How do Solar Panels Work

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A proposed before, the Sustainability centre has to be as sustainable and green as possible. Sustainability means meeting the needs of today without compromising the ability of future generations. So after doing some research and surveys the best sustainable technologies that can be used in the centre is Solar Photovoltaic panels and wind turbine. A solar Photovoltaic panel (PV cells) captures the suns energy using photovoltaic cells. Photovoltaic cells look similar to solar panels but are different and they work in a different way. Solar panels are normally used to produce hot water. But the PV cells convert the sunlight directly into electricity. An example could be a solar powered calculator which is powered by photovoltaic cells. The PV cells don’t directly need sunlight to work unlike solar panels, they can still generate electricity on cloudy days. Basically PV cells can produce small amount of energy when the sun isn’t even out, however the sunnier it is the more power is generated. And also the current building regulations, requires the developers to reduce the amount of carbon emitted from new buildings as part of the Governments objective of achieving zero carbon emissions from all the new buildings by the end of the decade. Solar panel is one of the most popular sustainable technology at this moment because of its benefits which are • It cuts electricity bills – PV cells use sunlight to produce electricity which is free so it doesn’t cost any money, PV cells can produce around 50% of the electricity used in the drop in centre cutting the electricity bills down by 50% • It also reduces carbon footprint – PV cells doesn’t release any harmful CO2 or any other pollutants, the drop in centre could save round 1500 kg of ... ... middle of paper ... ...work [Accessed: 27 Feb 2014]. Benefits-of-recycling.com. 2014. Why is Sustainability Important?. [online] Available at: http://www.benefits-of-recycling.com/whyissustainabilityimportant/ [Accessed: 27 Feb 2014]. Constructingexcellence.org.uk. 2014. Constructing Excellence | SustainabilityZone | Sustainability Issues. [online] Available at: http://www.constructingexcellence.org.uk/zones/sustainabilityzone/sust_con/issues.jsp [Accessed: 27 Feb 2014]. Energy.gov. 2014. How Do Wind Turbines Work? | Department of Energy. [online] Available at: http://energy.gov/eere/wind/how-do-wind-turbines-work [Accessed: 27 Feb 2014]. Trust, E. 2014. Wind turbines for homes explained - benefits, costs, savings, earnings, suitability. [online] Available at: http://www.energysavingtrust.org.uk/Generating-energy/Choosing-a-renewable-technology/Wind-turbines [Accessed: 27 Feb 2014].

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