Solar electricity cost.
Despite all the advantages of using solar cells to harvest solarenergy, solar electricity still has an insignificant share (~1%) inthe world’s overall energy supply picture. This is mostly due tothe economic consideration. While there’s virtually no fuel(sunlight) cost and maintenance cost once the solar panels areinstalled, the initial cost of solar electricity systems is stillthe obstacle for wide-spread adoption of solar photovoltaictechnologies.
a. Use the single-crystalline Si solar panelsas an example. Typical module fabrication cost is $150/m2, andtypical efficiency is 15% (the commercial panel efficiency issignificantly lower than the efficiency of champion laboratorycell; why?). Calculate the cost of the solar panels in terms of $per peak power output ($/WP). [Hint: what is theoptical power intensity for AM1.5 global spectrum?]
b. Assume all the other cost items (transportation,installation, and other Balance of Systems such as inverters,meters, etc.) is about 150% of the panel cost. A typical panellifetime is 25 years. In Gainesville, we get about 2000 hours peryear sunlight at standard AM1.5G power (1 kW/m2). Calculate, overthe lifespan of the solar panels, how much is the cost of the solarelectricity in terms of cents per kWh.
