Solar Energy

By: Devika Patel, Ricky DeBenedictis, Jennifer Mendez

Solar Energy:

• Energy derived from the Sun's radiation. Passive solar energy can be exploited through architectural design, as by positioning windows to allow sunlight to enter and help heat a space. Active solar energy involves the conversion of sunlight to electrical energy, especially in solar (photovoltaic) cells.

Three examples of how solar energy is used:

• Solar Hot Water Heaters• Solar Home Heating• Solar Food Dryers & Cookers

Solar Hot Water Heaters

• Solar hot water heaters use an insulated tank and a solar collector to deliver your home's hot water.

Solar Home Heating

• The "passive" and "active" model also works for regulating the temperature in your home. Passive systems use the home's location, design and building materials to trap and store the sun's energy.

Solar Food Dryers & Cookers

• Solar food dryers and cookers use absorbent materials like glass and plastic to focus, collect, disperse and store the sun's energy.

Advantages:

1. Green- no toxic emissions at all2. Perpetual resource- will ALWAYS be there unlike fossil fuels.3. Can be used anywhere in the world

Disadvantages:

• 1. Sun is part of weather which is unpredictable

• 2. Expensive- need solar panels which are pricy

• 3. Can't operate at night

Problems associated with solar energy:

• While solar is a far less polluting energy source than coal or natural gas, many panel makers are nevertheless grappling with a hazardous waste problem. Fueled partly by billions in government incentives, the industry is creating millions of solar panels each year and, in the process, millions of pounds of polluted sludge and contaminated water.

• To dispose of the material, the companies must transport it by truck or rail far from their own plants to waste facilities hundreds and, in some cases, thousands of miles away.

Problems with solar energy:

• Site suitability• Embodied energy • Production and Demand • Materials