Download Solar Energy Project - sustainabilitylessons

Solar Panels
Solar Electric or Photovoltaic (PV) Panels are used to collect energy
from the sun and convert it into electricity.
This is done through the Photovoltaic Effect, the basic physical
process that allows a PV cell to convert sunlight to electricity.
Photovoltaic Effect
Sunlight is composed of photons, or particles of solar energy. These photons
exist in sunlight everywhere, and the amount of energy in each photon
depends on the wavelength that they exist in.
Photovoltaic Effect
When photons strike a PV cell, they may be reflected, absorbed, or they may pass
through.
Only those photons that are absorbed into the PV cell generate electricity.
The photons absorbed by the PV cell depend upon the wavelength of the photon,
and the composition of the PV cell itself, as it is designed to absorb certain
photons.
Photovoltaic Effect
Once absorbed, the photon’s energy is transferred to the electron of an atom in
the PV cell.
• With this new energy, the electron may escape the atom and become “free.”
Photovoltaic Effect
The electron will then move easily along a conductor.
The PV cell is a semiconductor device
These freed electrons become part of the current in an electrical circuit
Photovoltaic Effect
The thin wires you see in solar cells and modules are conducting wires for
the electrical circuit.
The PV cells have a built-in electric field to provide voltage needed to drive
the current though an external load.
PV Cells
PV Cell
PV
Module
PV Panel
PV Cells
DECK Monitoring Project
Using the DECK website, students will observe, graph, and analyze solar
energy data for a chosen day.
Then, they will calculate energy produced and compare their calculations
with the website.