Solar Energy Fuel Cells are rapidly becoming a viable alternative to our current petrochemical based energy dependence. For reasons ranging from independence on foreign oil and the wars which are waged in part to maintain access to certain oil fields, to reducing greenhouse gases, to actually saving money, this fundamentally scientifically sound technology deserves intense examination from municipalities, aerospace, automakers, owners of commercial buildings, and homeowners.
Imagine a high-rise building clad in solar panels or just a regular residential photovoltaic installation. Then imagine the most efficient way to store and then use at night that extra power absorbed from the sun. This is exactly what is called a complete system of solar energy fuel cells.
Through hydrolysis which is accomplished by using a small portion of the electrical current derived from photovoltaic panels in combination with an electrocatalyst and water, HHO gas is formed. This gas is then stored to be used to run through a fuel cell at night to produce electricity as needed. For the true environmentalists wishing to do their part to reduce their carbon footprints and for those wishing to free themselves from the uncertainty of future energy costs, the advancements over the past decade have now made such possibilities a reality.
It only makes sense to combine the strengths of the two conceivably most widely available types of renewable energy to achieve the ultimate goal of lasting, uninterrupted, nearly limitless power. Advancements in both the fields of solar panel technologies and fuel cell research have finally come to a point where these resources are available and have been installed in many households across the United States. In many states throughout the country these days one will find a photovoltaic installation on a roof top if one simply drives around a little bit. A lesser known fact is that thousands of residential solid oxide fuel cells have already been installed in Northern California alone.
Currently, most SOFC’s run on natural gas which is also commonly referred to as methane. Since natural gas is generally less expensive in most areas than electricity from a power company, homeowners are already taking advantage of this manner of converting methane to electricity on their own property and on many occasions have eliminated the need to purchase electricity directly. However, the exciting part about SOFC’s is that they run just as easily on HHO as they do on methane. And since the sun can continually produce HHO directly from water, we have what many enthusiasts call the greatest leap in green energy technology ever devised.
As one ponders a hydrogen based economy and imagines the world into which future generations will be born, one cannot help but to think of common practices of the past such as the use of steam engines which ran on coal and produced huge billows of black smoke across the countryside as the trains rolled on. Will generations to come think of our current energy practices much as we think of the world of just a handful of decades ago when leaded gasoline was the norm? Undoubtedly a hundred years from now people will be amazed that we actually put ourselves and our world in harm’s way with our production of toxic chemicals when clean alternatives were available.
Much like the caveman became extinct, so in fact one day most likely before the next turn of the century will the petroleum powered economy become a memory of the past. In short, the technology which will either be viewed as the champions of this new era or destroyer of our sordid past will surely be Solar Energy Fuel Cells.
Solar Energy Fuel Cells are something the big oil companies do not want you to know about. Unfortunately for them, automakers Mercedes and Honda and companies such as eBay, Fed-X, and Wal-mart already are implementing various forms of this technology.
As initially propounded by President George Bush in his Hydrogen Fuel Initiative of 2003, the benefits of this technology have rapidly come to the forefront. Seemingly unbelievable but true, F cell cars can run on water. As the ideal energy source, you may have already seen the advertisements on television demonstrating that this is the next level of progress after the hybrid vehicle series. And not only has Mercedes shown their cards that this is the future manner of powering their automobiles, but Honda as well has come out with their version of this power source. In effect, if two of the widely regarded top two international automakers are saying that this is the way of the future, Detroit is sure to follow on a massive level before this decade is over.
You may wonder how water can be a fuel source. It is simple. Hydrogen is a component of water and when a gas which contains hydrogen is run through a solid oxide fuel cell or proton exchange membrane fuel cell heat is the result as well as an electric current.
Solar Energy Fuel Cells in actuality can be used not only to power a home day and night off the grid, but also can generate HHO Gas (water in its gaseous state) which can be stored in containers to be used to power versions of F Cell vehicles.
This new system of complete home power generation which can generate an abundant supply of HHO gas is the nightmare of the big oil companies. As automakers over the next decade come out with more versions of automobiles which are powered by HHO and conversion kits on existing cars gain popularity, petroleum manufactures will undoubtedly lose market share in this industry. However, there is a silver lining to all of this for gasoline and natural gas suppliers.
Currently, petroleum is also the main component of plastics (most likely the computer you are looking at now is mainly plastic), many types of carpet, pesticides, and ironically, car interiors are built in a large part from oil. The bright side for common gas companies is that as the price of their raw materials only increases as existing world-wide supplies are exhausted, less and less of their supply will be used for powering cars like the gas guzzlers of the 1950’s and the companies will be able to stay in existence longer. Many reports have shown that we have already used over half of the accessible supply of petrol.
Because the power of the sun is really the root energy source of all crude black hydrocarbon materials, it just makes sense that an effort is made to harness this power as directly and cleanly as possible. While the movement to a hydrogen fuel based economy is widely regarded as inevitable well before the end of our current century, the real defining factor will be the level of understanding and commitment of the public to chose those power sources which currently exist which do not rely on the versions of hydrogen based gases such as methane (CH4) that can be viewed as contaminated with carbon which ultimately produces CO2 as a greenhouse gas. Ultimately, if one takes a few moments to reflect on green technology, one will find that unquestionably the brave new world which we are all just now starting to enter is a world of Solar Energy Fuel Cells.
Solar Energy Fuel Cells are set to be the predominate green energy choice for homes, commercial buildings, cars, and airplanes. By harnessing the power of the sun in conjunction with the process converting water from its liquid state to gas and then back to liquid, SEFC’s stand alone as the only green technology with world-wide potential which can be operated anywhere people are living using existing natural resources.
If you stop to think about it, almost all of our current energy usage originally came from sunlight. Through the process of photosynthesis, organic materials have created what has become the basis of not only the world wide food chain, but historically also provided energy for single-celled organisms, plants, and dinosaurs alike to exist. As these ancient organic materials decayed, were buried under increased pressures, and through thousands of years this energy which originally came from the sun was converted into coal, oil, and natural gas.
In short, solar energy fuel cells skip then need for thousands of years of compression, decay, and the combination of the “pure energy source” of sunlight being “contaminated” with carbon and other elements which are believed to be overly abundant in our atmosphere at this time. By converting water into HHO Gas using solar energy during the day, this gas can then be put through a fuel cell at night to power a home or business at night. Likewise, HHO Gas Stations currently are being using in Iceland which do nothing but provide a seemingly inexhaustible fuel source for buses and other vehicles.
If you think the residential, commercial, and automobile applications are exciting, then just ponder the SolarEagle project which is a joint venture by Boeing and DARPA (which refers to the program as Vulture) which is set to launch in 2014 with the intent of flying continuously for 5 years. This plane will use solar power to fly during the day and then when the plane is on the dark-side of the planet this aircraft will use the HHO gas generated from the hydrolysis of water to power the planes fuel cell. Unquestionably this technology will have broad reaching effects into areas we have not even considered.
Understanding how to make fuel cells even more efficient and increasing commercial usage has also become a recent field of study at 7 colleges in California which announced in 2010 that they were installing fuel cells on campus to not only study, but to also provide power for the universities. Not only are other students across America in other states learning about this technology, Germany and Japan in particular already have strong programs in place for fuel cells to be common place during this decade.
Ironically, a Japanese auto-industry insider said years ago that in 2018 there will be a major increase in the number of pure Fuel Cell Cars produced, and just this year, Germany’s Mercedes debuted their F Cell Cars. Undoubtedly the auto industry believes this technology is the future.
Slowly, the benefits of these new sources of power have been coming to light. However, when the new Freedom Towers are erected on the spot of the former World Trade Center Twin Towers, this energy system will be thrust into the forefront. It has been reported that upon completion the new structures on this site will have the largest on-site commercial fuel cells in existence. Most likely this installation will use natural gas to obtain the hydrogen needed as the power source for those fuel cells instead of water, but at least it will help to increase worldwide awareness of this entire field which idealistically in its most “green” form combines with photovoltaic panels to become Solar Energy Fuel Cells.
Question by ~*Chiro*~: What are the steps taken to design a solar cell system?
what are the factors we take in consederation and wat formulas we can use.
for example: imagine i have a bulb of 150 watt , what are the steps taken to by the solar cell pannel and the rechargeabel battery needed for my system.
Best answer:
Answer by ayatollah_of_rock_and_rollah00 The energy produced by the solar cell is related to the intensity of the radiation from the Sun at that particular time. Its called irradiance. Say you wanted to power that bulb for a day, you would need to calculate the total irradiance (which is energy per square meter) using this formula:
Edaydensity = (Imax)(Tday)/(pi/2) where Eday density is the daily energy per square meter, Imax is the maximum irradiance of the Sun, at around the afternoon and Tday is the total time that sunlight is available. If you want to go the easy route just choose 250w/square mater as the average density.
The second is to determine how much power a single solar cell can derive from that 250w/square meter and you’d figure out by looking at the efficiency. A bulk silicon solar cell can provide around 22% efficiency. Based on that you can calculate the number of solar cells required to power a 160W bulb. The rechargeable battery is charged using surplus power that the solar cell isn’t using when its under operation. i.e. whatever’s left over is sent to the battery. You can determine the surplus power by calculating the amount of power produced by the total solar cell array (power from all the solar cells) minus the power consumed (160W). The entire solar cell system consists of the solar cell which connects to a DC converter to produce DC current. But for household appliances and electronics, this DC current is connected to an inverter to produce AC current. The solar cell is also connected to the battery which stores the excess power.
A do it yourself solar panel project is easy. Photovoltaic cells are made of special materials called semiconductors such as silicon. This Solr cell is capable of using the “photovoltaic effect” to directly convert light into electricity. When they are used for diy solar power projects they are called solar cells. Photovoltaic cells are becoming more common everyday and are surprisingly inexpensive to buy.
A solar cell that makes electricity from sunlight. Video Rating: 4 / 5
Renewable Energy Solar Power-Cheapest Renewable Energy Solar Power
Various kits are available to order online from multiple different vendors that will teach you to generate renewable energy solar power. The kits will usally include steps for calculating the electricity that you need. Once you have that information you can start building your own solar panels, typically you can easily build a 100 watt solar panel in a day very easily.
Solar Photovoltaic Power System-Cheapest Solar Photovoltaic Power System
The energy of the future IS Solar power. The big advantages of solar power are apparent, like for the most part is is free and not regulated. Solar is easily harnessed and capable of producing excess power that can be sold back into the grid. Most of us are already aware that a commercially sold solar panel can produce hundreds of times its price in power. Solar power is a renewable resource of energy and free to harness once you have installed solar panels. Installing ready made solar panels can be done by a professional of the homeowner and the installation can power an entire home. Storing the power for use when the sun is not shining it the problem. Using new fuel cell technology is the key to overcoming the issue. Building such a system from scratch is very possible. All the required raw materials can be easily bought online and delivered to your home. This is a very green solution as it also cuts down on any further impact on the environment as the solar panels do not go through any additional manufacturing processes when producing power.
Embracing Green Energy In Kansas,
A Kansas nonprofit group has invoked patriotism, thrift and religion to persuade deeply conservative residents to save energy and use renewable sources. Read more on New York Times
IClimate Skeptics Embrace Green Energy in Kansas,
Instead of talking about global warming, a nonprofit invoked patriotism, thrift and religion to persuade residents to save energy. Read more on New York Times
Setting Up Your Own Photovoltaic Modules is the Best Thing You Can Do!
Most people dread getting their electricity bill in the mail. These days the average electricity bill is around two hundred dollars a month which is a lot of money. But there is something you can do about it! When you start to use photovoltaic modules to power up your home you will be in charge of your own electricity bill. It is completely renewable energy and you will see that photovoltaic modules are wonderful things. More people than ever before are taking advantage of all that renewable solar energy has to offer for them. They are also making their own and other’s lives better by making the switch to these photovoltaic modules. If you are interested in setting up your own solar energy system there are a few steps that you will need to take.
One of the problems that exist with photovoltaic modules is that you can only harness solar energy when the sun is shining. So you need more than just panels, a way to store the energy is at least as important as well. Another problem with solar energy is that, even though it will more than pay for itself, the initial cost of setting up a photovoltaic modules is sometimes too high for some families. No matter which system of parts you happen to buy. You could of course get everything second hand, just make sure that everything is in good condition before you buy it. And make sure it is worth buying in the first place. This is the only way that you are going to be able to harness the energy of the sun all year round, even in winter when it is hardly sunny. Photovoltaic modules are so cost-effective.
When you are using photovoltaic modules, you are relying on the energy of the sun to power your home, and this is not going to cost you a dime. Unless you have to pay for repairs or something like that. This is one of the first things that draw people in to using photovoltaic modules. There are lots of different sizes and styles of solar panels that are available. In the end it will all depend on the size of your home and whether you are planning to power part or all of it with the use of these photovoltaic modules.
When you have your photovoltaic modules set up, there will hardly be any maintenance at all, which is nice. You want to have them in an area that is going to be able to capture a lot of sunlight so your roof would be a good place to start. But then there are some people who do not like the look of the solar panels. It really depends on your own personal preference but you will either have to deal with seeing the photovoltaic modules or have to struggle with only a small amount of solar energy. The best idea is to use large photovoltaic modules on the sunny side of the house.
Setting up your own photovoltaic modules on your roof is one of the best things you can do to lower your electricity bills but there are also a lot of other renewable solutions like residential wind turbines and much more.
This is how I built my solar powered generator. I can send you do it yourself instructions. Please leave a comment let me know what you think. By the way I got most of my components on Amazon.com
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