[audio:http://wamcradio.org/EarthWise/wp-content/uploads/2012/02/EW-02-22-12-Photovoltaics.mp3|titles=EW 02-22-12 Photovoltaics]
Amongst the flurry of depressing news about the environment, there is a bright spot—solar power. Solar comes in two forms: thermal—where sunlight heats water, and photovoltaic—where sunlight is converted to electricity.
For a number of years, solar thermal has been a competitive way to provide hot water. Homeowners who install solar panels on their rooftops can expect to earn back their initial investment in less than 10 years, and after that their hot water—one of the largest energy costs in the average household—is free.
Photovoltaic solar panels produce electricity from sun light, which can be used to power equipment or to recharge batteries. They have been available for years, but until recently they were too expensive to be competitive.
Much of the cost of photovoltaic solar panels stems from the mining and purification of silicon wafers that are central to capturing the Sun’s energy.
“The cost of producing electricity from sunlight, using photovoltaics, has been dropping rapidly in the past ten years, and even more so in the past four and five years.”
Roger French, a professor at Case Western Reserve University, says there are some cases where it costs less to produce solar electricity through photovoltaics than it does to purchase it from a utility…
”For example, in Italy, electricity is very expensive. So the price of electricity to compare to, i.e. what people would be referring to as grid parity, depends on where you are discussing – i.e. what the price of electricity is locally – how much sunlight there is, and what type of technology you’re planning to use.”
Photovoltaics earn back their initial investment in about 15 years. And Federal and state tax incentives are available.
Even Thomas Edison, who brought us a world powered by electricity, recognized that the Sun was a great power plant. One hundred years later, we are close to capturing his dream.
Web Extra
Full interview with Roger French, a professor at Case Western Reserve University…
[audio:http://wamcradio.org/EarthWise/wp-content/uploads/2012/02/French_full-interview_web_compress.mp3|titles=French_full interview_web_compress]Photo, taken on October 7, 2009, courtesy of Orangejon via Flickr.