PAST PRESENT AND FUTURE OF PHOTOVOLTAICS

PAST PRESENT AND FUTURE OF PHOTOVOLTAICS
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(7th July, 2012)
PAST PRESENT AND FUTURE OF PHOTOVOLTAICS
PV or Photovoltaic (in long form) is a way/ method of generating common electrical power by converting sunlight /solar radiation into d.c (direct current) electricity using semiconductors that exhibit the photovoltaic effect. Photovoltaic electricity generation employs solar panels composed of solar cells containing photovoltaic materials. Presently, materials used for photovoltaics include amorphous silicon, copper indium gallium selenide/sulfide, polycrystalline silicon, cadmium telluride, and monocrystalline silicon. Due to the rising demand for renewable sources of power, the manufacturing of photovoltaic arrays and solar cells and has been developing considerably in recent years (Perlin 1999).
Technological improvements, increased economies of scale and manufacturing experience have allowed PV manufacturers to lower costs of production, and thereby, stimulate the market. But policy has also been an equally important factor as we shall see later, and in some instances, the most important driver of an industry boom (e.g. rapid growth in German and Spanish markets) that could rival global experience in computation and communications. The key policy instruments spurring the expansion of PVs include market and tax incentives (e.g. rebates, tax credits and feed-in tariffs., renewable portfolio standards, regulations, new building codes that now call for zero-energy capable operation, and solar power mandates) an public research and development (Komp 1995).
Solar photovoltaic use is growing rapidly. This means that we are at now reaching a total global capacity of 67,400 megawatts at the end of 2011. This represents 0.5 percent of worldwide energy demand. Currently, the world`s total PV power capacity run over a calendar year is equal to 80 billion kWh of electricity (more or less). This is enough to cover the annual power supply needs of some twenty million households in the world. More than 100 countries use solar Photovoltaics. Installations may be built into the walls or the roof of a building (building-integrated photovoltaics) or ground-mounted (and sometimes integrated with farming and grazing).
Driven by increases in manufacturing scale and sophistication and technological advances, the cost of photovoltaics has declined steadily since the first solar cells were manufactured. The LCOE (levelised cost of electricity) from PV is very competitive with conventional electricity sources in an ever expanding list of geographic regions. Financial incentives like preferential feed-in tariffs for solar power and net metering have supported solar Photovoltaic installations in many countries. With current technology, photovoltaics recoup the energy needed to manufacture them in 1 to 4 years (Komp 1995).
In recent years, photovoltaic systems have appeared in businesses and on people`s home...