Best Solar Panels – Global Ranking Of Manufacturers
Posted by admin on Aug 16, 2009
In 2007 ENF Ltd., a reputable China and UK based photovoltaic information company, took a brand survey of photovoltaic installation companies in 45 different countries.
ENF is a photovoltaic information company located in China and in the U.K. . Those were the results:
Best Solar Panels
Global No.1 Brand: SunPower
Global No.2 Brand: Schott Solar
Global No.3 Brand: Solar World
No.1 Product Quality: Sanyo
No.1 Value for Money: Suntech Power
Best Solar Panels Inverters
Global No.1 Brand: Kaco Solar
Global No.2 Brand: OutBack
Global No.3 Brand: Mastervolt
No.1 Product Quality: OutBack
No.1 Value for Money: Kaco Solar
Best Solar Panels Mounting Systems
Global No.1 Brand: Direct Power & Water
Global No.2 Brand: UniRac
Global No.3 Brand: Schüco
Best Solar Trackers
Global No.1 Brand: Zomeworks
Best Solar Systems
Global No.1 Brand: Sharp
ENF is a photovoltaic information company located in China and in the U.K.. Their 3 core activities are:
1. Photovoltaic Company Directory
2. Photovoltaic Market Research
3. Trade Services
CEO: Kit Temple Website: http://www.enf.cn
How can you find the “best solar panels” for your purpose?
A good way to start finding out is to ask yourself: Do I want to produce electrical power to run electrical devices in the house, in the garden or on the way, e.g. Lights, Stereos, Computers etc.? Or do I want to produce heat / hot water for house and pool? In this article you will learn how to choose the best solar panels and do both.
Electrical Power with Photovoltaic Panels
Strictly speaking “Solar Panels” are Photovoltaic Panels or Photovoltaic Modules. Solar Panels in this respect convert shortwave radiation, mostly sunlight, into electrical power. They consist of Photovoltaic Cells made of Silicium or other semiconducting materials. (Silicium is worldwide most frequently used). These Solar Panels are available in different sizes, (falling) prices and, depending on size and material, different degrees of efficiency and amounts of wattage they can produce.
Now how to choose the best solar panels out of this wide range of electricity producing modules? Please consider two more things:
- The bigger the solar panel, the more electricity it will relatively produce
- The higher the degree of efficiency, the more electricity it will realtively produce
So, if you have a small rooftop and a lot of money, you may get Gallium-Arsenik-Solar Panels installed. They have the biggest commercial available degree of efficiency (30%) and produce 50 Watt / Kilogram. They are perhaps the best solar panels and very, very expensive.
If you have an average roof and average money, you may consider multicristalline Silicium Panels. Their degree of efficiency is circa 16% and are the best solar panels in cost/performance ratio at the time. Further alternatives are:
- Monocristalline Silicium Panels (degree of efficiency is over 20% at 20 – 50 Watt per Kilogram
- Amorphous Silicium Thin-Film-Panels (degree of efficiency at 5 – 7 %, best solar panels in sales at the time)
Hot Water with Solar Collectors
Solar Thermal Collectors or Solar Collectors, on the other hand, are devices that also utilize the sunlight. They generate heat / hot water and use a technology that is very different to Photovoltaic Modules. Nevertheless are they commonly named “Solar Panels”, too. That especially when they are non parabolic flat and installed on rooftops. Solar Collectors can produce heat / hot water with a high degree of efficiency. Residential installations provide hot water for heating and shower. Industrial Solar Collectors can use the produced hot water even to run electrical generators and produce electrical power. Depending on the different ways of damping the Solar Absorber there are 4 major kinds of Solar Thermal Collectors:
- Flat Plate – Uses common insulating material
- Evacuated Tube – Uses vacuum for damping, is more expensive
- Vacuum Flat Plate – Is flat, has a good gross/net ratio and is vacuum damped. The best Solar Panels for hot water.
- Low Temperatur Absorber – Is a simple absorber, mostly used to heat swimming pools, mostly consists of plastic material and is in the majority of cases undamped. But belongs to the best solar panels for pool heating.
There are some other kinds of Solar Collectors such as Air, Asphalt and Volumetric Thermal Collectors. The latter may be the earliest Solar Collector in human history but in real life you may use one of the 4 common Collector-Types mentioned above to produce heat / hot water.
Summary:
If you want to produce electricity, the best solar panels are photovoltaic panels. If you want to produce heat / hot water, the best solar panels for you are Solar Thermal Collectors. There are a lot of differences in price and performance in both categories, depending on several factors mentioned above. Consider consulting one or several local Solar-Specialists to get advice on location. Consider as well building your own solar panels, save a lot of money and get a lot of fun.
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Solely the Best Solar Panels in the World’s Largest Solar Plant?
Posted by admin on Aug 30, 2009
I don’t know, if they have the best solar panels in Spain (Europe). But one thing is for sure: 7 of the world’s 10 largest photovoltaic power plants (August 2009) are located in that beautiful country in South-West Europe
The largest electric solar panels power plant was built in the centre of Spain in the community of Castilla – La Mancha. Not only well known for it’s sunny climate with round about 3.000 hours of sunshine annually, it is also the home of one of worldliterature’s most famous literary characters: Don Quijote de la Mancha, who’s fight against windmills has become proverbial.
The largest electric solar panel plant has been built in the municipality of Olmedilla de Alarcón, roughly 100 miles west of Valencia. It is supposed to produce an annual output of 87.500 megawatt hours (Mwh) at 60 megawatts peak (Mwp), generated out of 270.000 best solar panels and 500 converters. It took a 16 months construction period and a 384 Million Euros (549 Million US $) investment to build the plant. Olmedilla has started production on 2008-06-20.
It is rumored, that in the plant not solely the best solar panels would have been installed. Due to the photovoltaic boom in 2007/2008, solar panels were almost not to be found on the market. So there may have been not installed exclusively best solar panels, but also rather low quality gray market solar panels from Far East.
But even if there may be a couple of “not the best solar panels” among the 270.000 solar modules, it should be no big deal. If the annual production goal of 87.500 megawatt hours will be in any way affected is not safe to say. So there are good chances, that the estimated volume will be generated. Time will tell, if there is any output deficit, a solar power plant official said.
The government of Castilla – La Mancha is planning to cover the community’s entire electricity demand with renewable energy sources until 2012. In addition to solar parks with, hopefully, the best solar panels, Castilla – La Mancha has already installed wind energy devices that generate 3.400 megawatts. Both, electric solar panels and wind turbines together at this stage, produce 70% of the overall electricity needs, yet.
Olmedilla de Alarcón, Castilla – La Mancha, Spain, Europe: 60 megawatts peak (MWp)
Annual production: 87.500 megawatt hours (MWh)
Amount of solar modules: 270.000
Amount of converters: 500
Investment: 284 Million Euros (549 Million US $)
Construction period: 16 Months
Producing since 2008-06-20
Constructed by Nobesol Levante, Valencia, Spain
The complete list of the 10 world’s largest electric solar power plants and their power ratings (August 2009)
- Olmedilla de Alarcón (Spain) 60 MWp
- Puertollano (Spain) 50 MWp
- Moura (Portugal) 46 MWp
- Brandis (Germany) 40 MWp
- Arnedo (Spain) 34 MWp
- Osa de la Vega (Spain) 30 MWp
- Trujillo (Spain) 30 MWp
- Merida (Spain) 30 MWp
- Casas de Los Pinos (Spain) 28 MWp
- Turnow-Preilack (Germany) 27 MWp
This looks like a “best of Europe” chart, but in fact No. 12, No. 20 and No. 27 are Korean solar power plants and No. 30 is Nellis Solar Power Plant at Nellis Air Force Base, Nellis, NV, USA. It is equipped with 70.000 electric solar panels from the manufacturer of the world’s best solar panels: SunPower. It generates 30.000 megawatt hours since december 2007.
Picture: Nellis Solar Power Plant
And some other photovoltaic power plants are planned or under construction, e.g. Lieberose Photovoltaic Parc (Germany), Waldpolenz Solar Park (Germany), two very exciting projects in the USA: Rancho Cielo Solar Farm with 600 megawatts peak and Topaz Solar Farm with 550 megawatts peak (both of them will use the best solar panels in thin film technology. Furthermore several solar plants will form in the USA, Australia and Spain.
The Future of the Best Solar Panels – The world’s tiniest solar cell is fully functional
Posted by admin on Aug 29, 2009
Solar panels are a great thing. The biggest solar power plants generate between 10 to 40 megawatts, using the best water solar panels. Mostly parabolic- or trough-system and power towers are used.
Midsized best solar panels are installed on rooftops and the best solar panels (solar systems) can cover the entire household’s power demand and even feed electricity in the grid
Smaller solar panels or rather solar cells have become inherent parts of everyday life, yet. They power pocket calculators, wristwatches and garden lights. Meanwhile slightly bigger, portable photovoltaic panels are available, the best solar panels of their kind can power laptops or charge car batteries.
Solar power is ever since used in areas without connection to the grid, e.g. in space where satellites are equipped with the world’s best solar panels since decades. But also in rural or other inaccessible areas electrical solar panels provide electricity for many purposes. Now another place of action can be added: the tiny sphere of the nano world.
The world’s smallest solar cell consists of a silicon nano-tube. Located in the tube’s wall are silicon atoms. The nano-tube is 50 micrometers long and only a few nanometers wide (one nanometer measures one millionth of a millimeter). That makes it belong to the “best solar panels” in the category of size. It functions according to the same principle as common semiconductor solar cells:
The shortwave fraction of the sunlight, rather the highly energetic photons of the sunlight, hit the electric solar cell. Due to the structure of the semicondutor material, the photons push electrons into motion, which is commonly known as electric current or electricity. The smallest solar cell in the world produces one nanowatt at a conversion rate of 3,5%.
The nano solar cell was developed by Professor Charles M. Lieber and his team at Harvard University, Cambridge, MA. Others had built nano structured components for solar cells before. But the Lieber Research Group were the first who could interconnect the device to construct a complete and fully functional solar cell.
It could be used to power (nano) sensors to collect and control data in fields where today’s best solar panels would not be appropriate. The Lieber Research Group has already built a tiny nano powered sensor that could be a helpful tool at their team parties: It measures the acidity level of wine to test if it is spoilt or still drinkable. Cheers!
Best Solar Panels Ranking – Additional Info and Detailed Numbers
Posted by admin on Aug 27, 2009
I have reported the results of ENF’s brand survey on the best solar panels, or rather the manufacturers of the “best solar panels”, in the previous article on this site. For their brand survey, ENF surveyed photovoltaic solar panel installation companies in 45 countries. This article gives some more background information and detailed numbers on the respondants
This should help you to appraise the survey’s relevance on your goal to find the best solar panels for your individual needs.
The most respondents are based in the United States (43), followed by Germany (40), Spain (35), Italy (25), China (19) and Australia (18). The rest of the 297 respondents was attributed to France (13), India and Japan (11), Argentina (9), United Kingdom (7), Malaysia (6), Canada and Mexico (5), Greece (4), Indonesia, Pakistan, Singapore, Switzerland and Thailand (3), Brazil, Denmark, Ireland, The Netherlands, Philippines and Taiwan (2), Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cyprus, Czech Republik, Egypt, Eritrea, Ghana, Hong Kong, Hungary, Korea, Laos, Mauritius, Nepal, New Zealand, Portugal, South Africa, Sri Lanka and Venezuela (1).
These numbers correspond by and large with the countries’ individually amount of installed electric solar panels, measured in megawatts.
Photon Consulting, a reputable consulting firm and industrial leader in solar research and information, expects Germany to install about 6.500 more megawatts until 2010, more than a quarter of the world’s total of 23.300 megawatts. The United States, especially California, is supposed to install 3.100 more megawatts until the year 2010. Spain (2.400 megawatts), Japan (1.600 megawatts) and Italy (1.500 megawatts) are following right behind.
Surprisingly China, where a big fraction of the world’s produced solar panels already is manufactured and that taking the challenge to make the best solar panels as well, stands behind with an additional amount of only 200 megawatts. Several countries with a high insolation rate, e.g. African and Latin American countries do not use solar power anyway or at very low rates.
But what is the reason that Germany, not really known for it’s 365 days-a-year-sunshine climate, ranks No.1 in solar panels installations?
The answer is: German law makes it attractive for house owners to buy and install the best solar panels, even at a higher price, since they are earning high paybacks for solar produced electricity, subsidized by the Federal Republic of Germany. So they tend to cover their entire electricity demand with solar power and even feed electricity in the grid. This is even more attractive to the owners of the best solar panels as the amount they are allowed to feed in the grid is not limited like in some other countries.
Brief History of Water Solar Panels
Posted by admin on Aug 23, 2009
Sun and sunlight have been utilized by mankind for ages. It served to spark a fire, boil water or measure time with sundials. It was a long way from then to the modern water solar panels of these days. This article gives a brief outline of water solar panel’s history
One of the most ancient energetic use of the sunlight supposedly goes back to old Babylon of 2000 B.C.. Dark water containers were exposed to the sun to heat up the water. Later on there, sun heated pigmented water was used as a transfer fluid in one of the world’s oldest “water solar panels”.
In China, small concave mirrors were used to spark a fire around 700 B.C..
Furthermore it is said that the Grecian mathematician and inventor Archimedes of Syracus, who lived more than 2200 years ago between 285 and 212 B.C.set light to the Roma
n fleet with the aid of concave mirrors (see picture).
Picture: Copperplate engraving on the title page of the Latin edition of “Thesaurus Opticus”, which was written by Arabic academic Alhazen. The picture shows Archimedes of Syracus setting light to the Roman Fleet with the aid of concave mirrors. Source: Bavarian National Library
In 1767, Swiss natural scientist and physicist Horace-Bénedict de Saussure constructed his “capteur solaire” (sun catcher). This early form of water solar panels consisted of 5 stacked glass cases on a black base and reached temperatures up to 88°C / 190°F and, as rumor has it, even up to 110°C / 230°F.
Flat Plate Solar Collector (Flat Water Solar Panel)
De Saussure’s sun catcher is deemed to be the forerunner for today’s Flat Plate Water Solar Panels, aptly named “Thermal Solar Collectors” or in short “Solar Collectors”.
In the 1870’s, French engineers Augustin B. Mouchot and Abel J. Pifre combined concave mirrors with a thermal solar collector and built the first solar powered steam engine. They aimed the focus of a parabolic reflector at a black painted steam boiler and thus managed to drive a water pump.
Evacuated Tube Solar Collector (Vacuum Water Solar Panel)
The precursor for today’s evacuated tube water solar panels has been the thermos flask, invented by the Scotch physicist James Dewar in 1893. (So-called Dewar tubes, using Dewar’s insulation technology, are core elements in parabolic trough collectors today.) Adapted from the Dewar flask, US American electrical engineer William Le Roy Emmet developed vacuum tubes to utilize solar power. His work is the basis of today’s evacuated tube water solar panels.
Water Solar Panels – the main different types
Posted by admin on Aug 22, 2009
The core of all heat and electricity producing water solar panels is a collector. For this reason water solar panels are correctly named “Thermal Solar Collectors” or “Solar Collectors”.
Heat producing water solar panels
A distinction is drawn here between 2 types of collectors: Flat Plate Collectors and Evacuated Tube Collectors.
Flat plate collectors in water solar panels
The flat plate consists of an coated absorber to absorb solar radiation and convert them into heat. The absorber is installed in a damped case to reduce heat loss. Its faceplate, mostly glass, is transparent to let pass the solar radiation. Inside the water solar panel absorber
are tubes that are filled with transfer liquid. This liquid passes a heat exchanger to heat up water for domestic use such as heating, shower and pool heating.
Advantages of flat plate water solar panels:
- many different options of mounting
- complaisant integration into rooftops
- reasonably priced
Evacuated tubes in water solar panels
Those types are also known as vacuum tube collectors. They consist of glass tubes which are strung together. These tubes are vacuum insulated, highly reflective and weather proof metalized. Inside the evacuated tubes run tube loops, again filled with transfer liquid to pass a heat exchanger and boil domestic water for pool heating, house heating and shower.
Advantages of evacuated tube water solar panels
- higher degree of efficiency, especially at times of lower insolation
- some makings allow the replacement of single modules
- visually interesting
Electricity producing water solar panels
Electricity generating “water solar panels” are not (yet) used in private households. They are used almost exclusively in solar power generating plants. These solar collectors produce hot steam to drive electric generators. Three major types of collectors are used:
1. Parabolic dishes. They concentrate the sunlight at a narrow focus and reach the highest temperatures.
2. Parabolic troughs. These are trough shaped parabolic mirrors. They focus on an air insulated Dewar tube, filled with transfer liquid.
3. Power tower. A power tower consists of self aligning mirrors. The concentrate insolation on a receiver at the top of the tower. Power towers can be considered as a colossal parabolic dish.
