Solar Energy

Abstract

A large number of nations have set ambitious climate and energy targets in the past few years because of the growing concerns regarding global warming, climate change, and energy security. Most of these targets propose moving toward a more renewable and energy-efficient society. Among the various options, solar energy is the most abundant resource available to us. Solar energy can be used to meet the various energy demands of the society using solar photovoltaic and solar thermal technologies. A solar photovoltaic system includes several photovoltaic modules connected together to generate electricity on getting exposed to the incident sunlight. This generated electricity could either be directly used, or could be stored in battery storage for use during cloudy periods or to extend the operation of the system beyond the sunshine hours. Solar thermal systems, on the other hand, first convert the energy from the incident solar radiation into heat. This heat could be used to meet the thermal demands such as domestic hot water and space heating or cooling, or it could be converted into electricity using thermodynamic power cycles. The solar thermal systems use thermal energy storage to store the excess heat in sensible, latent, or thermochemical systems for use at a later period. This chapter provides an overview of solar radiation and its measurement, solar photovoltaic and solar thermal systems, and various sustainability aspects associated with the use of solar energy to meet the energy requirements of our society.