Efficiency Of A Solar Pv Panel

This is the simplest way to get any solar pv module s efficiency.

Efficiency of a solar pv panel.

Working of a solar cell. If a solar panel has 20 percent efficiency that means it s capable of converting 20 percent of the sunshine hitting it into electricity. Remarkable panel manufacturers of this technology are gcl trina solar and kyocera. How to design and install a solar pv system.

The highest efficiency solar panels on the market today can reach almost 23 percent efficiency. The conversion efficiency of a photovoltaic pv cell or solar cell is the percentage of the solar energy shining on a pv device that is converted into usable electricity. Improving this conversion efficiency is a key goal of research and helps make pv technologies cost competitive with conventional sources of energy. The average efficiency of solar panels falls between the 17 to 19 percent efficiency range.

For example a solar panel with 20 efficiency and an area of 1 m 2 will produce 200 kwh yr at standard test conditions but it can produce more when the sun is high in the sky and will produce less in cloudy conditions or when the sun is low in the sky. Most solar panels are between 15 and 20 efficient with outliers on either side of the range. The absorption depends on the energy of the photon and the band gap energy of the solar semiconductor material and it is expressed in electron volt ev. For the generation of electricity by the cell it must absorb the energy of the photon.

To calculate the solar panel efficiency you need to divide the wattage per unit area pmax total area in sq m of the solar module by the stc irradiance value 1000w sq m. Iconic solar panel manufacturers of monocrystalline technologies are sunpower lg and jinkosolar. On the other hand polycrystalline solar panels have average efficiency values between 12 and 18 and a lifespan of 23 27 years.