Capacity Factor Of Solar Panel

The absorption depends on the energy of the photon and the band gap energy of the solar semiconductor material and it is expressed in electron volt ev.

Capacity factor of solar panel.

The sunlight is a group of photons having a finite amount of energy. The capacity factor is a general term for all power generating systems and refers to the difference between what the system can achieve at continuous 100 output the power rating versus what it actually achieves under normal less than 100 operating conditions. A post i wrote a little over two years ago concluded that solar pv capacity factors in the us ranged between 13 and 19 with an average of around 16. You may hear your solar installer say it s a 255 watt panel or the panel i am recommending is has a wattage of 300.

Power output or wattage is an important factor to consider when comparing solar panel options. Recently however the us energy information agency published a table showing an average capacity factor of around 28 for utility sized pv plants in the us in 2015. In the real world most solar panels tend to have efficiencies in the 16 19 range though some manufacturers like mission and sunpower have higher end panels that have efficiencies exceeding 20. Displaystyle frac 4 200 000 mbox mw h 365 mbox days times 24 mbox hours day times 2 080 mbox mw 0 23 23.

How to design and install a solar pv system. As we have seen the capacity factor varies quite a bit for solar photovoltaic systems depending on the location. Generally it is in the range of 10 25. For the generation of electricity by the cell it must absorb the energy of the photon.

Taking the average figure for annual generation gives a capacity factor of. Or when you are reading a quote from a solar installer you might see numbers like 245w 300w or 345w next to the name of the panel. Consequently the capacity factor of the solar energy system here is much lower than that of phoenix at about 16. If this value were estimated using dc capacity the dc capacity factor would be about 22.

Low solar pv capacity factors relative to other forms of generation have been a common criticism directed at renewables but the study suggests that while ideally sited and designed pv systems. The capacity factor for solar panels varies between 15 and 40. 4 200 000 mw h 365 days 24 hours day 2 080 mw 0 23 23. Working of a solar cell.