Solar Panels
Solar Panels
Solar Panels
With high electricity prices in the news, now is a great time to start generating your own renewable electricity at home and get your own solar panels.
Solar panels are made out of photovoltaic cells that convert the sun’s energy into electricity.
Photovoltaic cells are sandwiched between layers of semi-conducting materials such as silicon. Each layer has different electronic properties that energise when hit by photons from sunlight, creating an electric field. This is known as the photoelectric effect – and this creates the current needed to produce electricity.
Solar panels generate a direct current of electricity. This is then passed through an inverter to convert it into an alternating current, which can be fed into the National Grid or used by the home or business that the solar panels are attached to.
- There is 14.6GW of installed solar in the UK – that’s more than four times the capacity of Britain’s largest fossil fuel power station.
- The panels can be installed in a wide range of places.
- They don’t create any noise pollution while generating electricity. This means that installations aren’t intrusive – whether they’re in crowded urban locations or quiet rural ones.
- Solar panels are very safe. They’re mostly made from silicon sheets, and there’s no danger of the photovoltaic cells leaking or emitting any toxins or fumes.