The sun is an inexhaustible source of energy. People have long learned how to use it effectively. We will not go into the physics of the process, but see how you can use this free energy resource. Homemade solar panel will help us with this.
Operating principle
What is a solar cell? This is a special module, which consists of series-parallel connections of a huge number of the most elementary photodiodes. These semiconductor elements were grown using special technologies in a plant on silicon wafers.
Unfortunately, such devices are by no means cheap. Most people cannot purchase them, but there are many ways to make solar panels with your own hands in this case. And this battery will be able to compete with commercial designs. Moreover, its price will be completely incompatible with what stores offer.
Building a silicon wafer battery
The alternate energy kit includes 36 silicon wafers. They are offered with sizes of 8 * 15 centimeters. General power indicators will be about 76 watts. You will also need wires in order to connect the elements to each other, and a diode that will perform the blocking function.
One silicon wafer produces 2.1 W and 0.53 V at a current of up to 4 A. It is only necessary to connect the wafers in series. Only in this way can our energy source deliver 76 watts. On the front side are two tracks. This is a minus, and the plus is located on the back. Each of the panels must be positioned with a gap. You should get nine plates in four rows. In this case, the second and fourth rows must be reversed relative to the first. This is required so that everything is conveniently connected in one circuit. Be sure to consider the diode. It allows you to prevent the discharge of the storage battery at night or on a cloudy day. The "minus" of the diode must be connected to the "plus" of the battery. To charge the battery you will need a special controller. Using an inverter, you can get a normal household voltage of 220 V.
DIY solar panel assembly
The smallest refractive index of light is for Plexiglass. It will be used as a housing. This is a fairly inexpensive material. And if you need even cheaper, then you can buy plexiglass. In the worst case, polycarbonate can be used. But it is not suitable for the case in terms of its characteristics. In stores, you can find special polycarbonate with a coating that is protected from condensation. It also allows the battery to provide a high level of protection against heat. But this is not all the elements of which the solar panel will be composed. Do-it-yourself glass with good transparency is easy to pick up, this is one of the main components of the design. By the way, even ordinary glass will do.
Frame making
When mounting silicon crystals must be mounted at a small distance. After all, it is necessary to take into account various atmospheric influences that can affect changes in the base. So, it is desirable that the distance is about 5 mm. As a result, the size of the finished structure will be somewhere around 835 * 690 mm.
Do it yourself solar panel using an aluminum profile. It has the maximum resemblance to branded products. At the same time, a homemade battery is more sealed and durable.
For assembly, you will need an aluminum corner. A blank is made from it for the future framework. Dimensions - 835 * 690 mm. In order to fasten the profiles together, it is necessary to make technological holes in advance.
The inside of the profile should be coated with silicone-based sealant. It must be applied very carefully so that all places are missed. The efficiency and reliability that a solar panel will have will depend on how well it is applied.
With your own hands, you now need to put in a frame from the profile a sheet of pre-selected transparent material. It can be polycarbonate, glass or anything else. An important point: the silicone layer must dry. This must be taken into account, otherwise a film will appear on the silicon elements.
At the next stage, the transparent material must be squeezed well and fixed. To mount it turned out as reliable as possible, you should use hardware. Fix the glass around the perimeter and from four angles. Now the do-it-yourself solar panel is almost ready. It remains only to connect the silicon elements to each other.
Soldering crystals
Now you need to carefully lay the conductor on a silicon plate. Next, apply flux and solder. To make it more convenient to work, you can fix the conductor on one side with something.
In this position, gently solder the conductor to the contact pad. Do not push the crystal with a soldering iron. It is very fragile, you can break it.
Recent assembly operations
If for you the manufacture of solar panels with your own hands for the first time, it is better to use a special marking substrate. It will help to arrange the necessary elements as evenly as possible at the required distance. In order to correctly cut the wires of the desired length connecting the individual elements, it should be noted that the conductor must be soldered to the contact area. She is a little brought out over the edge of the crystal. If you make preliminary calculations, it turns out that the wires should be 155 mm.
When you assemble all this into a single design, it is better to take a sheet of plywood or plexiglass. For convenience, it is better to first place the crystals horizontally and fix them. This is easily done with the help of crosses for laying tiles.
After you connect all the elements together, on each crystal on the back side, attach a double-sided construction tape. You just need to press the back panel a little, and all the crystals can easily be transferred to the base.
This type of mount is not sealed in any way. The crystals can expand at high temperatures, but this is not a problem. Only certain parts need to be sealed.
Now with the help of a mounting tape it is necessary to fix all the tires and the glass itself. Before sticking and fully assembling the battery, it is advisable to test it.
Sealing
If you have a regular silicone sealant, then you do not need to completely fill the crystals with it. This eliminates the risk of damage. To fill this design, you need not silicone, but epoxy.
It’s so simple and easy to get electrical energy almost for nothing. Now we will consider how else it is possible to make solar panels with your own hands.
Experimental battery
Effective systems for converting solar energy require huge factories, special care for them and a significant amount of money.
Let's try to make something ourselves. Everything you need for the experiment can easily be bought at a hardware store or found in your kitchen.
DIY foil solar panel
For assembly, you need copper foil. It can easily be found in the garage or in extreme cases, it is easy to purchase in any hardware store. To assemble the battery, you need 45 square centimeters of foil. You should also buy two crocodiles and a small multimeter.
To obtain a working solar cell, it is desirable to have an electric stove. You need at least 1100 watts of power. It should glow to a bright red color. Still prepare a regular plastic bottle without a neck and a couple of tablespoons of salt. Remove from the garage a drill with an abrasive nozzle and a sheet of metal.
Getting to work
In the first cases, we cut a piece of copper foil of such a size so that it completely lays on the stove. You will need to wash your hands so that there are no greasy stains on the copper on the fingers. Copper is also desirable to wash. To remove the coating from the copper sheet, use an emery cloth.
Hot Plate Copper Foil
Next, we put the peeled sheet on the tile and turn it on to the maximum of possibilities. When the tile begins to heat up, you can observe the appearance on the copper sheet of beautiful orange spots. Then the color changes to black. It is necessary to hold copper for about half an hour on a red-hot tile. This is a very important point. So, a thick layer of oxide peels off easily, and a thin one will stick. After half an hour has passed, remove the copper from the stove and let it cool. You can watch the pieces fall off the foil.
When everything has cooled, the oxide film will disappear. You can easily clean most of the black oxide with water. If something doesn’t rip off, you shouldn’t even try. The main thing is not to deform the foil. As a result of deformation, a thin oxide layer can be damaged; it is very necessary for the experiment. If it is not there, a self-made solar panel will not work.
Assembly
Cut the second piece of foil to the same size as the first. Further, it is very carefully required to bend the two parts so that they fit into the plastic bottle, but do not touch each other.
Then hook the crocodiles to the plates. The wire from the “unroasted” foil to the “plus”, the wire from the “roasted” to the “minus”. Now we take salt and hot water. Stir the salt until completely dissolved. Pour the solution into our bottle. And now you can observe the fruits of labor. This home-made solar panel, made by yourself, can be further improved a bit.
Other ways to use solar energy
Solar energy is no longer being used. In space, it powers spaceships; on Mars, the famous Mars rover feeds from the Sun. And in the United States of America from the Sun, Google data centers work. In places of our country where there is no electricity, people can watch the news on TV. All this is thanks to the sun.
And also this energy allows you to heat your home. Do-it-yourself air-solar panel is very simple made from beer cans. They accumulate heat and give it to the living room. It is effective, free and affordable.