Solar Cells Become More Cost Effective

Photovoltaic Cells Generate Electricity

Photovoltaic Background

Solar cells were originally developed in the 1950s, and their costs have come down ever since. They have been used in the U.S. space program since the first satellites were launched. Conventional panels are essentially glass (silicon dioxide) and are very durable with no moving parts. They are usually covered by a 20 to 25 year warranty, but have a life expectancy of 30-50 years. Solar panels are economical over the long term and will pay for themselves in about ten years. If rebates and incentives are available, of course they will pay for themselves is possibly 6-8 years, thereby producing free electricity for another 10 or more years. If the U.S. harvested the rooftop space of existing buildings, we could produce 20-40% of our electrical power needs from photovoltaic panels. Theoretically, a square section of the Mohave dessert 100 miles on a side could generate all the electricity needed by the U.S.. Of course in practice it would be more efficient to use existing rooftops and other available space around the country to distribute the energy generation production and produce a more stable and secure energy infrastructure.

Major Cost Reductions Announced

STMicroelectronics Announces Advanced R&D Program Targeting Low Cost Solar Cells..."one of the world's leading manufacturers of semiconductor devices, today released details of an advanced research program that it hopes will substantially reduce the cost of generating electricity from solar power"...

""Although there is much support around the world for the principle of generating electricity from solar power, existing solar cell technologies are too expensive to be used on an industrial scale. The ability to produce low cost, high efficiency solar cells would dramatically change the picture and revolutionize the field of solar energy generation, allowing it to compete more effectively with fossil fuel sources," says Dr. Salvo Coffa, who heads the ST research group that is developing the new solar cell technology."

CNN Reports ..."The French-Italian company expects cheaper organic materials such as plastics to bring down the price of producing energy. Over a typical 20-year life span of a solar cell, a single produced watt should cost as little as $0.20, compared with the current $4.

Photovoltaics Twenty Times Cheaper?

"The new solar cells would even be able to compete with electricity generated by burning fossil fuels such as oil and gas, which costs about $0.40 per watt, said Salvo Coffa, who heads ST's research group that is developing the technology."...

"We believe we can demonstrate 10 percent efficiency by the end of 2004," Coffa said.

Following that, ST and others would need to develop production technologies to make solar cells and panels in large quantities to achieve the $0.20 per watt target, he said.

"Our target is fixed at $0.20," said Coffa, who expects no major technological difficulties in going from prototypes to mass-produced commercial products.

Free Solar Fuel

Even without a major breakthrough, existing solar panels pay for themselves. Since the energy source, sun light, is free and renewable, the solar cells are immune to fuel price fluctuations and availability. This must be factored into the over all operating cost of generation since often power plants which use renewable fuel cost more in the construction phase when compared to the installed capacity of fossil fuel plants. When the cost of the fuel is included over the life cycle of the photovoltaic cells (often lasting 20 years), solar power can be competitive with fossil fuel and is cheaper than nuclear power. The natural availability of sun light nicely matches the summer electricity demand curve as air conditioners kick in during afternoon hours when photovoltaic cells would be reaching their peak output. Solar power, then, could play an important role in supplying the electrical power grid in the western United States, along with existing hydroelectric and natural gas plants.

The Advantages of Distributed Power

Photovoltaic cells could also be installed on residential and commercial rooftops and help decentralize the production of electricity. The more distributed power supplies are installed the interstate power grids will become more stable and reliable. For example, had there been more local, distributed power sources on the east coast, the multi-state electrical blackout of 2003 would have affected fewer people, and would not have triggered additional blackouts.

Where Do We Build the Solar Plants?

If the U.S. harvested the rooftop space of existing buildings, we could produce 20-40% of our electrical power needs from photovoltaicpanels. European countries like Germany and Portugal have been maximizing space by incorporating land along highways, parking lots, and in agricultural fields. The most efficient locations for solar generation would be to maximize urban spaces so that power generation is near the end-user points. That would help distribute the power generation throughout the electrical grid and eliminate energy loses from long-distance transmission lines. Typically at least ten percent of the electricity is lost when it is transmitted long distances to its final use.

If solar cells were installed centrally in large power plants, the land required to build such plants is cheap and available. One plant in California's Mojave desert could supply the electrical needs of the entire country. Dr. Smith has proposed using Federal B.L.M. land in the southwest, or parts of U.S. military testing or firing ranges. And unlike nuclear power, solar electric plants can be dismantled and decommissioned relatively easily when they reach their end-of-life cycle. The plant can be removed without leaving any radioactive contamination to the land. The cost of decommissioning nuclear power plants is in the billions of dollars.

Solar Power Paves the Way to the Eventual Hydrogen Economy

One alternative to producing electricity for the Western States power grid would be to use solar electricity to produce hydrogen fuel from water. Electricity can be used to separate the hydrogen from oxygen in water. When hydrogen is burned as a fuel it then produces water again. Hydrogen fuel could also be used for fuel cells in buildings and cars to produce electricity and heat. As we transition from a fossil fuel economy to a renewable "hydrogen economy", hydrogen offers many advantages as a fuel since it is plentiful, renewable, and produces almost no air pollution and few greenhouse gases. Ultimately, renewable sources of energy such as geothermal, solar, wind, and hydroelectric will be used to produce hydrogen fuel for storage and for fuel cells.

Solar Electrical Contractors

For Informational Purposes only. Not an official endorsement..

Solar Electrical Systems (www.solarelectricalsystems.com)
2500 Townsgate Rd. Suite J
Westlake Village, CA 91261
Phone: (805) 497-9808, 866-74-SOLAR (76527)
fax: (805) 497-6199
sales @ solarelectricalsystems.com

All Valley Solar (www.allvalleysolar.com)
Phone: (800) 400-7780

California Green Designs
Solar Energy and Green Building Solutions
18025 Rancho St., Suite 200
Encino, CA 91316-4214
Ph: (818) 705-3474
Fax: (818) 996-9995
Email: meega @ CA-Green.com

Energy Action Project