The past ten years have seen the solar industry go quite a way. The market size was modest in 2010, heavily dependent on subsidies from countries like Germany, Italy, and the UK. In the past couple of years, the huge-scale use of solar power has faced myriad difficulties. With high-end price targets establishing the bar high, rapid technological advancements were required to meet these goals. However, the solar industry has performed well, with solar panels scheduled to record levels in 2020.
Based on the International Renewable Energy Agency, the global grid-connected solar capacity was 580.1 Gw at the end of the year. This included 3.4 gigawatts in off-grid PV. As of the end of 2019, the,e US alone had installed more than two million PV solar systems. Around 71,300 MW of solar power, generating more than 100 TWh of electricity.
A study conducted by IHS Markit in early 2020 forecasted that the solar energy sector would experience 14% growth by 2020 compared to all the solar power capacity built in 2019. They anticipated an additional 142GW of solar capacity to be made throughout the year, which is seven times the total solar power capacity installed in 2010. In January, when the study was released, no one believed an epidemic would strike the globe. While a recent report revealed that the Covid-19 outbreak is affecting the global growth in renewable energy, it’s not halting it. The US rooftop solar installations were concerned. However, this market in solar power has proven exceptionally resilient and is predicted to record its facilities in 2020.
THE COST OF SOLAR
The price of solar power has undoubtedly dropped over the last ten years. As technological advances are expected to improve efficiency, solar is still getting cheaper, particularly in areas with more sun, making it the most affordable option for new electricity production. Since solar energy is easily accessible and renewable, it’s likely that by 2030, solar will be the primary source of electricity generation in a vast area of the world. If the solar industry grows, it will not be very long until solar power becomes superior to fossil fuels, which can positively affect the environment and climate change. Solar is simple, fast to install, and very adaptable, offering the ability to power anything like a small watch or as big as an entire city. Solar’s flexibility means there’s no reason why the solar industry can’t increase over the next ten years.
The solar industry can provide specific plans for cost reduction that should enable solar costs to be cut in half in 2030.
The silicon solar cell is expected to reduce in price and be used in large quantities. In the US, cost reductions are expected to boost the amount of solar energy produced by a minimum of 700% in 2050! While research into different designs that are better efficient and lower-cost solar cells will continue.
THE FUTURE OF SOLAR CELLS
Modules with higher efficiency are being developed to produce 1.5 million times greater power than the existing similar-sized modules using a process known as the tandem silicon cell.
To compete with the current solar cells, the new model has to capture more light, convert sunlight energy into electricity more efficiently, and be less costly to construct than the contemporary designs. It is no doubt that the use of solar energy by both consumers and energy makers will rise when the power it generates is comparable to or cheaper than other non-renewable electricity.
One method that lets solar cells absorb more significant amounts of light is to put electronic components in the solar cell to allow the solar cell to follow the sun’s path across the sky during the daytime. When the cell’s solar rays are directed towards the sun, it will be impacted by numerous photons more than if only pointed towards the sun in midday. Currently, the cost of creating electronic devices that can perform this consistently and accurately for a long time is prohibitive and creates an ongoing problem. One alternative to make the solar cell move is to use mirrors to concentrate light onto the more minor and hence more economical solar cell.
Another method of improving the efficiency of solar cells is to increase their efficiency to make them better at converting energy from sunlight into electricity. It has been established that solar cells with several layers of light-capturing materials take in more light than solar cells with just one layer. These cells are currently expensive and are difficult to manufacture to be used in commercial applications. However, continuing research may enable the use of these highly efficient cells shortly.
Innovative production techniques are on the way to lower the number of costly materials like silicon and silver utilized in the manufacturing of solar cells. We and sed on our rooftops and solar farms, helping to create a sustainable and clean power source.
One option for improving the performance of solar cells is to reduce their price. While making silicon is becoming cheaper in recent years, it raises the cost of solar cell installation by a significant amount. If thinner solar cells are employed, the cost of the material is reduced. The “thin-film solar cells” use an outer material layer to absorb light energy less than 2 to 8 micrometers thick. This is only one percent of what’s utilized to construct a conventional solar cell. But, like cells containing multiple layers, thin-film solar cells are challenging to make, restricting their use; however, research is still ongoing.