Why Solar?

‘‘…In the wake of dwindling oil revenues, sustained environmental hazards and finite fossil fuels (a major agent of Global warming), sustainable energy systems are necessary to save the natural resources to avoid environmental impacts which would compromise the development of future generations and Nigeria’s transition to a zero carbon economy.  Solar energy, a sustainable source of energy that can be used to power homes and businesses globally.’’

 

 

 

 

Solar power is abundantly available to us and is free to use, moreover it’s an unlimited, unending natural source of energy and easily accessible to all of us. Also,

 

• zero emissions
• Solar Power Systems offer silent operations
• zero/reduced electricity bills
• the cost of running solar power systems is low
• solar panels last for up to 30 years with minimal maintenance cost
• Inverters have up to one-year warranty

 

 

 

 

 

Major Components of a Photovoltaic system

 

Solar panels

 

Solar panels are made up of arrays of photovoltaic cells (also called solar cells), connected in series and parallel to deliver rated voltage and power.

 

Solar panels are the major component of a solar power system. It converts light energy from the sun to direct current DC electric voltage.

 

A solar panel consists of an array of solar cells, usually covered in a non-reflective glass. Solar panels provide power for charging your batteries and for powering your appliances.

 

 

 

Power Inverter

 

For most practical applications for homes and offices, a power inverter will be required in a solar power system

 

A power inverter converts DC voltage to AC voltage. Inverters sold in Nigeria will convert DC voltage from your battery to a 220-volt AC voltage and 50/60 Hz frequency. Since the solar panel and batteries delivers DC voltage, it becomes necessary for a device to convert the DC output of the solar panels and batteries to AC voltage required by most home appliances.

 

 

 

Batteries

 

Solar power comes from the sun; hence, at night or cloudy weather little or no energy can be derived from solar panels.

 

This creates the need for a solar power system to store energy from the sun during the day so that at night/poor weather conditions it can be used to generate electricity. A battery stores energy in chemical form.

 

One or more batteries are connected in a bank to deliver required energy. One to 10 batteries or even more may be required for the solar power system depending on requirement.

 

More batteries may be required if the solar power system will be installed in a location without grid connection (no NEPA/PHCN).

 

 

 

Solar Charge controller

 

The basic functions of a controller are quite simple. Charge controllers block reverse current and prevent battery overcharge. They are usually of two types, the PWM (Pulse Width Modulation) controller and the MPPT (Multi Power Point Tracking) controller.