What-A-One-Kilowatt-PV-System-Does-In-Eco-Reductions

DID YOU KNOW...

A one kilowatt PV system each month:
Prevents 150 lbs. of coal from being mined
Prevents 300 lbs. of CO 2 from entering the atmosphere
Keeps 105 gallons of water from being consumed
Keeps NO and SO 2 from being released into the environment or an equivalent system that produces 150 kWh per month

It's more than just a luxury, you are helping look after our planet by reducing your carbon footprint whilst living a more sustainable lifestyle.

Solar-Photovoltaic-Regulations-BS-7671:2008-Section-712

BS 7671:2008 includes a new Section 712 providing additional requirements for safety applicable to solar photovoltaic (PV) power supply systems.

The additional requirements in BS 7671:2008 along with some explanations are discussed in this article. As with any low voltage installation, the general requirements in Parts 1 to 6 of BS 7671:2008 have also to be met which include in Part 5, Section 551, requirements for low voltage generating sets.

The risks

The particular risks associated with solar photovoltaic systems are:

PV systems cannot be switched off. Modules produce electricity when exposed to daylight. Hence, unlike most other electrical installation work, the installation of a PV system typically involves working on a live system. Regulation 14 of the Electricity at Work Regulations gives requirements that must be met. Special precautions should be made to ensure live terminals are either not accessible or cannot be readily touched during installation and maintenance. Such terminals will be live at all times during daylight hours. It is important that anyone opening an enclosure is aware of this.

An electrician who has come to work on the electrical installation needs to be aware that there is a second source of energy which will also need to be isolated.

PV modules are current-limiting devices which require a nonstandard approach when designing fault protection systems for the dc side, as fuses are not likely to operate under short-circuit conditions. A different approach to fault protection is often needed, such as sizing the conductors for the maximum fault current that can flow at any given point in the circuit.

PV systems include dc wiring, with which few electrical installers are familiar.

PV presents a unique combination of hazards – due to risk of electric shock, falling and simultaneous manual handling difficulties. All of these hazards are encountered as a matter of course on a building site, but rarely all at once. While roofers may be accustomed to minimising risks of falling or injury due to manual handling problems, they may not be used to dealing with the risk of electric shock. Similarly, electricians would be familiar with electric shock hazards but not with handling large objects at heights.

Nanosolar-Solar-PV-Cost-Breakthrough

Their mission: to deliver cost-efficient solar electricity. The Nanosolar company was founded in 2002 and is working to build the world's largest solar cell factory in California and the world's largest panel-assembly factory in Germany. They have successfully created a solar coating that is the most cost-efficient solar energy source ever. Their PowerSheet cells contrast the current solar technology systems by reducing the cost of production from $3 a watt to a mere 30 cents per watt. This makes, for the first time in history, solar power cheaper than burning coal.

These coatings are as thin as a layer of paint and can transfer sunlight to power at amazing efficiency. Although the underlying technology has been around for years, Nanosolar has created the actual technology to manufacture and mass produce the solar sheets. The Nanosolar plant in San Jose, once in full production in 2008, will be capable of producing 430 megawatts per year. This is more than the combined total of every other solar manufacturer in the U.S.

Kind regards

Andy Mahoney

Home Brew Power

(Off-Grid Power Installer - UK)

www.homebrewpower.co.uk

Church-Powered-By-The-Heavens-Well-The-Sun

Church powered by the heavens

A Methodist church just outside Shrewsbury has become the first in the West Midlands to install a solar panel.

In their efforts to do their bit for the environment, the congregation at Bayston Hill, assisted by the Marches Energy Agency, have already been replacing old-fashioned light bulbs with low energy ones, recycling and promoting fair trade.

Now, they have moved one step further - capturing the sun's rays through the new thermal panel on the roof to provide hot water in the church.

Marches Energy Agency identified the church as suitable for a solar thermal system during an energy audit this year.

Although the technology has huge potential to reduce the fossil fuel demand and carbon footprint of a building, installations in the UK are still small.

"Many people think that because we get less sun than some other countries, a panel won't supply much hot water, especially in the colder months," said the agency's Katherine Shepherd.

"But, even in winter, a panel can contribute 20% to a household's hot water demand and 100% in summer - around 50% across the year. It is also a great example of action on climate change. Bayston Hill's Methodists are to be congratulated on their initiative."

The minister, Reverend Frances Bisker, said: "A solar thermal system has got everyone thinking and talking about climate change, not only in the church but also in the local community. We are thrilled to be one of the first churches - and hopefully the first of many - in the country."

The panel was installed with the help of Marches Energy Agency (www.mea.org.uk) and its Project Carbon team (www.projectcarbon.org). Funding was from Defra's Aggregates Levy Sustainability Fund - managed locally by Shropshire County Council.

Information on solar thermal technology and the grants available to households and community buildings is available from the Low Carbon Buildings Programme www.lowcarbonbuildings.org.uk

Googleplex-Solar-PV-How-It-Should-Be-Done

Google Leading The Way To A Sustainable Future

Location:Mountain View, California
System Size:1.6 MW

Energy Output:2,611,719 kWh per year
Savings:$393,000 + annually

Results:CO2 emissions reduced by 3.6 million pounds/year (equivalent to 4.28 million car miles/year)

"At Google, we do things a bit differently. We see a bit of ourselves in the way that EI Solutions solves problems, thinks, and invents."

Robyn Beavers, Corporate Environmental Programs

Background As one of the most recognizable brands on the Internet, Google is on a mission to organize the world's information and make it universally accessible and useful. Like many of today's high-tech companies, Google requires an enormous amount of electricity to power the computers and servers it uses to run its business.

The company wanted to find a way to reduce energy costs at its Mountain View "Googleplex," as well as make a statement in support of clean energy.

The ChallengeUnlike the typical "big box" buildings found on most high-tech campuses, Google headquarters features structures with unique configurations, sharp angles, and other architecturally unusual design elements.

The Smart Solution: Intelligent use of available mounting surfacesBecause of the nontraditional design of the Google buildings, the EI Solutions team had to take a nontraditional approach to engineering the company's solar power system. To maximize energy output, the team assessed every available surface on the Google campus for its viability to hold solar photovoltaic (PV) cells. Eventually, more than 197,000 square feet on top of existing buildings and new parking lot shade structures (designed especially for the project) were fitted with cells using customized mounting hardware.

To help reduce the cost of such a large installation, plus simplify any future maintenance needs, EI Solutions used one type of PV module in all arrays.To further optimize the Google system, EI Solutions also closely examined the company's electricity usage patterns, available financial incentives, and the amount of sun received at its Mountain View headquarters.
The Result, By building the largest solar power system ever installed at a single corporate campus, Google will save more than $393,000 annually in energy costs — or close to $15 million over the 30-year lifespan of its solar system. At this rate, the system will pay for itself in approximately 7.5 years.

Hologram-Prism-Solar-Panels-By-Prism-Solar-Technologies

The main limitation of solar power right now is cost, because the crystalline silicon used to make most solar photovoltaic (PV) cells is very expensive. One approach to overcoming this cost factor is to concentrate light from the sun using mirrors or lenses, thereby reducing the total area of silicon needed to produce a given amount of electricity.

But traditional light concentrators are bulky and unattractive -- less than ideal for use on suburban rooftops.

Now Prism Solar Technologies of Stone Ridge, NY, has developed a proof-of-concept solar module that uses holograms to concentrate light, possibly cutting the cost of solar modules by as much as 75 percent, making them competitive with electricity generated from fossil fuels.
The new technology replaces unsightly concentrators with sleek flat panels laminated with holograms. The panels, says Rick Lewandowski, the company's president and CEO, are a "more elegant solution" to traditional concentrators, and can be installed on rooftops -- or even incorporated into windows and glass doors.

The system needs 25 to 85 percent less silicon than a crystalline silicon panel of comparable wattage, Lewandowski says, because the photovoltaic material need not cover the entire surface of a solar panel. Instead, the PV material is arranged in several rows. A layer of holograms -- laser-created patterns that diffract light -- directs light into a layer of glass where it continues to reflect off the inside surface of the glass until it finds its way to one of the strips of PV silicon. Reducing the PV material needed could bring down costs from about $4 per watt to $1.50 for crystalline silicon panels, he says.

The company is expecting to pull in another $6 million from interested venture capitalists and start manufacturing its first-generation modules by the end of the year, selling them at about $2.40 per watt. Next-generation modules with more advanced technology should bring down the cost further.

In their ability to concentrate light, holograms are not as powerful as conventional concentrators. They can multiply the amount of light falling on the cells only by as much as a factor of 10, whereas lens-based systems can increase light by a factor of 100, and some even up to 1,000.