In 1954, Bell Labs pioneered the development of solar power technology, creating solar panels able to provide enough power to support the telephone service to a 1950s farming family. Approximately 56 years later, SunPower, in conjunction with Alcatel-Lucent and ConEdison Development, will install a 1.2 MW ground-mounted solar power system at Bell Labs’ global headquarters in Murray Hill, New Jersey.
Occupying six acres of the 200-acre Bell Labs campus, the SunPower system will generate approximately $2.5 million in cost savings over the next 15 years, which is the equivalent to the amount of energy required to power more than 200 average New Jersey homes on an annual basis.
At SunPower, our president and founder Dr. Richard Swanson has studied up on the early days of the solar industry and is excited about the implications of this installation. Swanson said “SunPower is proud to install this system at Bell Labs, the birthplace of many seminal technologies such as the transistor. Bell Labs is also the birthplace of the first practical solar cell in 1954. Now, 56 years later, solar cells have become one of the fastest growing sources of clean electrical power, so it is fitting that this national treasure is turning to solar cell technology for its power.”
Over the years we have found that while more and more people understand that solar energy is a great alternative to fossil fuels, many are still in the dark, so to speak, about solar cell efficiency.
In the following three part video blog series Dr. Richard Swanson, Founder, President and Chief Technical Officer of SunPower, shares some of his solar expertise and discusses the importance of solar panel efficiency. Dr. Swanson is a true solar energy pioneer who developed one of the first high efficiency photovoltaic solar cells to start SunPower 25 years ago.
In this first installment, Dr. Swanson explains solar cell efficiency and how higher efficiency solar panels benefit home owners. In clearing up the questions ‘what is solar cell efficiency and is there a limit to solar efficiency?,’ Dr. Swanson provides the following insight:
"Energy and sunlight are hitting your house in abundance. What we’re trying to do is to take the energy that is in the sunlight and convert it to electrical energy you can use to power your refrigerator and your lights, things like that" If you could turn all of the energy from the sunlight hitting your solar panels into electrical energy, the efficiency ratio would be 100 percent. But you can’t get that much out. The best efficiency you could ever get is 30 percent. SunPower is trying to improve the solar cell to reach that theoretical maximum efficiency of 30 percent. Where does the other 70 percent go? It turns into heat."
Additionally, Dr. Swanson explains how higher efficiency solar panels benefit home owners:
"After accounting for trees, pipes, etc. the typical house has a much smaller amount of useable roof area [for a solar system] than you might think. From that small region, you want to get enough energy to run your whole house " and that requires highly efficient solar cells."
We hope that the interview, filmed at SunPower’s very own Richmond, CA facility, will put you on the path to solar illumination. Let us know if you found this video helpful and what other solar panel efficiency questions you have!
Next week, Dr. Swanson will explain why solar panel efficiency is so important in calculating ROI and the total cost of a solar installation. If you crave some more solar discussion before then, join our community on Facebook at www.facebook.com/sunpower.
Enjoy!
We talked with Phil Blackwood about his decision to purchase solar, the purchase process and what’s next in his ongoing quest towards energy efficiency:
SP: Why did you go solar?
PB: I have always been fascinated by solar power. When I talked to some people [with solar panels] I could see how happy they were with their systems, especially when the systems had already paid for themselves. I did some financial calculations and decided it was not only good for the environment but also a good investment. After we had our system installed I continued reading about the environmental benefits and found they are incredible.
SP: How was the solar the purchase process?
PB: The purchase process was simple. I visited our local dealer, really liked the people I met there, and pretty much decided on the spot to go ahead and get the system. After discussing it with my wife, we put down a deposit to get the panels ordered!
SP: How effective has your SunPower system been in reducing your monthly energy bills?
PB: My panels are producing exactly the amount of power I was expecting. My lowest electric bill has been $2. Typically I am saving more than $200 a month. The amount of power produced held up well as the days got shorter in the fall. They produce the most power in the summer - right when we need it to air condition the house.
SP: You’re obviously an eco-conscious consumer. Now that you’re armed with solar panels and an electric vehicle, what’s next?
PB: I held a big celebration to inaugurate my system, and later in the evening I started thinking, “Now what? Maybe I can paint my roof white!” I studied that and decided a better option was to install a radiant barrier on the lower side of the roof (inside the attic). It’s the same idea as white paint, but it’s on the inside instead of the outside. We had our radiant barrier installed in January. I’m also changing out all our light bulbs with LED and ESL bulbs. Since we have already done a lot of other energy efficiency work on the house, the one big thing remaining is to switch out our natural gas heating with a heat pump that runs off the electricity from our roof. And maybe expand our system. And maybe see if we can go from one electric car and one gas-powered car, to two all-electrics.
SP: What advice would you provide to a homeowner who is considering a solar system purchase?
PB: Go for it!
With major automotive companies, including Ford, Nissan and Chevy set to introduce electric commercial and passenger vehicles this year, we couldn’t be more excited about both the short-term and long-term potential for major carbon reductions.
The cause of our excitement in the short term is that even if these vehicles are getting their electricity from dirty sources, which will be the case for many considering that much of electrical generation is from coal fired power plants, electric vehicles will still be clear winners in terms of a reduced carbon footprint when compared to their internal combustion engine (ICE) cousins.
However, if they receive their charges from renewable sources, such as a house, utility or charging station that is generating solar energy, consumers can then enjoy a dramatically reduced carbon footprint. This is what gets us excited!
At SunPower we envision a future where more of our energy is renewable and electric vehicles are a big step in making one’s commute green. While we understand that electric vehicles getting fuel from non-renewable sources is a little dirty, when homeowners and utilities embrace sources of energy that are abundant and renewable, such as solar, the benefits of having more and more electric vehicles on the streets become exponentially better.
Why shouldn’t our cars get their energy from the same source that has been powering plant life for hundreds of millions of years? After all, in the early stages of the automobile, electric vehicles dominated the market (link). Over time, electrics lost out to ICE automobiles because of the cheap abundance of petroleum, but now with the prices of gasoline unstable, extraction more risky and supplies finite; and with solar and renewable energy more affordable and abundant, why shouldn’t we return to the automobile’s electric origins?
A recent report by Deloitte forecasts that the electric vehicle market will make up only 3.1 percent of total automotive sales in the US (link), but this doesn’t tell the real story of the future of electric vehicles and their potential. We are already hearing about the success of some of our customers who are early adopters. For example, read the following testimonial of one of SunPower’s satisfied customers Tom Moloughney (here is a link toTom’s blog) below.
If you are interested in getting your own solar system to power your electric vehicle, we are offering up to $2000 additional rebates to the first 100 Facebook fans to sign up for a free solar evaluation on SunPower’s Facebook Page. Don’t miss this limited time offer and feel free to share it with your friends!"My 8.8kwh SunPower solar electric system provides enough electricity to charge my 100% electric MINI-E and still have enough energy production left over to cover most of my home usage, Tom said via email. "lectric cars are the future of transportation and many major automotive manufacturers have electric cars in development right now," continued Tom. “Within a few years you’ll have many choices to buy electric cars and combining one with a home based solar electric system from SunPower will not only save you a lot of money, but allow you to enjoy the benefits of driving a true, 100% zero emission vehicle."
Today on the blog, we're unveiling a new series of ongoing posts called 'Solar Basics'. These posts are intended to answer frequent questions we receive about solar power, ranging from how solar works to some tips for finding the right solar solution for you. If you have any questions you’d like answered, please post them to our Facebook page or leave them in the blog comments for any Solar Basics posting.
At our recent dealer conference, one of our dealers said he gets a lot of customer questions about the terminology associated with the power and electricity output of SunPower solar systems. Specifically, customers are confused about when to use the term 'kilowatt' and when to use ‘kilowatt-hour’ (and what both terms even mean). So here’s a simple explanation you can use when talking with a potential dealer or explaining your system’s output.
Kilowatt (kW) is a measure of power. It’s important to understand that power is a rate statistic that measures the flow of energy conversion within a system (and not the energy itself). When describing a solar installation, kilowatts provide a measure of system capacity. For instance, a 10 kW system acting at full capacity will have 10 kW of energy flowing through at any singular moment.
Kilowatt-hour (kWh) is a measure of electricity. Unlike kilowatts, kilowatt-hour is not a rate statistic and is cumulative. In fact, kilowatt-hours represent the amount of power (in kilowatts) used over a period of time (hours).
One useful example is to think of a stomach, which is a kind of engine that we all have within our bodies. The stomach gets fuel in the form of food, which uses food energy (otherwise known as calories) to power the body. Imagine that you have a completely full stomach beginning the process of digestion. At full capacity, the stomach will digest food and power the body at a specific rate (say 120 calories per hour - a rate statistic similar to kilowatts). Over three hours, your somewhat-less-full stomach will have produced 360 calories of energy (a counting statistic similar to kilowatt-hour). That's enough to power an hour of moderate exercise, so there's a good excuse to burn those calories.
Now back to solar. Let’s say you have a guest over who wants to know how much energy you're producing with your SunPower rooftop installation. You have a 'perfect' 10 kW AC power system that includes all system and module level losses, meaning that at peak production the system is producing exactly 10 kW of power. From 10 am to 4 pm, your system is running at full capacity (a perfect solar day!) with peak sun hours of 5.8 hours. And thanks to SunPower’s market-leading panel efficiency, less roof space is required to capture the 10 kW system output and feed it into your home. To compute the energy output of those six hours, follow this simple calculation:
10 kW AC x 5.8 peak sun hours = 50 kWh from 10am to 4pm
That’s a lot of energy! We hope this helps clear up any confusion around kilowatts and kilowatt-hours. And if you’re a SunPower customer, be sure to check out our in-home monitoring tool to get up-to-date readings of how many kilowatt-hours your system is producing each day.
If you have any further questions or comments, please post them to our Facebook page or leave them below.
Today and tomorrow, SunPower is celebrating its 25th anniversary in the solar industry and its 5-year anniversary as a public company!
To commemorate, we’re extending a one-time only solar rebate offer for homeowners that want to reduce their carbon footprint and lower their energy bills. Join the celebration and sign up for our limited-time offer to save up to $2,000 on a residential solar system. This anniversary offer expires tomorrow, Thursday, November 18th at 11:59 p.m. PST.
The SunPower executive team celebrates 25 years of solar and 5 years on the NASDAQ
Going Solar is easier and cheaper than ever
The $2000 solar rebate from SunPower, on top of additional local, state, and federal incentives you might be eligible for, have already helped hundreds of SunPower customers to lower their monthly energy costs through solar. These are actual owner testimonials from the SunPower Facebook page:
I have solar panels with SunPower and you cannot believe the $$ I have saved in electricity. Make sure you contact them when you are ready to install panels! :o) - Beverly Tom
We put in a SunPower system through Arizona Solar Power last year. Our bills for the last 12 months total $1279.40 LESS than the previous 12 months. We are very happy. The panels look good too. - Terry Drucker
Join with us to celebrate 25 years and save up to $2,000 on a solar system for your home. Take advantage of this special offer by signing up for a free solar evaluation today or tomorrow!
* To be eligible for the special offer, you must own your home, live in SunPower dealer coverage area and sign up for a free evaluation with SunPower. Please note, this offer cannot be combined and is not available for previously installed or contracted SunPower systems.
- The buildings have been designed to be 50% more energy efficient than is required by California’s rigorous energy code.
- West Village site design includes an extensive bike network and several new bus stops to encourage residents to leave their cars at home.
- Residents will have SunPower SMS 2.0 monitoring systems to track their energy generation and consumption.
- Residential and commercial dwellings feature special electrical outlets displaying the energy consumption of each connected device to combat “phantom power” use.
Today, with the INhomes team’s hands-on-approach, we truly represent the essence of a Boilermaker. We are proud of the hard work, determination and skills that have made this dream become a reality. Kevin R. is the team’s project manager and designer of the unique Biowall feature. Jordan W. is our engineering manager, who has integrated multiple technical features into our home along with the PV system itself. Jordan has a team of talented engineers that have built and designed the INhome to perform very well. Mallory S. is our HVAC system engineer and Lee C. is the controls engineer of the home. Sarah M. is our team’s design and architecture manager. Communications includes those in management, hotel tourism management and liberal arts. McKenna R., Devynn L. and Kristyn Z. are a few of the students involved in communications and education for the INhome. Eric H. leads the construction team as the team’s construction manager. Those who assist Eric H. in the home’s design and build are; Derek K., Jeffery D., Matt H., Spencer D., Steven J., Kaitlyn T., Brendan M., Andy G. , Caitlin M. and more.
The INhome is powered by a 8.64 kW SunPower solar photovoltaic system that annually produces as much electricity as the INhome consumes, allowing the INhome to become net-zero. The photovoltaic system is driven by 36, SunPower® E19 / 238 Solar Panels. Excess electricity is sold back to the power utility company during times of high production. Our team chose to use SunPower solar panels because the company is a leader in the solar industry and offered our team a cost effective, high quality and reliable product, as well as a supportive industry partnership. All in all, allowing us to succeed in the competition.
The philosophy behind the INhome is making the concept of solar powered residences a reality in the near future for residential consumers. This Midwestern inspired home shows consumers they can be sustainable without sacrificing quality or comfort. The INhome blends technological innovations with functional and appealing aesthetics to create a living space that appeals to the majority of homeowners.
The most unique feature of the INhome is the Biowall. The Biowall is a home air filtration system that utilizes plants placed in a vertical wall, which remove harmful chemicals that can accumulate in homes that are tightly sealed like the INhome. Air from the home is drawn through the plant wall where the chemicals are removed by the plants and used as a food source. The wall requires very little maintenance and is even designed to water itself. The Biowall improves the air quality in the home, saves energy, and provides a calming ambiance by bringing nature inside the home.
We will not only be a top player in this competition, but also be recognized as future leaders in innovation. Team Purdue is competing in the Solar Decathlon knowing that no matter the challenge, we Boilermakers have the drive and skills necessary to surpass our goals.
For more information on Team Purdue, please visit our website.
Communications and Marketing Manager, Purdue INhome
West Lafayette, IN, United States
Competition categories:
1. Architecture
2. Market Appeal
3. Engineering
4. Communications
5. Affordability
6. Comfort Zone
7. Hot Water
8. Appliances
9. Home Entertainment
10. Energy Balance
The final results for Architecture and Affordability were announced this week. Congratulations to two of the teams using SunPower panels - Middlebury College for placing 4th in Architecture and Purdue University for tying for 1st place in Affordability!
Long-term planning and determination is key to participating in the competition. Teams started preparing more than two years in advance. Check it out - their work is impressive and inspiring.
With homes designed for the energy needs of the average household, the Solar Decathlon aims to help visitors learn about the benefits of applying sustainable, energy efficient and cost-saving features to their own homes.
The public is invited to tour the houses for free through Oct. 2. If you haven’t had a chance to tour the 2011 Solar Decathlon homes at West Potomac Park, make time for it this week or over the weekend.
For those of you who live too far away to go in person, we are happy to bring the Solar Decathlon to you. Take a look at our Solar Decathlon 2011 Facebook album to see photos of this year’s innovative and sustainable homes and follow us on Twitter for updates.
Six Solar Decathlon 2011 teams selected our high efficiency, high reliability SunPower solar systems for their homes:
- Team Florida International University (Florida International University) with perFORM[D]ance House, selected the SunPower® E19 / 320 Solar Panels
- Team Illinois (University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign) with Re_home, chose the SunPower® E18 / 230 Solar Panels
- Team Massachusetts (University of Massachusetts at Lowell and Massachusetts College of Art and Design) with 4D Home, featuring the SunPower® E19 / 240 Solar Panels
- Team Middlebury College (Middlebury College) with Self-Reliance, using the SunPower® E18 / 225 Solar Panels
- Team New York (City College of New York) with Solar RoofPod, selected the SunPower® E19 / 240 Solar Panels
- Team Purdue (Purdue University) with INhome, will install the SunPower® E19 / 238 Solar Panels
The winners of the 2005, 2007 and 2009 Solar Decathlon competitions used SunPower solar panels. SunPower panels offer the maximum power from a limited roof space, a key design requirement for the decathletes, as well as residences and businesses everywhere.
Interested in learning more about the SunPower teams at the 2011 U.S. Department of Energy Solar Decathlon? We are excited to host a series of guest blog posts about the six Solar Decathlon homes powered by SunPower at this year's competition.
In our original schematic design proposal, we described our vision of reinventing the New England farmhouse, a long-standing American symbol of home. With no idea of how we'd fare against other submissions, and an added application phase due to a surplus of proposals, we eagerly awaited a response from the DOE. On April 6, 2010, the announcement came. We were in! Enthusiastic screaming ensued… until a student stood up and said "Let's get to work!"
Over the past year and half leading up to this year’s Solar Decathlon, we put ourselves to work. Long hours and hard decisions became even more tedious as our team continued to grow. Over 85 students from more than 25 different majors played an active role in the project. We drew on chemistry majors to do our materials research and English majors to write our fundraising materials, turning our perceived limitation as a liberal arts school into our greatest strength. Our interdisciplinary background encouraged us to take a unique approach towards the engineering challenge of creating a 100% net-zero energy home by incorporating our appreciation for the humanities into an integrated design process.
We crafted our design around our target client: a young New England family of four. With a maximum of 1,000 square feet of finished floor space to work with, and the goal of having a separate children's bedroom, we allocated space efficiently. We maximized space with our southern-facing gable roof and added a loft as a storage and multipurpose area. We integrated a greenhouse-wall into the kitchen, allowing family members to grow their own produce from seed to plate. To reduce embodied energy, we incorporated local natural materials that are healthy for both the inhabitants and the surrounding environment. We employed passive techniques and simple active systems, with a user-friendly interface for parents and kids to observe their energy usage. Demonstrating that solar-powered homes can be comfortable and appealing for families was one of our team's top priorities at the 2011 Solar Decathlon.
Selecting our solar panels was a big decision. We chose to partner with SunPower, an company that shares our commitment to renewable energy and environmental stewardship. SunPower was able to provide the highest solar panel efficiency for our project, generating more than 6.75 kW on a sunny day. Instead of consuming electricity generated from coal, natural gas, nuclear material or other non-renewable sources, Self-Reliance meets its energy needs with solar power – a clean, green technology that is available to home and business owners across the world.
Team members installed our all black SunPower E18/225 solar panels during the construction of Self-Reliance this past summer in Middlebury, Vermont, then disassembled and reassembled the system for the competition in West Potomac Park on the National Mall and are currently disassembling the solar array for shipment back to Vermont.
Middlebury College will use the house for special interest housing, where students will apply to live on a per semester basis. Our home will serve as an environmental outreach center for dinners, speakers and educational events open to both the campus and the local community. It was incredible sharing our home with over 15,000 visitors on the National Mall. Now it's time to bring the house home, where it will continue to be an educational tool that demonstrates the livability and affordability of solar-powered homes.
You can learn more about our team and Self-Reliance on our blog.
Communications Coordinator, Team Middlebury College Self-RELIANCE
Middlebury, VT, United States
Prior to the competition in Washington, D.C, Team Illinois provided tours to those interested in the home within the university and in the larger community. Re_home was a stop for many summer camps, enabling young people to learn about solar panels and sustainable design.
Our model home placed 7th overall in the competition, and we received first place in the Appliances and Energy Balance categories. The students on Team Illinois had a great experience in Washington D.C. We were very impressed with all 19 homes at this year’s competition.
- Innovation through simplicity rather than complexity
- Longevity of materials and systems
- Working in an integrated collaborative design process
- Using singular technologies for multiple functions
- Generating context driven design solutions
4D Home was recently sold to a family in Maine. We are thrilled that the house will be used as it was originally intended, as a home for a real New England family.
Today on the blog, we're unveiling a new series of ongoing posts called 'Solar Basics'. These posts are intended to answer frequent questions we receive about solar power, ranging from how solar works to some tips for finding the right solar solution for you. If you have any questions you’d like answered, please post them to our Facebook page or leave them in the blog comments for any Solar Basics posting.
Kilowatt (kW) is a measure of power. It’s important to understand that power is a rate statistic that measures the flow of energy conversion within a system (and not the energy itself). When describing a solar installation, kilowatts provide a measure of system capacity. For instance, a 10 kW system acting at full capacity will have 10 kW of energy flowing through at any singular moment.
Kilowatt-hour (kWh) is a measure of electricity. Unlike kilowatts, kilowatt-hour is not a rate statistic and is cumulative. In fact, kilowatt-hours represent the amount of power (in kilowatts) used over a period of time (hours).
Now back to solar. Let’s say you have a guest over who wants to know how much energy you're producing with your SunPower rooftop installation. You have a 'perfect' 10 kW AC power system that includes all system and module level losses, meaning that at peak production the system is producing exactly 10 kW of power. From 10 am to 4 pm, your system is running at full capacity (a perfect solar day!) with peak sun hours of 5.8 hours. And thanks to SunPower’s market-leading panel efficiency, less roof space is required to capture the 10 kW system output and feed it into your home. To compute the energy output of those six hours, follow this simple calculation:
10 kW AC x 5.8 peak sun hours = 50 kWh from 10am to 4pm
That’s a lot of energy! We hope this helps clear up any confusion around kilowatts and kilowatt-hours. And if you’re a SunPower customer, be sure to check out our in-home monitoring tool to get up-to-date readings of how many kilowatt-hours your system is producing each day.
If you have any further questions or comments, please post them to our Facebook page or leave them below.
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