Solar Photo Voltaic Electricity

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System Overview

Solar PV (Photo Voltaic) cells work by converting the Sun’s energy into electricity, this process works from sunlight so will work even on cloudy days. A PV panel consists of a collection or array of PV cells connected together. There are various ways of using the electricity but most commonly the two main systems are stand alone battery systems or grid connect systems.

There are 3 main types of Solar Panels:

Mono-crystalline – High performance solar panels (module efficiency 15 – 19

Solar cells made out of monocrystalline silicon are made from one crystal grown in a vacuum in solar cell processing plant. These large single crystals are produced from highly purified molten silicon. The crystallised ingots are then cut with diamond coated saws and polished into thin (0.3 mm) wafers to make the individual solar cells that make up a solar module. These purer forms of silicon are the basis of the most expensive solar cells but they are the most efficient at converting light into electricity.

Poly-crystalline – Standard solar cells (module efficiency 11 – 15%)

Solar cells made out multicrystalline silicon (mSi) are made from lower purity silicon. These forms of silicon are the basis of the most common ‘standard’ solar cells and are reasonably efficient in converting light into electricity.

Hybrid silicon solar cells (module efficiency of 18%)

Hybrid solar cells consists of a thin crystalline cells (0.02mm) coated in an amorphous layer. There are only a few companies that make this type of panel but they are interesting, especially in hot countries, as they give high-efficiency which are stable at high temperatures.

At  Alternative Energy Technology we recommend grid connected systems as they provide the highest efficiency in harnessing the Sun’s energy & are the simplest solution. They also require lower maintenance and allow you to use higher power devices such as immersion heaters and cookers. Stand alone battery solutions require you to have sufficient space to store the batteries and they do require more maintenance.