The major contributor to global warming from greenhouse gases is power generated from non-renewable sources like fossil fuels. Clean energy, on the other hand, does not pollute the environment in any way. It's made from nearly limitless and renewable energy resources. Most importantly, it has the potential to mitigate the consequences of climate change.
Take a moment to reconsider. Why are we still using harmful non-renewable energy when unlimited natural sources allow for renewable technologies that already exist?
The Sun is the source of all life on Earth and it provides us with energy in two forms: light and heat.
The application of Solar Energy in daily life can be used for various purposes, including photosynthesis in plants, electricity generation via photovoltaic (PV) cells, heating water and food making. Stay tuned to learn more about all the creative applications for Green Energy in this blog. Till then, let's cover the other lesser-known applications of Green Energy.
Solar Electricity is probably the most widely known use of Solar Power. A Solar PV System is placed on the roofs of homes or businesses. Solar Power Systems create enough electricity to cover the requirements of the property owner while also sending any surplus back to the grid.
(If you wish to learn more about the process check out our blog )
In recent years, Solar Electricity has become one of the most popular advantages of Solar Energy. This is because Solar Energy is becoming more accessible as Solar Panel costs go down and more people become aware of the financial and environmental benefits of Solar Energy.
Green Energy can also offer solutions for water heating systems. Most Solar Water Heating Systems provide hot water used within the residence, irrespective of the cloudy or sunny days. Solar Water Heaters capture and store the sun's heat and transmit it to the water tank through a rooftop cell.
Solar Energy may be used to heat swimming pools. A blackened flat plate metal collector with accompanying metal tubing towards the general direction of the sun makes up a Solar Water Heating Device. Above the plate collector is a clear glass cover and beneath it is a layer of thermal insulation. The water is cycled to a collector and then pumped back into the pool after being heated by sunshine.
In short, Green Energy can help you plan warm pool parties! ‘Nuff said!’
Passive Solar home design can heat homes and businesses in the winter by considering the placement of windows and the selection of materials used in the building.
When the building needs warmth, heat is delivered to the rooms using standard equipment such as fans, ducts, air outlets, radiators and hot air registers.
For cooling requirements, the heated air or water from the collector is transferred to a heat storage device, such as a well-insulated water tank or other heat-retaining material.
Solar Ventilation options, such as solar attic fans, assists in cooling the house throughout the summer, reducing the load on your HVAC system. Suppose you cannot install a Solar PV
System that will offset your whole home's power usage. In that case, this may be a viable solution. Solar ventilation preheats ventilation air using the energy of solar radiation.
An air-to-air heat exchanger may be a less expensive option to warm ventilation air 24 hours a day for a facility that already recovers heat from exhaust air. As a result, the savings predicted from a Solar Ventilation air preheat system would be reduced, harming the system's economic viability. When the exhaust stream contains diesel soot or other pollutants that would foul heat recovery systems, Solar Ventilation preheat is frequently employed. Although the two may be utilized simultaneously, heating the ventilation air only requires a certain amount of energy.
Solar Lights have become commonplace, with applications ranging from home landscaping to security lighting to road signs and street lights! Yes, the power of Green Energy is not just limited to your residence or corporate offices but also the route to and fro. From your local hardware store to internet shopping portals, the Solar Lighting Solutions can illuminate every corner of every street - with little to no carbon footprint!
Phones and tablets are often with us in this connected world and let's face it, they are frequently running low on power. Portable Solar PV chargers will allow us to keep our electronic gadgets charged during a commute. Did you know, the technology to embed Solar Cells into our phones already exists? In fact, the first Solar Powered watches were introduced in the 1970s.
Throughout the quest for more renewable energy in the twenty-first century, many people are again looking for tiny methods to reduce adverse environmental effects. Researchers in Japan are now working on tiny, water-resistant Solar Cells that may be sewn into clothes to power our electronics in the future.
Solar Powered vehicles are also part of a Green Future. Existing applications, including buses, trains, aeroplanes and race cars built and founded by students like Lex Hoefsloot, globally like Australia, the U.S. Back in 2019, a fully Solar Powered car, Lightyear One, was slated for commercial release. In 2021, the production will be ramping up for Lightyear One.
Renewable Energy is already becoming a more familiar part of our lives and innovation will continue to drive new applications of Solar Energy technologies that will improve our daily lives and help power a cleaner world. How many more advantages of Solar Energy will there be in the future? We are excited to find out!
The traditional method of utilising Solar Energy to dry agricultural and animal products consists of a box insulated at the base, painted black on the inner side and covered with an inclined transparent sheet of glass. At the base and top of the sides, ventilation holes facilitate airflow over the drying material, placed on perforated trays inside the cabinet. These perforated trays or racks are carefully designed to provide controlled exposure to Solar Radiation.
Solar Drying, especially fruits, improves fruit quality as the sugar concentration increases because ordinarily soft fruits are vulnerable to insect attack as the sugar content increases on drying. On the other hand, drying chillies by spreading them on the floor requires much open space, manual labour for material handling and a controlled atmosphere.
Other agricultural products commonly solar-dried are potato chips, berseem, grains of maise and paddy, ginger, peas, pepper, cashew nuts, timber and tobacco curing. Spray drying of milk and fish drying are examples of solar-dried animal products.
Last, but not least, food! Various fuels like coal, kerosene, cooking gas, firewood, dung cakes and agricultural wastes are used for cooking purposes. Lately, the supply of these fuels are either deteriorating (wood, coal) or have better purposes (cow dung rather be used as manure for improving soil fertility). The Solar cooker requires neither fuel nor attention while cooking food.
A simple Solar cooker is a flat plate box type. It consists of a well-insulated metal or wooden box which is blackened from the inner side. The solar radiations entering the box are of short wavelength. As higher wavelength radiations cannot pass through the glass covers, the re-radiation from the blackened interior to outside the package through the two glass covers minimises the heat loss. The heat loss due to convection is minimised by making the box airtight.
The uncooked food gets cooked with the heat energy produced due to the increased temperature of the solar box. When the reflector is adjusted to reflect the sun rays into the box, then 15°C to 25°C rises in temperature is achieved inside the cooker box!
All about Solar Energy
The creative applications for Renewable Energy like Solar Watches, Solar Cooking, Solar Transportation make one wonder what possible green technologies are in the pipeline. Green Energy is currently focused on developing Solar Cell technology to increase battery life for more affordable, sustainable energy. Advanced Solar Power will open up new design possibilities for smaller, more powerful Solar Cells. These Solar Cells may be employed in more inventive ways to improve quality of life and usher in a cleaner world.
Transforming your energy usage and carbon footprint is easier today than ever before. Harness the power of Green Energy - take a step towards a better planet by getting in touch with our friendly Solar Consultants. Reach out to us at info@solaristech.com.au
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