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

Concentrated solar thermal power systems

Energy; Solar power

Technologies that use the sun's heat to produce electricity. These systems typically concentrate the sun's heat to boil water or another liquid at high temperatures. The steam from the boiling water ...

Balance of system (BOS)

Energy; Solar power

All the non solar collector components needed to harness the solar energy that falls on the collector surface. For a solar air system this usually includes a fan, ducts, and a simple thermostat. For ...

Active solar thermal

Energy; Solar power

Technologies that use fans or pumps to convert solar energy into usable heat or cooling (thermal energy). Active solar technologies use electrical or mechanical equipment, such as pumps and fans, to ...

Heat engine

Energy; Solar power

A device that converts thermal energy to mechanical output. The mechanical output is called work and the thermal energy input is called heat. Heat engines typically run on a specific thermodynamic ...

Solar power

Energy; Solar power

Also called solar energy, solar power is electricity generated from sunlight, either directly using photovoltaics (PV), or indirectly using concentrated solar power (CSP). Concentrated solar power ...

Solar heat gain

Energy; Solar power

Measurement of the amount of solar heat that is captured for use by a solar collector surface including a solar roof, solar siding or ground-mounted solar system. A typical measure is Btu per hour ...

Solar energy

Energy; Solar power

The radiant energy from the Sun that influences Earth's climate and weather and sustains life. It includes visible light and several non-visible frequencies such as ultraviolet light. All of these ...