Poster+ Solar Energy Research

This is the poster that I was assigned:

This was the information I retrieved on the Solar Energy Process:

Solar energy technologies use the sun's energy and light to provide heat, light, hot water, electricity, and even cooling, for homes, businesses, and industry. There are a variety of technologies that have been developed to take advantage of solar energy:

Photovoltaic Systems: Producing electricity directly from sunlight.

·         Possible Solar Cell Devices:

o   Rooftop shingles, roof tiles, building facades, or the glazing for skylines.

Solar Hot Water: Heating water with solar energy.

·        Solar Water Heating Systems:

o   Solar collector and a storage tank.

·        Active or Passive Systems?

o   Active systems rely on pumps to move the liquid between the collector and the storage tank, while passive systems rely on gravity and the tendency for water to naturally circulate as it is heated.

Solar Electricity: Using the sun's heat to produce electricity.

·        Three main types:

o   Parabolic-trough: long rectangular curved mirrors absorb sun’s energy.

o   Dish/engine: energy gathered by dish to create mechanical power to run a generator.

o   Power tower: large field mirrors concentrate sunlight onto tower, which heats molten salt through the receiver. The heat of the salt is the generator for electricity; but more importantly, molten salt can maintain its heat for a long period of time. This allows electricity to be run on cloudy days and even after sunset.

Passive Solar Heating and Daylighting: Using solar energy to heat and light buildings.

·         Direct Gain: Floors and walls collect heat during the day, then the retained heat is slowly release at night when it is needed most.

o   Sun spaces, trombe walls, and clerestory are all techniques for maintaining energy.

Solar Process Space Heating and Cooling: Industrial and commercial uses of the sun's heat.

·        Types of Systems:

o   Transpired collector: consists of a thin, black metal panel mounted on a south-facing wall to absorb the sun's heat. Air passes through the many small holes in the panel. A space behind the perforated wall allows the air streams from the holes to mix together. The heated air is then sucked out from the top of the space into the ventilation system.

o   Evacuated-tube collector: a shallow box full of many glass, double-walled tubes and reflectors to heat the fluid inside the tubes. A vacuum between the two walls insulates the inner tube, holding in the heat.

o   Parabolic-trough collector: long, rectangular, curved (U-shaped) mirrors tilted to focus sunlight on a tube, which runs down the center of the trough. This heats the fluid within the tube.