INTRODUCTION

There are many types of renewable energy in this world :

• wind energy
• bioenergy
• geothermal energy
• hydropower
• hybrid
• ocean energy
• SOLAR ENERGY

Among all these types of renewable energy, we have choose SOLAR ENERGY because it is more applicable and has more advantages to mankind. Solar Energy is radiant light and heat from the sun harnessed using a range of ever-evolving technologies such as solar heating, solar photovoltaics, solar thermal energy, solar architecture and artificial photosynthesis. 

BENEFITS OF SOLAR PANEL ELECTRIC POWER SYSTEMS FOR HOMES

The average price of a solar panel has declined by 60% since the beginning of 2011.*

If you like the thought of contributing to the efforts of making the earth a better place to live, or if you like money, you’ll love solar energy. There are a myriad of great reasons to install a photovoltaic solar power generation system in your home or commercial building, here are a few.

• A solar energy system adds to your property value without adding any tax liability.
• Home based solar power is a quiet, nearly maintenance free, continuous source of electricity.
• Solar electric systems reduce pollution and CO2 emissions by generating electrical power using radiant Sun light that can replace electricity that comes from coal fired electrical plants.
• Many states including California, Massachusetts, New Jersey, Maryland, Texas and Arizona offer $0 down installation plans that immediately lower your electric bill and cost nothing to install or maintain.

Solar power systems generate electricity at peak power usage times (during the day) when the value and cost of electricity is the highest. Modern grid-tied home solar power systems can use the cheap rate grid power at night and reduce or eliminate the need for the high rate electrical power during the day. Home-owners can actually push power back into the electrical grid during the day and run their meters backwards which is generates energy credits and even capital. Imagine your electric company sending you a check every month instead of a bill! Sounds too good to be true? It happens every day in America.

OUR MINIATURE ;)

In order to understand more on solar energy, we are required to do a miniature regarding this type of energy. Our concept is simple, we built a small scale house miniature that used solar as its source of electricity. The solar plate were put at the top of the roof to absorb the heat as much as possible so that the house can generate electricity. Furthermore, one of the advantage by using solar energy is that we can lowered our cost and can save more !

                                                                this is our miniature..

Our interview Video with Madam Nur Hafiza

In our renewable energy mini project , we have interviewed Mdm. Nurhafiza binti Kamaruddin, a lecturer in German-Malaysian Institute, Kajang. Master in Environmental Engineering and currently doing her research on Solar Energy for her PhD. The interview session is as follow :

SOLAR ENERGY

HOW SOLAR ENERGY CREATED?

Solar energy is produced from solar radiation. Sunlight travels through the upper parts of the earth's atmosphere. Once this sunlight reaches the surface of the earth, it must be captured so it can be turned into an usable energy source. At the earth's surface, it is called infrared radiation where it is captured through the aid of photovoltaic or solar cells.

HOW SOLAR PANELS WORK?

Sunlight can be directly used to create electricity using solar, or photovoltaic (PV) cells. The solar cells are made using silicon, the same thing that makes up sand. Even though silicon is found almost everywhere, making a solar panel is a difficult and expensive process. According to a report in the New York Times, “generating power from photovoltaic panels costs more than four times as much as coal, and more than twice what wind power costs.” Polysilicon, a material made up of small silicon crystals that is used to make photovoltaic cells, is sometimes in short supply, which means prices for solar equipment can be volatile.

The silicon is heated and melted at super high temperatures and then molded into thin wafers. When sunlight strikes the solar cell, electrons are loosened and move toward a treated front surface, making an imbalance between the front and back. Electricity occurs when a connector, such as a wire, joins the negative and positive sides together.

The production of photovoltaic cells, which are used to change sunlight directly into electricity, causes far less pollution than fossil fuel-burning power plants. While manufacturing the cells does require harmful metals such as lead and mercury and also produces some greenhouse gases, the toxic emissions are up to 300 times lower than those created by coal power plants, according to scientists with the Brookhaven National Laboratory in New York.

solar panel

Solar Energy Policy: Malaysia VS Developed Countries

Countries all over the world is enquiring and taking

efforts to implement the environment friendly renewable

energy to mitigate the negative impacts of fossil fuels on the

environment and their fast depletion. To reduce the reliance on

fossil fuels and environmental degradation, many countries

have focused and formulated solar energy related policies to

increase its share into energy mix.

Categories	Malaysia	Germany
Mounted on	Rooftops	-Rooftops -Windows
Adoption	Not Widely	Widely
Efficiency	< 10%	44.7%
Contribution of Solar Energy to Electricity in its Country	0.007%	4.5%
Majority Contribution for Electricity Generation	Minority	Majority

Solar energy is one of the most promising renewable,

switching to solar energy can be a viable move. It is evident

from the literature that all the countries have specific solar

energy policies to utilize solar energy for power generation.

The solar energy policies in developed countries are well

designed to enhance electricity generation from solar power

significantly.