the ability to absorb photons of light greater or equal to its band-gap. After the absorption of a photon, the valence band electron is promoted ...