Suggest any two ways to improve the uses of solar energy

by Emily Kerr figures by Abagail Burrus The Sun emits enough power onto Earth each second to satisfy the entire human energy demand for over two hours. Given that it is readily available and renewable, solar power is an attractive source of energy. However, as of 2018, less than two percent of the world’s energy came from solar. Historically, solar energy harvesting has been expensive and relatively inefficient. Even this meager solar usage, though, is an improvement over the previous two decades, as the amount of power collected from solar energy worldwide increased over 300-fold from 2000 to 2019. New technological advances over the last twenty years have driven this increased reliance on solar by decreasing costs, and new technological developments promise to augment this solar usage by further decreasing costs and increasing solar panel efficiency. Solar Cells: Costs, Challenges, and Design Over the past 20 years, the costs associated with solar cells, the structures capable of converting light energy into electricity, have been steadily decreasing. The National Renewable Energy Laboratory, a US government lab that studies solar cell technology, estimates contributors to the increasing affordability of solar. They estimate that hard costs, the costs of the physical solar cell hardware, and soft costs, which include labor or costs to obtain required government permits, are about equal (Figure 1). Soft costs have decreased because there are more potential consumers and m...

Solar energy is the radiation from the Sun capable of producing heat, causing chemical reactions, or generating electricity. The total amount of solar energy received on Earth is vastly more than the world's current and anticipated energy requirements. If suitably harnessed, solar energy has the potential to satisfy all future energy needs. Solar energy is commonly used for solar water heaters and house heating. The heat from solar ponds enables the production of chemicals, food, textiles, warm greenhouses, swimming pools, and livestock buildings. Cooking and providing a power source for electronic devices can also be achieved by using solar energy. The most common devices used to collect solar energy and convert it to thermal energy are flat-plate collectors. Another method of thermal energy conversion is found in solar ponds, which are bodies of salt water designed to collect and store solar energy. Solar radiation may also be converted directly into electricity by solar cells, or photovoltaic cells, or harnessed to cook food in specially designed solar ovens, which typically concentrate sunlight from over a wide area to a central point. solar energy,

Solar power continues to grow in influence but that influence, and share of the energy marketplace, could be greater. While there are more commercial and residential roofs with panels everyday, much of the potential of this power source is still not being maximized by the consumer, let alone businesses. “It’s not just about continuing to improve efficiency of devices but bringing cost down,” says Parsian Mohseni, assistant professor of microsystems engineering at the Rochester Institute of Technology. “It’s dollars-to-watt ratio and using new materials, new fabrication techniques, or added systems. But there’s no question the future looks exciting when it comes to solar.” Let’s look towards that future and explore the top areas to look for improvement in engineering down the road for solar. 1) Perovskite Cells “ Perovskite photovoltaics. Image: NREL / U.S. Department of Energy 2) Tandem Photovoltaics This is stacking two kinds of 3) Grid Integration The grid integration of solar and energy storage and in systems where they are compatible has great potential. “It’s happening now but will become increasingly important as solar and wind become more vital in the grid,” Fenning says. He mentions the new statistic on the generating capacity of sources of electrical power from the Solar Energy Industries Association. Its website says that solar was 30 percent in the first half of 2017, making it the second highest source. “The industry is growing when it comes to energy storage s...

To stop This is called climate mitigation. There is not one single way to mitigate climate change. Instead, we will have to piece together many different solutions to stop the climate from warming. Below are descriptions of the main methods that we can use. Many of these solutions are already being implemented in places around the world. Some can be tackled by individuals, such as using less energy, riding a bike instead of driving, driving an electric car, and switching to renewable energy. Other actions to mitigate climate change involve communities, regions, or nations working together to make changes, such as switching power plants from burning coal or gas to renewable energy and growing public transit. Use less electricity. Taking steps to use less electricity, especially when it comes from burning coal or gas, can take a big bite out of greenhouse gas emissions. Worldwide, electricity use is responsible for a quarter of all emissions. Some steps that you can take to use less electricity are simple and save money, like replacing incandescent light bulbs with LED bulbs that use less electricity, adding insulation to your home, and setting the thermostat lower in the winter and higher in the summer, especially when no one is home. There are also new technologies that help keep buildings energy efficient, such as glass that reflects heat, low-flow water fixtures, smart thermostats, and new air conditioning technology with refrigerants that don’t cause warming. In urban a...