by
Mark Ollig
The
folks at MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology) recently made public their
2015 study, “The Future of Solar Energy.”
This
detailed, 356-page report depicts solar energy as possibly becoming the leading
source of generated electricity, worldwide.
It
says use of solar-energy electrical production can also be considered a “tool”
for decreasing global CO2 (carbon dioxide) emissions.
When
planning for large solar-energy production facilities, the geographic location
where demand for electricity is needed is taken into account.
The
less populated, geographically larger, and more sun-drenched (and
drought-stricken) US southwest area, is a desirable location for building huge
solar-generated power plants.
Their
current drought continues to diminish the water supply needed for
hydro-produced electricity-generation output; increased production of
solar-generated power makes sense to pursue.
In
fact, a recent article in Greentechmedia, reports California has increased its
solar power generation to make up for the loss in hydropower production.
In
the EU (European Union), bringing solar electricity generated from “solar
farms” in their more sunlit southern regions, to the higher populated areas of
their country requires expensive, new electric transmission lines.
Installation
of these lines are, at times, subject to protest by people living along a
planned transmission line route.
Germany
has had much success with Solar PV (photovoltaic – “photo” meaning light and
“voltaic” meaning voltage) solar electrical power generating systems.
Last
month, PV Magazine reported global PV solar energy installations will soon
reach a cumulative capacity of 200 GW (gigawatts–billion watts).
They
reported this amount of power would be equal to the energy output of 30 coal or
nuclear plants combined.
Based
upon this information, over 100 million tons of CO2 will be kept from being
dispersed into the earth’s atmosphere every year because of the use of solar
energy.
According
to SEIA (Solar Energy Industries Association), the current solar power generated
in the US could now supply the combined electrical power needs for one year to:
Hawaii, Rhode Island, Alaska, and Vermont.
The
solar energy industry is creating and supporting new high-tech jobs.
According
to the Solar Foundation’s National Solar Jobs Census, there were a reported
173,000 “solar workers” as of November 2014.
In
a typical residential solar-energy generating system, a solar energy company
normally provides and installs the PV system on the roof of a customer’s home.
The
solar energy company would also be responsible for meeting the PII (permitting,
interconnection, and inspection) rules and procedures.
By
the end of 2014, MIT reported PV installed systems accounted for a majority of
solar electric generation worldwide; including the US.
PV
“wafer-based crystalline silicon” solar cell technology is used in
approximately 90 percent of the installations.
Half
of these PV systems are used by utility-scale plants, with the balance shared
between residential and commercial installations.
Solar
PV systems also qualify for tax-incentives; such as the ITC (investment tax
credit), and MACRS (modified accelerated cost recovery system), which is an
accelerated depreciation used for solar assets.
Since
about 2008, the US PV power capacity has grown from less than 1,000 MW
(megawatts– million watts) to over 18,000 MW.
Since
2001, PV capacity worldwide has increased about 47 percent each year.
Some
of the costs for solar PV systems include the PV solar panel modules, and solar
micro-inverters used for converting DC energy captured by the panels into AC
electricity used in the home or business.
Additional
expenses include: regulatory compliance, electrical grid connections, cabling,
and attachment hardware.
End-user
online websites for monitoring, receiving reports, and performing diagnostics
on their solar PV system, are also used.
It
is estimated by 2050, globally, 25,000 GW of zero-carbon emission energy (like
solar) will be necessary in order to prevent hazardous anthropogenic (human
caused) air pollution.
This
will be needed in order to offset the estimated 25 TW (terawatts–trillion
watts) of power the globe will be using in 2050.
This
means the US will need a land area for solar PV generation of roughly 12,740
square miles using present-day PV solar technology and hardware methodology.
The
total square miles of the 48 contiguous states of the mainland US is 3,119,884
square miles.
For
those of you doing the math, this ends up being slightly less than one-half of
1 percent (+0.4083).
MIT’s
study also included a thorough glossary covering many acronyms and
solar-power-related terminology.
You
can read the complete MIT “The Future of Solar Energy” report at
http://tinyurl.com/BytesMIT.
The
future of solar PV electrical energy-producing systems is growing.
They
are becoming an alternative and a supplementary electrical power source for
individuals and businesses; and an auxiliary power addition for commercial
electrical utilities.
Solar
energy companies are also installing “community solar gardens.”
These
eliminate homeowners from having to have solar panels and associated equipment
installed at their residences; but still benefit from solar-generated
electricity.
Minnesota
Public Radio recently aired a 4-minute, 30- second segment discussing Xcel
Energy’s community solar gardens.
Here
is the link for it: http://tinyurl.com/BytesSolar1.
Solar
energy will be providing up to 10 percent of Minnesota’s electricity needs by
2030, Xcel Energy said in the radio segment.
Increased, widespread use of this green technology, will reduce our carbon dioxide footprint; helping to save this planet’s environment for future generations.
(Above photos Public Domain)