From the category archives:

Installation advice

The other type of solar power: Concentrating solar power (CSP)

May 7, 2011
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  When most people think of solar power, they imagine solar photovoltaics, the technology whereby sunlight is turned directly into (dc) electricity via the p-n junction of a semiconductor material, such as silicon. In fact, in Australia, most solar installations are this type–the solar panels used in most residential solar installs are either poly-crystalline silicon, [...]

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First international solar-powered flight

May 5, 2011
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The Swiss-engineered Solar Impulse is set to make its first international flight on 2 May 2011 (yesterday in Australia as of the time of this writing, but today in Switzerland!) This is the first international flight of its kind: one powered solely by solar power. Blog this! Digg this post Recommend on Facebook Share on [...]

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Solar power: oversizing your inverter for future array expansion

May 4, 2011
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You are thinking about installing a solar power generation system for your home. Initially, you’d like your system to have enough solar photovoltaic panels to partially or totally meet your energy demand requirements, but you’d also like to have the option in the future to add more. You might do this for a number of [...]

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Solar Panels and trees: both share an affinity for the sun…

April 30, 2011
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The Solar Choice blog is full of good advice. We have written about how to orient your solar panels, how to determine what size system you’ll need, how much you might expect to earn or save through government solar power incentives (feed-in tariffs and RECs) with a solar PV system, and how to troubleshoot electricity production [...]

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West Australia’s first 100% renewable-powered mine: Wind and Solar

April 27, 2011
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Lithium producer Galaxy Resources is planning to be operating West Australia’s first mine powered by 100% renewable energy within 3 years. The mine is already partially powered by solar panels mounted on solar-trackers. Blog this! Digg this post Recommend on Facebook Share on Linkedin Share with Stumblers Tweet about it Print for later Tell a [...]

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Solar 2: New York City’s solar-powered education centre

April 26, 2011
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New York city will soon have its first-ever net-zero energy, carbon-neutral building, to replace its current environmental education centre, Solar 1. The new building is to be rather cleverly named Solar 2. Blog this! Digg this post Recommend on Facebook Share on Linkedin Share with Stumblers Tweet about it Print for later Tell a friend

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MIT produces glass-like solar photovoltaic cells

April 20, 2011
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A potentially major breakthrough for the future of solar photovoltaic power has been achieved at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT): organic solar cells that are transparent for visible light, but which collect infrared radiation for electrical power production. This promising technology could offer savings on construction costs as well as operational costs (i.e. less [...]

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East or West orientation for solar panels

April 19, 2011
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Determining the orientation and tilt angle of your solar power generation system is one of the most important considerations in designing your solar power system. As we have mentioned before, in the southern hemisphere, due North is the optimum orientation for panels. But not everyone has a perfectly oriented roof. When your two best options [...]

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NSW electricity prices to rise by up to 18.1% by July 2011–IPART

April 15, 2011
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The Independent Pricing and Regulatory Tribunal (IPART) has recommended that the price of electricity in NSW increase by between 16.4% and 18.1%. Changes will come into effect from 1 July, 2011. Blog this! Digg this post Recommend on Facebook Share on Linkedin Share with Stumblers Tweet about it Print for later Tell a friend

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Flexible Thin-film Solar photovoltaics

April 13, 2011

In a previous Solar Choice blog entry, Prateek Chourdia wrote about some emerging trends in the future of photovoltaic solar technology, including thin-film solar power. This entry will summarise some of the salient points regarding thin-film technologies, otherwise known as flexible photovoltaics, and discuss their possible future direction. Blog this! Digg this post Recommend on [...]

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How to install a solar panel mounting system on your roof

April 12, 2011
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For most people who decide to mount solar panels on their roof, a mounting system is necessary. This short entry explains the basics of what needs to be taken into consideration when putting a solar array on your roof. -Read about Solar Panel Tilt and Orientation in Australia- (Get a free comparison of solar quotes of the [...]

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Solar-powered carports

April 7, 2011
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The number of small, simple ways to put solar power to use in daily life seems virtually endless, and opportunities present themselves at every corner. Solar carports are one innovative way to turn an ordinarily passive, mundane, everyday item into an electricity generation system that works for you. It’s the sort of thing that, when [...]

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BIPV: Building-integrated Photovoltaics, the future of PV

April 1, 2011
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Building-integrated photovoltaics (BIPV) is exactly what the name indicates: solar power generation modules that are integrated directly into a building in the place of ordinary building materials. BIPV differs in a number of ways from the PV arrays that most of us are familiar with: the roof-mounted or rack-mounted PV arrays that are retrofitted onto [...]

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Renewable Energy: Charging Electric Vehicles

March 29, 2011
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How will the transportation of the future reduce its reliance on fossil fuels? Despite all its advantages, one of the biggest disadvantages of photovoltaics (PV or solar power), and most renewable energies sources, is the difficulty of storage and transport for later use. Storage of PV-generated power is inefficient without good batteries. You can fill [...]

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Purchasing Green Energy vs Feed-in Tariffs for Solar Power

March 28, 2011
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If you are environmentally-minded, you may have asked yourself at some point whether it is a better idea to install solar power on your roof (referred to as ‘micro-generation’) or to start purchasing GreenPower from your energy provider. This article is a brief overview of the differences between the of two. Blog this! Digg this [...]

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Stand-alone solar power to be set-up in Japan refugee centres

March 23, 2011
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As part of the relief effort for the 11 March 2011 Northeastern Japan earthquake and tsunami, Sharp and Shin-Kobe Electric Machinery are planning to assemble and provide 250 solar power arrays with batteries for refugee shelters throughout the region. Blog this! Digg this post Recommend on Facebook Share on Linkedin Share with Stumblers Tweet about [...]

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Ever-improving PV technology dilemma: Should I wait to buy my solar array?

March 5, 2011
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You are thinking about getting a solar PV system for your home, and in your research have come to understand what the major considerations are: your electricity demand and how to save energy, what types of panels are on the market, where to put your array so that it doesn’t suffer from the effects of [...]

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Ground-screws for ground-mounted solar power systems

February 25, 2011
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Ground-mounted solar photovoltaic (PV) systems are ideal for those who have space to spare on their property. The are becoming increasingly common. In fact, there is a movement to recruit solar farmers, who, taking advantage of generous feed-in tariffs and solar rebate incentives, would be able to turn a profit from otherwise unproductive land. This [...]

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Asbestos in my roof! Can I install solar panels?

February 24, 2011
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You are now mentally and financially prepared and willing to go ahead with a solar panel (photovoltaic) installation on the roof of your home. The only problem is, after having your potential installer come out and have a look at it, you’ve found out that your roof has got asbestos in it and your installer [...]

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Optimizing Solar Panel System Efficiency through Inverter Sizing

February 11, 2011
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The efficiency of the inverter drives the efficiency of a solar panel system because inverters convert Direct Current (DC) (as produced by the solar panels), into Alternating Current (AC) (as used by the electric grid). This leads many to wonder what effect over-sizing or under-sizing an inverter will have on overall system efficiency. This entry [...]

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Own and Run a Solar Farm

February 4, 2011
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The image of a rural plot with a wind turbine producing electricity to be fed into the electricity grid with cattle milling about underneath grazing the grass has become a familiar one, but more and more rural Australian landholders are also making the choice to own and run solar farms. Blog this! Digg this post Recommend [...]

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