Solar power

Solar power

Solar power is the conversion of sunlight into electricity, either directly using photovoltaics (PV), or indirectly using concentrated solar power (CSP). Concentrated solar power systems use lenses or mirrors and tracking systems to focus a large area of sunlight into a small beam. Photovoltaics convert light into electric current using the photoelectric effect.

Industry: Energy

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Solar power

Majority carrier

Energy; Solar power

Current carriers (either free electrons or holes) that are in excess in a specific layer of a semiconductor material (electrons in the n-layer, holes in the p-layer) of a cell.

PV inverter

Energy; Solar power

A PV inverter is a type of electrical inverter that is made to change the direct current (DC) electricity from a photovoltaic array into alternating current (AC) for use with home appliances and ...

R- value

Energy; Solar power

A measure of thermal resistance used in the building and construction industry. A bigger number means the building insulation is more effective. The units of R-value are (hr * degree F*ft ...

U-value

Energy; Solar power

Measurement of the heat flow that occurs during one hour through one square foot of material , when there is a 1 degree F temperature difference between the inside and outside air temperatures. The ...

Photovoltaic cell

Energy; Solar power

An electronic device that converts solar energy into direct current electricity by the photovoltaic effect. Photovoltaics is the field of technology related to the application of solar cells for ...

Solar ventilation preheating

Energy; Solar power

The process to use solar enerty to preheat outdoor air before it enters the ventilation system of a building. Most large buildings require a large volume (thousands of cubic feet per minute) of ...

Transpired solar collector

Energy; Solar power

A specialised solar collector that passes air through holes or openings in metal panels. Sunlight heats the metal panels. The outside air is heated as it moves through the openings in the panels. ...