SEC598 Photovoltaic Systems Engineering Session 01 (SEC501 Solar Engineering and Commercialization, I) Session 01 Course Overview August 20, 2018

Learning Outcomes SEC598 - PV System Engineering An understanding of the solar resource An understanding of the topology and components of photovoltaic systems An understanding of the design and operation of PV systems at residential and non-residential scales An introduction to the economics and policies of PV systems

Session 01 components Review of course webpage Course objectives and outcomes Course organization, texts, assignments, etc. Energy and Power - Consumption, present and future Energy and Power - Definitions and calibration

Energy Overview Quad = a quadrillion BTUs BTU = the amount of energy necessary to raise or lower the temperature of one pound of water one degree F (One four inch wooden kitchen match consumed completely generates approximately 1 BTU) It does not matter what type of energy we are talking about; they have all been rising quickly

Energy Overview http://www.greenparty.ca/sites/greenparty.ca/files/Energy_Consumption_vs_GDP_655.jpg

Human Development Index Source: The HDI Figure shows a stark contrast between nations of the world. The developed world, or the industrialized world, is well above 0.8 HDI.  And that has resulted from access to abundant energy. Eighty percent of the world population is well below 0.8 HDI with little or no access to sufficient energy, and that is the root of poverty, war and terrorism. It takes about 3,000 kWhrs per person per year to be above 0.8 HDI, to have what we consider a good life. The developed world is quite wasteful, averaging about 10,000 kWhrs/person/year. Getting everyone in this group down to about 6,000 kWhrs, and everyone else up to 3,000 kWhrs, would achieve an ethical, and sustainable, balance that is more likely to lead to global peace than any other path (Wright and Conca, 2007). The GeoPolitics of Energy: Achieving a Just and Sustainable Energy Distribution by 2040 Paperback – November 20, 2007 The United Nations Human Development Index (HDI) relates energy use to the quality of life to which most humans aspire. The middle class averages about 0.8 on the HDI and requires access to over 3,000 kWhrs per person per year. 80% of the world’s population of over 7 billion people is below 0.8 on the HDI. Source: Wright and Conca, 2007). http://hdr.undp.org/en/data/map/

Energy Overview

Human Development Index The Human Development Index could be used to establish an estimate of the energy needs for the future Assumptions: In the near future, the population of the planet will exceed 8 billion Let us assume we want the HDI for each nation to be 0.90 From the chart on the previous slide, we would require access to 4MWh of electrical energy/per person (per year) Therefore, the annual electricity requirement is The current annual electricity generation is approximately 24 PWh, and roughly 23% is produced by renewable sources With a global effort to carry out more energy efficiency measures and more deployment of renewable energy, the 32 PWh target could be achieved in a 10-15 year timeframe. However, the population will be much closer to 10 billion by then

Current US Solar Power 55.9 GW The Solar Enterprise Both nationally and globally, the solar business has grown by leaps and bounds in the last two decades Current US Solar Power 55.9 GW

US Photovoltaic (PV) System Installations SEIA

US Photovoltaic (PV) System Installations https://www.seia.org/states-map SEIA

(4% of US electricity demand) The Solar Enterprise Both nationally and globally, the solar business has grown by leaps and bounds in the last two decades Current US Solar Power 55.9 GW (4% of US electricity demand)

The Solar Enterprise SEIA

Advantages to solar power Inexhaustible input power The sun’s lifetime is billions of years Direct conversion to electrical power Optical energy -> Electrical energy Zero emissions during operation No carbon footprint Earth-abundant raw material supply (for cells) Silicon is the most abundant element in the earth’s crust Reliable and durable technology

Disadvantages to solar power It is an intermittent energy resource Night and day It adds instability to the electrical grid Clouds, shadowing produce output with fluctuations It has low power density 80% of incident sunlight is unused Its power curve does not match the system demand profile With higher penetration, its marginal value shrinks to zero It is a disruptive technology It produces “load defection”, possibly followed by “grid defection”

The Solar Resource – as observed in Phoenix

What has fueled this growth? Technological Factors Silicon solar cells and modules Inexhaustible input power at zero cost Societal Factors Concerns about fossil fuel and nuclear power plants An increasing awareness of sustainability issues Economic Factors Steady reduction in cost of PV systems Favorable government policies and business climate

What might impede this growth? PV system components Dependence on materials that are not earth-abundant High labor costs New PV system components Problems with smart components Certain economic and business factors Hostile interactions with utilities, utility regulating bodies Net metering issues Power demand charges Expansion of low cost natural gas supply and use in utility scale electricity generation Tariffs Recent analysis showing that solar energy suffers from a “merit order effect” which will shrink its value with increasing penetration into the energy market