Solar Rooftop Panel

Solar panels consist of photovoltaic cells which convert solar energy into DC electricity. The panels also consist of an inverter which converts DC electricity into AC electricity, as it is more useful for home appliances. When the panel finishes converting, it will supply the electrical energy to the power lines, and the extra electricity in production will go to the electrical grid. 

There are numerous advantages to using solar rooftop panels for electrical production.

• Provides green and renewable energy.
• You get full control over a section of your electricity consumption.
• Saves you a lot of money by relieving you of electrical company supply.
• Reduces the carbon footprint of your organization.
• Uses no hydro energy for the production of electricity. 

Solar rooftop panels consist of various components which work in sync to produce an uninterrupted power supply. A few essential components are:

• Photovoltaic cells- photovoltaic cells are the main catalyst to the production of electrical energy from solar energy. When you see a certain grid of cells in the arrangement, you can measure their power with the size. Solar rooftop panels come in 12, 18-, 24-, 42-, and 60-volt power production sizes. 12- and 24-volt solar rooftop panels are incredibly useful with battery banks, and so are usually applied in off-grid systems, while 18, 42, and 60-volt panels are for in-grid application. 

•  Combiner box- a combiner box is the most overlooked part of solar panel application as it helps you combine panels in parallel. If you want to combine two 12-volt panels for your system, you have to wire the outputs of each panel direly into the terminal. 

Solar rooftop panels are not perfect with their green energy production. They do come with a few advantages and disadvantages. 

Advantages

• No-kinetic energy conversion. 
• Reduces your carbon footprint as this energy is renewable. 
• Solar energy does not require any tax for utilization. 
• It is the true definition of an infinite power source. 

Disadvantages

• Weather can affect the power supply.
• Requires a lot of space and careful planning for proper execution. 
• Batteries for solar rooftop panels can be expensive.
• You only receive power for the day. 

Charles Fritts in 1881 was the first person to create commercial-grade solar panels, but those panels were very inefficient in comparison to the modern-day panels. Russell Ohl was the one who improved on Fritts’s designs to create even better solar panels in 1939, which in turn gave inspiration for current-gen solar panels. Russel did patent his design by 1941, and Bell Labs used the design to create the first commercially applicable solar panel in 1954. Bell Labs in 1957 also helped discover the silicon surface passivation technology, which is essential for increasing the panel’s efficiency.

The essential components of a solar rooftop panel are-

• Photovoltaic cells
• Mounting modules
• Combiner box
• A solar panel charge controller
• Batteries for storing extra electricity
• Inverters for converting DC electricity to AC electricity
• DC and AC manual switches
• Cables, connectors, and brackets

Solar panel application comes with a lot of benefits, but there are also certain challenges of being a solar panel user. The cost was a big challenge to overcome, but that difference is closing down with the invention of better and cheaper technology. 

• Solar panels require a spacious area for installation, and sometimes they're not that much space available. 
• India’s issues with finance also lower the usage of expensive technology like solar rooftop panels.
• There is a lack of government-industrial collaboration when it comes to this expensive technology. 
• The lack of trained professionals who excel in PV module manufacturing and production.