Solar Photovoltaic Power Generation

Jinhuan Yang, Xiao Yuan, Liang Ji

• Publisher: De Gruyter
• Year: 2020
• eBook ISBN:
  9783110525427
• Topic: Scienze fisiche
• Subtopic: Energia

This book illustrates theories in photovoltaic power generation, and focuses on the application of photovoltaic system, such as on-grid and off-grid system optimization design. The principle of the solar cell and manufacturing processes, the design and installation of PV system are extensively discussed in the book, making it an essential reference for graduate students in photovoltaic field and industrial engineers.

Chapter 1 Introduction

1.1 The significance of developing and utilizing solar energy

1.1.1 Fossil fuels are facing a crisis of depletion

With the continuous growth of the world’s population and economic development, the demand for energy supply is increasing. In the current energy consumption structure, fossil fuels such as coal, petroleum, and natural gas are main sources.

The International Energy Outlook 2016 (IEO2016) issued by the US Energy Information Administration (EIA) in May 2016 had a prediction of the international energy market before 2040 [1]. According to this report, total world consumption of marketed energy expands from 549 × 10¹⁵ Btu in 2012 to 629 × 10¹⁵ Btu in 2020, and to 815 × 10¹⁵ Btu in 2040, a 48% increase from 2012 to 2040 with an average annual growth rate of 1.4%. By 2040, the share of global fossil energy in the energy consumption structure will be still more than three-fourth. According to the statistics and forecast in this report, the primary energy consumption of some of the countries and regions in the world is shown in Tab. 1.1.

Tab. 1.1:World total primary energy consumption by region, reference case, 2011–40 (quadrillion Btu).

Region	History		Projections
	2011	2012	2020	2025	2030	2035	2040	Average annual change (%) 2012–2040
USA	96.8	94.4	100.8	102.0	102.9	103.8	105.7	0.4
Canada	14.5	14.5	15.1	15.6	16.3	17.1	18.1	0.8
Mexico/Chile	9.3	9.2	9.8	10.5	11.6	12.8	14.3	1.6
Japan	21.2	20.8	21.9	22.3	22.3	22.2	21.5	0.1
South Korea	11.3	11.4	13.9	14.7	15.4	16.1	16.9	1.4
Australia/New Zealand	6.9	6.8	7.6	8.1	8.5	9.2	10.1	1.4
Russia	30.9	32.1	33.2	34.7	35.1	35.5	34.5	0.3
China	109.4	115.0	147.3	159.4	170.4	180.7	190.1	1.8
India	25.0	26.2	32.8	38.4	44.9	52.8	62.3	3.2
Middle East	29.9	31.7	40.8	45.4	50.7	56.6	61.8	2.4
Africa	20.1	21.5	26.1	30.0	33.8	38.4	44.0	2.6
Brazil	14.8	15.2	16.3	18.1	20.0	22.0	24.3	1.7
Total world	540.5	549.3	628.9	673.9	717.7	765.6	815.0	1.4

Source: EIA International Energy Outlook 2016.

IEO2016 report pointed out that in the consumption of fossil fuels, petroleum occupies a major share, and the share of natural gas grows fastest that will surpass coal around 2030; hence, the coal consumption tends to be stable. Renewable energy is the fastest growing energy source in the world, with an annual growth rate of 2.6%. By 2040, the supply of coal, natural gas, and renewable energy will achieve a balance, and the shares of world fuel requirements for electricity generation are 28–29% each.

As of December 2015, the proved world petroleum reserves, as reported by the Oil & Gas Journal, were estimated at 1,656 billion barrels: 2 billion barrels higher than the estimate at the end of 2014, and more than 80% of the world’s proved reserves are concentrated in eight countries. In 2012, the production is 90 million barrels per day. It is expected that the production will be 100 million barrels per day in 2020 and reach 121 million barrels per day by 2040. Even calculated at 100 million barrels per day, it is estimated that petroleum can only be supplied for 45.4 years. Besides, the world’s petroleum consumption is still growing at a rate of more than 1%/year. The world petroleum consumption by region in 1990–2040 is sho...

Table of contents

• Title Page
• Copyright
• Contents
• Chapter 1 Introduction
• Chapter 2 Solar radiation
• Chapter 3 Basic principles of crystalline silicon PV cells
• Chapter 4 Thin-film PV cells
• Chapter 5 Concentrator PV and solar tracker
• Chapter 6 PV module manufacturing
• Chapter 7 Components of a PV system
• Chapter 8 Photovoltaic power generation system design
• Chapter 9 PV projects construction, acceptance, and maintenance
• Chapter 10 Applications of photovoltaic systems
• Chapter 11 Benefit analysis of PV power generation
• Practice answers
• Index