What is Solar Energy?
Electricity can be produced
directly from photovoltaic, PV, cells. (Photovoltaic literally means “light”
and “electric.”) These cells are made from materials which exhibit the
“photovoltaic effect” i.e. when sunshine hits the PV cell, the photons of light
excite the electrons in the cell and cause them to flow, generating
electricity.
Solar energy produces
electricity when it is in demand – during the day particularly hot days when
air-conditioners drive up electricity demand. In use, solar energy
produces no emissions. One megawatt hour of solar electricity offsets about
0.75 to 1 tonne of CO2.
- Solar energy is not only sustainable, it is renewable and this means that we will never run out of it. It is about as natural a source of power as it is possible to generate electricity.
- The creation of solar energy requires little maintenance. Once the solar panels have been installed and are working at maximum efficiency there is only a small amount of maintenance required each year to ensure they are in working order.
- They are a silent producer of energy. There is absolutely no noise made from photovoltaic panels as they convert sunlight into usable electricity.
- There are continual advancements in solar panel technology which are increasing the efficiency and lowering the cost of production, thus making it even more cost effective.
- During operation solar electricity power plants produce zero emissions.