Solar Power Modules Orientation

The Watt Power output of a Solar module is the number of watts output when it is illuminated under standard conditions. Watt Peak (Wp) is the direct current watts output of a solar module as measured under an Industry standardized Light Test.

Solar modules has dropped from around $27 Watt Peak (Wp) in 1982 to around $2.49 Wp today and can be expected to dive much further in the future. At $1 Wp, grid parity will have been achieved and Photovoltaics (PV) will be able to compete with the prevailing price of electricity.

Solar panels that cost less than $1 per watt to produce are on their way, as Colorado State University's new method for low-cost, high-efficiency solar panels looks set to begin mass production. They will be sold for about $2 per watt to the public, about half the cost of current solar panels. The cost reduction comes from a new, continuous manufacturing process which uses cadmium telluride thin film rather than the more expensive crystalline silicon.

CdTe (Cadmium Telluride) permits a low cost production process. Automated high put though production processes have been employed successfully eliminating the need for expensive clean rooms or other specialty equipment.

Thin Firm CdTe (Cadmium Telluride) semiconductor material also converts low and diffuse light to electricity more efficiently than conventional cells under cloudy weather and dawn and dusk conditions. As a result, Thin Firm CdTe (Cadmium Telluride) modules will generally produce more electricity under real world conditions than conventional solar modules with similar power ratings.

Some sixty companies have announced to start thin film production by 2010. Thin-film solar cells consist of layers of active materials about 10 m thick compared with 200- to 300-m layers for crystalline-silicon cells. The technology allows for more flexible and robust shapes and is more cost effective.

A crucial metric that most look at is the measurement of kilowatt-hours per kilowatt installed. Find the wattage produced by your solar panel into watts per dollar. Most likely, when you are reach $0.15/kWh or better, you are competitive with your electric company.

The kilowatt hour is a convenient unit for electrical bills. 48- volt systems are a lot more expensive overall to setup. There are battery banks, inverters and cabling costs to consider. Still they are are a lot more efficient that 12v systems. A 1000w system would produce about 4 Kwh per day. Energy usage of a typical electrical customer in one month is several hundred kilowatt hours. Most families use between 4-9 Kwh per day. Get a do it yourself solar power kit and experiment utilizing this energy saving technology.