Solar Panel Light Intensity Experiment

Illuminance is synonymous to light intensity.

Solar panel light intensity experiment.

Your experiment will measure the effect of changing light intensity on power output from the solar cell. The solar intensity from the sun s i over a given area at the surface of the earth is approximately 1 000 watts m 2. Is directly proportional to the light intensity. Photovoltaic panels are oriented to maximize the use of the sun s light and the system angles can be changed for winter and summer.

The best performance of solar panels in sunny and cold day has been suggested. To increase the efficiency of solar panels it is better the solar panels are installed on a tracking system that follows the position of the sun for to get a more light intensity. When a panel is perpendicular to the sunlight 5 it intercepts the most energy. At low light levels the effect of the shunt resistance becomes increasingly important.

A possible variation would be to investigate the effect of changing the color of the light. Students are familiar with the pv cells used in most calculators. The goal of this experiment is to determine how changes in incoming light intensity affect the output of solar cells. Higher intensity of light means that there are more photons hitting the surface of the cell per unit area per second.

Solar cells are an alternative method for generating electricity directly from sunlight. When the light intensity increased the current from solar cells has increased in the equation 8 and equation 9. The effect of solar illuminance or intensity on a photovoltaic panel has been examined. Use a ruler to measure the active area a of your solar cell see photo below.

Solar cells experience daily variations in light intensity with the incident power from the sun varying between 0 and 1 kw m 2. First calculate the solar power arriving at the solar cell by multiplying the intensity of the sun by the area of the solar cell. Your experiment will measure the effect of changing light intensity on power output from the solar cell. With this project you can get down to the atomic level and learn about the world of solid state electronics as you investigate how solar cells work.