Electricity Production From The Sun: A Look At Efforts In The Past
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by: DanaCain | Total views: 27 | Word Count: 534
The fact that politicians constantly talk about renewable energy raises our awareness to the fact that we have some ongoing problems. Solar energy has great potential for becoming a source of renewable energy, and it is very interesting how this technology has developed over time.
In essence, solar electricity is energy harnessed from the sun. It can be used for electricity production through panels, home heating, and also to power laptops and other electronic devices.
Historically, sunlight has been used by mankind to produce heat ever since we first built structures. Over time, we have learned how to orient certain structures to absorb the heat of the sun and store it for use. Certain structures built by the early Greeks and Egyptians made use of these techniques.
Sunlight being used to provide electricity, however, is a new step of this technology. In 1901, Nicolas Tesla was the first person to receive a patent related to solar electricity, but he called it radiant heating. He sought a patent for a machine to capture the radiant heat, but nothing much came of the invention.
In 1904, some unknown physicist named Albert Einstein published a paper on the potential electricity production from sunlight. William Coblentz was the first person to receive a patent for a solar cell in 1913, but somehow, the project never got to the point of working efficiently. Robert Millikan, in 1916, was the first person who was able to produce electricity with the cell. During the next forty years, nobody was able to make much progress because the cells available were unable to convert sunlight into electricity.
It wasn't until the 1950's that Bell Labs became involved with Nasa. Bell was charged with coming up with a solar platform to power spacecraft once they were in orbit. This marked the revolution of the solar industry.
Gerald L. Pearson, Daryl M. Chapin, and Calvin S. Fuller started researching different areas related to solar, but not active parts of the NASA project. They met by chance, and immediately started exchanging ideas. Even if their individual ideas never succeeded, when they finally combined their efforts they were able to produce an efficient cell that was able to convert sunlight into electricity by using crystallized silicon. The new cell had an efficiency rate of 6% which was much improved from other projects in the past. In 1958, NASA launched the Vanguard Spacecraft, which was powered by solar panels.
In the following years, solar technology grew in leaps and bounds. Solar panels of today are about 15% efficient, and they are much smaller than the older panels. It is important to note that many companies are beginning to substitute panels for even more innovative products. Some of these new products are shingles that look exactly like the old roof shingles. Nanotechnology is also offering amazing possibilities with quantum dots, which are essentially solar panels on the quantum level. Eventually, these dots will be incorporated in things such as paint. If that possibility becomes reality, the paint on walls and buildings could provide heat.
Man has used the power of the sun for heat for a very long time. But in our time, we are beginning to master the possibility to turn sun power into free electricity.
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