Relatively recently, the idea of providing private homes with autonomous electricity was considered fantastic . Today it is an objective reality. In Europe, solar panels have been used for a long time, because it is an almost inexhaustible source of cheap energy. With us, getting electricity from such devices is only gaining popularity. This process does not occur too quickly, and the reason is their high cost.
The principle of operation of the solar battery is based on the fact that in two silicon wafers coated with different substances (boron and phosphorus), an electric current arises under the action of sunlight. In the plate, which is coated with phosphorus, free electrons appear.
Missing particles form in those plates that are coated with boron. Electrons begin to move under the action of the light of the sun. This forms an electric current in solar panels. The thin conductors made of copper with which each battery is coated divert current from it and direct it as directed.
With a single plate, you can power a small bulb. The conclusion suggests itself. In order for solar panels to provide the house with electricity of sufficient power, their area must be quite large.
Silicon mechanisms
So, the principle of operation of the solar battery is clear. Current is generated by exposure to ultraviolet light on special plates. If silicon is used as the material for creating such plates, then the batteries are called silicon (or silicon-hydrogen).
Such plates require very complex production systems. This, in turn, greatly affects the cost of products.
Silicon solar panels come in many types.
Monocrystalline Converters
They are panels with beveled corners. Their color is always pure black.
If we talk about single-crystal converters, then the principle of operation of the solar battery can be briefly described as medium efficient. All cells of the photosensitive elements of such a battery are directed in one direction.
This allows you to get the highest result among similar systems. The efficiency of this type of battery reaches 25%.
The downside is that such panels should always face the sun.
If the sun hides behind the clouds, falls to the horizon, or has not yet managed to rise, then the batteries will generate a current of rather weak power.
Polycrystalline
The plates of these mechanisms are always square, dark blue. The composition of their surface includes inhomogeneous silicon crystals.
The efficiency of polycrystalline batteries is not as high as that of single-crystal models. It can reach 18%. However, this disadvantage is compensated by virtues, which will be discussed below.
The principle of operation of a solar battery of this type makes it possible to produce them not only from pure silicon, but also from recycled materials. This explains some of the defects encountered in the equipment. A distinctive feature of mechanisms of this type is that they can quite efficiently generate electric current even in cloudy weather. Such useful quality makes them indispensable in places where diffused sunlight is a common everyday occurrence.
Amorphous silicon panels
Amorphous panels are cheaper than others, this determines the principle of operation of the solar battery and its device. Each panel consists of several thinnest layers of silicon. They are made by spraying particles of material in vacuum onto foil, glass or plastic.
The efficiency of the panels is much lower than that of previous models. It reaches 6%. Silicon layers quite quickly fade in the sun. After six months of using these batteries, their efficiency will drop by 15%, and sometimes all 20.
Two years of operation will completely exhaust the resource of active substances, and the panel will need to be changed.
But there are two pluses, because of which these batteries are still buying. Firstly, they work even in cloudy weather. Secondly, as already mentioned, they are not as expensive as other options.
Hybrid Photoconverters
Amorphous silicon is the basis for the location of microcrystals. The principle of operation of the solar battery makes it look like a polycrystalline panel. The difference between batteries of this type is that they are capable of generating an electric current of greater power in diffused sunlight, for example, on a cloudy day or at dawn.
In addition, the batteries work not only under the influence of sunlight, but also in the infrared spectrum.
Polymer Film Solar Converters
This alternative to silicon panels has every chance to take a leading position in the solar battery market. They resemble a film consisting of several layers. Among them, one can distinguish a grid of aluminum conductors, a polymer layer of the active substance, an organic substrate and a protective film.
Such solar cells combined with each other form a film-type solar battery of a roll type. These panels are lighter and more compact than silicon. In their manufacture, expensive silicon is not used, and the production process itself is not so expensive. This makes the roll panel cheaper than any other.
The principle of operation of the solar battery makes their efficiency not too high.
It reaches 7%.
The manufacturing process of panels of this type is reduced to multilayer printing on a photocell film. Production established in Denmark.
Another advantage is the ability to cut the roll battery and customize it to any size and shape.
Only one minus. Batteries have just begun to be manufactured, so it’s still not easy to get them.
But there is reason to believe that these elements will quickly gain a well-deserved good reputation among consumers, which will give manufacturers the opportunity to establish production on a larger scale.
Solar heating of houses
The principle of operation of the solar battery for heating a house radically distinguishes them from all the above devices. This is a completely different device. Description follows.
The main component of a solar-powered heating system is a collector that receives its light and converts it into kinetic energy. The area of this element can vary from 30 to 70 square meters.
A special technique is used to mount the collector. The plates are interconnected by metal contacts.
The next component of the system is a storage boiler. In it, the transformation of kinetic energy into heat occurs. He participates in the heating of water, the displacement of which can reach 300 liters. Sometimes such systems are supported by additional dry fuel boilers.
Complete the solar heating system wall and floor elements, in which heated liquid circulates through thin copper pipes distributed over their entire area. Due to the low starting temperature of the panels and the uniformity of heat transfer, the room warms up quickly enough.
How does solar heating work?
Let's take a closer look at the principle of operation of solar panels from ultraviolet light.
A difference appears between the temperature of the collector and the storage element. The heat carrier, which is most often the water into which antifreeze is added, begins to circulate about the system. The work performed by the fluid is precisely kinetic energy.
As the fluid passes through the layers of the system, kinetic energy is converted into heat, which is used to heat the house. This carrier circulation process provides the room with heat and allows it to be stored at any time of the day or year.
So, we figured out the principle of solar panels.