The Benefits of Using Solar Powered Lighting
Solar lighting is reaching a mainstream tipping point for good reason. This form of illumination is environmentally-friendly, affordable, mobile and effective. Opt for solar powered lighting and you will never go back to regular lights. Here’s why.
The magic of solar lights
If you were to take a look at the rooftops of buildings in major cities, you would likely find a bevy of solar panels.
However, solar panels are also being used in residential yards and other spaces across the world. Solar lights convert the sun’s energy into electricity.
This conversion process is dependent on a number of components ranging from charge converters to inverters, batteries, solar panels and cells. Every single one of these components plays an important role in the conversion process.
The charge controller is necessary to prevent the battery from overcharging or discharging. Solar energy is generated in DC form so it must be converted to AC for use. Such a conversion cannot take place without the inverter. The battery contains anodes and cathodes that allow for the necessary chemical reaction to occur. The battery is protected with a plastic or metal case to ensure physical contact does not compromise its functionality.
What are solar panels made of?
Solar panels out in a field
Solar panels are comprised of crystals made of covalent bonds between the electrons within the outer shell of the silicon atom.
How do solar lights work?
The solar cell, also referred to as the photovoltaic, converts the sun’s light into the electrical current required for illumination.The solar cell has multiple crystalline silicone layers and chemicals.
These are the elements necessary to create several layers of spaces with positive charges and electrons with a negative charge.
The sun moves into the solar cell, stimulating the negatively charged electrons, pushing them to the spaces with a positive charge.
The spaces with the positive charges transfer the electron stream in the form of electricity. The solar cell’s wires send the current to the battery. The battery stores this electricity across the entirety of the day.
Sunlight is no longer converted to energy during the evening hours after the sun has set. In this time, the photoreceptor within the solar light identifies the darkness, triggering the light to turn on. The battery then supplies the necessary electricity for nighttime illumination.
