1. Solar Panel Technology
Design Team 7:
Nathan Vargo
Tianhang Sun
Spencer Krug
Liqing Yao
Qifan Wang

2. What is it?
Solar panel refers to a panel designed to absorb the sun's rays as a source of energy for generating electricity or heating.
A photovoltaic (PV) module is a packaged, connected assembly of a collection of solar cells.
Solar Photovoltaic panels constitute the solar array of a photovoltaic system that generates and supplies solar electricity in commercial and residential applications.

3. History 1839 Edmond Becquerel discovers photovoltaic effect
1954 development of silicon photovoltaic technology by Daryl Chapin, Calvin Fuller, and Gerald Pearson
1958 n-on-p silicon photovoltaic cells
1958 first satellite launched with pv powered systems
1970 cheaper solar cells available to public
1990 first grid-supported photovoltaic system

4. How Does This Technology Work?
Photovoltaic effect
Semiconductors
Solar cells
Solar arrays
Energy storage

5. Photovoltaic Effect
The photovoltaic effect is the creation of voltage or electric current in a material upon exposure to light
Band gap energy
Valence and conduction bands
Electron hole pair
Return to neutral state

6. Semiconductors Silicon Dopants p-n junction Potential barrier
boron and phosphorous
p-n junction
charge neutrality
depletion region
Potential barrier
electrons free to flow without hindrance of holes

7. Solar Cells Antireflection Coating Front Contact n-type silicon
Electrode
n-type silicon
p-type silicon
Back Contact
0.5V to 0.6V
untreated silicon reflects more than 30% of light incident on it
silicon monoxide (Si0) good antireflective coating
double layer reduces reflection to 3%
texturing the top surface of cell also reduces reflection

8. Solar Array Construction
Cell to Module to Array
Module
Connection of cells
Most cells connected in series
Typically 36 cells
Array
Series or Parallel
Tied to grid
Lenses and mirrors
Tracking devices
cells need only be joined to. one another in progressive size levels until
Jheir
individual
power
contributions
add to
that
fulfilling a
designed
need

9. Storing PV’s Electricity
Tied to grid
Insufficient solar energy, power taken from public grid
Sufficient solar energy, power sent to public grid
Batteries
Expensive
Not very efficient

10. Advantages Green Energy Unlimited source/Renewable Energy Source
No pollution
Slow/Stop global warming
Unlimited source/Renewable Energy Source
Gas, Coal and other limited power source are running out
Unlimited power source: solar, wind, etc
Saves money
Only cost initial setting fee, then free energy
Data from cleantechnica.com: “The average 20-year savings for Americans who went solar in 2011 were projected to be a little over $20,000. In the populous states of New York, California, and Florida, the projected savings were over $30,000. In the sunny but expensive paradise known as Hawaii, the projected savings were nearly $65,000!”

11. Advantages Creates jobs
Solar power creates 2 to 3 times more jobs than coal or natural gas.

12. Disadvantages Initial cost fairly high Night and cloud limit
Not able to create power when there is no sunlight
Power generated reduced during times of cloud cover
Uses a lot of space
High buildings may not get enough energy from solar panel
Energy storage is expensive
Good solution for night and cloud limit but quite expensive
Less efficiency than other power source
14%-21% efficiency due to today’s technology limit
Can not generate power as fast as other power source

13. Current Technology Double sided Silicon material solar cells
efficiencies up to 15%
Single sided Silicon contact cells
efficiencies up to 25%
Concentration using curved cells and lenses
intensify light and use heat generated for conversion
Concentrating Solar Power(CSP)
Using reflective materials like mirrors and lenses, these systems concentrate sunlight to generate thermal energy, which is in turn used to generate electricity. Similar to traditional power plants, many CSP plants are hundreds of megawatts (MW) in size and some can continue to provide power after sunset

14. Applications Solar Heating & Cooling (SHC) Solar Roadways
These technologies generate thermal (heat) energy for water & pool heating and space heating. Some people are surprised to learn that SHC technology can also be used for cooling. Solar heating technologies are cost-effective for customers in a variety of climates.
Solar Roadways
Netherlands already is applying solar energy to building roads. There are very small solar cells integrated with the road structure. This solves an issue of the large amounts of space solar panel arrays require.
Power Storage/Transmission
Solar technologies directly produce electricity which can be used, stored, or converted for long-distance transmission. PV panels can be manufactured using a variety of materials and processes and are widely-used for solar projects around the world.

15. Applications Solar Communication Solar Irrigation
Monitor remote locations without the need to route power from electrical grids. With solar technology, power can be obtained in almost any remote location.
Solar Irrigation
Solar power can also be used to produce hydraulic pressure for irrigation systems on farms.

16. Eyes to the Future Gallium Arsenide instead of Silicon
Colloidal Quantum Dots
Extract unfiltered sunlight from space
Solar Windows
High-speed space travel
solar sail, theoretical max speed ~10% speed of light!
NASA has developed several concepts for a space-based solar power station. This one is called the Sun Tower and would involve an array of inflatable circular solar concentrators. Even before any energy is produced, it is estimated to cost at least $12 billion.

17. Our Project: Early Warning for Solar Power
Actually not directly related to solar panel itself
Reason for our project:
Significant power drop when clouds cover the solar panel for a long time.
Early Warning of when the cloud will cover the solar array on campus is needed.
MSU can buy the electricity from another company to make up the power drop (expensive), or turn on backup power which takes several minutes.
Using light sensor to detect the approximate amount of solar power.
Solar energy sensor is expensive (~$200) compared to light sensor (~$5) for PoC design.

18. Questions