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Title:
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Key technical and non-technical challenges for mass deployment of photovoltaic solar energy (PV)
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Author(s):
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Published by:
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Publication date:
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ECN
Solar Energy
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1-12-2001
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ECN report number:
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Document type:
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ECN-RX--01-070
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Conference Paper
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Number of pages:
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Full text:
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5
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Download PDF
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Presented at: Marcus Evance Conference "Distributed Power: The Commercialisation of Small-Scale Stationary Applications", London, UK, 4-5 december 2001.
Abstract:
Photovoltaic solar energy (PV) is used for direct conversion of sunlight into electricity. It is not to be confused with low-temperature thermal solar energy (e.g. solar domestic hot water systems) and with solar electricity production using a conventional high-temperature steam cycle (using parabolic troughs or "power towers"). Important features of PV are:- inherently renewable;
- sustainable if well designed, manufactured, used, and disposed;
- no moving parts, quiet;
- reliable if well designed and engineered;
- modular (from milliwatts to multi-megawatts);
- suitable for a wide variety of applications (stand-alone and grid-connected);
- large potential (regionally and globally);
- intermittent;
- capacity factor (ratio of average system power to installed (=peak) power) 0.08-0.24.
PV is among the major renewable energy technologies in all well known energy scenarios, although a substantial role in % of the total energy production can only be achieved on the long term (typically 40-60 years years). Fortunately, long before that the PV market may be a rapidly growing, multi-billion ? business, providing enormous economic opportunities and many jobs.
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