Solar Power and Wind Power

Although the claims of those who are enthusiastic about solar power may be considered to be overstated, it remains a true fact that this source of power along with other alternatives is both valuable and viable. Even taking into consideration the effects of manufacturing the components they are low in pollution and principally inexhaustible energy sources with no requirement to look to unstable countries for the supply of raw materials.

Solar energy, and by this we mean the way light from the sun streams in through the atmosphere, gets converted to usable power by a process which is now well understood. The sunlight strikes a photovoltaic or PV module and a current is generated. This electricity then flows into a business premise or home by wires and circuit breakers, just as it does with utility companies.

However, the electricity generated by wind power works in a different way with only a few similarities. The wind turns a propeller placed on a shaft which is surrounded by a magnet circled by a wire coil. As the magnet or wire turns close to one another, electrons within the wire feel a force which moves them along and this movement is what creates an electrical current.

Each of these methods is basically simple. The sun and the wind are both there and free. However, converting such energy sources into electricity we can use presents an expense and some challenges to engineering as well as interesting physical limitations.

Clearly, there are the supplies needed to build a wind turbine or PV module and this is certainly not free. Then there is the transportation and installation of the equipment which is another expense incurred. Regrettably, this kind of power is quite cost inefficient when comparing the amount of power produced by coal, natural gas and oil and although great improvements have been made, the fact remains that they do not produce the same amount of power as the various other sources, for the same cost.

For instance, approximately 1,000 watts per square meter of solar energy reaches the surface (at the equator) but latitude, weather and various other factors can reduce this figure to between 125-375 W/m2. When you also take into account that the efficiency of a solar powered PV module is usually around 10 – 15% depending largely on how it is put together, this gives you quite a low amount of available energy.

Nevertheless, with the ability to place panels over the area of the roof of the house, this relatively small amount can mean a generation of around 1.35 kWh/m2/day providing enough power for the average home if care is taken with how its used.

There are unique problems which come with wind systems such as bird killing, not to mention the fact that they rely on regular if not continuous wind and they don’t put out the level of power needed for most applications. If the wind is not continuous they need to be connected to storage systems just as solar systems have to be.

However, even with all these limitations, solar, wind and other forms of energy technology can be part of the total power generation plan. Not only are they clean so highly liked by a society always looking for ways to improve the environment but they don’t need materials which get in the way of correct environmental and political issues.

If scientific improvements continue to increase efficiency and lessen the costs involved they will make a great contribution to the supply of electricity on demand. Although it may be a while before they are able to take a fair percentage from the other electricity supplying sources, the future is definitely bright as far as solar and wind power are concerned.