Peak power of residential solar panel installation
solarenergy5
| Posted in Energy Efficiency and Durability on
Hi I found this video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9AmxsH59jOc&list=PL_Pa7uRjhyOC6qCDBrnbBQ8N9OBSFqnau&index=8
and would like to know whether the calculations could be done a simpler way. any suggestions would be appreciated.thanks!
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Replies
Why do you care about the peak power - what is the application of this number? Usually we care more about the amount of power received over the course of a typical day. There are datasets to help with that:
https://www.nrel.gov/gis/solar.html
Basically, to get peak power you need to factor in efficiency, angle (both of mount and of solar angle at a particular time of year and time of day), area of the panel, and atmospheric conditions.
Nominal 'perfect' atmospheric conditions are 1000W/m^2 of ground area with the sun straight overhead. In addition to all this geometry, there is an atmospheric absorption factor that becomes significant when the sun is low in the sky.
In the video you linked, the guy is working through a whole example of trying to power a specific load. Most of that math is done for you.