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Pros And Cons Of Residential Solar Power

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This project is to identify the feasibility of residential solar power applications for the end-user, and any pros/cons and cost analysis of any such undertaking. We will compile existing data to identify how much grid electricity the average US household uses, how much they pay per kilowatthour (kWh), and compare it to the cost of installing solar power system. Taking into consideration environmental effects, government incentives, and pure electricity cost savings over time, we will demonstrate that every American would benefit by moving from grid electricity to solar power, even if opting for a partial-grid or grid tie-in solar system.

Citizens of the world have been gradually showing more and more concern for the environment especially …show more content…

Basically, Photovoltaic (PV) panels use layers of silicone doped with other materials and sandwiched together to extract free electrons using sunlight. A dopant on one side of the panel generates a negative charge and on the other side a dopant generates a positive one. This creates an electric field and when sunlight passes through the panel it has the chance to knock an electron off an atom. Metal plates on the sides then collect these electrons, because of the potential from the electric field, and a current is generated which goes on to be converted to alternating current in an inverter and then used to power our homes (Dhar, 2013). Photovoltaic panels are ideal for any residential application because they require little to no maintenance as they have no moving parts, they can just be set up and run as much as necessary to supplement household power. Unfortunately though they only supply power when the sun is out so they would never be able to be the primary power source for a home. Commercially, thermal plants have the ability to produce large amounts of power in multiple phases and as technology improves it may soon even be able to run around the …show more content…

Solar power is not consistent or reliable enough to be the only option for power. This technology relies totally on the sun so certain days we will be able to produce more power than others and at night we might not be able to produce any. Which is why we will not be able to completely sever the tie to conventional power generation. There has to be a method available to generate enough power to meet demand without available sunlight. Although as technology progresses we may soon be able to generate power from solar sources 24 hours a day. Modern solar power towers are being designed to store excess heat transfer medium underground during the day as its heated and recycling it at night to continue to generate steam for power production (Mills, 2004). But even with this ability we will not be able to go solely to solar power but it can still supplement existing power and drastically reduce the country’s carbon

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