Benefits of Solar Power
Introduction
This research paper will analyse all the relevant information in Parida et al., (2011) article on photo voltaic power. A comment on why the information was chosen will be highlighted. This information would be useful when carrying out research in the future. In addition one relevant quotation would be selected, which would be useful in summarizing the idea of solar power being beneficial.
Benefits of solar power
Parida et al., (2011) asserted that the demand for energy is increasing and that there is a need to use renewable energy to the maximum. This information is useful because the common energy source currently used is non-renewable such as fossil fuel.
Photovoltaic power generation (solar power) is the energy source that has been selected to solve this problem. The article says that photovoltaic system are simple in design, requiring very little maintenance, and their biggest benefit being their assembly as stand-alone systems to give outputs from microwatts to megawatts. This is useful because there are numerous applications that require different degrees of output and the common hydroelectric power has an output of only megawatts. Hence, solar power is a cheaper power source that can power all applications.
The article also shows that the life cycle cost of photovoltaic energy is lower than the cost of energy from diesel or petrol generators, hence, economically feasible in remote and rural areas. This fact was proven in a study in rural Bangladesh. The information is crucial when trying to replace diesel powered applications with solar powered systems.
In the case of hybrid renewable energy system, the article suggested that hybrid PV/wind energy systems were very popular because it is possible to implement a dispersal system which was able to improve power quality. The information is useful because it can be used to advance the current wind systems or solar systems by blending the two technologies to better the quality of power. Furthermore, other technologies such as Matlab programming can be integrated in solar power to improve quality of radiation.
The article highlighted how light absorbing materials could be advanced to come up with more efficient solar systems. Crystalline Silicon was selected as the best material to improve efficiency when compared to amorphous silicon while still using only a small amount of material. Furthermore, the material had an efficiency of between (14-19) %. The information is crucial when selecting materials that would best absorb solar in photovoltaic systems.
The article listed numerous methods that would be used in evaluating the performance of photovoltaic systems. They included analyzing the solar irradiance, novel two-mode maximum power point tracking control algorithm, near maximum power point operation, and a computer simulation model. The evaluation methods made it possible to obtain 140% more power per unit of fuel consumed compared with corresponding conventional gas turbine plants and lower rates of pollutant emissions to the atmosphere per kWh of electricity generated. The information is important when measuring the output of a solar system to enhance accountability.
The environmental aspect of solar energy was also discussed in the article. Different authors were listed on how they had come up with numerous ways of measuring the amount CO2 emission. They also showed that the system had reduced emission of greenhouses hence environmental friendly. The data was important as it shows an energy source that has mechanisms of measuring greenhouse emissions and environmental friendly.
Relevant Quotation
“Solar Home Systems (SHS) that are commercially disseminated can be used cost efficiently to substitute kerosene and dry cell batteries to reduce GHG emissions, and thus make a significant contribution to climate protection.” (Posorki et al., 134)
The above quotation means that solar energy systems can be effectively incorporated in home systems in place of common energy sources like dry cells and kerosene. Kerosene and dry cells are used by many people in the low class brackets who are the majority. Therefore, they result in too much emission of greenhouses; Carbon dioxide. The quotation supports my ideas about solar energy in that it is a clean energy which does not pollute the environment.
Reference
Parida, B., Iniyan, S., Ranko, G. (2011). Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews (15) 1625–1636
